Page 1166 - Week 04 - Wednesday, 7 May 2014
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get ahead and just want the simple things done well. They want to be able to be able to push a pram down the footpath without it getting stuck in a hole and to drive their car on a road without having to avoid potholes. They want to drive through their suburb and find it clean and tidy, the grass mown and maintenance up-kept.
Canberrans want their suburbs to be clean and safe. They want to be able to get to work without too much hassle and without the bulk of their pay cheque going in parking and child care. They want houses to be more affordable and for the increasing rate of homelessness to be addressed. One of the ways to do that is by decreasing housing stress. They want the government to focus on delivering these basics. They want public transport to be reasonable and accessible, but the people I have spoken to, in the main, do not want us to spend over $600 million on light rail which will not service even 15 per cent of our territory.
As the shadow minister for housing, I have been listening to the concerns our citizens have for housing in the ACT. Just last week the housing affordability snapshot was released, which showed that there were practically no affordable rental options for people in the ACT or Queanbeyan on low incomes. That is our students, our pensioners, those who work for the minimum wage, those who are on disability pensions or Newstart. All of the people in this low income category are under enormous housing stress in the ACT private rental market and they want some of the pressure relieved.
The ACT has the second highest rate of homelessness in Australia, second only to the Northern Territory. This sad situation is a flow-on effect of housing being just so out of reach and unaffordable for low income earners. Then, of course, there needs to be serious consideration given to the impact of the rates increases which the government are implementing. How is a self-funded retiree or pensioner on a fixed income going to be able to make these increasing rates payments in the future?
It is true that we have high average incomes in the ACT, but there are also a lot of people in our community facing extreme hardship. They need support and strong, reliable assistance from the government. Instead, the government is focusing on policies that are not making life easier for those struggling in our suburbs. Residents want things like the water quality in Lake Tuggeranong improved, not monitored for another two years, because monitoring has already been happening for around 10 years. They would actually like to see some action taking place to improve the water quality of the lake, or at least a definite commitment that it will be improved soon; whereas currently they are left hanging as to whether improvements to the water quality will take place at all.
Residents and business owners want the Tuggeranong and Lanyon town centres improved, updated and beautified. Residents support recycling and, to enhance that, they want green bins. They want their footpaths and parks improved. This is, I acknowledge, a constant balancing act for directorates such as TAMS, and I must acknowledge their responsiveness to many of the issues I have raised through the minister. But residents do have a reasonable expectation of provision of services in return for their rising rates bills. Residents do want to look at renewable energy sources—I agree with Minister Corbell on this—but not at any cost and not when it actually reduces their amenity.
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