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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 1998 Week 3 Hansard (28 May) . . Page.. 719 ..

MS CARNELL (continuing):

Mr Speaker, the ACT Government put in money to ensure that the ACT's legal position was well looked after in the preliminary agreement that was reached between Mr Whitcombe and the ACT Government. That is exactly the sort of thing that those opposite should have done when they went into the Harcourt Hill arrangement. If those opposite had bothered to get a proper legal situation for the ACT Government maybe we would not have been $20m in the hole.

Mr Quinlan: Answer the question.

MR SPEAKER: Order! Settle down, everybody.

MS CARNELL: Mr Speaker, as people have seen in the draft capital works program, maybe we would not have to be putting $3m in there for capital works at Harcourt Hill that those opposite promised contractually to the people who were at Harcourt Hill. Mr Speaker, that shows what happens when governments - - -

Mr Quinlan: Answer the question.

MR SPEAKER: Order!

MS CARNELL: Mr Speaker, I would be noisy if I were them, too, because it is embarrassing for them. They went into a commercial joint venture without proper legal advice, and look what happened. I think it is always appropriate to pay for good legal advice in any areas like this. We did, and it has obviously worked for the ACT.

Rural Residential Development

MS TUCKER: My question is also to the Chief Minister. It follows up on the answer that you just gave, Mrs Carnell. What I am really interested to know from you is this: Why are you spending taxpayers' money by asking PALM to support the development of a long-term strategic plan with the Hall community if you are telling us in this place that, whether they like it or not, they are getting rural residential development?

MS CARNELL: Mr Speaker, PALM does not set Government policy.

Mr Humphries: We went to an election on this. We promised this in an election.

Mr Corbell: Mr Hird did not tell them when he went to Hall.

MR SPEAKER: Order!

MS CARNELL: As I have said before in this place, PALM does not set Government policy. PALM is part of the Government; therefore, it implements Government policy. We have asked PALM to look at rural residential development to determine how it should be done most efficiently. Before this election we wrote to the people of Hall and told them categorically that we were committed to rural residential development in that area. And guess what. They voted for us. Guess who won the Hall booths. Who won the Hall booths significantly? We did.

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