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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 1997 Week 11 Hansard (4 November) . . Page.. 3528 ..

MR BERRY: My question is directed to the Chief Minister. Last week advertising appeared on the facility which is sometimes disguised as the lakeside arena or the multipurpose arena but which is more commonly known by the multitudes as the Futsal slab down by the lake. A phone call to the National Capital Authority confirmed that no approval had been given for these advertisements. The signs were taken down on Saturday.

Mr Hird: They blew away.

MR BERRY: No. They were taken down and cleared away. They certainly were not there on Sunday. They were taken down on Saturday, and the poles came down today. Can the Chief Minister confirm that the only reason the signs and poles came down was that they were illegal and had not been approved?

MRS CARNELL: Actually, I cannot say that. The signs that went up, I am advised, Mr Speaker, were put up by the management committee that manages the multipurpose stadium down by the lake. That management committee includes people such as Jim Roberts from ACTSport and people from the YMCA. They made that decision. I am told that they sought NCA approval. I understand that they are meeting with the NCA either today or tomorrow on the issue. It appears that what actually happened to the flags was that they blew down in the rather strong wind on the night that they came down, whenever that was.

Mr Whitecross: They just blew down.

Mr Wood: It was the hand of God.

MR SPEAKER: Would you be quiet, Mr Whitecross and Mr Wood.

MRS CARNELL: When it became obvious to my office that there was no approval for the signs, we directed that the poles come down until such time as approval was granted.

MR BERRY: I have a supplementary question, Mr Speaker. Since the ads contained political messages, will the Chief Minister please assure this house that in future she will comply with the Electoral Act and ensure that appropriate authorisation is placed at the bottom of the signs?

MRS CARNELL: I could not make up my mind whether to be extraordinarily pleased and actually flattered by Mr Berry's comments on this issue or, alternatively, to ask myself but again how he could be so misguided. I understand - and I heard Mr Berry actually say it on radio, and he seems to have said it again now - that every sign that is put up in this city is obviously approved by me. Obviously, it happens at the direction that I give.

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