Page 1637 - Week 05 - Thursday, 8 May 2008
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I have been warning the government about this issue for some time and about the poor outcomes that have occurred in other states that have adopted this kind of structure in an attempt to save money. All the while the government has assured the people of Canberra that the ACT will not suffer these problems; it will have efficiencies.
It is interesting, Mr Speaker, even in this place, in the same Assembly over which you oversee the administration, through the Clerk, they are now not having bills paid as promptly here, I am told, because they are being referred to the Shared Services Centre. So members are getting overdue accounts on matters that are put through. These are not monumental issues impacting adversely on the credit rating, I suppose, of a member, but I am told that, instead of the efficient system we had in place here before, now that it is handled by Shared Services, of course things are not being paid promptly.
I would like to know across the whole spectrum of government just how the performance is going. I will certainly be taking that up in estimates. But now we have an additional allocation of over $10 million in this budget and one hopes that this is not merely the first of many additional injections of capital or recurrent expenditure to the cost of the Shared Services Centre.
The government has also committed another $10.6 million to their million tree initiative for trees at the Canberra International Arboretum and Gardens. But it is not yet clear how many of these trees will survive the current water lows and mismanagement of the government. The government has also undertaken a new expenditure initiative of $11.287 million to pay for increased water costs, including the watering of young and developing fauna.
This enormous expenditure is a further slap in the face for ACT residents who have watched their tax money spent on an arboretum that has been withering in a climate in which water restrictions are being imposed on ordinary Canberrans. We see another instance of the ongoing costs of poor planning by the government which has pressed ahead with its plans for the arboretum, because this is an indulgence, despite water shortages, despite an existing world-class botanical gardens and despite widespread criticism from ACT residents and a number of members of this place.
We see, in addition to these increased costs, the government has allocated an additional $1 million to the sanctuary at Mulligans Flat Nature Reserve, but at the end of day these can hardly be described as core services. It is another instance of funding for projects on the periphery of government being given precedence over the important issue of tax relief.
Another substantial new expenditure is made up by the various new expenditure allocations made for ACT festivals, which amounts to more than $6 million of taxpayers’ money. This includes new expenditure initiatives for the Family and Community Fun Day, the Centenary of Canberra, an ACT festival fund, multicultural festival enhancement, international mountain bike event support, a rugby league world cup match, an events assistance program, the Canberra Festival of Running and accommodation for the Australian Science Festival.
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