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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 2001 Week 3 Hansard (7 March) . . Page.. 770 ..

MR HUMPHRIES (continuing):

He said that he supported it in last year's budget, and I wonder how he demonstrated that support. He did so by voting against the budget. I would be interested to hear how voting against something can be a demonstration of support for it. You will have to explain that sometime to me, Mr Quinlan. I really do not understand that.

We all know that threshold increases in payroll tax make a big difference in the profitability and therefore the employment capacity of businesses in the territory. We need to keep that going. I think we have a very good record. I think the business community understands that and ordinary Canberrans, who benefited from the creation of those 17,000 jobs in the last six years, also understand it.

KLA housing study

MR WOOD: My question is to Mr Moore, the minister for housing. I understand that the government's review of the KLA study of the stock transfer from ACT Housing to Community Housing Canberra was to have been conducted in January. By that time, the government had had that report for quite a time. It is now March and we still have not seen what the government thinks of it or is going to do. You might confirm for me how long the government has had that KLA report and when it will be publicly released with your comment on it.

MR MOORE: I will take that question on notice and come back to the member.

MR WOOD: Add to that on-notice bit, if you would, Mr Moore. I have had numbers of calls in recent time from members of community housing groups who assert there is a hold on any transfer. They have been promised houses by the community housing group they belong to, but there seems to be a hold, and they are anxious that things get moving. Would you tell me in your answer whether there is any relationship between the delay in this report coming out and the hold on what has been happening? Things need to get moving so that people can get into houses.

MR MOORE: I agree that we need to ensure that we move more quickly on the transfer from ACT Housing to Community Housing. I understand that people are waiting and there has been a concern. There was a concern about getting agreement from the Auditor-General as to the way to treat the transfer of housing in accounting terms. I felt it was appropriate-and the advice from ACT Housing was that it was appropriate-that we sort that problem out prior to any transfer of housing. I understand that that has now been resolved, so I expect that we can move reasonably quickly. I will be asking the department and ACT Housing to do that.

Problem gambling

MR KAINE: My question is to the Chief Minister and Treasurer. I note that the ACT Gambling and Racing Commission has now embarked on a comprehensive study which hopefully will reveal the true extent and impact of problem gambling in the ACT. This was the subject of one of the key recommendations of the Select Committee on Gambling about a year and a half ago, so it is timely that this review is taking place. From information I have had, particularly from the media, it would appear that the study-which is headed by Professor Jan McMillan of the University of Western

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