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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 2001 Week 5 Hansard (3 May) . . Page.. 1466 ..

MR RUGENDYKE (continuing):

The government has made a concerted effort to highlight that there are no increased taxes in 2001-02, but I would like to mention briefly a couple of revenue earners that are, I suppose, pseudo taxes. I note that the four-year forecast for traffic infringements fines released last year reached a peak of $7.5 million. The estimated revenue for 2001-02 was $7.3 million, but that has been revised to $11.5 million, a jump of $4.2 million. It is now expected to peak at $12 million. That certainly is a substantial income that has been generated in this electoral term, and the budget has another $847,000 for additional red light and speed cameras, so the revenue can only increase.

The other example is gaming machine taxes. My disdain for poker machines is well known in this place, but it is important to raise this social issue again in light of the government's apparent concerns for dealing with poverty. Poker machines are targeted at the most vulnerable people and the people who can least afford it. There has been no increase in the poker machine cap, and it is to be extended, yet we have seen an increase in revenue and forecast revenue from poker machines. Last year the four-year forecast was estimated to peak at $22.6 million, but this budget estimates returning $29 million in the 2001-02 financial year, rising to almost $31 million in 2004-05.

I am aware that the Gambling and Racing Commission is conducting a review of the gaming laws in the ACT. I am also aware that Victoria and New South Wales are moving well ahead of the ACT in introducing reforms to curb the problem. I remain committed to supporting such initiatives, and I urge the government to adopt measures that will drive down poker machine usage, regardless of the impacts on revenue.

The draft budget process has again attracted criticism. I reiterate that I like the concept and I would like to see it continue. There is still some tweaking required to get the process right. In the first year we had too much information to consume in a short period of time. This year there was not enough information. So we have to find a balance somewhere in between.

I would also like a greater effort to promote more involvement from the community. There were some excellent submissions received from the community this year, and I believe that the Assembly should strive to build on this platform.

There are some other issues that I look forward to hearing more information on in the Estimates Committee process. For example, how will the resources for the 10 new Gungahlin police be utilised? The Gungahlin community has been waiting a number of years to have police personnel devoted to their area. Will these police be taken from other areas? I personally would like to see the suburban police program-the beat police-extended and expanded. I would like to see police more closely associated with schools and communities as a key measure of getting on top of crime in the suburbs.

Hospitals and schools are two key areas we have to examine closely to determine whether the government has got the allocations right. It is clear that in the last couple of years the government has shovelled onto schools, under school-based management, too many expenses that should have been provided for in the first place. I use the airconditioning issue at Gordon over the last summer as a case in point. Crucial school funding should be invested in educating our kids rather than on fundamental maintenance and infrastructure.

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