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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 2001 Week 7 Hansard (19 June) . . Page.. 2064 ..

MR BERRY (continuing):

winning out at this stage. This government has never delivered on the swimming pool. The only government that ever has was a Labor government. It did so, and in the shortest possible period people were swimming in it.

Mr Speaker, the Williamsdale quarry has been the subject of interest in this place, and it will continue to be. It is interesting that in the context of Totalcare the Williamsdale quarry features as an area of controversy. As I said, it will continue to do so even though it was, if wholly owned, an extremely valuable asset for the territory which would have returned better Totalcare dividends to the territory as well as high-quality, low cost aggregate for our own capital works here in the territory. It also presents an opportunity for Totalcare to maintain a good base in business terms out there in the community. But the government instructed Totalcare that they had to sell at least 50 per cent of it, and they have done so.

MR SPEAKER: The member's time has expired.

MR BERRY: I seek an extension, Mr Speaker.

MR SPEAKER: You have another 10 minutes, Mr Berry.

Mr Moore: You have a second opportunity and there are many times. You are not even talking to the Auditor-General's report anyway, are you?

Mr Humphries: A small matter.

Mr Moore: You do it your way, Wayne. It's a small way.

MR SPEAKER: Order! Mr Berry has the call. I will have something to say at the end of the second 10 minutes, thank you, that will involve everybody. Mr Berry, please continue.

MR BERRY: Mr Speaker, as I said, Totalcare were instructed that they could hold no more than 50 per cent in this enterprise, and the joint venturer had only made their final payment in the last month or so, and that was $800,000. I notice that the Estimates Committee said that this was an easy payment plan for the joint venturer. I do not think there is any doubt about that. I know the government did not like what they said, and who is surprised. The joint venturer was able to make payments by instalments and to have 50 per cent say in the enterprise without having paid the money. It is as clear as that. So, Mr Speaker, it was an easy payment plan, and I did not see any sign of interest for the delay in paying the $3.8 million that they were required to pay for their half of it.

What is also interesting in relation to the Williamsdale quarry, Mr Speaker, is that we know that half of it was sold for $3.8 million, but when Totalcare was asked what it was worth they did not know. They said, "We are just working our way through that; we are conducting a review to see what it is worth." Well, I would want to know what something was worth before I sold half of it and set a fee for it.

It was clear to me that Totalcare had sold $3.8 million worth without fully understanding what the venture was worth. We know from the business plan for it that it could be worth something like $50 million for the territory over the life of the quarry. That is an

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