Page 2199 - Week 07 - Tuesday, 15 August 2006
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The same applies to Canberra nursing students. While there have been some compensations made by the government, they are still not enough. Altogether, we see a situation where people who go to Canberra Hospital out of a duty of care and love for their families—that is, they are going there because they have to go there, not for some recreational or shopping reason—are now going to be forced to pay for parking.
In the first instance they now have the obligation to pay for their parking. In the second instance, if they have to spend a significant amount of time there, as some do, from day to day, they have to be able to get outside and plug those machines to continue to be able to park. That is a serious inconvenience to people visiting that place who are not feeling particularly relaxed.
What about day patients? What about patients in general who have to park their cars? I do not see, in the government’s regime, sufficient provisions put in place to cover for families who urgently attend or find they have to stay for a few hours to look after a loved one. I do not think the government has thought this through.
The other point I make is that the government say they have no choice in the need to regulate parking to ensure that the right people, those who deserve to park there, park there. They say they have to put a pay parking regime in place. The government has not been able to produce, to table—and, again, we asked them in estimates—the rationale and the proof that the Canberra Hospital parking precinct is being overwhelmed by commuter parkers. I have no doubt that there will be some dedicated commuter parkers parking in that place.
If the government is going to receive the support of this Assembly and the opposition of this tremendous impost on the Canberra community, they need to take us into their confidence and show us the detail of why Canberra Hospital has been invaded by a significant number of commuter parkers. They have not done that.
The Red Cross is an essential service; it is an emergency service. Yes, it is not an ACT government agency or government department, quango or anything else, but it is an NGO. It is a non-government organisation which has both a national and a domestic presence. They provide a life-saving service.
We expect the Red Cross to be able to collect blood, do it professionally and do it carefully. I think the pay parking that is imposed on their staff and those who volunteer to go and give blood is another impost which makes their day at work just that much harder.
What about Alcoholics Anonymous? AA meet at the hospital on Saturdays. They are saying that half of their members are now not attending because of this pay parking regime. I think the government has made a great mistake and I will be calling upon them to reverse that policy.
The Assembly adjourned at 6.15 pm.
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