Page 3271 - Week 11 - Tuesday, 17 September 2013
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MS PORTER: Minister, will the school canteens initiative support healthy eating in our community?
MS BURCH: I thank Ms Porter for her interest in school canteens. We have a longstanding commitment to promoting health and healthy food options for students and their families. We understand that there are strong links between health and education. We also know that healthy children are better able to learn. We believe that school canteens play an important role in educating our young people about the value of eating more fruit and vegetables. The Education and Training Directorate and ACT Health have partnered with school canteens to introduce healthy eating and drinking menus.
This work is ongoing and is given greater clarity and impetus by the work of the canteen taskforce. As a government, we have signed up to the national partnership agreement on preventative health. Work in this area will support the creation of a culture of promoting healthy food and drinks in schools. The subsidised canteen managers training program will deliver training that focuses on food safety, safe handling of food and menu design.
Our canteen support budget initiative will see ACT P&C associations working closely with our public school canteens to provide, as I have said, the online ordering system that will enable parents to better participate in healthy food choices for their children. The new ACT public school food and drink policy currently being developed will provide consistent best-practice advice for schools on healthy food provision in ACT government schools. The new standard agreements with all canteen operators will include the need for healthy food menu reviews.
I am proud that the taskforce has brought all the stakeholders together in pursuit of the goal of health and sustainable ACT public school canteens. I look forward to our young people and the community benefiting from these changes.
Ms Gallagher: Madam Speaker, I ask that all further questions be placed on the notice paper.
Planning, Environment and Territory and Municipal Services—Standing Committee
Statement by Speaker
MADAM SPEAKER: I would like to follow up on the matter that arose this morning. Following the presentation by Mr Gentleman of report No 2 of the Standing Committee on Planning, Environment and Territory and Municipal Services entitled Draft Variation to the Territory Plan No 308—Cooyong Street Urban Renewal Area, Mr Coe took a point of order. Mr Coe’s point of order was to query whether the report presented by the chair had been agreed to by the committee.
I have examined the extracts of the minutes of proceedings of the committee which were tabled by the chair of the committee. These minutes show that two members of the committee do not support the report and that two members do. It also shows that,
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