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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 2004 Week 06 Hansard (Tuesday, 22 June 2004) . . Page.. 2302 ..

noticeable deterrent and allowed police to sort out incidents before they became too serious?

MR WOOD: Mr Speaker, I have not stopped anything. The police are responsible for their operational matters. The question you ask, though, is a serious one. I was aware that there was a regular patrol, but I am not aware that it has ceased. There are certainly regular patrols covering the city quite effectively. I will seek a response from the AFP on this particular issue and get back to you.

MR STEFANIAK: Mr Speaker, I have a supplementary question. Minister, on that basis will you undertake to reinstate the patrol? If you are not going to have the patrol reinstated, would you please give the Assembly reasons why not?

MR WOOD: Mr Stefaniak has been police minister in the past and he understands that these are operational matters for the police. If he thought I was butting into the way police made their arrangements, he would be standing up there criticising me. I will seek an explanation but I point out that I do not make those decisions.

Ministerial study trip

MR HARGREAVES: My question is to the minister for housing, Mr Wood. Minister, there has been some media comment about your ministerial visit to the United Kingdom. That comment included a remark that you could have learnt everything from the internet. Is that the case?

MR WOOD: I was surprised, when I came back, to read something about that. Anybody who has been on such a visit has always come back full of information that is just not available except through face-to-face contact. Indeed, when I went away, I had a folder full of internet material as background briefing to the various places I visited. Any material on any of the places that was available—I had it.

The question—since I have been sat down before today—is about use of the internet or personal, face-to-face stuff, and I will stick to that question. There is a whole lot more I could say.

Mr Stanhope: And should say.

MR WOOD: The main purpose of the visit was to explore housing and disability issues.

Mr Stanhope: There are a few things I’d be saying.

MR WOOD: As a good example, I will indicate what happened on one day.

Mrs Burke: What’s your problem, Jon?

Mr Stanhope: You—and your dishonesty. How was your trip to America?

Mrs Burke: I rise on a point of order, Mr Speaker. Could you ask the Chief Minister to withdraw the last comment he just made about me?

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