Page 1299 - Week 05 - Thursday, 18 June 2020
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . . Video
estimates. As we foreshadowed in the 2019-20 budget review, the territory is going to get a smaller slice of what will be a smaller GST pie.
The economic impact of COVID-19 has been lessened by the monetary and fiscal policy responses announced nationally and locally, reducing its direct impact on activity in the labour market. The first tranche of the ACT’s economic survival package was announced in late March, followed by a further package in early April. The additional announcements over the last two months have included the expansion of programs, targeted support for industries and communities suffering the most, and significant reductions in stamp duty to encourage new construction.
The economic survival package is the largest support package in the ACT’s history, significantly eclipsing measures announced during the global financial crisis. The government’s focus has been on measures to support households, businesses and jobs. The initiatives provide assistance to all Canberrans but particularly target industries and households most impacted.
Support for businesses includes payroll tax waivers and deferrals, waivers of licence fees, residential and commercial rates rebates, and utility bill rebates. Initiatives such as jobs for Canberrans have created hundreds of essential jobs and provided opportunities for employment to those who have been overlooked by the commonwealth government for assistance during this period, due to their residency or citizenship status. Our fast-track infrastructure program has provided varied opportunities to local companies, most of them small and medium businesses, with over 1,000 local workers engaged since April.
We have always said that our response will be multi-staged and targeted, and we will continue that approach. There is still more to do, and we will make further announcements in the weeks and months ahead.
We will continue to support the construction industry and prioritise the long-term needs of the territory by delivering key productivity-improving, job-creating infrastructure projects. In October last year we released our infrastructure plan for the territory, and this forms a key part of our recovery plan. It means that we are proceeding with the major expansion of the Canberra Hospital, the single largest healthcare infrastructure project in ACT government history. It means building a new CIT campus in the Woden town centre, at a time, as I have indicated, when investment in vocational skills is going to be more important than ever. We will continue working on extending our light rail network, creating thousands of new jobs in the city over the coming decade.
Our forward capital program will be in line with the ACT infrastructure plan, and we will prioritise projects that will result in a high concentration of local employment that can be delivered on time and provide a significant social, environmental and economic benefit to the community. We will support our hospitality and tourism sector, with a renewed focus on domestic and trans-Tasman tourism in the short term. As part of the ACT’s recovery plan, the government is putting our city forward to be a pilot for the return of both international flights and international students. As restrictions are eased, we have announced a $6.2 million hotel and hospitality
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . . Video