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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 2000 Week 12 Hansard (5 December) . . Page.. 3632 ..

MS CARNELL (continuing):

year there will be banks and built - up areas where people, particularly children, will be able to see the track better.

As well there will be various track improvements. There are sections of the track that are a bit bumpy, and we need to make it better for next year. I think everyone would agree that it would have been better if there had been a couple of areas where the cars could pass better, so we have decided to provide those.

There were other mistakes in the information I gave to the Assembly. One was that I suggested that the benefits to the ACT would be about $10.3 million. The fact is that they were significantly higher than that. They were $12 million. We did better than we expected. More people than we expected attended the race. The flow - on to the accommodation industry was better than we expected. Is Mr Berry saying, "Naughty government, you did better than you expected"?

We are going to invest in doing even better in the future. I think that is terribly appropriate. If Mr Berry thinks that we should not improve the track, improve the viewing areas and improve the whole event, nobody in the tourism industry would agree with him and very few people in retailing or restauranting or the other people who did very well would agree with him. The people who filled the 150 full - time and part - time jobs that were created by the GMC 400 this year probably would not agree with Mr Berry either. It was a very successful event.

Yes, we gave five years worth of figures, and they were not exactly right. We do need more money next year. We also got significantly more benefits this year than we expected. The Assembly can choose not to approve more money. As always, this government has been totally open about the amount of money that will be needed. I made that comment in a statement in the Assembly last week. Nothing is hidden. Mr Berry lives in the past and maybe likes to drive the old Ford around the track slowly on a Sunday afternoon, but others like different types of motor sport. The GMC was very successful.

MR BERRY: I ask a supplementary question. I know the Chief Minister ducked the original question. He might like to have a crack at the supplementary question. Is it not true that the disgraced former Chief Minister has been given a generous job search allowance so that she gets a chance to announce her own disasters and you can avoid the embarrassment?

MR SPEAKER: Order! The question is out of order.

Mr Berry: Why? Don't you want him to answer?

MR SPEAKER: Because it does not refer to the minister's portfolio. I would have thought that you, being such an expert on standing orders, Mr Berry, would understand that.

Mr Berry: Mr Speaker, I am prepared to debate that point.

MR SPEAKER: No, you shall not. You are going to sit down. It is question time.

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