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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 2003 Week 2 Hansard (4 March) . . Page.. 457 ..

MS GALLAGHER (continuing):

As to the particulars of the discussions that have been going on between Outward Bound and the department, I am not privy to those.

MR PRATT: Minister, given that there have been some discussions between the department and Outward Bound Australia, and there has been talk of the department taking three months to draft a memorandum of understanding, surely this indicates that there will be 3,000 primary school students denied an opportunity to do their outdoor education, not to mention the fact that 32-

MR SPEAKER: Are you going to come to the supplementary question?

MR PRATT: This is the question. Thirty-two staff of Birrigai have been let go.

MR SPEAKER: It sounds like a pretty long preamble to me. I think you should-

MR PRATT: It started with a question, Mr Speaker: "Given that . . ."

Mr Hargreaves: Given page 45 in the Canberra Times, read verbatim?

MR SPEAKER: Just come to the supplementary question. Do you have a question you want to ask?

MR PRATT: Minister, do I need to repeat that?

Ms Gallagher: I think I have it.

MR SPEAKER: Do you?

MR PRATT: I think she has.

Mr Corbell: No thanks to you, Mr Pratt.

MR SPEAKER: Order, everybody! It was a bit of guesswork on the minister's part, I think.

MS GALLAGHER: I will say it again: the intention is certainly to get the short-term camps replaced as soon as possible. If the advice is that it will take some time to negotiate a memorandum of understanding between the department and whoever it decides to negotiate with-and I do not think the decision has been made about where Birrigai should go in the short term-then I imagine there will be very good reasons for that. Outdoor education is about taking our children into an environment where there are more risks and more opportunities than usual. From my point of view, the department is taking extreme care to make sure all those issues are addressed and that, when the camps do get up and running, the safety of our young people and the teachers is being adequately looked after in the MOU.

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