Page 4408 - Week 12 - Thursday, 26 October 2017
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previous year—or, in people terms, one in every nine Canberrans is engaged with a university.
Over the past 12 months the government-funded study Canberra program has been working collaboratively with the universities to grow our profile as a destination of choice for international students and researchers. Through study Canberra we have focused on enhancing the student experience and putting in place coordinated and consistent marketing. Our credentials as an education city were enhanced by our announcement, with the University of New South Wales Canberra, of the possibility of a new and second campus in the city east precinct. This is an exciting development and has the potential to add another 10,000 students over time, further expanding our education base.
We are very fortunate in the ACT to have such a quality public provider in the TAFE sector, the Canberra Institute of Technology. The CIT board has overseen continued reform of the CIT, particularly addressing business transformation and the beginning of the CIT campus modernisation strategy. We recognise CIT as a significant contributor in the education, training and research sector and will continue to support CIT’s strategic objectives as the modernisations program rolls out.
In closing, I would like to extend a very warm thanks to a number of different groups of people. To the hundreds of people I have spoken to at stakeholder and community events, experts, residents and more, thank you. The practical insights, advice and knowledge you have shared have been invaluable over the past year.
To the public servants across each of my directorates who have worked so hard over the past 12 months to turn our election commitments into real services and progress on the ground, thank you. I know we have driven a big agenda and at times we have pushed hard to make sure that long-term projects like SPIRE and light rail stage 2 get moving. Both the government and the Canberra community are grateful for the work you do, the hours you put in and the commitment you continue to show to getting things right. I look forward to continuing to work with all of you to see the changes we have started together come to fruition.
To all my Labor colleagues: we are a wonderful team and the old adage “the sum of the whole is greater than its parts” is an especially apt one for us, as we share common values about making our city more sustainable, progressive and equitable. To our new members, it is wonderful to have you in the Assembly representing our community, advocating issues and suggesting ideas. It is exactly what this place was designed to do.
Lastly, to my staff, both those who have been with me since the election and those who have joined my office more recently, thank you too. You play a big role in this government’s ability to deliver on our election commitments for Canberrans and I am grateful for the tireless way you go about this, in sometimes stressful circumstances.
It is important to take stock at the 12-month mark to see how we are going and to acknowledge the progress that has been made. It is even more important to keep
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