Page 4639 - Week 11 - Tuesday, 19 October 2010
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supports the ACT Exporters Network and the ACT Chief Minister’s export awards, providing private sector leadership for export-related activities.
This Labor government acknowledges that the ACT needs skilled workers to support a strong and dynamic local economy. In the 2008-09 budget, the government announced a suite of measures to tackle skills shortages in the ACT aimed at helping us attract quality workers, increase productivity, heighten participation and create more opportunities for education and training. The 2008-09 budget provided $36.6 million over four years in recurrent funding and $14.3 million in capital funding for skills, a total of almost $51 million over four years.
Additional funding was provided in 2010-11 to augment the skills response and enhance collaborative approaches to skills and future workforce issues. The skilled and business migration program focuses on providing benefits to Canberra through increasing investment, skilled labour resources and knowledge capital. The 2010-11 budget also includes $1.8 million to support Canberra’s growing digital media, film and television production industry through the ACT film industry fund.
In response to the global financial crisis, the commonwealth government, as part of the nation building economic stimulus plan and jobs plan, invested over $330 million in the ACT. These funds have been directed to work in schools, social housing, community infrastructure, road safety improvements, road upgrades, cycle paths and heritage properties. As well as providing much-needed facilities, this investment has secured jobs for many Canberrans at a time of great economic uncertainty. In addition, one of the stimulus plan requirements was for the employment of an average of 10 per cent of apprentices and trainees on projects funded under the plan, and also encouragement to increase the employment of Indigenous workers. The ACT has consistently performed in accordance with this target for apprentices and trainees, and in excess of 50 Indigenous workers have been employed.
A growing city needs more land for housing and business and to support its community. The government has a comprehensive and long-term land supply and release strategy in place to meet current demand for housing, respond to changing needs and support a strong economy. The 2010-11 budget provides $8 million over four years to increase the supply of land ready for release in the ACT. Funding of $3.6 million over four years has been provided to accelerate land development, with an additional $1.7 million provided for coordination of the capital program to support the land release program.
Construction activity in the ACT continues to drive local employment growth. Almost $7.2 billion worth of construction activity is currently underway in the region, supporting around 13,000 jobs. Right across the ACT, our community is benefiting from capital improvements to our hospitals and schools, safer roads, and more affordable housing. The construction and building industry is vital to the ongoing economic development of Canberra and the region. The industry creates long-term employment and has a flow-on effect in many areas of the economy.
The vibrancy and diversity of our local construction sector is highlighted in the ACT government’s Canberra construction snapshot, which is prepared and released by the
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