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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 1999 Week 3 Hansard (25 March) . . Page.. 872 ..

MR HIRD (continuing):

Some of the world's leading rally teams will descend on Canberra in May for the FAI Rally of Canberra and the prestigious Asia-Pacific Rally Championship, which is the only international car rally held on the east coast of Australia. It attracts stars from Asia, Europe and the Pacific Rim countries. The Asia-Pacific Championship is one of the world's premier off-road motor sports competitions. It is second only in status to the World Rally Championship.

What we have here, Mr Speaker, is a catalogue of events which are of enormous benefit to the Canberra community and the economy and which emphasise the need to market those events to the widest possible audience - jobs, jobs, jobs. Of course, Mr Speaker, these events do not just happen. Thousands of Canberrans spend tens - even hundreds - of thousands of hours on securing the events for the Territory and on promoting and providing the necessary infrastructure and support to ensure their success. Again, take the example of the Royal Canberra Show. It would not be anywhere near the outstanding event that it is if the excellence of the facilities was not universally recognised and the professionalism of the organisers was not accepted as being of the highest and most competent level possible.

All sectors of the community are involved in putting together an event of this nature and magnitude. Branches of the Government are involved with the EPIC authorities in developing the facility and surrounding precincts. The show society spends countless hours on planning and organising such an event. Traffic and public transport management logistics are of the highest standards and are indicative of the level of cooperation between the Government, the private sector and the community organisers which are essential to the successful conduct of these major events. Various clubs and societies are responsible for specific aspects of the show, and untold numbers of individuals spend the year preparing exhibits and products for displays, for competition and for sale. The people involved are not all paid employees; in fact, most offer their services in a voluntary capacity. However, paid or voluntary, the expertise is beyond question.

At the Royal Canberra Show in excess of 1,000 volunteers are needed to put together in excess of 9,000 exhibits, with an estimated value of around $20m. These volunteers include schoolchildren, who receive valuable training, and service groups such as Rotary and Rural Youth. To these people the show is not just measured on an economic scale; it is an important part of Canberra's and the region's social fabric.

The FAI Rally of Canberra is another interesting event. For years certain people have tried to knock this event and have asked questions as to the Government's involvement in its promotion and conduct. To the Chief Minister's credit, she has been the driving force behind the acquisition of this worthy activity. Despite this knocking, a hardworking core of administrators, again paid and unpaid, has worked tirelessly to ensure not only the continuance of the event, but also its actual growth. I mention players such as James Service, managing director of the Canberra Tourism and Events Corporation; David Marshall, chief executive officer of the Canberra Tourism and Events Corporation; Cliff Egan, the general manager of Exhibition Park, who has taken that facility from a minus to a plus, to his credit and that of his staff; and Steve Dobbie, the

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