Page 3123 - Week 09 - Tuesday, 20 August 2019
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . . Video
The Clerk having announced that the terms of the petition would be recorded in Hansard and a copy referred to the appropriate minister for response pursuant to standing order 100, the petition was received.
Pursuant to standing order 99A, the petition, having more than 500 signatories, was referred to the Standing Committee on Environment and Transport and City Services.
Motion to take note of petition
MADAM SPEAKER: Pursuant to standing order 98A, I propose the question:
That the petition so lodged be noted.
MISS C BURCH (Kurrajong) (10.20): I lodge this petition today on behalf of 544 Yarralumla residents and business owners calling on the government to improve and upgrade the public amenities and facilities at Yarralumla shops. The petition specifically calls for the installation of bollards and improved lighting, increased parking and upgrades to footpaths, kerbsides, toilets and seating. Yarralumla shops have been in desperate need of refurbishment for far too long. The dismal state of the shops has become both a safety and a security issue for businesses and residents in Yarralumla. Is it really too much to ask that the community has street lighting? Is it too much to ask that the public facilities be maintained and improved over time? Clearly, to this government, it is.
Yarralumla is one of Canberra’s oldest suburbs. Yarralumla residents are paying some of the highest rates in our city. Yet this is another example of a community that is being completely ignored by this government. Why are Canberrans constantly paying more from their pocket to get absolutely nothing back? Why is the government so incompetent that it is unable to provide the most basic level of local maintenance?
Local businesses are suffering because of this government’s complacency. Yarralumla businesses have been battling ram raids and constant accidents because of the government’s failure to install safety bollards around the local shops. The failure to provide lighting around stores has also added to the security risks that these small businesses are facing. Even the most basic things, like providing enough rubbish bins, have proven to be far too difficult for this government, with the consequences of their laziness once again falling on the small business owners of Canberra.
Sadly, under this government Canberrans have learnt to seriously lower their expectations. Basic governance, fixing cracked footpaths and crumbling kerbsides, filling potholes in car parks, upgrading benches and providing safety bollards are amenities that the government have demonstrated they are simply unable and unwilling to provide. Surely it is time for the ACT government to ask themselves: if they cannot even get the basics right, what on earth are they doing? When will the government finally commit to delivering basic services for all Canberrans? Yarralumla deserves better. Canberrans deserve better. The ACT government needs to start delivering basic amenities and maintenance for suburbs, particularly in areas like Yarralumla that have been crying out for upgrades for so long.
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . . Video