Page 3753 - Week 12 - Wednesday, 23 October 2013
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Every time I raise the issue of ground hire increases or, more recently, swimming pool lane hire fees, the minister for sport dismisses the issue as trifling, suggesting that it is only a matter of a few cents per hour per player. But what he fails to recognise is that if you multiply that per player per hour increase across hundreds of players and hundreds of hours, it adds up to a significant cost burden for some clubs.
Last year and again earlier this year I had many representations from clubs, particularly in the south of Canberra, complaining about this very fact. They pointed out that just across the border in Queanbeyan ground hire fees were much less and, in some cases, the grounds had more and better facilities. Interestingly, however, while the minister defended the 50 per cent increase in fees as of little impact, he then quietly moved to reduce them before they were published on the website.
So we have a difficulty here that, no doubt, impacts on the staff of Sport and Recreation Services, although it is not their fault. Someone obviously made a determination to increase the fees, but then the sports minister decided not to, claiming he was not aware of the hike in fees until we brought this to his attention—a disconnect at the best or just plain obfuscation from Minister Barr.
The second issue is about the process of sportsground bookings. The process is inefficient and, to users, quite unsatisfactory. Clubs are largely run by volunteers who are willing and eager helpers, but so often they are time poor. When club officials use the government sportsground booking system, they are not able to see what grounds are available. They apply and then have to wait and see. Getting in contact directly with anyone is, I am told, almost impossible. This has led to fields being double booked or teams deciding not to play.
Additionally, there is a summer-winter split in the bookings, so summer sports have preference in summer and winter sports have preference in winter. That is logical, but when you have sport like football—soccer—it is designated a winter sport when, in fact, it can almost be called an all-year-round sport as aspects of football are played all year. The ACT booking system does not accommodate that, and staff availability limits any face-to-face contact.
Another issue I have raised relates to the approval measure for the overall management of public sportsgrounds and neighbourhood ovals. The survey suggests that 94 per cent of survey respondents are happy with the management of sportsgrounds. I can only assume that I met with the other six per cent who have strong objections to the condition of the grounds. It is a constant objection. I have raised it before and it has always been dismissed, but it is an issue that has ongoing and long-term consequences for the quality and maintenance of Canberra ovals.
The issue is the use of diesel for line markings. I understand diesel is used because it does not require redoing very often. There is an obvious reason for that—it kills the grass and the grass roots, but, by doing that, it also causes erosion, and many of our ovals and fields are getting deep ruts where, over that time, run-off from water and rain has caused further erosion. As an environmentalist, I would have thought Minister Rattenbury would be concerned, but he is apparently more concerned with a
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