Page 3167 - Week 10 - Thursday, 15 August 2013
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were raised yesterday in the discussion on roadworks in the territory and traffic issues and how the government respond to those. However, time does not permit me to canvass all of the issues in TAMS. Certainly, with regard to the ones I have raised, I hope the minister will be able to give an adequate response in the chamber shortly.
DR BOURKE (Ginninderra) (5.36): The Territory and Municipal Services appropriation serves Canberrans in so many ways, delivering the benefits of good government from our mountain-top nature parks down to our gutters and sewers. Rather than cover all of the budget items provided by the TAMS appropriation, I will just mention a few local budget initiatives Ginninderra residents will be able to appreciate.
The local shopping centres at Evatt and Florey in this budget, and others in Ginninderra in budgets to come, will enjoy major upgrades. An audit of skate parks across Canberra will make sure they are safe for our children. A range of upgrades to public parks at Emu Bank, Lake Ginninderra district park, Umbagong district park and elsewhere will include new barbeques and drinking fountains. Thirty new drinking fountains across Canberra, including at town centres, parks, sporting facilities and near schools, are provided for in this budget. Over $200,000 is allocated for the maintenance of existing drinking fountains, providing refill stations and 10,000 free, reusable water bottles over the next two financial years.
Territory and Municipal Services also plays a role in the government’s visionary projects planned for Canberra within this budget, which, at the same time sets out a path back to surplus.
MR RATTENBURY (Molonglo—Minister for Territory and Municipal Services, Minister for Corrections, Minister for Housing, Minister for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Affairs and Minister for Ageing) (5.38): I appreciate the chance to speak on the 2013-14 budget as it relates to Territory and Municipal Services. This agency is a core part of the ACT government and has contact with the Canberra community every day and in so many parts of their lives through things like paths or roads, the trees and landscape around them, Canberra’s libraries, the buses, Domestic Animal Services, the collection of rubbish and a variety of other essential services.
This budget provides $534 million in funding for the Territory and Municipal Services Directorate to continue to deliver services and for new infrastructure. The budget allocates $5½ million to help manage national parks and reserves, maintain urban parks, trees and community spaces as well as undertake regulatory activities associated with animal welfare and community safety. A further $300,000 has been provided to undertake a review to define the best way to provide these essential municipal services in the future. And I think this is an important opportunity to look at what services are being provided, what services the community expects and what level of resourcing the community is both willing to pay for and willing to accept when it comes to the provision of municipal services.
ACTION is an area that is of particular interest in this budget and is also an area subject to a similar review. Importantly, this budget allocates an additional $24 million to place ACTION on a sustainable financial footing over the next two
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