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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 2004 Week 10 Hansard (Wednesday, 25 August 2004) . . Page.. 4160 ..

is properly followed through is dependent on the actions of principals and individual teachers. The government has failed to learn the lessons of the best schools in the government sector and apply values-based education and the lessons learned from those schools across the government and non-government schooling sector. There is no departmental benchmark.

Teachers will say that they teach values, and many do. Many principals make sure that they have values-based education. But there is no ACT standard. There is no departmental directive to ensure that all schools are supported and guided by government to ensure that those values are in place. There is no leadership. There is a failure in that regard and it is a failure of the government.

Let’s look at policing. We have one of the best police forces in Australia. We have one of the most sophisticated police forces in the Western world. The members of it are renowned for their skills and their sense of international as well as domestic law when serving in tough places overseas. We have excellent policemen and women, but they are overstretched. They are not supported by this government.

There has been a failure by this government to deliver on its election promise of 2001 of raising the average number of police in the ACT per head of population to at least the national average. If the government had done that, it would have built some more depth into our police force and would have removed a burden from the shoulders of so many of our police who are overstretched.

There has been a failure to ensure the retention of our experienced police. There has been a failure to do something about overtime. Tired police will not take on overtime because they are simply overstretched. It would seem that the ACT police force depends on overtime to plug some of the gaps. That is not good enough. It is a failure of governance.

How about the failure to keep the Belconnen police station open to serve and protect the north Canberra community for the three hours it was closed on Wednesday, 21 July 2004? How about the undermanning of police stations and police station teams? That is a failure of good governance. How about the failure to serve and protect the residents of Gungahlin 24 hours a day, seven days a week? The Gungahlin police station closes now at 10.00 pm each night, a decision taken some time ago because of gaps in police strength. How about the failure to be transparent with the public about police numbers, sworn and unsworn police officers, and the levels of experienced police?

Let’s look at business. It is absolutely clear-cut that this government has failed to support Canberra business through its policies. One has only to look at the introduction of draconian industrial manslaughter legislation. I commend the government for upgrading OH&S and putting in place outstanding mechanisms that were required in OH&S, but there was no need to go the extra metre and introduce industrial manslaughter legislation. The government could have been much more imaginative and a lot fairer in the application of those laws.

Was the introduction of the right of entry of a union to a workplace necessary? No, it was not. The provision of more substantial support and assets to WorkCover to provide safety education would have plugged the gap and there would have been no need even to talk about the right of entry of a union to a workplace. What does it do to the morale and

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