Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . .

Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 1998 Week 10 Hansard (26 November) . . Page.. 3124 ..

MR SMYTH (continuing):

This amendment is in response to the Standing Committee on Urban Services' recommendation that we provide a review provision for the Act. It provides for a review after two years and the report must be tabled in the Assembly.

MR CORBELL (5.50): The Labor Party welcomes the amendment. This was another useful recommendation from the Urban Services Committee report. The amendment recognises a provision originally suggested by, I think, the Environmental Defender's Office and accords with, if I recall correctly, procedures that other governments have adopted in other States or Territories.

Amendment agreed to.

Remainder of Bill, by leave, taken as a whole

MR CORBELL (5.51): I want to take the opportunity at this stage of the debate to place on record my thanks to a number of officials in Environment ACT who are present in the gallery this evening and an official whose face I cannot see, Mr Gary Croston, who has also been involved with this Bill for some time. This Bill is one of the first Bills and the issue of water regulation allocations is one of the first things I received a briefing on when I became a member of this place in 1997. I still have some material that Mr Burnett from Environment ACT provided to me at the time. I know that they worked for a very long time on this Bill. Whilst, obviously, we are not entirely satisfied with the outcome of it, I have no doubt that it will be a relief to those officials in Environment ACT that the Bill will now pass the Assembly and they can get on with the very important work of making all the different assessments they have to make before this legislation can take effect. So, I would like to place on the record my thanks to those officers for the briefings they provided to me personally and for the very effective and thorough advice they provided to the Standing Committee on Urban Services.

MR SMYTH (Minister for Urban Services) (5.52): I, too, rise in this place to thank those that have had something to do with this Bill. I thank fellow members of the Assembly for the way that it has been progressed after so many false starts. I am very pleased that it is through, because it truly is a landmark piece of legislation for the ACT in that we now can control our own water resources in a reasonable manner. I reiterate to the Assembly that we will review the situation after two years to make sure that the legislation functions properly and that it does all that is intended of it. I look forward to confirmation of that in two years' time.

I also would add to Brian, to Gary Croston, who is not there, and to Peter Burnett my thanks for their assistance in this regard. As a new Minister, this is the first time I have taken a Bill of this size through the Assembly. I am very grateful to them. I am also glad that circumstances conspired to get Mr Burnett here. I received a note from Mr Burnett saying that he had been called away to another matter that he had to attend to urgently

Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . .