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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 1999 Week 4 Hansard (20 April) . . Page.. 964 ..

Mr Smyth: That does not follow.

MR HARGREAVES: I hear the Minister saying that it is not the most dangerous. Well, that is a revelation to me. A casual observer there at around 3.30 in the afternoon will find a most dangerous situation. I do not know how many times I have to go there and see it for myself, hoping each time that I go that something has changed. Not so. My contact with the staff at both of those two institutions confirms their concern, and I would urge this Government to think more seriously about this situation. It will not go away. Neither will I, and I intend to keep raising it until it gets done.

Mr Speaker, I agree with the recommendation from this committee that the Minister report to this Assembly at the end of April on what exactly he is going to do, and what is a permanent and proper solution to this problem. If, in fact, that report is forthcoming to the Assembly by the end of April and it does contain a permanent solution to it, I will be the first to stand in this place and congratulate the Minister on it. As they say in Aussie football parlance, Mr Speaker, "I'd like to see that", and I do not think I will.

I will now go on to some concerns that I have regarding the provision for the ACT prison in these capital works programs. There are a couple of points that I would like to make. Firstly, the report is critical of the lack of a business plan, yet the Chief Minister stood up here not too long ago and said, "We don't want to do Ainslie Public School; there is no business plan". Well, she cannot have it both ways. I draw your attention to paragraphs 3.23 to 3.26 regarding the business plan for the prison rather than repeat it here.

Mr Speaker, in the 1998-99 capital works proposals there was $500,000 put in the program for forward design works. That is the work which connects the development of a program with the construction. That is the connector. That is the bridge between the ideas and the bricks and mortar. Mr Speaker, it is missing from this year's capital works program. There is nothing in it for forward design works. Mr Speaker, if it is true that that is what the Government has - and I will refer to this a little later - in terms of its boo-to-a-goose approach, then you will notice that the $500,000 is possibly coming out of the $12m in the first year. That shrinks the value of the prison.

Everybody that I spoke to in the first six months of my checking of this said that the prison has to cost us about $35m. I understand the Minister, and I accept the Minister's view that this is an indication only and it may grow. It may not grow as well, Mr Speaker. Certainly, if this exclusion of $500,000 for forward design work has not been provided and has to be provided out of the first $12m, it is not going to grow; it is going to have to shrink, because that is what is happening. It is absolutely incredible, Mr Speaker (Extension of time granted) I thank members.

Mr Speaker, the department, whilst it was criticised for not really coming up with business plans and all that much information, nonetheless provided to the committee information on costings of the prison. The Standing Committee on Justice and Community Safety has been looking for that information for nearly a year, or maybe longer than that. We keep waiting for the Government's submission on it, and it is a case

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