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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 1999 Week 4 Hansard (21 April) . . Page.. 1061 ..

MS CARNELL: I have to say that, if Mr Osborne wants one, it is a bit late. Unfortunately, the concert promoters cancelled the concert this morning. They cancelled because the ticket sales as of this morning were under 5,000. I think they were after in the vicinity of 12,000 and they perceived that it was impossible to sell that number of tickets in the run-up to next week.

Mr Speaker, I think it is really quite tragic that the concert has been cancelled. It is tragic because it was an opportunity for Canberra to get on the national concert circuit. It really would have given us an opportunity to attract new events to the ACT. Unfortunately, Canberrans decided that they did not want to buy tickets early. I think it really shows again that, if Canberrans do want to go to concerts, they have to buy their tickets before the last couple of days. We simply cannot expect concert promoters to wait until the last minute to know whether the concert is a goer or not.

MR OSBORNE: I am very disappointed to hear that, Chief Minister. Chief Minister, what is it that National Venue Management have done to fulfil their part of the bargain in relation to the marketing of Bruce Stadium, given that their first big event has been a balls-up? One of the commercials that I saw on a bus on my way back before lunchtime said that there would be more balls up than ever at Bruce Stadium and I think we have seen the first. What is it, Chief Minister, that National Venue Management have done? Have they sold the naming rights? How many boxes have they sold? Do they have any more concerts planned? I believe that they are - - -

Ms Carnell: Is this a supplementary to the first one?

MR OSBORNE: It is a supplementary question.

Ms Carnell: It has nothing to do with the first question. Mr Speaker, if Mr Osborne wants an answer to the second question, which I have to say has nothing to do with the John Farnham concert at - - -

MR OSBORNE: I take a point of order, Mr Speaker. It is relevant to the first question because National Venue Management were promoting the John Farnham concert and I asked how the plans were going, and that relates back to them.

Mr Moore: Mr Speaker, speaking to the point of order: Now that Mr Osborne has raised a point of order about whether his supplementary question is relevant or not relevant, you probably ought to rule on it. If that is the case, Mr Speaker, the relevance is tenuous at best.

MS CARNELL: Mr Speaker, it does raise an issue about supplementary questions actually having to have something to do with the first one. Mr Speaker, I think it is important in answering the second question to say that there is no financial risk at all for the stadium or, indeed, the Territory from the concert being cancelled. It is though, as I said before, an opportunity lost. The financial risk resided with the promoters, so the people who would have lost money on the concert were the actual promoters, not the ACT Government. They have done the advertising, they have done all of those sorts of

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