Page 1956 - Week 06 - Wednesday, 6 May 2009
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MR HARGREAVES: I am trying to do that—with immense opposition from this opposition, who are opposing things for the sake of opposition. Under their particular rule the money spent on corrections was spent in New South Wales. The economy of Goulburn was boosted. The economy of Junee was boosted. Now that we have the Alexander Maconochie Centre here in the ACT, there will be $20 million spent here. That is improving the economy of the ACT. As a matter of fact, all of the food, all of the materials and all of the labour for repairs and maintenance will be sourced from here. These guys are just squirming at the recognition that this government has actually been positive. We have gone forward, recognising the need to put money back into our economy.
It is clear that the Leader of the Opposition has not read any of the Assembly committee reports into the provision of the prison in the ACT. Quite clearly, he has not read any of them. Mr Hanson has not read them and Mr Seselja has not read them and I do not think Mr Smyth has either. The earlier reports talked about the financing options, and from the very beginning it was me who raised the issue of the economics of the prison here in the ACT.
It scares the living daylights out of me that any one of those people might one day sit on the treasury bench. I have been here for quite a long time and I have seen quite a number of occupants of the first chair over there, and I wonder who is going to be the next occupant of that chair. We will be taking bets very shortly. We will not be doing it on Melbourne Cup Day, but we will be doing it on Family and Community Day. The way to have some economic growth is to keep those opposite away from the treasury bench.
This budget has two aims. One aim is to do as best we can, within the means that we have, to provide programs that go forward. The other aim is to preserve as many jobs as we possibly can and keep the economy of the ACT as vibrant as we possibly can during this critical period. The capital construction program will be put in place to that end. In my negotiations with the federal government over housing assistance I have taken a dual approach—to attack homelessness and to keep jobs ticking over in the residential construction sector. It has been about jobs. It has been about the ACT’s economy and to try, as best we can, to have a buffer against this crisis.
We do not see any suggestions on how we could go forward. We do not see anything except, on one hand, get out of the bloody deficit quicker; on the other hand spend more money. It is inconsistent. Like Mr Barr, I look forward with great anticipation and some fear to Mr Seselja’s response. I just wonder: how come he is doing the response and not the shadow treasurer? Perhaps it is because the Leader of the Opposition does not trust the shadow treasurer out in public. Maybe he does not trust him to go out at night-time without his mummy. Maybe you cannot trust him outside after dark without his mum.
Mr Smyth: My mother died 20 years ago. Be careful.
MR HARGREAVES: You can bleat away. It does not make any difference. We will see how genuine you are when you do your response. We will see whether you are just going to sit there and carp or whether you are going to offer something.
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