Page 1138 - Week 04 - Tuesday, 28 March 2017
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High School. We are upgrading the ACTION bus fleet and investing in new public housing. We are investing in an active travel network right across the city. It is a significant infrastructure program, the largest ever in the territory’s history.
MR STEEL: Chief Minister, what steps has the ACT government taken to deliver this record investment while ensuring that the territory’s budget is on a path back to balance?
Opposition members interjecting—
MR BARR: Madam Speaker, any mention of infrastructure financing gets those opposite somewhat excited. The government has, of course, taken decisive action over the past few years to respond to the hacking into our economy from Tony Abbott and Malcolm Turnbull, ably supported by all of their Liberal mates sitting over on that side of the chamber. The party of recession for this city, the party of job losses is the Canberra Liberals, aided and abetted, of course, by their friends on the hill.
Opposition members interjecting—
MR BARR: The government locally has focused on ensuring that our economy continues to grow, that unemployment falls, that employment growth continues. We have seen 4,600 new jobs to date and a growth in the labour market of 2.2 per cent, more than double the national average.
That is one of the most important measures of the success of our economy. It is growth in employment; reduction in unemployment. The interjections of those opposite demonstrate the very stark differences in approach to economic management. We care about jobs, Madam Speaker. We care about growing our economy. We care about jobs. We care about investing in the future of this economy. Those opposite, in the words of Paul Keating, are feral abacuses.
Animals—dog attack
MR DOSZPOT: My question is to the Minister for Transport and City Services. Minister, on 31 January 2017, a small Pomeranian being walked on a lead was attacked and killed at Yerrabi Pond by three large dogs under the control of two walkers. This story was reported in the Sunday Canberra Times on 26 March. Immediately after the attack, the owners of the deceased dog wrote to your office and on 7 February they received a reply saying you would respond soon. You signed off with “Have a lovely day”. On 27 March, the day after the media article, the owner finally received a letter from your directorate, which was signed on 15 March, describing the directorate's action against the dogs’ owners and the two walkers who were in charge of the dogs on the day of the attack. Minister, why, after two months, have you still not answered the letters to you from Mr and Mrs Toscan, the owners of the deceased dog?
MS FITZHARRIS: I thank Mr Doszpot for the question and look forward to debate on related issues in the chamber tomorrow. Certainly my office did respond to Mr Toscan on a number of occasions. Rangers from the Transport Canberra and City
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