Page 981 - Week 03 - Wednesday, 25 February 2009
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the actual question, which is about him failing to evaluate the performance of these two public works projects. He is now debating who should answer the question.
MR SPEAKER: The point of order is upheld. Please come to the content of the question, Mr Stanhope.
MR STANHOPE: Thank you, Mr Speaker. It is interesting background in the context of the questions and the seriousness with which the questions were asked. The questions were asked with a view to them not being answered because they were asked of a minister who simply does not have the briefings or the relevant information. I do.
I think we should go back to tors in relation to this particular proposal. They are roads, one of which was completed in 2004—Horse Park Drive. It was commenced in 2000, and I think in order to provide a full answer to the questions asked by the Liberal Party, the first thing we need to do is to go back and actually—
Mr Seselja: It’s someone else’s fault.
MR STANHOPE: Well, who was the Minister for Urban Services in 2000? Who was it? It was Mr Smyth. So, what I undertake to do, Mr Speaker, is I will go back and I will ask the department to dredge back to 2000. Horse Park Drive planning commenced in 2000 when Brendan Smyth was the Minister for Urban Services. Horse Park Drive was completed in 2004. The first two years of the four-year process of delivering Horse Park Drive were managed by Brendan Smyth. Of course, as we look at the record of the Liberal Party in relation to capital of any sort—they never delivered any—the first thing I will do is a full reprise and summary of Brendan Smyth’s involvement in the construction of Horse Park Drive. In order to ensure a full answer, I will ensure that every part of the role of Mr Smyth in relation to the construction, the planning, the performance and the modelling of Horse Park Drive—
Ms Gallagher: The funding.
MR STANHOPE: And the funding. Every aspect of it will be provided to the opposition fully. This is Mr Smyth’s report; this is Mr Smyth’s road. The criticisms of the Auditor-General in relation to Horse Park Drive can be driven home fairly and squarely to the responsible minister—Brendan Smyth. We know why he is no longer a minister. We know why the Liberal Party lost that particular election—it was because of the performance of ministers such as Brendan Smyth. We see a report here today from the Auditor-General which is a report into a road commenced and found to be seriously deficient by the Auditor-General under Mr Smyth’s management.
I think we need to provide that context in relation to this Auditor-General’s report into these two roads. It is an inquiry into a road—Horse Park Drive—that was completed in 2004 and that was delivered in its planning by Brendan Smyth. We need then to look, of course, at his role in the delivery of Horse Park Drive.
The second of the roads, Fairbairn Avenue, was completed in 2006. So we do need to go back and deliver some of that history. Having said that, anybody that has read the Auditor-General’s report will see that TAMS acknowledges and has acknowledged—
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