Page 2931 - Week 10 - Tuesday, 13 August 2013
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . . Video
What that means is that ACTPLA and the officials there are pretty much empowered, should they use their discretion accordingly, to stop or to find faults in any construction project. I do not think that is the certainty, and I do not think that suits the risk profile, that we want in an economy that is struggling.
We have a private construction sector which is struggling around Australia but especially struggling here in the territory. I think you need to be very careful not to put even more hurdles in the way of the construction sector. And when you have those kinds of issues, those kinds of decisions, it is no wonder that you are seeing competitive federalism in action here in our region and seeing people invest over the border in Jerrabomberra, Queanbeyan, Tralee or Googong. That is what competitive federalism is meant to be.
But competitive federalism also was meant to mean that we would compete too. But at the moment it seems we are simply giving in and allowing the Queanbeyan City Council to take all our investment. We need to make the ACT a far more attractive place to do business than it currently is.
One of the other huge issues in this space is of course DV306, and it is something that was litigated earlier today and of course has been discussed on numerous occasions in this place. I stand by my comments earlier that the opposition is proud of the decision that we took to oppose draft variation 306. It is complex, it is incomprehensible, it cannot be carried out and, quite frankly, I think that the ACT government are going to have to change it, whether it be by a full variation or by a technical variation. What they have put in place in DV306 and now variation 306 is not workable and is to the detriment of the industry. And that is why we are seeing Denman Prospect collect perhaps half the yield that it should have. Instead of collecting $100 million for the ACT taxpayer, we are apparently looking at around $55 million.
So there is a very real and tangible impact of draft variation 306. It is not just a principle, it is not just something on paper, it is not just a notion; it is a real impact, quite actually, quite physically, on the ground.
Another issue of course confronting ACTPLA and Canberrans is DV304, the supermarket policy, and I do urge the government to show more respect for the community and more respect for industry groups when they are consulting and, what is more, acting on that consultation on DV304 (Second speaking period taken.)
The government has not got the best of track records when it comes to supermarket policy. We have had, it seems, umpteen supermarket policies in the last five or so years, and DV304 reflects yet another iteration in the development of bad supermarket policy here in the ACT. And I think it is high time that the government actually developed a sensible strategy and stuck to that strategy, actually allowing people the confidence to invest under a single supermarket policy, not one that is anticipated to be chucked out in a year’s time for whatever happens to be the flavour of the month.
I hope DV304 is properly consulted on. I hope the very important retail sector is heard and I hope that some of the more ridiculous changes in DV304 do not become a
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . . Video