Page 1711 - Week 06 - Wednesday, 4 June 2014
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This is a project that is receiving good support. For example, the Property Council of Australia has said:
The … project … has the potential to create jobs, attract investment and provide economic uplift across the capital.
The Property Council of Australia ACT Division went on to say:
Critical infrastructure projects can build the nation and the economy … We need our own critical infrastructure projects in the nation’s capital—and a project that can help Canberra become a more liveable, efficient and sustainable city ticks a lot of boxes.
This is strong endorsement from a leading industry association about the benefits of this project. I welcome those comments.
We need to continue to explain to Canberrans the change that is being proposed, why it is important and how it is creating jobs, economic opportunity and better transport for our city. This budget allows us to continue that important work as we continue to support Canberra, its economy and its community.
MS GALLAGHER (Molonglo—Chief Minister, Minister for Regional Development, Minister for Health and Minister for Higher Education) (11.08): I speak to the motion and to the amendments at the same time, and I thank Dr Bourke for bringing this very important motion to the Assembly today, just one day after the tabling of the ACT’s budget. The budget is the most important annual statement of any government. It outlines clearly the agenda that the government will pursue over the next 12 months and beyond. It also sums up in a very concise way the values that underpin the government.
The decisions that are reflective of that in the budget yesterday show that this is a government that cares deeply about our local community, that we want to provide stability, certainty and confidence across the economy in what will be perhaps the most challenging times this city has faced in the last 20 years, and the budget shows a government that is prepared to continue to invest in but also to support the most vulnerable in our community. It stands in sharp contrast, I think, to the budget that was handed down just three weeks ago at the commonwealth level which sought to reduce significantly spending across the country, here in the ACT at a disproportionate level, but which also targeted some of the most vulnerable communities across Australia.
The ACT government—and we had to consider our budget very carefully following the tabling of the commonwealth budget—has taken the decision to continue delivering on the commitments we made to the people of the ACT in 2012, continuing the commitments we made with Shane Rattenbury when we signed the parliamentary agreement post the election in 2012. We have sought to meet the internal pressures that invariably arise in a service-delivery government, where they do, and address those to ensure that there is a continuity of high-quality services across the board.
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