Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . .

Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 2002 Week 7 Hansard (4 June) . . Page.. 1834 ..

MR STANHOPE (continuing):

The fact of the matter is that the Liberals in the Commonwealth parliament, through Mr Kemp, are determined to stop this government building Gungahlin Drive on the route on which this government said it would be built. You cannot dispute that.

Mr Pratt: We can dispute that.

MR STANHOPE: You cannot dispute that. You have not been listening to Kemp. You have not been listening to the AIS or the Australian Sports Commission. You have not been listening to what they say. However, your federal colleagues, the federal Liberal Party-and you are complicit-are determined to stop Gungahlin Drive being built on the western route. You will do whatever you can do to stop it or delay it, because you think there is some short-term, tawdry political point to be scored through either stopping the development of the road or delaying it, and the timetable that has been announced.

This is a moot point. We have the NCA apparently suggesting that they will not countenance the construction of Gungahlin Drive along the western route unless all of the AIS' concerns are addressed. So, despite everything that the ACT government has done-all those reports, the planning, the engineering studies it has instituted, everything that it has suggested it is prepared to do-if the AIS come along after all that and say, "Too bad. We are still not satisfied," the NCA will say, "That is it. You cannot have the road."

Interestingly, now the Australian Sports Commission is suggesting that it will not necessarily even be satisfied with Gungahlin Drive on the eastern route. That is what it is now suggesting. What is the Liberal Party response to that? There would be no Gungahlin Drive at all on either the eastern or the western route, because the AIS objects, and the NCA has said that, so long as the AIS has an objection, the NCA will not approve the route. Do you support that position? Have you abandoned your commitment to the people of Gungahlin to the extent that you are prepared to cop that?

Mr Humphries: No.

MR STANHOPE: You obviously do support that, because you are not prepared to protest.

Mr Humphries: Build the road tomorrow on the eastern route.

MR STANHOPE: We cannot do that, as the NCA will not approve that, because your federal Liberal colleagues will not agree to it. You have urged them not to agree to it, because you think there is some short-term political point scoring yet to be done on this. Let me tell you this: the people of Gungahlin have woken up. The people of Gungahlin know what you are doing.

Mr Humphries: Is there an answer to Mrs Dunne's question anywhere in this diatribe?

MR SPEAKER: Well, Mr Humphries, I have to say, I thought the subject-

Mr Humphries: The question was does he stand by the comments Mr Corbell has made about building the road on time, within budget, on the preferred route.

Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . .