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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 2003 Week 3 Hansard (12 March) . . Page.. 922 ..

Mr Wood: That is what I do.

MR CORNWELL: You may do it and I may do it. What about the other 320,000 people who live there? What happens when somebody is drinking soft drink from a bottle, or eating something at a bus stop, when the bus comes along? You cannot eat and drink on a bus. What do you do? You deck it.

Mr Wood: No.

MR CORNWELL: If there is not a bin there, it just goes onto the ground. You say no, Mr Minister, and I say no, as do most other people. It is unrealistic of any government to expect people to take these things home. The fact is, human nature being what it is, most of them will not do it. We need bins at bus stops and in other public areas. You have only to look around public areas with rubbish bins-some people can't even walk across and put their rubbish into a bin. What hope have you got, if there is no bin at all?

The second question I asked was, "How many charges for littering have been attempted?"For 1999-2000, 49; for 2000-01, 49; in the half year-2001-02 to 31 December 2001, 28. We have had 31, 35, and 17 infringements paid in that time for a mind-boggling $5,700, $7,750, and $3,700-some commitment to litter; some commitment to fighting the litterbugs around this town. That is an appalling figure.

Ms MacDonald stands up here and talks about concern at the amount of rubbish continuing to be generated since Clean Up Australia Day began in 1990. I can tell you this, Ms MacDonald-your government is doing nothing to stop it. Until we start taking action against litterbugs in a very harsh and heavy manner, it is not going to work.

We all have a responsibility to this, just as people outside do. There is nothing to stop us from reporting litterbugs-but, of course, that does not always work either. The Minister for Urban Services promised that an updated Litter Act would be introduced. It was expected to be introduced in the Assembly during the spring 2002 sittings.

I admit that Mr Wood came back, in answer to my question about this, and said:

I notice it is on the autumn list, and I thank you, minister, for that. I will also be looking and expecting-as you well know because I have written to you about it-that I would like an amendment to the Litter Act so that the registered owner of a motor vehicle receives the infringement notice if somebody litters from that vehicle. At the present time, we have a situation where whoever throws the rubbish out of the vehicle is liable for the fine. Guess what happens? "I was not driving it". That is what happens-the owner simply states they were not driving the vehicle. "I am sorry. I don't know who drove it. We have three children and they all take the car", et cetera.

I suggest we introduce a rule similar to the rule we have for speeding fines. As you know, businesses were saying, "I am sorry, we have no idea who was driving the vehicle

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