Page 1949 - Week 07 - Thursday, 13 August 2020
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MS BERRY: the parents and the schoolteachers—
MADAM SPEAKER: There is no need to respond to the interjection.
MS BERRY: and the students as well. That is why the government and the Education Directorate have been providing as much information as possible and also, when new questions are asked, updates on those inquiries to make sure that everyone understands exactly the maintenance of lead paint at schools. Schools and buildings that were built in the 60s and 70s often contain lead paint. There is a management process and maintenance process in place for—
Ms Lee: I raise a point of order, Madam Speaker. The question specifically was: if all the actions were undertaken and completed, why were the classrooms recently closed, and when were parents first notified? I ask that you direct the minister to be directly relevant.
MADAM SPEAKER: In the time you have left, minister, you may respond to that.
MS BERRY: Yes. I was just putting some context around the maintenance program for lead paint in buildings. For Yarralumla all of the actions that were recommended in the initial report were completed, but of course lead paint needs ongoing maintenance and management. Additional work that happens at that school is part of a longer term maintenance plan, which occurs in lots of buildings across the ACT—to manage them and ensure that those places are safe and comfortable for everybody who needs to use them.
Ms Lee: Madam Speaker, a point of order just before we finish: I also asked the second part of the question, about when parents were first notified.
MADAM SPEAKER: I think the minister has concluded and she has, in many ways, gone to the point of your question.
MS LEE: Minister, how many children at Yarralumla Primary School used classrooms with high levels of lead, and for how long after they were detected?
MS BERRY: The term is “above-threshold” levels of lead. That is the measurement system that the Robson group uses to measure the levels of lead within an environment. I will have to get the actual number of students that were in the classrooms that had those above-threshold levels of lead in the environment; I do not have the numbers with me today. On the first question, on when parents were notified of this work that was being carried out at the school, it was last year, when the reporting was conducted.
MR HANSON: Minister, what other schools are now subject to environmental assessment reports for lead or other hazardous substances?
MS BERRY: There are a number of buildings and schools in the ACT that have hazardous materials that are maintained, like most buildings in the ACT that were
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