Page 2209 - Week 07 - Wednesday, 3 August 2016
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places the ACT in good stead for the coming decades regardless of which Liberal Prime Minister is cutting public service jobs right here in Canberra. This commitment to a strong, diverse economy means we will not take financial risks. We will not risk losing taxpayers $300 million by tearing up the light rail contract and we will not risk this territory’s reputation and credit rating by such a reckless act. We will not rack up more than $400 million in uncosted suggestions and thought bubbles leaving a budget black hole for every Canberran to pay back. We will not do this because we recognise our city needs high quality infrastructure and more jobs and a balanced budget.
Unfortunately those opposite are not so committed to balancing a budget or delivering the services the city needs. Like Liberal governments around Australia they cannot be trusted not to cut jobs. I note the words “efficient” and “focused” are already being used by Liberal candidates around the city with regards to the ACT public service. We all know this is shorthand for job cuts. So it seems a Hanson Liberal government would seek to cut the jobs of Canberrans. Cutting ACT public service jobs would force more Canberra families to do it tough. It would place Jeremy Hanson in company with Tony Abbott, with Campbell Newman and with Denis Napthine. And that did not that go well for any of them. We will not do this.
We value the ACT public service. We value its integrity, its honesty and its ability to deliver the services our community needs, services like those delivered by nurses in our walk-in centres, teachers in our schools and mowing by our city services staff. The people of Canberra also value what the ACT public service offers. Nine out of 10 people are satisfied with the management of our parks, nine out of 10 Canberrans are satisfied with the maintenance of children’s playgrounds and three-quarters of people are happy with the way our suburban shopping centres look.
We are also maintaining our commitment to local services by investing record amounts in this year’s budget in health, education, transport and city services. When it comes to transport, we are delivering on our commitments. Unlike those opposite we will not tear up contracts because such an act would damage the ACT’s reputation for many years to come. What our city needs is a commitment to better public transport, an integrated transport network. As we know, an integrated transport network means parents can get their kids to school, people can get to work quickly, businesses can grow and Canberrans can take a new job in another part of town and not risk losing their lifestyle.
Canberra’s population is growing. By the end of this year our city will be home to 400,000 people. That is over 60,000 new Canberrans in the past 10 years and this means congestion on Northbourne Avenue is bad and getting worse. Other roads are following. Congestion drains our community and our economy. It costs all of us and this government wants Canberra to remain the most livable city in the world and not become the world’s most unnecessary traffic jam.
New roads, better and wider footpaths, easy to access cycling networks, an integrated freight network and light rail, better buses, they are all part of the plan to keep Canberra moving. That is why we are building light rail, why we have continued to improve our buses and our road network and why we are making it easier and safer to walk and cycle to school or work. We are keeping Canberra moving and we are
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