Page 5000 - Week 12 - Wednesday, 26 October 2011
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Indeed, if this block is sold, it is not going to be close to the Calwell centre. It may be across the stormwater drain over near the ambulance station. But if this block goes, what else can you take back in the area to find space for the park and ride? There is already a crisis with the parking; there is a crisis with taxi space; there is a crisis with bus parking. So I do not see how that gets addressed. And the answer is that it does not get addressed. And that is why the government is happy to accept the Greens’ amendment.
So much for third party insurance! Maybe it is third party insurance and maybe the government holds the policy. That is what it is. There is a fraud here. They said they were third party insurance for the community but the government bought the policy. The government is holding the policy and the government constantly cashes in the policy. It must be great to have a third party insurance policy like that.
Mr Barr interjecting—
MR SPEAKER: Mr Barr, thank you.
MR SMYTH: Unfortunately, the community did not get the coverage. And that is the problem. We go to Ms Le Couteur.
Members interjecting—
MR SPEAKER: Members, order!
MR SMYTH: Ms Le Couteur pointed out how eloquent Ms Bresnan had been about aged care. Yes, there is a problem. The problem is the past failure to plan for adequate aged-care facilities in the ACT. Mr Corbell is the master of failing to plan adequately. He has got the talk and he has got the glib lines, but he never delivered. He delivered a crisis in housing affordability. He delivered a crisis in aged-care accommodation because his planning practices failed.
Ms Le Couteur said we should not get down to the nitty-gritty of planning in the Assembly. I note there are something like 22 individual points in the motion on Civic. Indeed, Ms Bresnan adds another eight to some of the things that I have already pointed out. So let us not get down to the nitty-gritty! Let us discuss the principle here. Are you in favour of good planning or not? Are you in favour of fixing the mistakes of the past as quickly as we can without exacerbating those failures into the future by not adequately planning for the provision of many services, whether they be commercial, aged care, community, in the Calwell vicinity, in the Calwell group centre, and are you willing to do it now? If you are, you will vote for my motion. If you are not, you will vote for the wishy-washy amendments that end up saying nothing and betray the community.
Question put:
That Ms Bresnan’s amendment to Mr Barr’s proposed amendments be agreed to.
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