Page 2913 - Week 09 - Wednesday, 20 September 2006
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Mr Barr: There are not 190 children at Cook. You should get your facts right.
MRS DUNNE: Sorry—90 children at Cook. There are eight to a dozen places at Aranda. There are virtually no places at Aranda. There are not enough places at Macquarie. If they choose to go to Aranda there are no places for them, when this minister has guaranteed that they can go to the place of their choice.
We propose to support Dr Foskey’s bill today. I have foreshadowed that we will move amendments to give more teeth to the moratorium bill, because we do not believe that this process should be just a stay of execution. If the moratorium is successful in being passed, we want to see real changes, real inquiry and real discussion with the community.
The minister says, “You do not need to do this, because the statutory requirements are already there.” The statutory requirements are mealy-mouthed, weasel words. The members of the community have not seen any evidence of any of the things that are required in the legislation being done by this minister. There has been no discussion with the community about the social and educational impacts on the community. You have not talked to the Hall community about the financial impact of the closure of Hall preschool and primary school.
Mr Barr: Yes I have, Mrs Dunne. You should get up to date with your facts.
MRS DUNNE: You have not talked to the Hall community about the social, financial and environmental impacts.
Mr Barr: Yes, I have.
MRS DUNNE: When the minister was asked this at the consultation meeting he said it was not the job of government to support individual businesses. That is this minister’s approach to the financial impacts on a rural village like Hall. This minister has not consulted with any community about the impacts this will have on their community.
His officials have not done this. They have gone through the process. They can say that they have been to 650-odd meetings, but quantity does not equal quality in this place. Of the thousands of people in this community who are affected by these closures, there is not a member who believes that they have been consulted with properly.
As a member, I am out and about in the community talking to people, as I presume Ms Porter is, as I presume you are, Mr Speaker, and as I presume Mr Gentleman is. People laugh about the consultation. They tell me it is a farce. They do not believe that what this government proposes to do will be good for them.
Mr Stefaniak: It is just a charade.
MRS DUNNE: It is a charade. That is why in this place today, in addition to supporting this moratorium bill, we want to add teeth. We want to ensure that at the end of the process, when the minister makes the decisions and those decisions are announced, the community knows what is going on and that the community has in its hands the results
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