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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 1998 Week 7 Hansard (23 September) . . Page.. 2068 ..

MS CARNELL (continuing):

We then brought on board a manager for ACTION, Guy Thurston. I would hope we would all agree, apart from some of those opposite, that he is an extraordinarily competent manager who has done everything in his power to achieve what we are all after, and that is a bus system, a public transport system, that gives the people of Canberra a good service but at an appropriate cost.

Mr Speaker, when we stood for election earlier this year we did it on a fundamental platform of financial management; of bringing our budget back under control and getting value for the taxpayers' dollar. I believe we have a mandate for that.

Mr Berry: Oh, go away.

MS CARNELL: There is no doubt, Mr Berry, that that election was fought on the basis of financial management. It was fought on the basis that the people of Canberra do not accept that we should deliver a debt for our children - in this case a debt with regard to ACTION. A debt for what? Not for better services.

Not one person has been able to get up and argue that we are spending all this money for the best services in Australia, Mr Speaker. They are not the best services in Australia at all. In fact, according to the Canberra Times, we have some of the worst services, at least on a value for dollar base. Nobody in this place should support that. Nobody should accept that we are not getting value for the dollar; that we do not have as good a public transport system as we should have for the money we are spending. That is the bottom line here. It amazes me that anyone in this Assembly can be even suggesting for one moment that the Government should continue to sit on its hands and allow a situation that has not been getting progressively better over quite a long period of time; a situation where we are still spending potentially 20 per cent more for the services that we are getting than we should be. No member should accept that, Mr Speaker, and this Government will not accept that.

Mr Kaine has commented in this house before that he believes that we have to do something about the cost of ACTION. I could quote Mr Kaine at length but I will not because I know Mr Kaine believes that, as I know Mr Osborne does. Mr Osborne brought down a Bill earlier today in this house about financial management and about not spending money that we do not have. Mr Rugendyke has made similar comments. That is what this is about. It is not about the Government pulling out of public transport. This Government believes strongly that public transport is essential. We will continue to meet community service obligations for public transport, but this Government believes - - -

Mr Berry: But less of them though.

MS CARNELL: No, not less of them. What we want to do is make sure that the people of Canberra are getting the service that they deserve.

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