Page 1787 - Week 05 - Thursday, 2 April 2009
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accommodate growth in the city in a way that will be sustainable. We see that being implemented now with the detailed planning and development of the first suburbs of Molonglo. It was a Labor government that for the first time took a completely fresh look at the metropolitan structure of the city, took the decision to depart from the plans put in place in the 1950s and 1960s through the Y plan and to actually provide for new urban development close to the city centre in the Molonglo area.
The development provides future urban growth capacity for the city, but does so in a way which still makes it close to the central services of the city, particularly the city centre and to a lesser extent other town centres. That work is now in place. We achieved that in a period of time unprecedented when you consider the amount of time taken to develop plans for other new town centres such as Gungahlin or the town centres that came before it.
The government has not just focused on that greenfield development. We have focused very strongly on consolidating activity within 7½ kilometres of the city centre and more broadly within an urban containment boundary within 15 kilometres of the city centre. We have important new projects now starting to emerge as a result of the strategic direction in the spatial plan—projects such as the East Lake expansion, which is an absolutely essential element if we are to accommodate growth in a sustainable manner going forward, and intensification of urban activity within existing urban areas, particularly in areas that are underutilised or poorly utilised. The East Lake development is a very good example of that.
The work that ACTPLA are engaging in with organisations such as the CSIRO are going to be landmark pieces of work in creating settlements which are sustainable in their energy and water use and which are highly efficient in terms of their proximity to existing services and access to transport.
Debate interrupted in accordance with standing order 74 and the resumption of the debate made an order of the day for a later hour.
Sitting suspended from 12.30 to 2 pm.
Ministerial arrangements
MR STANHOPE (Ginninderra—Chief Minister, Minister for Transport, Minister for Territory and Municipal Services, Minister for Business and Economic Development, Minister for Indigenous Affairs and Minister for the Arts and Heritage): For the information of members—I am sure they are aware—Mr Hargreaves is unable to be in question time today, as a result of other duties. If there are questions for Mr Hargreaves in relation to any of his portfolio responsibilities, I stand ready to assist to the extent that I can, but I ask for the minister’s forbearance if I have to take questions on notice.
Speaker’s statement
Tabling of documents
MR SPEAKER: Members, before we start question time today, I would like to make a brief statement about the tabling of documents. In recent days, ministers and
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