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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 2002 Week 3 Hansard (6 March) . . Page.. 640 ..
MR STANHOPE (continuing):
There are some intractable issues to be dealt with in this community-intractable issues around poverty, the fact that we have within the community 30,000 people living in poverty. We have some intractable and very difficult issues: difficult issues around substance abuse, difficult issues around how to care for our disabled people and difficult issues around mental health-and they are issues that need to be addressed, that need serious thought, that need planning, that need a strategic plan and that need an approach by us to each of them in a considered way. That is what we are doing. That is what we did. It was money well spent and it will be shown to be money well spent in the context of the changes we make.
I will conclude by informing members for their benefit of the detailed discussion we had on issues in relation to education. The fact is that the previous government was prepared to squander $27 million in a bribe to get kids to school but was not concerned about what happened when they got there. This government will not squander our opportunities in that way. We will not do that. We have a detailed agenda for addressing disadvantage and we will devote the entire $27 million to education. We will do what members opposite could not do. We will not offer these bribes. We will do it in an ordered way, we will do it in a planned way, we will do it in a measured way and we will do it successfully. We will not fall in a hole in the way that you did. We will not let down the people of Canberra in the way that you did.
MRS DUNNE: I have a supplementary question, Mr Speaker. Will the Chief Minister table for the information of the Assembly details of the expenses incurred and the names of all the people in attendance so that we can find out what expenses were incurred on top of those incurred by the facilitators?
MR STANHOPE: One of the other reviews which the government criticised was the review of staffing in this place.
MR SPEAKER: Chief Minister, I think that you should come to the point of the question.
Mr Humphries: Yes or no.
MR STANHOPE: I will give consideration to that.
Gungahlin Drive extension
MR PRATT: My question is to Mr Quinlan, as minister for sport. I refer to your comments in the Canberra Times of 22 February 2002 concerning the possible departure of the AIS from Canberra. You said, "This is now serious and I will become involved." I will return. Have you been participating in meetings between the AIS and PALM over the route of the Gungahlin Drive extension, and does your decision to become involved in this matter reflect a lack of confidence in Mr Corbell's ability to handle this delicate issue?
MR QUINLAN
: I can actually answer those questions in reverse order, so that they do work together. I have complete confidence in Mr Corbell; therefore, it is quite easy, because of all the other things I have to do, to be involved via Mr Corbell. I have been
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