Page 5984 - Week 14 - Thursday, 8 December 2011
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is the thing that really is a killer in their family budget. If they can have that choice so that they can use the car but they do not have to get a second car because they can use public transport, it can make an enormous difference to their lifestyle and to their cost of living.
I remember reading in the Canberra Times about a couple buying a house out in Gungahlin who said that one of the things that really sold them was that the new Red Rapid service had been put on in Gungahlin. That was one of the things that came from the Labor-Greens parliamentary agreement. Because of that Red Rapid service, they did not need to get a second car and that meant they could afford their dream home in Gungahlin. They could buy a home; they could raise their family.
It is those sorts of things we need to be looking at when we are talking about cost of living. We need to be looking at how we can make our houses more energy efficient so that we have lower utility bills. We need to be looking at how we can improve things such as public transport to also assist with bringing down taxes and charges.
We have heard about rego. One of the policies put out by the Canberra Liberals was around being able to take off that extra cost for those people who are paying their rego in instalments.
Mr Barr: The Smyth tax, I think it is referred to.
MS HUNTER: The Smyth tax; we later found out that it was the Smyth tax. But at the time we did not know that, Mr Barr.
Mr Smyth interjecting—
MADAM ASSISTANT SPEAKER (Ms Le Couteur): Mr Smyth, please be quiet.
MS HUNTER: What we have found from that is that we need to be looking at targeted assistance again. We need to be looking at those households first and foremost who need our assistance. That is why we do not want a situation where suddenly people earning over $100,000 a year also are getting that subsidy from government. That is why it is so important to look at these things carefully, consider these things carefully and look at who needs our assistance to be able to live a good life here in the ACT, and not to just have open slather.
At the end of the day we do need to have some taxes and charges so that we can be able to provide the wonderful services that are provided to us right across the city, whether that be in health, education or, indeed, a range of concessions. This is another area where it is so important that money is set aside to help those families and individuals with a range of concessions. What are the Canberra Liberals saying—that they will take out all of these taxes and charges and therefore those people who were receiving assistance, funeral assistance—
Mr Barr: I think have a Tea Party, Ms Hunter, is what they want. They are after a Tea Party.
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