Page 3013 - Week 08 - Thursday, 25 June 2009
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dimensions of it. It was not until a member of the community with some CAD drawing skills actually put together a representation based on the specifications that the public were enlightened as to the true extent of what was going near their homes. I think it is appalling.
This whole process highlights another community that is constantly disenfranchised, particularly by Mr Hargreaves in his urban services role and I suspect will be continued by Mr Stanhope now that he is the Minister for Territory and Municipal Services, and that is the horse community. There are a number of horse paddocks there, behind Rose Cottage, at block 1670, across the road in Hume, where the leases are on short notice and can be withdrawn. What people thought were long-term horse paddocks are now simply—again these are the words of the government, in an answer to a question I put on notice—“there and are tolerated because they are simply in a holding pattern until the government decides what use”. So, again, we have got a government that is not open, that is not honest, that is not accountable, in its negotiations with its community—and it goes on and on and on.
Tharwa bridge is a classic. It is great that Mr Hargreaves is here to have a discussion about Tharwa bridge. The people of Tharwa were given a “take it or leave it” option: “You can have a new bridge because that’s all we are doing.” That is what Tharwa residents have told me. That is what they were told—
Mr Hargreaves: That’s another meeting you didn’t go to.
MR SMYTH: that there was no option. Maybe you are having secret meetings. Is that the retort?
Mr Hargreaves: Yes, I had a secret meeting with 100 Tharwa residents; that is what I had.
MR SMYTH: The Tharwa residents turned up. I knew the meeting was on. The problem is that the government were not opening the negotiations with the Tharwa community. The community were given no choice. They were given Hobson’s choice—no choice, no choice at all: “Take this choice or leave it.” There was no choice.
Mr Hargreaves: Absolute rubbish!
MR SMYTH: The minister said there was no timber; that you could not get that sort of timber anymore: “It doesn’t exist. There is no timber.” Any search—Quicksearch, Google search, any sort of search you want to do—will reveal numerous sources of old timber. There are companies in Sydney and around Australia that specialise in recovering old timber, whether it be from old buildings, whether it be from wharves and piers—whatever. But, no, the minister knew best: “There is no timber.” Yet the timber is being prepared now. The timber that did not exist when there was only one option for the Tharwa residents—concrete, new bridge, concrete bridge—
Mr Hargreaves: Brendan, that is not the same timber and you know it. You confect it.
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