Page 5191 - Week 12 - Wednesday, 27 October 2010
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I rise today to speak about the good people of Gungahlin and the swimming pool of 50 metres length that they were promised by the ACT Labor government in the lead-up to the last territory election. This is an important issue for the people of Gungahlin, who do not enjoy the same level of amenity that is enjoyed by many other people across Canberra. It is not just restricted in this case to a swimming pool; it is quite clear that they do not have the same level of sporting facilities—things like tennis courts, for example.
Mr Seselja: Their roads.
MR HANSON: I will be getting to that, Mr Seselja; do not worry. They do not have the same recreational opportunities that are enjoyed across many other parts of Canberra. Employment opportunities are significantly lacking in Gungahlin. Indeed, the intent of having a government office block there, be it federal or ACT, seems to be a mirage that we never quite achieve. There is access to health care when you look at GP numbers and the healthcare centre yet to be built. There is the road; we could wax lyrical for a long time about the road situation here in the ACT that services the people of Gungahlin. I hope that, as we are talking about swimming pools and GDEs, we do not end up with a one-lane swimming pool with the promise that it will be duplicated at a later stage.
The people of Gungahlin still lack broadband. There is no Gungahlin shopfront—again promised: another broken promise by this government. There are educational opportunities, particularly at the tertiary level, that are not enjoyed by the people of Gungahlin. Indeed, when it comes to matters of infrastructure and services, the people of Gungahlin often lack them when it comes to a comparative analysis with other people, other areas of Canberra.
There is no question that the people of Gungahlin have been missing out. But what they were expecting to be delivered to them, because they were promised this by the ACT government, and specifically by Mr Barr, was a 50-metre swimming pool. There is certainly a case for a pool. As I have said, other people in Canberra do enjoy a 50-metre pool. I note that Mr Doszpot has raised concerns about some of the amenities in Gungahlin, and I share those concerns. But there is no question that Gungahlin is a growing area. When you look at its current population of around 40,000, you see that it is an area of significant growth for Canberra, with population growth there predicted to be to around 90,000 or 100,000 in coming years. And when you look at the demographics, it comprises, in significant part, young families—the exact group of people that need access to a facility of this sort.
Whilst Katy Gallagher is talking about the need for a 400-bed hospital, potentially located in Gungahlin, we seem to be stepping backwards when it comes to the delivery of this 50-metre pool. This has been a promise or an illusion that has been put out there by the Stanhope government, by the Labor government, for quite some time. It has remained either a study or a promise.
Let me make it very clear for the Hansard what Mr Barr said. On 4 August, the Labor member for Molonglo, the Minister for Tourism, Sport and Recreation, Andrew Barr,
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