Page 546 - Week 02 - Wednesday, 20 February 2019
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part of this project. Of course, as well, I work closely with my cabinet colleagues, including in cabinet itself, to address these issues.
Initial feedback from the community includes a need to look at how to improve the availability of space for events, the arts, meetings and other community activities. Just like Woden, when considering the future community in Gungahlin, we would need to consider the future needs of the Gungahlin region, which may be distinct from other areas of Canberra.
In Woden, for example, key priorities are accommodating the Woden Community Service, as well as other uses. The objective may be the same or different for Gungahlin, which is why further work called on by Ms Orr today rightly calls on government to consider the needs of the Gungahlin community, with engagement with the Gungahlin community to ensure that future community facilities are fit for purpose. I look forward to working with Ms Orr and considering the feasibility of a dedicated community centre to bring together the community and government to consider the diverse needs of the Gungahlin community, the programs and uses of the future community facility and potential locations for community facilities. (Time expired.)
At 6.30 pm, in accordance with standing order 34, the debate was interrupted. The motion for the adjournment of the Assembly having been put and negatived, the debate was resumed.
MR COE (Yerrabi—Leader of the Opposition) (6.30): I am conscious of the time. What I am doing in this debate is registering my support for the motion moved by Ms Orr, and particularly for the call to action that Mr Milligan has put by way of his proposed amendment. Many people in Gungahlin are sick of seeing feasibility studies and sick of seeing things promised for the never-never. They want it done here and now. I acknowledge that Ms Orr also wants to get this done as quickly as possible. I understand that there will be broad support to make sure this happens.
The minister said that he looks forward to the feasibility study. I hope the intentions of the Assembly are very clear. We do not want to determine whether it is feasible or not. We are already making the call, as an Assembly, that it is required. All that we need to determine are the specifics of what we include in it. Let us be very clear about that as an Assembly, rather than having it in some blue-sky-type way in a feasibility study. Mr Milligan, thank you for making clear what the community expects in Gungahlin. We all look forward to this facility being built.
MS ORR (Yerrabi) (6.32): Thank you, members, for this debate. I will be moving an amendment to Mr Milligan’s amendment to my motion. We can all agree that we would like to see this moved along. There was a little bit of an ambitious time line put forward by Mr Milligan and his colleagues. My amendment is more reflective of a reasonable and achievable time line for that.
I would also like to address a few of the comments that were made. I know that Mr Milligan cannot agree to a good news story for the government. I know they have to bash us around a little bit in making the statement. I think we saw that today, when
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