Page 1640 - Week 05 - Thursday, 8 May 2008
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Sydneys and Melbournes of Australia and I am not yet convinced that we really have got it right. I have concerns about the return on investment that we are getting from the live in Canberra campaign and believe that other initiatives might be far more successful, especially in the overseas markets.
For example, the territory needs to consider engaging overseas agents to directly recruit workers to fill positions in specific fields in the Canberra labour market. I spoke the other day with Dr Colin Adrian and we shared our experience of the enormous success that has occurred in the educational sector where overseas agents are appointed, without incurring the cost of offices and full-time staff, and all of the educational institutions that I have been involved with, both here and elsewhere, have found that an enormously successful measure and mechanism for bringing people into our community.
There is no reason why the concept could not be expanded in terms of skills, because the fact of the matter is that our overseas missions seem to have an inherent bias towards the largest cities. The media that are attracted towards the major cities make them the more likely target or location for people to relocate. Whilst I know that there have been recommended changes in terms of immigrations rules and to have Canberra better treated as a regional centre, we have to have people off shore, within the resources of the territory, who can actually start assigning potential immigrants to vacancies here to meet the demands of employers in this territory so that we can continue to expand our base.
The issue of skills shortages links into the next area which I want to make comment on, which is the planned investment in infrastructure. I welcome, firstly, the expansion of the existing capital upgrades program. Municipal-type issues are amongst the most common that are raised with me, as I have said on many occasions previously. I think that it has been for too long a neglected area. The city has taken on a tired air and has needed for some time, I believe, substantial investment in maintenance and upgrade programs.
Like those who lived here back in the NCDC era—and there are many people in Canberra who have—I find that it is constantly raised with me how much better the city looked in those days compared to today. I am not sure that people have precise memories and detail, but it is a widespread sentiment in this town, and I think that there is some basis for thinking that things are not as sharp or attractive as they once were.
Whilst it may have been a spend-without-care approach when the territory was not responsible for its own funding, the fact of the matter is that it is an issue of concern to many residents and there is a need for the government to get serious about preserving the city, rather than letting it run down. Like any constructed facility, if you do not maintain it, the cost of restoring it to the appropriate standards becomes a lot more expensive down the track. We have seen it with road development here and we will see it consistently with maintenance if the right level of dollars is not put into it to get the territory back to a standard residents expect.
With some of the larger infrastructure programs, concerns have been raised about the ability of the government to deliver projects on time and on budget. Certainly the
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