Page 2734 - Week 07 - Tuesday, 28 June 2011
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about leadership and it is about putting the right people in the right positions if you are actually going to fix those serious issues.
I did want to take the opportunity to respond a little to Mr Hargreaves.
Mr Smyth: Do you have to?
MR SESELJA: I think it is important because when it comes to infrastructure, we will continue to lead the way. The Canberra Liberals will continue to lead the way. Do we talk about the ACT Labor government’s stuff-ups on infrastructure? Yes, we do, and yes we will. Mr Hargreaves will not like it but the message to Mr Hargreaves and the ACT Labor government is: if you do not want to hear those kinds of criticisms, stop stuffing it up. If you start getting the job done, then there will not be the criticisms from the Auditor-General, from the opposition and from the media and others in the community who just cannot believe how much incompetence there is in the delivery of infrastructure.
In terms of a vision for infrastructure, that is where we have a very different approach to this government as well. This is a government that decided its way of doing an infrastructure plan was to go to every department and say, “What have you got in your capital works budget, TAMS?” “What have you got in your capital works budget, Health? “Education, what have you got in your capital works budget?” “We will put it all together and call it an infrastructure plan.”
That is not infrastructure planning. That is just a cut-and-paste job of existing works. That does not ask the fundamental questions. The fundamental questions are: what is the infrastructure we have now? Where do we want to be in five years time, in 10 years time, in 50 years time? What is the infrastructure that will help us get there? How will we improve the standard of living of ordinary Canberrans? How will we ensure that they have access to the best healthcare? How will we ensure that they have access to the best schools? How will we ensure that as the city grows, people have real options when it comes to transport, that they will not be forced to be stuck in ever-increasing traffic delays as they drive from their home in Amaroo, in Dunlop, in Banks, in Macarthur, in Calwell, in Monash, in Phillip or wherever they live in the ACT?” They should be able to expect that we will have the best roads.
We talk a lot about what we have going for us and some of the disadvantages we have as a city, but we were left a pretty reasonable legacy when it comes to our road infrastructure. There are challenges in that but it is also a very good starting point. Canberrans have high expectations and I believe we should meet those expectations, not consistently try to lower the expectations.
We have seen it across the board that Labor governments are very good at pointing to or finding another Labor government that does something a little worse than them and saying, “Aren’t we lucky that we’re not in New South Wales?” When it comes to health and waiting times, you are actually better off in New South Wales. But putting that aside, on any given indicator, except maybe our waiting lists which are the worst in the country, they can always point to other states. I do not want to be like Sydney when it comes to traffic congestion. I do not want to be like Wollongong when it
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