Page 1653 - Week 05 - Wednesday, 9 May 2018
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seating and improved road crossings for pedestrians. This is a very practical way that the government is working with the community to maintain and improve Canberra’s active lifestyle.
These are just some examples of the areas this government is focused on in supporting our growing city. The forthcoming territory budget will build on the work already underway to ensure the benefits of our recent growth are shared by all Canberrans.
Budgets, as we have seen in the last 24 hours, are about choices. They are about where we as a community invest our resources and what our priorities are. Both in territory politics and at the national level, there are clearly quite divergent views on how government should invest available community resources, which areas should be prioritised and what role government has to play in making a better society. In this context we are very happy to compare our approach, our beliefs and values around the role of government to improving the lives of our citizens to those of the opposition.
In this morning’s motion, which the Leader of the Opposition derides as having no value, he passed up a very clear speaking opportunity to outline an alternative plan for this city, an alternative set of priorities for a government that he would lead. But no; he was too busy attacking individuals and deriding the role of private members’ business in this place. That is a very sad reflection both on him and on the team that he leads. It shows a lack of respect for other members in this place. If the new test that he wishes to set is that there must be some absolute, meaningful outcome then most contributions to debate in this place would probably not meet that very lofty benchmark, I am afraid to say.
Nevertheless, these days we devote one-third of our parliamentary sittings to private members’ business. It is appropriate that we have the opportunity to debate these issues. If the Leader of the Opposition has no plans at all for infrastructure, it stands against what he has been doing in this place for the last two years. (Time expired.)
MS LE COUTEUR (Murrumbidgee) (11.27): The Greens will be supporting Ms Cody’s motion today without amendment, and we congratulate the government on the steps taken towards implementing a number of key priorities from the ACT Greens-Labor parliamentary agreement, particularly as so many items in the parliamentary agreement were, of course, Greens commitments during the 2016 election campaign.
Canberra is growing, and it is really pleasing to see advancement in a number of areas, including increasing engagement from major national and international companies and organisations in the ACT, because they bring economic benefits and jobs. These are much needed as the ACT moves away from just being a company town with the public service being the company. We could talk about that in the context of the federal budget last night, but I will refrain. I could spend all my time addressing each of the points addressed by Ms Cody, but I only have 15 minutes so I am going to focus on those in the parliamentary agreement as these are the ones the Greens have particularly contributed to.
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