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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 2003 Week 9 Hansard (27 August) . . Page.. 3287 ..

MS TUCKER (continuing):

not like the Greens' position but said that at least we were consistent, and that neither Labor nor Liberal had covered themselves in glory on this one.

That is definitely the case, and I felt some sympathy for them, in the way they have been messed around over the years. We appreciate that some people like motor sport, and we do not say there should not be such a facility at all. However, we are concerned to see that the noise from such a facility does not affect residents. It should not impact on the environment, and nor should it require large amounts of public money.

We have concerns about the vague reference to the location of the motor sport facility in Mr Stefaniak's motion. Areas in the Majura Valley contain significant regions of natural temperate grassland. These areas are declared an endangered ecological community under the ACT's Nature Conservation Act 1980. This habitat is home for two threatened grassland fauna-the golden sun moth and the eastern lined earless dragon-which are also listed under the Nature Conservation Act.

The golden sun moth is currently listed as of the highest conservation value, while the Majura Valley is a critical site for the earless dragon. It is critical that we act to preserve this area and maintain the corridors of endangered grasslands. This motion does not mention a specific site within the Majura Valley, and I am concerned that these sites will become more threatened if this motion is passed. It is also not just about the direct area to be used for a motor sport facility-it is the impact of that on the surrounding areas.

The Greens are also concerned about the government fully subsidising the building of a motor sport facility. Supporters of the dragway in Canberra have claimed that a motor sport facility will significantly contribute to Canberra's economy. Perhaps, then, there is scope for the motor sport facility to be financially self-supporting and for the provision of funding to construct the facility.

The issue of support for motor sport in Canberra is not new. We are all aware of the financial drain of the V8 car race on the territory's budget of in excess of $20 million over a number of years. I recall asking for details of the costs-across all agencies. Mr Quinlan mentioned that the costs were greater than those which appear on paper. I also asked for much more detailed justification for the claims by the proponents and the government of the day, in light of the proclaimed benefits that would come to the ACT.

Mrs Burke mentioned plucking figures out of the air. That is pretty well what the Auditor-General demonstrated had been done by the previous government through the V8 car race. The questions I was asking were certainly justified by the Auditor-General's report.

I make the point that, if we are going to be spending millions of dollars on a motor sport facility, I am very concerned about the priorities of the Liberals. Every day for the last two sitting weeks, and many sitting days before, we have been calling for extra money from this government for essential community services for people who have no choice about their life situation. I am talking about people who have a disability.

Just last week, I was asking about therapy services and reminding members, that we have two occupational therapists across the whole of the ACT-that we have an inadequate supply of therapists for children with a disability. This is supported by numerous reports.

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