Page 3470 - Week 09 - Wednesday, 22 August 2018
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MR BARR (Kurrajong—Chief Minister, Treasurer, Minister for Economic Development and Minister for Tourism and Major Events) (5.07): I thank Mr Pettersson for bringing this forward today. It does provide an opportunity for ministers to take their portfolio hats off and focus on their responsibilities to their own constituencies. I would like to take the opportunity this afternoon in this debate to speak to a number of initiatives in the Kurrajong electorate.
There are many great initiatives in the budget. We are investing very heavily in growing services and infrastructure for our growing city. There are a range of new schools being delivered and upgrades to existing schools right across the city, particularly in the Kurrajong electorate. We are investing more in elective and emergency surgeries, we are providing more staff and resources for our emergency departments and there are more hospital beds so that Canberrans can access high quality health care when they need it.
We are working to deliver better places across the city and suburbs. Again with a Kurrajong member’s hat on, I am very pleased to see the progress of a number of urban renewal projects, particularly within the CBD. I am delighted to see—after quite some time in the making—that a number of the London Circuit projects have been completed and there has been progress to ensure that footpaths, paving and other pedestrian infrastructure is improved to make getting around London Circuit easier.
Through this year’s budget we continue to invest in the services and infrastructure that will keep our city moving and protect the very precious lifestyle that we all value so highly in Canberra.
To focus particularly on the Kurrajong electorate, I am particularly pleased that the budget has delivered funding to modernise the Campbell Primary School, with the construction of a new central building and refurbishment of the junior wing and library. In my earlier years, I lived in the suburb of Campbell. I was too old to go to the local primary school by the time we moved to Campbell, but I do know that it is a great local school. It has been helping kids reach their potential for almost 60 years. Through this upgrade, we are delivering a range of modern school facilities to ensure that for many decades to come Campbell primary can continue to do the great work it has over the last 60 years.
Across the lake, on the southern side of the city, the budget is delivering resources to start an important community conversation about the renewal of Narrabundah College. The college occupies a special place, not just for students who live within the Kurrajong electorate but for young people across the city who participate in its world-class specialist visual and dramatic arts programs. With extensive remediation work underway at the site to permanently remove old buildings containing asbestos, this is the right time to think about how Narrabundah College can best meet the needs of students into the future. The budget delivers the resources to do this important work, in partnership with the community.
Across the Education Directorate there are investments in schools in the Kurrajong electorate. Some of the oldest schools in Canberra are located in my electorate. The
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