Page 1355 - Week 04 - Tuesday, 5 April 2011
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In May 2009 the ACT and Australian governments established Regional Development Australia ACT, commonly known as RDA ACT, under a memorandum of understanding. Under this agreement, both governments provide operational funding to support a small secretariat. The specific work programs of RDA ACT are still undergoing development and will be strongly influenced by initiatives which will be part of the Australian government’s recently announced regional focus and funding programs. RDA ACT has been very active. It has established an agreement to coordinate cross-border community and economic development initiatives relevant to the ACT and southern inland region of New South Wales, and has recently identified three priority areas—transport, education and the environment—which will be the initial focus of their activities.
A regional consultative forum is being planned for mid-May to consult with the community on these priority areas, and indeed though I meet reasonably regularly with Craig Sloan to discuss progress in relation to the work of the RDA, there are some issues emerging in relation to the relationship between RDA ACT, confined as it is within the borders of the ACT and the broader region, and it may be, and this has already been signalled, that an RDA confined by the ACT border may not necessarily provide the best model for engaging the ACT government through the RDA with most particularly commonwealth interests within the region, reflected of course most particularly by the commonwealth’s contribution or commitment or responsibility for the national road network.
To conclude in the spirit of the motion as interpreted at least by the government in this matter of public importance today, namely the importance of our cross-border relationships, I would highlight the considerable effort that the ACT government and its officials make and have made to develop and sustain excellent cross-border relationships with our local government neighbours and the New South Wales and Australian governments irrespective of our politics, and without political persuasion and debate about the nature of politics of our particular government, which I would have thought should be irrelevant. It is a matter of some concern to me that the Liberal Party think party issues should be front and foremost of any discussion of cross-border matters. (Time expired.)
MR SESELJA (Molonglo—Leader of the Opposition) (3.39): I note the Chief Minister’s sensitivity in seeking, again, to defend the New South Wales Labor Party. You can understand why he would be sensitive about it. It is difficult to take seriously his claim that he is going to have a good working relationship with the new government when we saw that right to the bitter end, despite this scandal-plagued, in some cases corrupt and criminal element, the Chief Minister was still praying and hoping for a miracle on 26 March. He was hoping for a miracle that this corrupt government, the New South Wales Labor government, would somehow manage to dupe the electorate into being returned to government.
That is what the Chief Minister was hoping for on Saturday the 26th. That is what he told the people of the ACT through the Canberra Times. It is difficult to take seriously his claims, firstly, about partisan politics and, secondly, about his ability to
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