Page 3728 - Week 10 - Wednesday, 26 August 2009

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government to table a report on the progress of the implementation of the recommendations of the strategic budget review. What I am asking for through this amendment is that the report be tabled by the last day in September. Given that the government has had the report since December 2008, I think that is quite reasonable.

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) (4.27): That is only three weeks away. The structural reforms that the department is instituting are major structural reforms; they will not be completed. I am in the hands of the Assembly. I am happy to do that, but it will be a partial report because the job is only half done. It would be far more sensible to report in December. If you want a report in September, I am happy to do it, but it is not particularly sensible. You want a report additional to the report I gave today in three weeks time, and that is just silly. The government will not support this date. I am more than happy to give a commitment now to report fully by the last sitting day in December, but the government does not support the amendment. If it passes, it passes, and I will give you a report in three weeks.

MR SESELJA (Molonglo—Leader of the Opposition) (4.28): The amendment is calling for an update. This is a report which the government has had since December. We would presume that a reasonable amount of progress has been made by September, some nine months later. A report to the Assembly would be reasonable. We would expect that that would be more than just a cursory report at that point, but we understand it will not be the final report on the structural changes. We believe it is reasonable that we see, nine months after this report was issued, a progress report on moving towards implementing a lot of the recommendations and the structural reforms that have been suggested.

MR RATTENBURY (Molonglo) (4.29): The Greens will not be supporting Mr Coe’s amendment. We are of the view that it is a little too soon. Something like a December time frame would be more suitable, and we would be willing to support some amendment that reflected that kind of a time line.

Mr Seselja: That’s fine.

Amendment negatived.

MR COE (Ginninderra) (4:30): As I said before, and whilst some people—namely, the crossbench—disagree, what we saw in the Ernst & Young report is a scathing report on the Department of Territory and Municipal Services. We have had so many issues outlined in this department that go from the very top, from the minister, right

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