Page 1392 - Week 04 - Thursday, 4 April 2019
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . . Video
In the last couple of federal budgets, there have been some funds for remedial work. Those funds were late and have left institutions with difficulties in the short term, but some of that funding has now been provided. I want to acknowledge that, although it was late, it has now come, and that is a good thing.
There is still a lot of great potential in our national cultural institutions, but what I do not think is constructive going forward is the idea that stripping announced money away from the War Memorial will solve all of the problems of the other institutions. It is important that the federal government build on that investment in our national institutions with more investment in the years ahead. That is something that is entirely possible and is a clear choice confronting the next Australian government after the impending federal election.
I would hope that the attention that has been brought to the specific investment in the War Memorial will see advocacy from people who are opposed to the War Memorial investment when it could be turned into something positive: ongoing advocacy for investment in the other institutions. I believe it is possible, and our nation has the resources over the next three or four years to make similar scale investments in our other national cultural institutions.
The way forward has been paved by this unanimously agreed parliamentary committee report released today. I can say from the ACT government’s perspective that, through the amendment I am moving today, we would intend to engage on the detail of the War Memorial proposal, as there are implications for the territory, but we would also continue our strong advocacy for the second stage of the National Gallery’s expansion and the work that Questacon and the National Museum of Australia have outlined. I have seen their proposals for future expansion. I understand that the National Film and Sound Archive is looking for new facilities.
We have space at West Basin for new national institutions. There is land in the parliamentary triangle for new national institutions. This is an opportunity for this place to unite behind this agenda. We can support the work at the War Memorial. We can look at the detail of how it is going to potentially impact on the ACT. There may need to be an adjustment in relation to car parking, for example, in the proposal that is currently put forward. But it should not be seen as the War Memorial versus the rest; it should be the War Memorial and the rest. There is room, there is capacity and there should be investment in all of our national cultural institutions.
We have now had a decade of stripping funds away. The next five years should be about investing in these institutions. That is a more positive way forward. I urge members to support my amendment. The amended motion would give a clear pathway forward on the War Memorial proposal but also would indicate very strong support across this chamber for further investment in our national cultural institutions. I commend the amendment to the Assembly. (Time expired.)
MR HANSON (Murrumbidgee) (3.52): We will have to look at the amendment in detail once it is circulated, but I certainly agree with Mr Barr’s sentiment that we can support the work at the memorial and that it should be about the Australian War
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . . Video