Page 2956 - Week 08 - Wednesday, 6 August 2008
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Members have heard in this place before about investment in education, sport, recreation, emergency services, social housing, affordable housing and the building of and investing in our city and our community to meet its rich potential. There is much more that could be said. I could stand here all day and list all of the achievements of the Stanhope government and its sound investment for the future. This government is proud of its achievements so far. However, most importantly, it is facing future challenges by having proper investment where it counts.
MR SMYTH (Brindabella) (3.33): It is interesting that the government could not even manage a 15-minute speech on their achievements and the things that they have delivered and invested in the city.
Mr Stanhope: How pathetic.
Mr Corbell: How pathetic.
MR SMYTH: I can hear the jibes across the chamber. Yes, they are hurting. It is interesting. What they should have done is tried to list the things that perhaps they failed to deliver on. The premise by Ms Porter seems to be that if you spend the money it will be okay—the Kevin Costner Field of Dreams vision of politics. It did not work in the films and it is not going to work here in the ACT. You only have to read the litany of failures to know that this government has not understood the importance of investing in a better city and a stronger community on time, on budget and with community involvement.
Mr Corbell is leaving so we might as well start with Mr Corbell. He ran the step-down facility. When he ran health, there was a step-down facility that we announced in March 2001. It was only completed last year. It was only six years late. We have the library building, which was in our last budget. I was the minister responsible for it. Again, it is five years later. There was the glassworks, six years later.
There was Gungahlin Drive. We find today that it was not a budget announcement. It is not in the budget because the decision was made after the budget. Yet yesterday it was in the budget. The numbers were there and the Chief Minister was quoting page 7, page this and page that. Again we have confusion.
There are the roads at the airport that are running so late. Tharwa Drive and Lanyon Drive are roads that should have been built ages ago. There is Tharwa bridge, a bridge that was going to be knocked down due to John Hargreaves’s incompetence but was saved by the community and the hard work of Steve Pratt.
There is Griffith library. That is building infrastructure! That is investing in building a better city and a stronger community! Shut the local library. That is in touch with the people of the inner south!
There are the 23 schools. Let us not forget the small number of schools, the 23 schools, that this government has closed or will close. That is certainly building a better city and a stronger community! Go to the meetings and see the devastation, the
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