20590
LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY
Thursday 3 December 2009
______
The Speaker (The Hon. George Richard Torbay) took the chair at 10.00 a.m.
The Speaker read the Prayer and acknowledgement of country.
BUSINESS OF THE HOUSE
Notices of Motions
General Business Notices of Motions (General Notices) given.
BUILDING AND CONSTRUCTION INDUSTRY LONG SERVICE PAYMENTS AMENDMENT BILL 2009
Bill introduced a motion by Mr Barry Collier, on behalf of Ms Carmel Tebbutt.
Agreement in Principle
Mr BARRY COLLIER (Miranda—Parliamentary Secretary) [10.03 a.m.]: I move:
That this bill be now agreed to in principle.
The Government is pleased to introduce amendment legislation to modernise and enhance the efficiency of the Building and Construction Industry Long Service Payments Act 1986. This Act underpins the portable long service payment scheme administered by the Building and Construction Industry Long Service Payments Corporation. The scheme rewards some 280,000 building and construction workers for their dedicated service to a physically demanding and economically vital industry. Last financial year the corporation paid almost $55 million dollars in long service payments to building and construction workers. The scheme was established in recognition of the transient nature of building and construction work that makes it very difficult for builders, electricians, plumbers and other industry workers to qualify for long service leave in the traditional sense.
Generally, workers are only entitled to long service leave once they complete 10 continuous years of service with their employer. However, because workers in the building and construction industry move from project to project and from contractor to contractor they are unable to establish continuity of service with a single employer. The scheme ensures that all building and construction workers are entitled to a payment for long service after working in the industry for a cumulative 10-year period or beyond. Benefits are also payable to workers upon retirement, permanent incapacity and death if at least 55 days of work have been recorded in the scheme. The scheme pays the equivalent of 13 weeks pay after 15 years, 8.66 weeks after 10 years and 4.3 weeks after five years under special conditions. Payments are calculated based on industry award rates of pay or pay rates contained in relevant registered agreements. The scheme does not impose a direct cost to employers or workers. The scheme is funded by a levy on building and construction projects costed at $25,000 or more.
The Act was established in 1986 and with the passage of time it has become clear that it would benefit from an update. Over the past few years the corporation has actively engaged with stakeholders to ensure that the Act remains responsive to industrial changes and technological developments and is administered in the most effective and efficient way possible. This includes addressing miscellaneous anomalies that have arisen throughout its operation. It is important to note that this bill has been developed in close consultation with and is endorsed by the Building and Construction Industry Long Service Payments Industry Committee, a body that comprises a combination of union, employer and Government representatives.
In recent years there have been numerous industrial changes at the Federal level. For example, following WorkChoices, longstanding Federal industrial instrument terminology was superseded by a new regime of agreements including employer greenfield agreements and individual Australian workplace
3 December 2009 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 20591
agreements or AWAs. The bill seeks to substitute the current definition of "Commonwealth industrial instrument" with the flexibility of a reserve regulatory power to prescribe specific industrial instruments as amended from time to time. This amendment will accommodate the requirements of the new Federal Fair Work Act 2009 and ensures that the legislation remains in step with contemporary industrial instruments as they evolve over time. It will also validate long service payments made since March 2006 that were calculated based on post WorkChoices agreements.
The bill also contains a number of amendments that underpin advances in technology that have facilitated a shift to online service delivery and a streamlined registration and reporting process. Over the past couple of years the corporation has developed and implemented a suite of online tools to enable employers to register with the scheme and lodge service records used to record and verify a worker's service credits electronically. The overwhelming majority of employers and a growing number of workers registered in the scheme utilise these online services to meet their reporting obligations.
Importantly, the online services section of the Building and Construction Industry Long Service Payments Corporation website, www.lspc.nsw.gov.au, provides employers and workers with 24-hour access to their service records. Employers are also able to update the employment periods of their workers at any time. Therefore, the bill removes onerous and outdated paper-based processes including the issue of certificates of service and periodical notice requirements currently contained in the Act. The continuation of these obligations would impose an unnecessary red tape burden and their removal is of course consistent with the Government's priority of reducing red tape. The corporation continues to promote the efficiencies provided by using the online services and encourages those that have not yet embraced the updated technology to do so. First-time users and indeed anyone experiencing difficulties accessing the facility can rely on practical support and assistance provided by the corporation by telephone, email or over the counter.
The amendment bill clarifies the registration process, including an employer's obligation to advise the corporation of the commencement date and other relevant details of a worker within seven days of the worker commencing building and construction work. The amendment bill also contains enhanced measures to protect the corporation's levy revenue and ensure that the existing long service levy is maintained at a minimal rate. It does so by addressing loopholes that leave the scheme vulnerable to exploitation. For example, the Act in its current form does not contain any limitations of the maximum rate of pay used to calculate a long service benefit.
This leaves the scheme exposed to abuse by unscrupulous employers who may attempt to maximise long service benefits for working directors or friends or family working for a small company by negotiating agreements with artificially inflated rates of pay well in excess of the industry standard. Clearly, this has the potential to impact upon the future financial viability of the scheme and undermines the fairness and equity of payments made to workers in the industry. To address this risk, the amendment bill introduces a reserve regulatory power to set minimum and maximum limits on pay rates used to calculate long service payments. This power could be utilised if widespread abuses and exploitation were found.
The appropriate level of the maximum pay rate is yet to be determined. The Minister for Industrial Relations will continue to consult the Industry Committee, which will make recommendations on the operation, amendment or repeal of any such regulation to determine the calculation of a long service payment. Further, the amendment bill seeks to limit the ordinary hours used to calculate a long service payment to a maximum of 38 hours. This reflects the industry standard and circumvents agreements that have been negotiated with a standard working week in excess of this and often incorporating inbuilt overtime. It is also consistent with the ordinary hours of work stipulated in the Federal Fair Work Act 2009. The amendment bill will ensure parity with workers in other industries who are covered by the general Long Service Leave Act that explicitly excludes overtime in the calculation of long service leave payments. It also preserves the fairness and equity between workers working side by side in the building and construction industry.
To eliminate confusion regarding the cancellation or suspension of workers' registrations, the amendment bill also provides a definition of the terms "suspend" and "suspended". The Act in its current form requires the corporation to cancel the registration of a registered worker if the worker has not been credited with at least five years service and has not been credited with service for four years. It also allows the corporation to suspend the registration of a registered worker who has at least five years service credits but has not been credited with service for four years. Unfortunately the current Act does not define what the term "suspended" means and its practical implications. This lack of clarity about the distinction between a cancelled or suspended 20592 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 3 December 2009
registration has meant that many thousands of inactive workers have remained on the scheme's register and continued to receive regular correspondence from the corporation, including annual statements from the corporation as required by the Act.
The Audit Office, in its report to Parliament in 2007, raised concerns about the large numbers of inactive workers on the register. Legal advice was sought and in early 2009 the corporation undertook a bulk cancellation of some 150,000 inactive workers. In defining the terms, the practical implications of a suspension are detailed, including effective dates, appeal mechanisms and so forth. These changes will assist the corporation in maintaining the scheme, including conducting regular cancellation activities to ensure that the register remains up to date, and reducing the costs associated the scheme's administration. The amendment bill will extend appeal rights to a deceased worker's beneficiary or nominated representative to allow them to challenge a decision to cancel a registration or refuse service credits. Appeals are heard and determined by the independent Industry Committee. The Government recognises that it is important that the interests of workers are protected, and this is an appropriate way to achieve such protection.
The amendment bill also clarifies the calculation of service credits for part-time workers. Workers engaged to carry out building and construction and other work are entitled to a full day of service when the majority of that day is spent undertaking building and construction work. Additionally, the amendment bill will allow the corporation to reject periods of service from the calculation of reimbursement of long service payments where employers have provided long service leave entitlements to employees or when an employer has failed to advise the corporation within the required time frame and a further two years has elapsed. The amendment bill also seeks to improve compliance arrangements relating to the payment of levies. Specifically, Crown bodies, while not responsible for paying levies on building projects put to tender, will be required to sight proof of payment of the long service levy in relation to any works on which a levy is required to be paid by the contractors.
This bill also enables the corporation to determine the person to whom a refund of a long service levy is to be paid. The need for this amendment has arisen from a large number of homebuilders going into administration or liquidation and not completing building projects. This leads to administrators approaching the corporation seeking a refund of levies already paid. Internal investigations indicate that in a significant number of cases the levy is paid from the home owner's deposit. The proposed amendment to the Act allows some discretion by the corporation to refund the levy to the family rather than the bankrupt developer's trustee or administrator. The amendment bill also provides for a regulation to prescribe and update the established deadline for applications for refund in relation to levies that have been paid in error. The majority of applications for refunds are submitted by owner-builders and represent a relatively small dollar value. The current deadline is three months. It is proposed that it be immediately extended to 12 months.
This amendment bill follows an extensive consultation process with the industry over a number of years and represents changes that are driven by business needs. It is fully supported by both workers and employers in the building and construction industry. There are many changes contained within this bill that will clarify the regulatory provisions of the corporation and provide for improvements in efficiency and effectiveness across various areas of the corporation's operations and the long service payments scheme. The amendment bill consolidates a number of enhancements to the legislation that underpins a highly valued long service payments scheme. It will deliver significant benefits to all industry stakeholders. Market research and survey activities have consistently revealed a high level of worker and employer satisfaction with the corporation's services. The corporation should be proud of its solid reputation in the industry. This amendment bill will ensure that the corporation continues to administer an effective, well understood and responsive long service payments scheme for employers and workers in the building and construction industry. I have pleasure in commending the bill to the House.
Debate adjourned on motion by Mr Russell Turner and set down as an order of the day for a future day.
SYDNEY OLYMPIC PARK AUTHORITY AMENDMENT BILL 2009
Bill introduced on motion by the Hon. John Aquilina, on behalf of Mr David Borger.
Agreement in Principle
Mr JOHN AQUILINA (Riverstone—Parliamentary Secretary) [10.18 a.m.]: I move:
That this bill be now agreed to in principle.
3 December 2009 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 20593
Today I bring before the House a bill to amend the Sydney Olympic Park Authority Act 2001. This bill supports the New South Wales Government's intention that Sydney Olympic Park be the State's premier event precinct and our commitment to build on the legacy of the Sydney 2000 Olympic and Paralympic Games to create a modern and vibrant town centre at Olympic Park. Amendments to the Act were required to reflect changes and ongoing development at the park: altering the Act's wording to reflect the introduction of residential development within the park, amendments to clarify the objects and functions of the authority, and protecting the name "Sydney Olympic Park".
These amendments deal with noise management issues and support the holistic plan for the future of Sydney Olympic Park as the newest suburb of Sydney. This bill will provide legal protection for Sydney Olympic Park's status as the State's premier event destination, allowing major events to proceed without the potential for noise-related litigation to be used to impede that status. The noise-related amendments are consistent with other major event precinct legislation for both Luna Park and Mount Panorama. This does not imply that noise control will cease at the park—far from it. It will still be a requirement for events to be consistent with the approved Event Noise Management Framework Plan for Sydney Olympic Park.
The consent authority to the noise management plan is the Director General of the Department of Environment, Climate Change and Water, which allows for an objective and independent overview of the plan as well as implementation of any required changes. This is the same framework that has successfully managed events such as U2 concerts, State of Origin, André Rieu concerts and a myriad of other events. This amendment will not affect noise management of the Sydney 500 V8 Supercar race, which is governed by the Homebush Motor Race Authority Act. Importantly, the bill is reserved for major events, for example, those designed for more than 10,000 patrons.
Maximum noise limits still apply. We have a responsibility to residents and businesses to adhere to the prescribed legal decibel limit. Another physical provision to limit noise includes smarter urban planning, with buildings acting as noise barriers between the event precinct and residential developments These amendments are designed to allow Sydney Olympic Park to continue to be Sydney's epicentre of major public events. This bill is introduced to support the growth and development of the precinct, essentially setting up a framework that supports and protects the continued success of commercial operations whilst also supporting the establishment of a new residential population at Sydney Olympic Park. It is about making sure potential residents move into the area with their eyes wide open.
This is an important amendment in Sydney Olympic Park's development as a premier place of sport, recreation and entertainment, and a centre of jobs and of homes for the people of western Sydney. The introduction of this bill forms part of the Rees Government's commitment to ensure Sydney Olympic Park becomes a vibrant centre within metropolitan Sydney. I commend this bill to the House.
Debate adjourned on motion by Mr Russell Turner and set down as an order of the day for a future day.
HOUSING AMENDMENT (COMMUNITY HOUSING PROVIDERS) BILL 2009
Bill introduced on motion by Mr John Aquilina, on behalf of Mr David Borger.
Agreement in Principle
Mr JOHN AQUILINA (Riverstone—Parliamentary Secretary) [10.24 a.m.]: I move:
That this bill be now agreed to in principle.
Today I bring before this House a bill to amend the Housing Act 2001. This bill supports the implementation of the historic decision by the Government to transfer the ownership of government-funded social housing delivered under the Nation Building Economic Stimulus plan to not-for-profit community housing providers. By transferring ownership of selected properties to community housing providers we are laying the foundation for a viable and independent not-for-profit housing sector in New South Wales that is able to deliver more housing for lower income people in need. Ownership will allow community housing providers to actively plan for the growth of their housing portfolio and provide a much-needed asset base that can be used to secure finance from banks for investment in new housing.
The Government has a strong commitment to grow the supply of community housing. The sector currently manages over 17,500 homes for lower income people in New South Wales and we have set a target to 20594 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 3 December 2009
grow the sector to manage 30,000 homes by 2016. We are well on the way to meeting this target ahead of schedule. In the next two years the majority of new homes delivered through funding from the Commonwealth nation building economic stimulus package will be transferred to the ownership and management of community housing providers. We have also committed to transfer the ownership of 500 homes already under community housing management to selected community housing providers. We believe that the community housing sector has an important role to play in delivering affordable rental housing for the people of New South Wales.
Community housing provides homes for public housing eligible households and those with priority needs, as well as households on more moderate incomes whose housing needs cannot be met in the private rental market. Community housing providers are an important partner for government in addressing the housing needs of New South Wales residents as they offer flexible and innovative ways to deliver new housing. They are able to combine private sector finance, government funding and a range of other incentives such as tax concessions and planning bonuses to deliver more homes for lower income people than government can alone. This bill is being introduced to support further innovation in the community housing sector by providing a means for government to manage the transfer of ownership of government-funded homes to the community housing sector while still retaining an interest in the land.
The amendments introduce a range of new provisions to protect the Government's investment and ensure the homes continue to house people in need. These provisions are necessary measures to manage the risks of transferring ownership of government assets and to protect tenants of community housing. We have already introduced a strong, robust regulatory system for the community housing sector. This system, which began in May this year, requires community housing providers to be registered and to meet the ongoing requirements of a regulatory code focused on ensuring that tenants receive high-quality services, assets are well maintained and community housing providers are well managed and financially viable. This bill provides important additional safeguards to manage the risks of providers holding title to government-funded housing.
Specifically, the bill will provide a means to transfer government-owned social housing to community housing providers. The Governor, by way of publishing a notice in the Government Gazette, can vest land in a registered community housing provider. Under new provisions in the bill, this means government will be able to register an ongoing interest on the land title to the properties that have been vested to the ownership of a community housing provider or for houses purchased with government funds. This registered interest restricts the community housing provider from selling, mortgaging or otherwise dealing in the land without consent. The intent of these provisions is to not prevent the sale or mortgaging of assets—in fact, consent will not be unreasonably refused—but to provide a review process to ensure that the dealings are in keeping with government requirements and priorities.
The amendments will also provide additional measures for the Government to intervene in the event of provider failure. We recognise that risks are involved in transferring ownership of government-funded housing to the ownership of community housing providers and that we need additional safeguards in the event an organisation is suffering from poor management or finds itself in financial difficulty. Additional regulatory powers are being introduced which allow the independent regulator, the Registrar of Community Housing, to recommend the appointment of Special Adviser to assist a community housing provider to improve his or her performance. The Special Adviser would be independent of the provider and tasked with helping the organisation to address outstanding issues of regulatory compliance in order to prevent the cancellation of registration.
This approach provides for a staged process of intervention in circumstances where the issues facing the provider can be rectified before their registration is cancelled. Earlier intervention provides a greater opportunity to address poor performance and prevent provider failure. Importantly, the bill also provides the Government with powers to intervene when the situation is serious, when a provider has their registration cancelled or is insolvent. If this situation were to occur the Government can instruct a community housing provider to transfer the properties in which the Government has a registered interest to another registered community housing provider or to the New South Wales Land and Housing Corporation. Tenants' rights will continue to be protected under New South Wales residential tenancies legislation and a range of other measures are in place to ensure tenants of community housing are treated fairly and have access to high-quality housing services.
The introduction of this bill forms part of the Government's commitment to introduce an appropriate structure before the ownership of government-funded social housing is transferred to community housing providers and the continuing use of the properties to house high-priority public housing eligible tenants is 3 December 2009 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 20595
achieved. These provisions also meet the requirements set by the Commonwealth Government to support growth in the not-for-profit sector through the Commonwealth's investment in homes delivered under the Nation Building Economic Stimulus Plan. I commend this bill to the House.
Debate adjourned on motion by Mr Russell Turner and set down as an order of the day for a future day.
GAS SUPPLY AMENDMENT BILL 2009
Bill introduced on motion by Mr John Aquilina, on behalf of Ms Verity Firth.
Agreement in Principle
Mr JOHN AQUILINA (Riverstone—Parliamentary Secretary) [10.32 a.m.]: I move:
That this bill be now agreed to in principle.
It is my privilege to introduce the Gas Supply Amendment Bill 2009. The Gas Supply Amendment Bill 2009 will amend the Gas Supply Act 1996 to consolidate regulatory authority for gasfitting, autogas mechanics, gas installations and gas appliances within the Office of Fair Trading. The bill implements recommendations of the Better Regulation Office targeted review, reforming arrangements for regulating gasfitting, gas installations and appliances. Changes to relevant regulations are also required and are detailed in a draft regulation that is tabled for public comment today. Specifically, the bill will do two main things. First, the bill makes it clear that the Office of Fair Trading is the sole agency with regulatory responsibility for gas installations, gasfitting work and autogas work.
Industry and Investment New South Wales is confirmed as the regulatory authority for work involving the installation or replacement of a gas meter. Secondly, the bill clarifies the definitions of "gas installation" and "gasfitting work" and ensures that definitions are consistent across all relevant legislation. These reforms are the result of a review led by the Better Regulation Office. The review was in response to concerns raised by industry that the regulatory framework for gasfitting, gas installations and gas appliances did not work well, resulting in confusion and potential gaps in compliance. This in turn created unnecessary red tape and could potentially compromise safety outcomes.
The review was completed by the Better Regulation Office in close consultation with the four government agencies involved in gas regulation in New South Wales and key industry stakeholders, such as gas industry associations, network operators, and gasfitters. Prior to these reforms, the regulation of gasfitters, gasfitting work, installations and appliances was spread across four agencies: the Office of Fair Trading, Industry and Investment New South Wales, the Roads and Traffic Authority and the WorkCover Authority. Often, there was confusion between agencies as to which had authority for particular issues. Under this bill, all four agencies will retain some regulatory responsibility with regard to gas. However, the scope of their responsibility will be better aligned to their core roles in government, and more clearly defined.
The reforms will in effect create a one-stop-shop for consumer gas issues in the Office of Fair Trading thereby reducing costs and improving access to information and advice for industry and consumers. The particular roles of each agency remain: WorkCover for maintaining workplace safety, the Roads and Traffic Authority for ensuring that roads and vehicles are kept safe, and Industry and Investment New South Wales for managing energy infrastructure. It is important to note that this bill will not affect the standard to which gasfitters and autogas mechanics must work, or affect the standards to which installations and appliances must be constructed and maintained. This bill will improve the management of gas regulation, assign roles to the appropriate agencies, make life easier for industry and consumers, and cut red tape. These reforms will remove gaps in the regulatory framework, and facilitate better compliance enforcement, which will ensure that the overall safety of gas infrastructure in New South Wales is improved.
I will now turn to consider the two core amendments brought in by the bill in detail. The bill makes it clear that the Office of Fair Trading is the sole agency with regulatory responsibility for gas installations, gasfitting work and autogas work. Fair Trading is the licensing authority for gasfitters and autogas mechanics under the Home Building Act 1989. However, the standards to which they work were contained in regulations that came under the authority of Industry and Investment New South Wales. There was also a designated role for the WorkCover Authority. This arrangement is the result of having two Ministers responsible for the Gas Supply Act 1989. 20596 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 3 December 2009
In particular, sections 83 and 83A provide for regulations to be made with respect to certain matters. Those made under section 83 are the responsibility of the Minister for Energy and those under section 83A are the responsibility of the Minister for Fair Trading. Although section 83, under the Minister for Energy, provided for regulations to do with gasfitting and autogas, those are functions more appropriately regulated by Fair Trading. That arrangement led to confusion among tradespeople and consumers. It was found that issues brought to Government often took a long time to reach the appropriate person or team responsible, and therefore took too long to resolve. As such, the bill rearranges which matters are under the purview of each Minister.
The power to make regulations with respect to gas installations, gasfitting work, autogas installations and autogas work is now found in section 83A and is therefore the clear responsibility of the Minister for Fair Trading. The bill confirms that the carrying out of work involving the installation or replacement of a gas meter or any part of the basic metering equipment remains a matter dealt with under section 83 and is the responsibility of the Minister for Energy. As well as helping to improve certainty for consumers and industry, these changes are being made because the authority responsible for licensing gasfitters and autogas mechanics should also have responsibility for setting and enforcing standards.
The Office of Fair Trading will become responsible for the standards to which gasfitters and autogas mechanics must work. This will provide a more effective regime for enforcing compliance by licensed gasfitters, handling complaints and resolving disputes. The applicable standards will continue to be those developed by Standards Australia and referenced in the regulations, which are the responsibility of the Minister for Fair Trading. Now, therefore, if a complaint is made about gasfitting work, or if a gasfitting licence should be revoked, the Office of Fair Trading has unambiguous authority to act. To facilitate this change, the bill gives inspectors appointed under the Fair Trading Act 1987 powers in relation to gasfitting, installations and appliances.
The second main function of the bill is to clarify the definitions of the key terms "basic metering equipment", "consumer service", "gas appliance", "gas container", "gas installation", "gas installation end point", "gas network", "gas supply point", and "gasfitting work". The most significant clarification relates to the definitions of "gas installation" and "gasfitting work". The bill ensures that definitions are consistent across all relevant legislation. Inconsistency in the definition of a gas installation across relevant pieces of legislation is one source of the uncertainty. For example, the Gas Supply Act defines an installation as "the gas pipes and associated equipment that are used to … convey gas within premises to which gas is supplied". However, the Gas Supply (Safety and Network Management) Regulation 2008 defines gasfitting work as "maintenance of any part of a gas installation up to the gas meter outlet" and is silent on the significance of the premises boundary.
The bill clarifies that a "gas installation" means any pipe or system of pipes used to convey or control gas, and any associated fittings and equipment that are downstream of the "gas supply point", but does not include anything beyond the "gas installation end point". The "gas supply point" means, in the case of a gas installation to which gas is supplied from a gas network, the outlet of the gas meter at which the gas is supplied. The "gas installation end point" means, in the case of a gas installation to which gas is supplied from a gas network, the gas outlet socket. This means that the installation is all of the piping from the meter, up to the appliance, but not including the appliance. The qualifications and standards that apply to gasfitting work on "gas installations" are contained in the associated draft regulation.
In redefining key terms, the bill clarifies that changing a pigtail is not considered to be gasfitting work. A pigtail is a short length of small bore pipe or a hose assembly used for the high-pressure connection between a liquid petroleum gas cylinder and the cylinder regulator or the cylinder manifold. The clarification is required in light of the decision in a recent court case: Deborah Lynn Webber & Others v West Lindfield Bowling Club Co-op [2008]. In that case, the court interpreted the definition of gasfitting to include any work on a pigtail if it requires the use of a spanner. Pigtails were deemed to be within the definition of an installation and any work on them, such as replacing a worn or defective pigtail, had to be performed by a licensed gasfitter.
A pigtail is a simple device that can be easily and safely replaced by anyone with a bare minimum of technical skill. Some gas cylinder delivery companies have for a long time carried spare pigtails in their delivery vans. The spare pigtails are used to replace worn or defective pigtails, free of charge, before attaching a new gas cylinder. This service helped to keep consumers' cylinders safe. The effect of the court judgement was that if gas cylinder delivery staff found a worn or defective pigtail in the course of their delivery duties, they could not replace it. Given that the pigtail is an often neglected but vital safety item, the judgement will lead to an increase in the number of worn or defective pigtails remaining in operation, with a consequently significant increase in the risk of gas-related incidents occurring. 3 December 2009 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 20597
An alternative is for gas delivery staff to be licensed gasfitters. Not only would that lead to the underutilisation of skilled gasfitters, but it would also increase the cost of a cylinder delivery. To avoid those situations, the bill instead clarifies that changing a pigtail does not fall within the definition of "gasfitting work" if it is designed to be readily detachable from the installation, whether by the use of a tool, mechanical force or otherwise. Gas cylinder companies will be required, under normal occupational health and safety laws, to ensure that their staff are trained to replace pigtails safely. Consumer safety will not be compromised. In the absence of any evidence of a significant or systemic problem or risk that would require regulatory intervention, it should be the responsibility of home owners to ensure their installation is safe, through periodic inspection by a licensed gasfitter.
The amendments contained in this bill will make life a lot simpler for everyone who uses gas. Consumers will be able to go to just one agency—the Office of Fair Trading—for help when they need it. Gas network providers will gain clarity over the boundary of their responsibilities. Gasfitters and autogas mechanics will be working to standards set by just one agency—the Office of Fair Trading. The four government agencies that regulate different aspects of gas—Industry and Investment New South Wales, the Office of Fair Trading, the Roads and Traffic Authority, and the WorkCover Authority—will now have clear boundaries in their respective roles. It will be a simpler process to identify who should deal with issues as they arise. This bill is, yet again, evidence of the Government's drive to cut red tape. I commend the bill to the House.
Debate adjourned on motion by Mr Russell Turner and set down as an order of the day for a future day.
FISHERIES MANAGEMENT AMENDMENT BILL 2009
Consideration in Detail
Consideration of the Legislative Council amendments.
Schedule of amendments referred to in the Legislative Council's message of 2 December 2009
No. 1 Page 13, schedule 1. Insert after line 6:
[27] Section 21AA
Insert after section 21:
21AA Special provision for Aboriginal cultural fishing
(1) An Aboriginal person is authorised to take or possess fish, despite section 17 or 18, if the fish are taken or possessed for the purpose of Aboriginal cultural fishing.
(2) The authority conferred by this section is subject to any regulations made under this section.
(3) The regulations may make provision for the management of Aboriginal cultural fishing as authorised by this section.
(4) Without limiting the above, the regulations may:
(a) prescribe the circumstances in which the taking or possession of fish by Aboriginal persons for the purpose of Aboriginal cultural fishing is authorised by this section, and
(b) specify restrictions as to the quantity of fish of a specified species or of a specified class that may be taken by or be in the possession of Aboriginal persons for the purposes of Aboriginal cultural fishing as authorised by this section.
(5) The Minister must not recommend the making of a regulation under this section unless an advisory council for the Aboriginal sector of the fishing industry has been established under section 229 and the Minister certifies that the advisory council has been consulted on the proposed regulation.
(6) A person does not commit an offence against section 17 or 18 in respect of the taking or possession of fish if the taking or possession of the fish is authorised under this section.
(7) This section does not prevent the issue of a permit under section 37 for Aboriginal cultural fishing purposes.
(8) This section does not authorise an Aboriginal person to do anything that is inconsistent with native title rights and interests under an approved determination of native title (within the meaning of the Native Title Act 1993 of the Commonwealth) or with the terms of an indigenous land use agreement (within the meaning of that Act).
20598 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 3 December 2009
No. 2 Page 16, schedule 1. Insert after line 7:
[32] Section 34C Recreational fishers required to pay fishing fee
Omit section 34C (2) (f). Insert instead:
(f) if the fisher is an Aboriginal person, or
No. 3 Page 39, schedule 1. Insert after line 32:
[117] Section 229 Ministerial advisory bodies
Insert ", Aboriginal" after "research" in section 229 (1).
Motion by Mr John Aquilina, on behalf of Ms Verity Firth, agreed to:
That the House agree to the Legislative Council amendments.
Legislative Council amendments agreed to.
Message sent to the Legislative Council advising it of the resolution.
BLUE MOUNTAINS SUSTAINABLE SCHOOLS PROGRAM
Mrs KARYN PALUZZANO (Penrith—Parliamentary Secretary) [10.50 a.m.]: I move:
That this House:
(1) congratulates the Blue Mountains City Council on its Sustainable Schools Program;
(2) commends schools of the Blue Mountains for their participation in the Sustainable Schools Program; and
(3) congratulates the winners of the Blue Mountains Sustainable Schools Program.
The electorate of Penrith covers the lower Blue Mountains—the wonderful villages of Lapstone, Glenbrook and Blaxland. The member for Blue Mountains and I share the Blue Mountains, and quite proudly so. I gave notice of the motion at about this time last year. Since then, the 2008 and 2009 Sustainable Schools Program winners have been announced. The Blue Mountains City Council supports the program and offers it to all schools from Lapstone through to Mount Victoria. The qualifying schools within the Penrith electorate are Lapstone, Glenbrook and Blaxland East, and all participate in the program. The objects of the Sustainable Schools Program are many and varied. The program raises awareness about the environment, and the schools consider what they can do for the environment.
The schools have a sustainable plan and every year school environment awards are presented to the schools that have made a significant contribution to sustainability. That contribution may be a kitchen garden, a number of which are in and around schools in the Blue Mountains. I have visited the gardens at Blaxland East, which is very proud of its garden, and at Lapstone Public School, the school I attended in years 5 and 6. The Sydney Morning Herald published a photo of the Lapstone school garden in its article about the Sustainable Schools Program. The innovative Lapstone school garden is based on a range of sustainable strategies. It has a rainwater tank. However, Lapstone school, like many others in the Blue Mountains, is on a slope and the rainwater tank is below the garden.
Members would know that water does not flow uphill unless it is pumped. Lapstone school has an innovative pump for garden watering, which is attached to a bike. Someone has to get on the bike and pedal to get water to that garden. Lapstone school uses people power to get the water uphill—a sustainable practice. I have participated in that practice and quite enjoyed watering the garden. Lapstone Public School does not have a canteen, but it collects its garden produce and holds a fun day—which it did on Tuesday of this week, with a pesto pasta day.
I thank the Sustainability Education Officer of the Blue Mountains City Council, Mr Dave Lowery. A few weeks ago he facilitated the fifteenth Blue Mountains School Environment Awards. I thank also staff of the council, including the Group Manager, Mr David Allen, and the General Manager, Phil Pinyon. I thank also the sponsors of the awards: Aussie Solar, Youth Hostels Australia, Blue Mountains City Council's Earth Works Program, Oasis Horticulture and Grasshopper Environmental Services. At the presentation the council thanked those sponsors for their support, because without it the environmental awards would not be possible. A number of agencies also gave assistance. 3 December 2009 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 20599
The 2008 Sustainable School Award winner, Ellison Public School, hosted the 2009 awards presentation. The member for Blue Mountains and I attended the presentation at which 24 projects were nominated by 10 schools, which was absolutely fantastic. This year a new category was created, the Green Schools Giant Dragonfly Achievement, which identifies three milestones that schools can achieve in sustainability projects. It is hoped that the award encourages schools to identify and monitor the environmental outcomes of all the outstanding work so far undertaken.
The runner-up for the Environmental Education Award was Blaxland East Public School. That award was sponsored by Water for Life Project. Blaxland East was involved in a project to reduce carbon and to improve the natural environment. Students were involved in planting native trees to act as carbon sinks and to attract native birds to the school and local environment. Blaxland East was involved in a number of other projects, including maintaining the kitchen garden that I mentioned, and encouraging students to calculate their ecological footprint and create reductions where they can. Across the board it has shown amazing projects and a great commitment to sustainability. Congratulations to Blaxland East Public School.
The winner of the Environmental Education Award was Lapstone Public School. The Blue Mountains Conservation Society sponsored that award. Lapstone school was an outstanding entrant. It involved using all aspects of the curriculum to encourage reductions in the ecological, social and economic footprint of the school community. It uses the integrated kitchen garden program to develop healthy eating habits by growing, harvesting and then eating garden produce. Last Tuesday's pesto pasta day promoted healthy eating habits. The use of the living classroom enabling environmental lessons to be taught in an outdoor environment has been a weekly activity for all classes in the school. Students take an active part in the daily maintenance of the garden and are active members of the garden committee. That is a brilliant effort for which they should be commended.
The runner-up for the Planning Award was Katoomba High School. Aussie Solar sponsored the award. Katoomba High School has been involved in the design of a fantastic kitchen garden area, a great way to use a space that was a weedy area within the school. That area has been turned into a kitchen garden. The students have continued their Drink Tap Water campaign. The students have their own bottle with identifying stickers, which they refill instead of throwing away and purchasing another. The students request us all to follow their example. The winner of the Planning Award was Winmalee Public School. Aussie Solar sponsored the award. Winmalee students were involved in designing and planning a garden and seating area, which allows students to become active participants in the school garden.
The runner-up for the Waste Management Award was Ellison Public School. Earth Works sponsored the award. Ellison school provided itself to be a standout school in 2008 and continues to come up with fantastic projects for the school and the school community. This year, Ellison Public School students and families have been involved in a campaign to reduce waste going to landfill. The school has put in place a number of protocols and procedures to reduce landfill waste, and students take that message home. The school's project has inspired other schools in the area to follow suit in waste reduction strategy. Congratulations to Ellison Public School.
The winner of the Waste Management Award was Wentworth Falls Public School. Grasshopper Environmental Services sponsored the award. Wentworth Falls students have been involved in reducing waste by composting all their food scraps generated at school. The students have put all the scraps into compost heaps, which has produced a fantastic compost that is used on the vegetable patch to grow more food for the students and staff. Well done!
The runner-up for the Kitchen Garden Award was Leura Public School, and Oasis Horticulture sponsored that award. The winner was Katoomba Public School, and Water For Life sponsored that award. The gardens at Katoomba Public School are something to behold. Students, teachers and parents volunteer to work tirelessly to create that fantastic kitchen garden. The winner of the Green Achievement Award was Blackheath Public School. That award was sponsored by Youth Hostels Australia. Blackheath school has been involved in a number of community education programs over the years and has been a visionary in preparing and implementing its five-year plan. Each month the school holds community markets with its high visibility kitchen garden.
Three years ago, Blackheath Public School commenced its five-year School Environmental Management Plan called Cool School. Since then it has accomplished an incredible amount, including receiving solar grants for photovoltaic panels for the school, creating a working organic school garden, encouraging recycling, establishing a healthy canteen, developing as a community hub and encouraging healthy eating at the school. The Giant Dragonfly Achievement Bronze Level award went to Ellison Public School and Warrimoo 20600 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 3 December 2009
Public School. The runner-up for the Sustainable School Award was Blaxland East Public School and the winner was Warrimoo Public School, and the award was sponsored by the Blue Mountains City Council. Warrimoo Public School has been voted the most outstanding sustainable school in the Blue Mountains, which is an outstanding effort.
I thank Chris Tobin, a Dharug man, who conducted the Welcome to Country. In his capacity as a representative of the National Parks and Wildlife Service he donated a Wollemi pine to the winners in the significant categories. I commend the Sustainable Schools Program and encourage all schools to participate in a sustainable program.
[Business interrupted]
DISTINGUISHED VISITORS
ACTING-SPEAKER (Mr Thomas George): I draw the attention of members to the presence in the gallery of the executive of the Weddin Shire Council, Mayor Morris Simpson, Deputy Mayor Nevin Hughes and General Manager Trevor Lobb, guests of the member for Burrinjuck. Welcome to the New South Wales Parliament.
BLUE MOUNTAINS SUSTAINABLE SCHOOLS PROGRAM
[Business resumed.]
Mr MICHAEL RICHARDSON (Castle Hill) [11.00 a.m.]: The Opposition does not oppose the motion and is happy to commend the schools of the Blue Mountains for their participation in the Blue Mountains Sustainable Schools Program. The Opposition is also happy to congratulate the winners and the runners-up of the competition. But why is the member for Penrith moving this motion? Where is the member for Blue Mountains? The vast majority of schools that won the awards are in the electorate of Blue Mountains and not in the electorate of Penrith.
The member for Penrith got wrong the runner-up of the Kitchen Garden Award. I cannot recall what school she nominated but according to my list Leura Public School was the runner-up of the Kitchen Garden Award; the winner was Katoomba Public School. So far as I know Leura and Katoomba are not in the electorate of Penrith. Nor is Warrimoo Public School, which was the winner of the Sustainable School Award and received a bronze in the Giant Dragonfly Achievement. Katoomba High School was the runner-up for the Planning Award; the winner was Winmalee Public School. Wentworth Falls Public School was the winner of the Waste Management Award. Blackheath Primary School was the winner of the Green Achievement Award. Blackheath is actually further from the electorate of Penrith than my own electorate is. One really has to question why the member for Penrith moved this motion.
Mr Russell Turner: Where is Phil?
Mr MICHAEL RICHARDSON: Yes, where is Phil? He is probably in an important meeting at the moment. The member for Penrith has obviously been left right out and not been consulted about the issue. The member for Penrith has not been up on the tenth floor—
Mrs Karyn Paluzzano: Point of order: On relevance to the motion, the debate is about the Sustainable Schools Program. As I have explained to members opposite, the electorate of Penrith takes in a number of lower Blue Mountain schools. As the Parliamentary Secretary Assisting the Minister for Education and Training I commend all schools.
ACTING-SPEAKER (Mr Thomas George): Order! That is not a point of order. The member for Castle Hill will confine his remarks to the leave of the motion.
Mr MICHAEL RICHARDSON: I am happy to do that but I am speculating on the whereabouts of the member for Blue Mountains. Indeed, the member for Penrith has not been called into the office of Joe Tripodi on the tenth floor. As I understand it, there has been a conga line of people going into that office this morning.
Mrs Karyn Paluzzano: Point of order: On relevance to the motion, the motion is specifically about sustainable education and about the informing of those that should be going out to the young in our schools— 3 December 2009 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 20601
ACTING-SPEAKER (Mr Thomas George): Order! I have heard enough on the point of order. The member for Castle Hill has been trying to say that the member for Blue Mountains is in a meeting and is trying to elaborate on that. I draw the member for Castle Hill back to the leave of the motion.
Mr MICHAEL RICHARDSON: That is correct. This initiative is not an initiative of the State Government; it is an initiative of the Blue Mountains City Council, and it is lucky that the Blue Mountains City Council is doing this. The State Labor Government—I cannot call it the Rees Government because we do not know who will be heading the Government at the end of today—seems to be doing everything it can to block environmental improvements at schools. I cite the difficulties that New South Wales State schools are finding in obtaining Federal funding for energy and water saving projects.
Members will remember that Prime Minister Rudd announced these projects as an election promise. In early August—21 months after Kevin Rudd had made the announcement—no New South Wales public school had received any money, even though many private schools have had it for months. It turned out that many country schools would not be able to register until July 2013, which would mean they would be lucky to get their solar panels by 2015—that is, eight years after the first announcement. As much as I hate to say it, this is not due to any great inefficiency on the part of the Federal Government but it certainly has a lot to do with the incompetence of the State Labor Government.
The National Solar Schools Program provides up to $55,000 to every school for solar panels and water and energy saving devices, but it has been constantly delayed by the Department of Education and Training centralised tender system. In October 2008 government schools were blocked from applying for a grant until the Department of Commerce had completed its tender to supply solar panels. It announced the winners on 1 June but the Government simply does not have the capacity to do the whole of New South Wales in one tranche. What we are talking about here is a very significant program—something like a two kilowatt solar installation in every school in the State, which would make a huge difference to the energy costs of schools, as well as providing an important educational tool for students.
I am in no sense downplaying the importance of the environmental awards that have been put forward by the Blue Mountains City Council, but it is a bit rich for the member for Penrith to extol the virtues of what a council is doing when her own Government is so totally incompetent and cannot fulfil the basic requirements of the Federal Government in installing solar panels. What also happened was—and I exposed this earlier in the year, with the Government doing a huge backflip as a consequence—the suppliers had to prove that they had allowed for a management fee in the price that was quoted to schools, and they would be charged 5 per cent interest if the fee was not passed on within 14 days. That was in the tender document, and the Government did a major backflip once it was exposed.
It is a good thing that the Blue Mountains City Council is providing money to support environmental initiatives in schools but the Blue Mountains City Council is experiencing significant financial problems. In November last year the council announced that it had written down $4.1 million from its $25 million investment portfolio. The council had invested with Lehman Brothers Holdings Incorporated in direct sub-prime market collateralised debt obligations and, as a result, suffered a $4.1 million write-down, with more to come. Because the council is experiencing a significant degree of financial difficulty it is now exploring all sorts of ways to try to deal with the problem, including a tourist industry tax. The tourist industry is the lifeblood of the Blue Mountains.
Dr Andrew McDonald: Point of order: On relevance to the motion, the member for Castle Hill is well outside the leave of the motion and I ask that he be brought back to the leave of the motion. He is speaking about the Blue Mountains City Council when this motion is about environmental awards.
ACTING-SPEAKER (Mr Thomas George): Order! The motion refers to the Sustainable Schools Program, which is sponsored by the Blue Mountains City Council. The comments of the member for Castle Hill are in relation to the Blue Mountains City Council.
Mr MICHAEL RICHARDSON: That is correct. Tourism is a major employer in the Blue Mountains and an across-the-board tourist tax would kill the goose that laid the golden egg. It would be totally reprehensible. It is a Labor-controlled council.
Mrs Karyn Paluzzano: You have got to be joking. 20602 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 3 December 2009
Mr MICHAEL RICHARDSON: It has a Labor mayor. Do you support him? The council is in significant financial difficulty and it is trying all sorts of ways and means to claw back the money. One wonders whether the Sustainable Schools Program is sustainable and whether the Blue Mountains City Council will be able to continue the program, which I concede has been of significant benefit to schools and schoolchildren in the Blue Mountains. These financial difficulties will not go away. It will take the council a decade or more to get over it. [Time expired.]
Dr ANDREW McDONALD (Macquarie Fields—Parliamentary Secretary) [11.10 a.m.]: I want to say as the only member of Parliament who is a paediatrician that this is the finest generation of young people that we have ever had. They are open-minded, they care about the environment and they care about each other. All members, when they visit schools in their electorates, could not fail to be impressed by the current generation of school students. No other generation has grown up in such a complicated world. This generation has to deal with more complicated issues than any other generation has in the past.
Climate change is a simple issue and this is a simple motion. Yet the Opposition manages to make it more complicated than it is. The science is clear that climate change is the greatest health challenge in the world. That is why the Sustainable Schools Program is so important. I have a message for Mr Abbott: It matters not whether you believe in climate change. The Opposition has a fair number of climate change sceptics. It is akin to patients who deny they are ill. The planet must combat climate change, because the science is undeniable. On every issue, such as climate change, there will always be the occasional nutters. But the vast majority of the world's scientists say that the jury is back and the verdict is definite: climate change is occurring.
Our greatest challenge is climate change. All levels of government must agree on this issue to protect the future of our children. Our children have already decided by participating in the wonderful Sustainable Schools Program. Previously a trust grant was provided for Glenbrook Lagoon. Every year on my birthday I reward myself by riding my bicycle from Woodford to Glenbrook through the Blue Mountains. The wonderful environment of the Blue Mountains is valuable to the whole State. The Sustainable Schools Program raises awareness of the environment, based on the philosophy "think global, act local", and this wonderful program should be extended to other schools throughout the State. The Blue Mountains is vital to the economy of New South Wales as a major income earner from tourism.
The program includes 24 projects in 10 schools. What we learn in childhood sets us up for life. The skills that these young people are learning will set them up for life. The kitchen gardens project encourages healthy eating. A major issue faced by our young people is obesity. If this situation does not change they will be the first generation to have a shorter lifespan than their parents. The kitchen gardens project encourages garden maintenance and healthy eating. Lapstone Public School, which was a winner in one of the categories, has extended sustainable living into all aspects of its curricula. It is a fantastic example to schools throughout the State. I also compliment Ellison Public School on its efforts to reduce waste. This school is a champion in the area of sustainable education and is another great example to the rest of the State.
I congratulate Warrimoo Public School on being declared the most outstanding school in the Blue Mountains for sustainability. It is the first among equals because all the schools have done a fantastic job. Every one of these wonderful schools, which the member for Penrith referred to, is a leading school in combating climate change. It is a great tribute to the young people of the Blue Mountains and their efforts to protect the Blue Mountains for future generations. Their example should be widened. I am pleased that the member for Penrith has brought this motion before the House. I also compliment Chris Tobin, the Darug man and representative of the National Parks and Wildlife Service, for his wonderful gift of the Wollemi pine. Many of the Wollemi pines were germinated in Mount Annan Botanic Gardens near my electorate. The Darug teach us much about the future of the Blue Mountains.
[Business interrupted.]
VISITORS
ACTING-SPEAKER (Mr Thomas George): I recognise in the Speaker's Gallery Dr Andrew Berry and Joanne McPhillips from NETS. It is appropriate following a speech from the only paediatrician who is a member in this place, Dr Andrew McDonald, that I recognise NETS, the Newborn and Paediatric Emergency Transport Service. We are pleased to have them visit our Parliament.
Dr ANDREW McDONALD: With the indulgence of the House, as the Parliamentary Secretary for Health I want to say that the House is honoured to have in the gallery one of the great leaders of the paediatric 3 December 2009 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 20603
profession, Dr Andrew Berry, who has revolutionised newborn and paediatric transport around the State. He has cared for a whole generation of young people, some of whom would now be aged 30 years. I pay tribute to his commitment to the people of this State.
BLUE MOUNTAINS SUSTAINABLE SCHOOLS PROGRAM
[Business resumed.]
Mrs SHELLEY HANCOCK (South Coast) [11.16 a.m.]: I congratulate the member for Penrith on the interest she shows in her community and in the schools initiatives within her community and others. She described the many projects that are undertaken by the schools in her area. She has a passion for the schools and students within her electorate. The member for Macquarie Fields spoke about the importance of schools in teaching children how to reduce their impact on the environment. These types of sustainability projects did not emerge recently. They have been undertaken in our schools for more than a decade. At Ulladulla High School teachers and students in the school community have been undertaking sustainability projects for a long time. They have not only a student representative council but also an environmental council.
For many years the environmental council has encouraged the recycling of cans and of waste paper from teachers' offices. I am sure there is a lot of that. In consultation with the local council, it has undertaken valuable dune care and stabilisation work at Mollymook Beach. It also has undertaken environmental projects within the school community, such as the Streamwatch program. Schools, teachers, parents, corporate sponsors and local councils have done a great deal to encourage the education of students with respect to school initiatives. The member for Macquarie Fields referred to the philosophy of "think globally, act locally". These initiatives have been happening for a long time, without necessarily the support of State or Federal government.
It is important to note that without the support of teachers none of these projects would have succeeded. The initiatives may come from the students but without the teachers' ability to drive the projects they would not happen. I have witnessed, and still do, teachers working during their lunch times, on weekends and in school holidays with groups of students on sustainability projects. Teachers in this State are undervalued for the work they do after hours. Having put on the record my support for local schoolteachers, I state that I am concerned that the Government continues to alienate them. The Government ignores teachers' concerns, particularly in relation to league tables. All teachers are concerned that they are not valued by this Government.
I suggest that the kind of work they put in after hours, whether it involves lunchtime, weekends or school holidays, may not be continued in such a passionate or enthusiastic manner if the Government refuses to listen to their concerns. Recently I attended a meeting of teachers' representatives in the Illawarra. It was a very large meeting of teachers who were talking about league tables and other issues. The level of discontent and concern about the Government's treatment of them was very evident and very concerning to me as a former teacher.
I was the only representative of the New South Wales Parliament at the Illawarra meeting. In fact, the five Illawarra members and the Minister for Education and Training refused to go to the meeting. That was a slap in the face for teachers who wished to raise a number of issues with their local members and with the Minister for Education and Training. I recommend at this stage that in trying to heal some of the wounds that have been widening over the past few days one of the first places for the Government to start would be with local teachers, who do so much for our children in local public and private schools. They are all working very, very hard in encouraging young people to sustain their environment and are introducing programs that will help young people improve the environment and reduce their footprint for future generations. Young people understand it and teachers understand it. Let us value the teachers within our schools who work so hard.
I know that the member for Penrith values the teachers in the schools in her electorate because she has talked about them many, many times in this place. I congratulate her on her dissertation this morning. But even though I have no problem with the member for Penrith and the member for Macquarie Fields talking about Blue Mountains schools, I wonder where the member for Blue Mountains is. I suggest that he is probably at an urgent meeting of the left wing of the Labor Party this morning trying to desperately regroup the numbers in support of the leader, Nathan Rees. At a time when all members should be here debating this kind of motion they are attending meetings and having discussions. This Government is falling apart.
Mrs KARYN PALUZZANO (Penrith—Parliamentary Secretary) [11.21 a.m.], in reply: I thank members opposite and members on this side of the House for contributing to this debate. In reply to the member 20604 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 3 December 2009
for Castle Hill, who asked why the member for Penrith moved this motion, as I stated, the schools of Blaxland East, Glenbrook and Lapstone, which are significant schools in the lower Blue Mountains, are part of the electorate of Penrith. The member for Blue Mountains was at the official launch of the awards and congratulated the winners on the day, so the schools in the upper Blue Mountains know of his keen support for the Sustainable Schools Program.
The member for Castle Hill did not mention the energy saving project of the Federal Government. I remind the member for Castle Hill of another significant program in education in relation to the laptops for learning. In term three laptops for students in year 9 were rolled out, and I commend the Department of Education and Training for that rollout. With the significant support of software, broadband and the Internet they got much more value for money. Independent schools received $2,000 cash upfront per head and did what they wanted with that money for the computer education of their students. However, the New South Wales Government decided to wait to get the best value for money. All the high schools are wireless, so students can sit in the playground, logon, use OneNote during lesson time and can connect to their interactive whiteboard and participate in learning. It was well worth the wait. Every year 9 student should email the member for Castle Hill and ask him to thank the Department of Education and Training for getting the best deal for students in New South Wales.
I remind those opposite that we should all be cautious when we are rolling out programs for one of the largest education systems, with more than 2,500 schools—2,700 if we take into account the independent schools. I thank the member for Macquarie Fields because, unlike the member for Castle Hill, he supported students and congratulated them. This is a motion about sustainable school education and about Blue Mountains City Council supporting the program, but not once did the member for Castle Hill say thank you to or support the students, the principals, the teachers or the school community. In the operation of this program the school community is just as valuable as the teachers and students. A significant number of parents get behind these programs and are rewarded for their efforts.
As a former teacher, as I am, the member for South Coast knows that showing respect to those who undertake programs and thanking them means a lot. I hope I move a motion in this place in relation to the sixteenth sustainable schools awards, and the seventeenth, and the eighteenth. We have students from schools in the lower Blue Mountains out there participating in sustainable programs and taking their learning either to their communities or to their homes, whether that be in relation to waste, an audit of their school or an audit of their home. They are looking at what they do in the future.
The member for South Coast also mentioned the longevity of environmental education and the importance of support. It should be noted that in 1989 the Environmental Education Curriculum was launched at the Museum of Fire in Penrith. As a new teacher I made my way across there to see what this document was. I was inspired by what it said about the environment and I used it during my teaching career. At one stage I ended up as a consultant for environmental education in the old Sydney West region that went from Parramatta to St Albans out to Mount Victoria and across to Wallacia—it was a huge area. I really enjoyed the programs even then, but now climate change is one of the key issues confronting us all. It is good that students, teachers and the school community within the Blue Mountains are learning about and debating this very important area.
Question—That the motion be agreed to—put and resolved in the affirmative.
Motion agreed to.
JOINT STANDING COMMITTEE ON ELECTORAL MATTERS
LEGISLATION REVIEW COMMITTEE
Membership
ASSISTANT-SPEAKER (Ms Alison Megarrity): I report receipt of the following message from the Legislative Council:
Mr SPEAKER
The Legislative Council desires to inform the Legislative Assembly that it has this day agreed to the following resolution:
1. That Ms Fazio be discharged from the Joint Standing Committee on Electoral Matters and Mr Veitch be appointed as a member of the committee.
3 December 2009 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 20605
2. That Ms Fazio be discharged from the Legislation Review Committee and Ms Griffin be appointed as a member of the committee.
Legislative Council AMANDA FAZIO 3 December 2009 President
HEALTH FUNDING
Mr JOHN WILLIAMS (Murray-Darling) [11.27 a.m.]: I move:
That this House condemns the State Government for its inability to negotiate sufficient funds from the Federal Government to:
(1) prevent the sacking of front line health workers;
(2) prevent closure of hospitals;
(3) prevent a reduction of health services; and
(4) provide sufficient funds to health services to pay bills.
This motion is now 12 months old and it was drafted when the aura of a new Federal Government was around and all things were going to be fixed in this State. The Federal Government was going to weigh in with a lot more money than the previous Coalition to fund hospitals. On this side of the House we knew what was happening in our health services. We had concerned constituents and staff and we had the overall situation of a health service in decline. We had a Minister for Health at the time who made a magnificent announcement about how the Federal Government was now going to weigh in and all our health worries were over.
This was a Minister who was fresh from the hairdresser, a Pilates class and a night out. She was also fresh from Coogee, where she was the de facto member. We found that the Health portfolio is a very important portfolio to manage and that it cannot be done by an amateur. In my time as a member I have talked to health service personnel and asked them why we cannot fix the problems. I am told that it all rests with the Minister. They cite Craig Knowles as possibly the best Minister in the Health portfolio, but they also say that we have had Ministers who really do not care. In fact, we had one Minister for Health who decided to stay in bed with his girlfriend rather than attend the opening of a hospital. We have people who are not committed to the portfolio. They are not open, honest, transparent or prepared to face up to the fact that problems exist and that the only way to solve them is, first, to admit that they exist.
Members on this side of the House are called climate change deniers. Members opposite are deniers when it comes to the problems in the health system. They deny that our health system is on the path to destruction. When I gave notice of this motion members on this side of the House knew the situation. Members opposite also knew it, but they were covering up. The ship was taking water, but the Minister of the day was more concerned about her pilates class the next day instead of the job at hand. That job needs to be done by someone with commitment.
The Coalition predicted the crisis facing the health system today. We spoke to nurses whose jobs were threatened. Members opposite denied that, but the de facto health spokesperson for this Government, the New South Wales Nurses Association, was open and honest and said that 500 nursing positions would be lost in this State. The association has done the Government's dirty work. It is time that the association did something about nursing job losses. That is the only organisation that the Government can refer to, but it continues to deny that. I made a private member's statement this week about job losses in the Greater Southern Area Health Service, and losses are occurring in all health services.
If the health services had been well managed in the first place we would not be facing this crisis today. The health budget would be properly administered, the job would be done effectively, the Government would not be performing political stunts, health services would not have been amalgamated and the potential to maintain an effective health service would have been realised. However, that would have taken a commitment by this Government. Government members continually challenge the Opposition spokesperson for Health about district health boards. Why is the Coalition putting forward that policy? We are putting it forward because the people in the real world want it: our constituents want it. This Government is skimming the surface; it does not get to ground level and it does not listen to the people. That is what the people want and this Government must be committed to giving them what they want.
District health boards might have been flawed and they might have needed reform, but they certainly worked. We now have health services across the State that are walled cities—no-one can get in. They are not 20606 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 3 December 2009
transparent or open and no-one knows what goes on within those walls. Who knows what is being spent on administration? Health administrators have taken the Government's money and built empires. Absolutely no benefits have resulted from the development of these bigger health services. I challenge this Government to tell me what savings have been made as a result of the amalgamations. What is the health service costing us today compared with what it cost in the past? What are the shortfalls? No-one will tell us because the process has been an unmitigated disaster. The Government cannot revisit that decision and it is now admitting that it has dug itself a ditch from which it cannot escape.
There will be a change of government and the new government will inherit this disaster. This Government has presided over a health system that has run amok. The new Coalition Government will have to revisit the decision to cut those nursing positions and assure the public that it will support the New South Wales health system. We will restore the public's confidence in the health system, which unfortunately has been lost. There is not one community in my electorate where people are not telling me that they are concerned about the health service and the future. I was in Balranald the other day and Peter Blake, a constituent of mine, told me that he had to see a cardiac specialist in Melbourne and subsequently lodged an Isolated Patients Travel and Accommodation Assistance Scheme claim. He was asked why he did not see a specialist in Mildura. He went to Melbourne because the specialist there was trialling a new form of stent that was not available in Mildura.
This Government does not acknowledge those cases and it shifts its responsibilities for health interstate; it is cost shifting to Victoria and Queensland. It will not absorb these costs and it will not admit that this State's health system does not compare well with the systems in other States. I challenge this Government to examine the Victorian system, which is highly regarded. This Government could learn something from the Victorian health system and it must clean up this mess.
Dr ANDREW McDONALD (Macquarie Fields—Parliamentary Secretary) [11.37 a.m.]: I thank the member for Murray-Darling for moving this motion because it is 37 years since the election of the Whitlam Government, which introduced universal health care. That is one of the world's great achievements. The Coalition voted against that health care system and it has done its best to make the delivery of universal health care more difficult over the past 37 years. As the National Health and Hospitals Reform Commission report said, our health outcomes are among the best in the world and we have delivered more success than most in public health and disease prevention. The Garling report says that we have one of the better health systems in the developed world.
I have worked in the Victorian health system and I know that it is very good. However, it is no better than the New South Wales health system. I have spent enough time working in both systems to know. In contrast to members opposite, yesterday the Premier made a wonderful speech about the need to make our universal health care system sustainable. The cost of treating diabetes will increase by 700 per cent by 2021 and the ageing population is challenging the sustainability of our health care system. Garling described it as being on the brink. Most health workers would agree that the system is now at a tipping point. The Government acknowledges the need for change, but what do we get from members opposite? They have given us "Making it up", a return to the system that created the difficulties that necessitated the amalgamation of area health services. Changing 18 area health services to 20 is a return to the past, back to the 1950s. It is typical Howard stuff.
The member for Murray-Darling is a wonderful man and a great advocate for his people. It is true that Medicare and pharmaceutical benefits are 23 per cent higher in capital cities than in rural areas. What have our Federal colleagues done? In 2003 the Howard Government cut a billion dollars from healthcare agreements, axed the Commonwealth Dental Health Program, gave no funding for emergency departments or for elective surgery and cut the share of the funding from 50 per cent to 40 per cent. Only the election of the Rudd Government has finally turned the tap back on and we can now have the discussion we need to have. We need a unified health system that will end cost shifting and blame shifting forever. This motion is all about cost shifting and blame shifting. It has to stop for the good of the people we represent, and that is why the Health and Hospitals Reform Commission final report is so important.
The New South Wales Government's approach to this is to open discussion about regional health authorities, with pooled funding, a seamless patient journey, and the current incentives for cost shifting and blame shifting eliminated. It has been recommended that we trial this in a single area health service. I was speaking to Glen Maberly from the Western Area Health Service, who has volunteered today. I would volunteer to do it in my own area health service because this is all about reform. New South Wales is willing to be at the forefront of this reform, which would allow for investing more in primary care, stepped down care for patients who no longer need to be in hospital and a seamless flexible approach to patient care. We need to have this 3 December 2009 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 20607
conversation. We need to get beyond the false dichotomy between a Federal takeover and States' rights. We need to build a wellness system not an unsustainable system, a system based on quality care, planned locally and delivered locally. We need to make Federal-State disputes things of the past and we need to look at reform.
That is why on 27 July 2009 the Prime Minister released the Health and Hospitals Reform Commission final report. This is a wonderful document, which I recommend to every member in the House, because it opens this debate. I have been accused by the member for Murray-Darling of not being close to ground level. I inform him I am close to ground level—I am shorter than he and I continue to work in the system. He talked about staffing levels. When I was working at Campbelltown we had four doctors in our department of medicine; we now have 20. There has been a revolution in the standard of patient care in Campbelltown since the late 1990s, all done by this Government.
The Health and Hospitals Reform Commission put forward three options. One is a partial Federal takeover of all outpatient services and aged care. The second is the initial takeover which may evolve towards a complete Federal takeover. Option three, the Federal takeover, is now effectively off the table and I think it will be an evolution and working together that will improve the health care of our people rather than a Federal takeover. The commission's report is to stimulate the discussion we now need to have instead of an eight-page document with $300 million more for bureaucrats, which is a return to the past.
The Australian people are looking for a health care system that is coordinated, comprehensive and accessible rather than one that is fragmented and unaccountable. That is why we need to have accountability by the Australian Government and the State Government, and the responsibility for health service delivery, such as outpatient services, is a shared one. We need to define arrangements to fund not only public but also private patients in public hospitals and we need to stop further cost shifting with changes in outpatient care. The proposed 60:40 Commonwealth funding split is a major departure from the previously agreed 50:50 hospital split, and needs to be reviewed. We need to have the discussion with the Federal Government. We need to stop the blame shifting and we need to look at all alternatives.
The current generation of young people look to be the first generation that will have a shorter lifespan than their parents. In my electorate, 50 per cent of people are overweight. This will cause a substantial increase in diabetes and will take years off their lives. We need to look at prevention. Health can be the champion. However, we need a whole-of-government approach—Federal, State and local—looking at improving health rather than this cost shifting and blame shifting, which is typical of this motion.
In June 2008 the Commonwealth provided a one-off cash injection of $500 million to States and Territories for the public health system agreement, and in November 2008 the Council of Australian Governments agreed to the new national health care agreement. The Commonwealth provided an additional cash injection to the base funding agreement and offered improved indexation arrangements compared to those imposed by the Howard Government, which by stealth removed billions of dollars from the health of our people. New South Wales signed off on this agreement, which will index Commonwealth health payments to States and Territories by an average of 7.3 per cent per annum. However, health costs continue to rise by 9 per cent a year, which means there will still be a gap between the Commonwealth indexation rate and the increased cost of providing health care. That is why we need to have a number of national partnership agreements. These national partnership agreements by both the Commonwealth and State will allow for significant reforms in areas of the health sector including prevention, hospital and health workforce, and indigenous health.
Looking at the health workforce, 2,000 beds have been added to the New South Wales health system over the past few years. We have more nurses employed in the New South Wales health system than at any time in the past. We continue to train more medical students than at any time in the past. These medical students will become doctors in the next few years. Through the Commonwealth grants, students have been offered a place. It is hoped that the member for Murray-Darling will see an injection of these younger doctors, who will be encouraged to work at the magnificent $13 million multipurpose service at Balranald that I was pleased to be at and of which the member for Murray-Darling must be very proud. It is a world's best practice multipurpose service.
We now have a 50:50 hospital funding agreement between the Commonwealth and the States. We are facing increasing demand on our health services and rising costs. We have been doing it tough over the past 12 years. We have been trying to do so while coping with a funding shortfall courtesy of the Howard Government, a funding shortfall that in my time in this place has never once been mentioned by those opposite. They ignore the rhinoceros in the room. While we were trying to run an increasingly complex system, the 20608 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 3 December 2009
Howard Government was taking money out by stealth and not one word of any type from those opposite, which is why the Opposition's health policy does not get any traction with health workers. They are on the ground; they know what it is like. The new national health care and national partnership agreements have been designed to make huge strides towards addressing the neglect of the Howard years. The New South Wales Government looks forward to working with the Commonwealth Government to improve the health of our people.
Mrs JUDY HOPWOOD (Hornsby) [11.47 a.m.]: I support the motion moved by the member for Murray-Darling, which is timely even though notice of it was given a year ago. Before commencing my contribution to this debate, I pay tribute to the International Day of Disability. With regard to the motion, it is difficult to answer arguments from the Government side in relation to reality on the ground. These hospitals and hospital services are being asked to pull in their belts even further. Shortly I will be referring to Hornsby hospital, which is a case in point. I ask the Government: How on earth can the hospitals and staff and services be pulled in any further in both the financial and human aspect? It is impossible to meet the ever-increasing demands of health services while being expected to reduce the budget and staffing. It is an absolute disgrace and this Government is presiding over a nightmare. It is a wonder that health workers keep going in the face of this.
The motion talks about preventing the sacking of front-line health workers, the closure of hospitals, the reduction in health services and insufficient funds to pay bills. Hornsby hospital has faced all of that and more. In 1996-97 this very Government threatened to close Hornsby hospital. If it were not for the outcry of the community and Peter Waite, who headed up the Save Hornsby Hospital Team, that essential hospital would have been closed. When Jillian Skinner, the shadow Minister for Health, and I toured the hospital staff were not backward in coming forward in talking about their fears for the hospital. They showed us the decrepit state of half that hospital, which has termites, water stains and inadequate operating theatres.
I refer also to the disgraceful waiting lists, the longest on record. At present 66,651 people are on the waiting list whereas in 1995, when the Government took over the Treasury benches, the list was around 40,000. The then Premier, Bob Carr, promised to halve the waiting list, but it is now at a record level. More people are waiting for surgery in New South Wales than ever before because the Government has failed miserably to deliver front-line services for families and patients. Its failure eclipses that of the Carr Labor Government.
This week I received information about a meeting held last Friday at Hornsby hospital where the general manager announced that voluntary redundancies would be offered across the area health service for positions above clinical nurse specialists; for nurses and non-clinical staff. A further blow is that next year the levels of staffing are to be reviewed with a view to reducing the number of nurses on each shift. Apparently this is because of next year's introduction of assistant in nursing level III. This will be disastrous for patient care. I call on the Government to acknowledge that the hospital will have fewer nurses available to deliver care, which is already a challenge for staffing allocation. It is a disgrace that staff will be further reduced next year. I understand that the area work force planning people have already started to slash on the northern beaches and are working their way to Hornsby.
The redundancies are being offered. Staff have been invited to look at the website to consider the attractiveness of these redundancies. I understand that is because management does not want to take responsibility for the redundancies. The Government is a disgrace. It has broken the health and hospital system in New South Wales through 14 years of incompetence, weak leadership, broken promises and a list of excuses that people have grown sick and tired of hearing from Labor health Ministers. Yesterday swine flu was blamed for the increase in the waiting list. That is absolute nonsense. Nothing will happen unless we change government in 2011. [Time expired.]
Mr FRANK TERENZINI (Maitland) [11.52 a.m.]: I am pleased to speak to the motion, which refers to the Federal Government. I listened very carefully and quietly to the contributions of the member for Murray-Darling and the member for Hornsby. I will send Hansard to my constituents to show them what the Opposition has to offer: nothing—their speeches offered no alternative solutions. The member for Murray-Darling thinks that patients want health boards. He believes that if we were to do a survey and ask the average punter, "Excuse me, what would you like to see in your health system?", they would say, "We would like a health board." That is ridiculous. He says there is too much bureaucracy and in the same breath he wants a health board. The public can make its own judgement on that.
I turn now to the supply of general practitioners in the community. My electorate of Maitland has the Thornton Medical Centre, which is doing wonderful work. In the past couple of years the centre has received 3 December 2009 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 20609
regular calls from new general practitioners who wish to work in the area. Accommodation is a problem but they still have the general practitioners because the Federal Government has ensured that trainees graduate through the system. On 2UE on 2 October 2007 Tony Abbott stated:
We failed to increase them [medical school places] until about 2000 … sure you could say it was overdue.
If there had been a problem with general practitioners from 2000 onwards, it is clearly the Federal Government's fault for blocking the number of students coming through the system. Since Labor came to office federally the situation has changed. The number of general practitioners coming through the system has increased. They are working in the community because of the Rudd Government's change of direction. I am glad the motion has been moved, first, because the Opposition is on record as having no policies in this area and, second, it gives me the opportunity to place on record that the Federal Labor Government has encouraged more general practitioners into rural areas. In addition, it is encouraging nurses and general practitioners to work together in primary care centres around the communities. A great revolution is taking place within our medical services.
The Opposition has quoted selectively from the Garling report. However, the Garling report stated— and all members would acknowledge—that our health system is the best in Australia and one of the best in the world, but it said that the system is unsustainable. The member for Macquarie Fields articulately spelt out for the benefit of the Opposition that many revolutions are taking place in hospitals to update the models of care to ensure patient care. It is a matter for the Opposition if it chooses to selectively read portions of the report; it can be judged on that. This motion is about political point scoring, blame shifting and the Opposition policy void.
The Opposition has no alternative policies; it merely suggests the creation of health boards. To be cynical, I have no doubt if one asks the average patient for suggestions on improving health services they would not agree with the suggestion of the member for Murray-Darling to have health boards. I do not know how he could honestly stand up in this place and suggest that. Health boards are not the solution to the problems. Great things are happening within our health service. As the member for Macquarie Fields said, it is about time the Opposition was constructive, suggested reform and took part in the debate instead of merely pointing the finger and just saying that everything is no good.
Mr STEVE CANSDELL (Clarence) [11.57 a.m.]: It is a pleasure to support the member for Murray-Darling on this important issue. It is almost déjà vu. I stood up in this House 12 months ago to speak on the lack of health services on the North Coast. On that occasion I stated:
With some alarm today I bring to Parliament the concerns I have with Premier Nathan Rees, Treasurer Eric Roozendaal and [then] Finance Minister Joe Tripodi and his gang of thieves for removing $200 million from the health budget.
Of that $200 million, $30 million came from the North Coast Area Health Service, which is already underfunded by $64 million a year on its own funding criteria. Another $30 million was then cut. We know that cost 400 North Coast Area Health Service jobs. Already 300 have been slashed and the next round of slashing will get rid of the other 100 jobs. Those jobs will includes cleaners, maintenance people and nurses. Despite the fact that every small- and medium-size hospital had in-house security installed after the murder of the young lady at Walgett in around 1995, the Government has now slashed the in-house security at Maclean hospital. That is in addition to threatening to slash the jobs of cleaners, wardsmen, maintenance staff, and nurses, including many senior nurses, who will be hard to replace.
It is strange also that while the Government is talking about cutting all these jobs and reducing health services funding, it has today advertised for a $100,000 spin doctor. I have a copy of my local newspaper showing the advertisement, which I can provide to members, including the member for Macquarie Fields. That is $100,000 for a spin doctor to spin the Government's way out of trouble. It reminds me of a couple of years ago when Michael Costa was the Minister for Transport. There were problems with the trains running on time. Michael Costa said, "Our problem is that have not been getting the message out clearly enough." In other words he was saying, "We couldn't spin our way out of trouble. We need a better spin doctor." So the Government will now spend $100,000 on the North Coast Area Health Service for a spin doctor. It will not fix the problems. The Government is saying, "We will get rid of the nurses, the cleaners, the wardsmen and the security staff, but we need a spin doctor to explain why we got rid of them." People find it difficult to imagine how the Government will explain that.
The allied health practitioners in my area have told me of another way in which the Government saves money. They have told me that when a speech pathologist leaves, rather than the Government advertising for a replacement speech pathologist it simply leaves the position vacant for 12 months. The practitioners have 20610 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 3 December 2009
explained to me that many young kids need speech therapy early so they have a better chance of living a normal life, but they miss out on that support. Mental health field workers are trying to provide early intervention services in the area, but that does not happen. Currently with regard to the area's mental health services, which come under the health service, unless a person commits a crime and comes to the attention of the police or commits self-harm and comes to the attention of the health service, the person is simply left to wallow. There is very little chance of people receiving early intervention.
A couple of years ago in the Clarence electorate a poor person in Maclean committed suicide. However, no support was provided for his family. Within two months, his stepdaughter also succumbed to the same fate. That is a tragic circumstance. The problem is that no support is provided for those families; there are no field officers out there. Yet, the Government has already cut 300 jobs and is threatening to cut a further 100 jobs. We do not know where those jobs will be cut. Maclean hospital has 44 beds in three wards. If you take a nurse out of one ward, you could virtually close that ward. However, the Government is talking about removing seven staff from Maclean hospital. I am aware that three staff members have already gone and the Government is talking about cutting another four jobs.
With regard to Grafton hospital, the Federal Government came in with $19 million. Thanks to John Howard, followed by Kevin Rudd, the Federal Government took over a State responsibility, a State failure. The sooner Nathan Rees walks down the road and talks to the Governor about an early election, the better. [Time expired.]
Mr JOHN WILLIAMS (Murray-Darling) [12.02 p.m.], in reply: I thank the member for Macquarie Fields—who should be the health Minister in New South Wales—and the members representing the electorates of Hornsby, Maitland and Clarence for their contributions to this debate. In his contribution the member for Maitland suggested that the purpose of this motion is political pointscoring. The motion has nothing to do with political pointscoring. The Coalition represents communities that need to have confidence in the health system. It is easy for politicians to criticise health services: you can get on the front page in a hurry. I choose not to do that. I want the people in the communities in my electorate to have confidence in their health services. But I must say that when the community says to me it has concerns about nurses, as a politician I am absolutely obligated to represent their views. That is why I am here. I have moved the motion not on the basis of political pointscoring.
Some criticism was made of the Coalition's opposition to the public health system that Gough Whitlam adopted. It is interesting that Tony Abbott's comments in the newspaper yesterday relate to his desire to include public dentistry in Medicare. I think there is a fair bit of commitment to this process. I agree with the member for Macquarie Fields about the need for primary health care. I challenge the Government to provide primary health care services within the community. I believe that that job cannot be done because the budget is not managed well enough to provide primary health care services. The Government is so busy providing funding to put out bushfires that it cannot provide funding for primary health care, which, as has been demonstrated, is one of the most needed health services. I recently had the opportunity to go along to a field day. The Royal Flying Doctor Service was there, and I had my blood pressure taken. I found out that I had high blood pressure. I also learned of my propensity to develop type II diabetes.
Dr Andrew McDonald: Did they find a brain?
Mr JOHN WILLIAMS: They did not do a brain scan. But let me tell you, it does work on most occasions. I think they put a light in one ear and it shone out the other! I agree that we need primary health care services. It is like a train out of control: Many people do not recognise the dangers of their current lifestyle and the risks to their health. People have to be made aware of the importance of maintaining good health. It is a big job. Unfortunately, many people have got into certain habits and they believe that some of the things they do and their lifestyle are not dangerous to their health. However, when they get into their later years many of them present at hospital with serious illnesses, and hospitals then have to clean up the mess. I have a belief: If you live in the bush, don't get crook, because if you do you are in trouble. If people had that attitude and took preventative measures, we might have a bit of a chance of seeing a lesser demand on our health services.
The member for Clarence referred to speech therapists and said that when a speech therapist leaves a hospital the Government does not advertise the position. We are seeing exactly that with the closure of the Wanaaring Health Service. The service is now advertising for a nurse practitioner. I wish the service good luck. Is that a device to keep that health service closed? The previous person who worked there was not a health 3 December 2009 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 20611
practitioner. It would be lovely if we could get one, but let us get the health service opened and let us put a nurse in there. The people of Wanaaring and the surrounding areas who rely on that health service need to at least know that the door is open and that in an emergency someone can attend to them.
Question—That the motion be agreed to—put.
The House divided.
Ayes, 37
Mr Aplin Mrs Hancock Mr Roberts Mr Baird Mr Hazzard Mr Smith Mr Baumann Ms Hodgkinson Mr Souris Ms Berejiklian Mrs Hopwood Mr Stokes Mr Besseling Mr Humphries Mr Stoner Mr Cansdell Mr Kerr Mr J. H. Turner Mr Constance Ms Moore Mr R. W. Turner Mr Debnam Mr O'Dea Mr J. D. Williams Mr Dominello Mr O'Farrell Mr R. C. Williams Mr Draper Mr Piccoli Mrs Fardell Mr Piper Tellers, Mr Fraser Mr Provest Mr George Ms Goward Mr Richardson Mr Maguire
Noes, 48
Mr Amery Mr Gibson Mr Morris Ms Andrews Mr Greene Mrs Paluzzano Mr Aquilina Mr Harris Mr Pearce Ms Beamer Ms Hay Mrs Perry Mr Brown Mr Hickey Mr Sartor Ms Burney Ms Hornery Mr Shearan Ms Burton Ms Judge Mr Stewart Mr Campbell Ms Keneally Ms Tebbutt Mr Collier Mr Khoshaba Mr Terenzini Mr Coombs Mr Koperberg Mr Tripodi Mr Corrigan Mr Lalich Mr West Mr Costa Mr Lynch Mr Whan Mr Daley Mr McBride Ms D'Amore Dr McDonald Ms Firth Mr McLeay Tellers, Mr Furolo Ms McMahon Mr Ashton Ms Gadiel Ms Megarrity Mr Martin
Question resolved in the negative.
Motion negatived.
BUSINESS OF THE HOUSE
Postponement of Business
General Business Notice of Motion (General Notice) No. 567 called on and postponed, by leave, on motion by Dr Andrew McDonald, on behalf of Ms Sonia Hornery.
PARKES AND FORBES HOSPITALS
Mrs DAWN FARDELL (Dubbo) [12.17 p.m.]: I move:
That this House:
(1) congratulates the Parkes and Forbes communities on their commitment to improve health services in their area;
20612 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 3 December 2009
(2) calls on the Minister for Health to continue the planning process for Parkes and Forbes Hospitals; and
(3) calls on the Treasurer to release required funds for the planning process and, upon agreement on the facilities required, allocate funds in the budget for the proposed developments as a matter of urgency.
I gave notice of this motion 12 months ago today. In that time a lot of correspondence has been exchanged, much lobbying has occurred and many meetings have been held, but no progress has been made on the planning for Parkes and Forbes hospitals. The good intent of the community has been ignored. A request for the former Minister for Health to visit the hospitals last February was not acted upon. The consideration of improvements to this infrastructure commenced well before the year 2000, when Tony McGrane was the member for Dubbo and Ian Armstrong was the former member for Lachlan—an electorate that no longer exists.
Since that time many meetings have been held, and they have continued during the four years since I have been the member, to determine whether Parkes and Forbes should have one hospital or two improved hospitals. This process has been slowed up by government indecision, and the community has fallen flat. Following the November 2004 by-election the then Minister for Health and the Greater Western Area Health Service committed to the redevelopment of Parkes hospital. Following the March 2007 election I again became involved with the Forbes community. The Minister for Health at that time met with the Parkes and Forbes Health Council and had a briefing with Dr Claire Blizzard, the Chief Executive Officer of the Greater Western Area Health Service.
I will briefly go through the events. In 2001 a value management study was undertaken. In July 2002 the shires held a public meeting. In August 2002 Parkes and Forbes communities were advised that council would not hold a public meeting until the Minister confirmed which additional services would be included in a joint hospital. In 2002 the then Minister for Health, Craig Knowles, visited both Parkes and Forbes to hear views on a joint hospital. In 2002 the Parkes Shire Council met with the then local member, Tony McGrane, to advise of the results of a survey on a joint hospital, which was held in the Parkes community hall. On 6 November 2002 Clarinda Street Surgery in Parkes advocated separate hospitals. In 2003 the then Minister for Health acknowledged the council's survey on a joint hospital.
In 2003 Tony McGrane went to the Minister for Health on this issue. In September 2003 the Minister advised Tony McGrane about meetings held in Forbes and Parkes on the joint hospital proposal. On 4 December 2003 Parkes Shire Council sought from the then Minister for Health, Morris Iemma, the Government's position on a level 4 hospital for Parkes and Forbes. In 2004 Ian Armstrong responded to the council's letter advocating a single-level hospital. On 15 November 2004 the Parkes Champion Post reported, "No more talk of twin town hospital construction of a new hospital in Parkes".
We then advance to May 2005 when NSW Health advised of a procedure for advancing the concept proposal for the hospital. We advance another year to February 2006 when I was asked to discuss the proposal with the Premier. There was further correspondence, and in April 2006 a press release issued by the then Minister for Health, John Hatzistergos, advised that planning for the redevelopment of Parkes hospital would proceed in 2006 and that the commitment made by the New South Wales Government in 2004 that planning would commence in 2006 with a view to construction in 2007 still stands. That planning process did not start until the end of 2008.
Another year passed following the April 2006 press release and in 2007 the then Minister for Health, John Hatzistergos, reaffirmed that planning for the hospital would continue through 2007. That is one year after the expected date. In May 2007 Dr Clair Blizard, former Chief Executive Officer of Greater Western Area Health Service, advised Parkes Shire Council that former Minister for Health John Hatzistergos had stated in March 2007 that funding would be allocated to present planning. She stated that construction was likely to start before 2010 at the earliest. In June 2007 a Parkes Shire Council report advised of the letter from Dr Clair Blizard that construction was unlikely before 2010 and referred to the 2004 commitment made by the previous Minister.
In October 2007 I responded to Parkes Shire Council advising of discussions with Trish Stachan from the Greater Western Area Health Service about rumours, and assurances were provided that there was a planning procedure on a very tight timetable. A confidential brief was included. On 18 January 2008 the Parkes Champion Post reported, "Extensive new local hospital now well underway". It stated that Robert Morton from the Greater Western Area Health Service advised that planning started in August 2007 and was expected to be finished by November-December 2009 with completion of the tender documentation. He advised that an 3 December 2009 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 20613
extensive consultation process would be involved. Finally that process began on 22 February 2008. I attended an initial meeting at Parkes and a meeting at Forbes a week later. The mayors, the Greater Western Areas Health Service, the health councils and 50 local residents attended each meeting.
In June 2008 the Parkes Champion Post reported, "$2 million in budget for new local hospital planning to continue". It reported that the community welcomed the announcement in the budget for planning of the Parkes and Forbes hospitals. In July 2008 Parkes Shire Council drew attention to unanswered correspondence and pointed out that only one community meeting had been held in 12 months. On and on it went, until 13 January 2009 when I wrote to the then Minister for Health, John Della Bosca, reminding him that at the initial meeting on 22 February 2008 we were delivered a program. Everyone agreed to it and the community came on board. The community did not expect the Taj Mahal, but wanted an improvement of the facilities and the retention of maternity and dialysis services. The community was told that the clinical service plan would be finished by February 2008, the first procurement plan would be finished by June 2008, the project definition plan in December 2008, the design documentation in June 2009 and construction in 2010-11. This has not occurred. Nothing has occurred since the initial meeting in February 2008.
The community has put a great deal of time and effort into this project. However, with the disastrous mini-budget everything stopped. The Department of Health, the Greater Western Area Health Service and the Government used it as an excuse to stop the progress of the Parkes and Forbes hospital project. At the same time, planning for the Bathurst hospital and ambulance service hit troubled waters and Orange Base Hospital went way over budget. The Greater Western Area Health Service had a $60 million budget blowout and was not paying its accounts. As soon as I heard about that budget blowout I said to the mayors of Parkes and Forbes, "There goes the $64 million promised allocation for Parkes and Forbes." The project will cost much more now.
As I have said, it was stressed to the community that if it did not adhere to the strict timetable of the planning process and reach mutual agreement on facilities, the project would fall off the capital works program. And that is exactly what has happened. The community stuck to its part of the bargain, but the Department of Health did not. The Greater Western Area Health Service has now cancelled all meetings. In fact, they were cancelled a long time before the announcement of the mini-budget. The community placed its faith in the New South Wales Department of Health and the Government. When it was announced that the Orange Base Hospital project was going to come in way over budget, we knew we would suffer. The planning of the Parkes and Forbes hospitals must continue. I gave notice of this motion 12 months ago and I have made representations since that time. About two months ago I met with the Premier and raised with him the allocation of funds for the planning of the project and an approach to the Federal Government to secure funds for this facility.
The community wants this important infrastructure to proceed. The Parkes and Forbes communities and the health council have come on board. They started with a proposal of one hospital built in the middle of a paddock that was difficult to access. They now want the current facilities improved. As I said, they are not asking for the Taj Mahal. This is an appalling abuse of the Parkes and Forbes community. The Government has not made any apologies or given reasons as to why the project cannot proceed. It has totally ignored both communities. The only time we get a response is when I make an approach on behalf of the mayors. It is important that the hospitals retain the maternity and dialysis services. The planning process must begin and we need funding for this project. The Government has to be realistic and accept that it will cost more than the $64 million allocated back in January 2008. I commend the motion to the House.
Dr ANDREW McDONALD (Macquarie Fields—Parliamentary Secretary) [12.27 p.m.]: I thank the member for Dubbo for bringing this important motion to the House. I applaud her for doing so. The Government supports paragraphs (1) and (2) but seeks to amend paragraph (3). I move:
That the motion be amended by leaving out paragraph (3) with a view to inserting the following new paragraph:
(3) calls on the Government to support the Garling recommendations regarding rural health.
The Department of Health's 2009-10 Asset Acquisition Program amounts to $603 million. This is part of the $15.1 billion record health budget, which supports 90,000 permanent health staff. Modern heath is a complex area. Much of our budget is spent on recurrent funding to pay for the doctors, nurses and allied health staff who care for our patients. The Government has allocated $600 million to a structured and strategic approach to the planning and delivery of capital works projects. As modern health care changes rapidly, the final form of any capital project is the result of careful research and investigation, including consultation with the community and clinicians. Since 1995 this process has delivered more than 50 major hospital projects and invested more than $5 billion in capital works for the New South Wales public health system. 20614 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 3 December 2009
The New South Wales Government has committed $2.4 billion towards health capital works over the next four years. A recent report by the construction information service BCI Australia, as reported in the Australian Financial Review on 9 September 2009, found that New South Wales recorded the highest number of public hospital projects in Australia at 27 per cent of the total between 2006 and 2009. This Government has upgraded or rebuilt almost every major hospital and emergency department in New South Wales. I pay special tribute to the health workers in Parkes and Forbes. They are well known all over the State and in the medical profession as being among the finest in the country. They are multiskilled, they are committed and they are passionate about the health of the people with whom they share their lives.
All capital works proposals are subjected to careful analysis and evaluation and an objective prioritisation process. Every member of Parliament in this Chamber would have a valid request for a capital project in their electorate. That is why the Government has committed almost a billion dollars to Royal North Shore Hospital as well as to the spectacular second stage of the hospital at Liverpool—a $394 million redevelopment. In the greater western area work has started on the new Orange Base Hospital. I visited Orange Base Hospital and met the very impressive staff there and can attest to the fact that they will be able to run a magnificent facility on the Orange campus. There is also a partnership with Catholic Healthcare in Dubbo. Some of the best clinicians I have ever met in my life and have been privileged to work with come from Dubbo. We are about to commence construction of a new Narrabri Hospital and a new wing at Nepean Hospital.
However, even in a record State capital program creating jobs and infrastructure we cannot build every competing project every year. Every year difficult choices have to be made about which projects are undertaken within the available budget. We are no different from a family or a small business. Construction can only commence once funding has been approved, and funding is announced annually as part of the State Budget. That is why New South Wales will continue important planning work for future projects so that we are ready to build as revenues recover. For the Lachlan Valley the Department of Health has approved a clinical services plan and this will provide the blueprint for health services in the Parkes and Forbes area. The next steps are to prepare service procurement and project definition plans.
The Government is continuing its significant investment in health services provided by the Greater Western Area Health Service, including at Parkes and Forbes. In 2009-10 the Rees Government is investing $553 million in the greater western area. That is an increase of $42.9 million when compared with last year's budget. Health funding at 30 per cent of the State's budget is greater than at any time in the history of the State. There have been considerable enhancements to the facilities and services at the Greater Western Area Health Service, including a share of $17.7 million statewide funding for medical assessment units, such as a new eight-bed facility at Orange Hospital; and $28.8 million for the Orange Base Hospital redevelopment, which includes $6.5 million for radiotherapy services, $3.3 million for maintenance and $1.1 million for dental services.
There has also been funding of $13.3 million in 2009-10 for multipurpose service facilities at Balranald, for which I was fortunate to turn the sod; Eugowra, where Dr Mundey, one of the greatest doctors who has ever graced this planet, continues to work; Blayney; and construction is soon to start at Coonamble. This is in addition to the official opening of the multipurpose service facilities in 2007-08 at Dunedoo, which had funding of $7 million, Tottenham $5.4 million, and Nyngan $10.24 million. The Blayney HealthOne facility will receive $206,000 this year and there will be funding of $607,000 towards the Bathurst Hospital redevelopment, which has seen an investment of $106 million to provide significant enhancement to the clinical services for the region and a major expansion in capacity.
Funding has been provided also for the Bathurst hospital heritage building upgrade works. I am proud to report that Bathurst is now a teaching hospital of the University of Western Sydney as well as the University of Sydney, and it is hoped that many of the students from the University of Western Sydney, whom I teach, will go to Parkes and Forbes hospitals for part of their training or for their future careers. There has also been an expansion of the Mental Health Special Care Suite at Broken Hill hospital at a cost of approximately $800,000. The Greater Western Area Health Service will benefit also from a share in $63.1 million to upgrade business information technology, including medical imaging and clinical systems across the State. This will improve patient care.
I also want to mention the Garling report—the most comprehensive report ever into the healthcare system in New South Wales. Chapter 6 of that very detailed report deals with rural health. I recommend it to all members from rural electorates. The report contains three specific recommendations for rural health, one of which was to enhance the supply of a skilled workforce of clinicians to rural areas. New South Wales has led the 3 December 2009 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 20615
way in creating rural-based internships for medical graduates. Its rural preferential recruitment program allows graduates who have an interest in rural training to complete their initial non-specialist training in a rural location, such as Tamworth, Maitland, Orange, Dubbo, Wagga Wagga, Lismore, Tweed, Coffs Harbour or Port Macquarie.
This is a very important recommendation of Garling and will increase the capacity of doctors to train in the country and from this more doctors will continue to work in hospitals such as Parkes and Forbes. Recommendation 12 (b) of the Garling report recommended a review of the existence and development of employment packages with features that would attract and retain skilled staff. The Government has been successful in attracting new staff to Bourke, Walgett, Brewarrina and Wilcannia. New South Wales also has been working with a cross-government task force to review recruitment strategies, including incentives, accommodation, service delivery and career opportunities in regions where they live, and also strategies for indigenous communities. New South Wales will consider also the introduction of any new initiatives resulting from task force deliberations. Country careers officers will now be permanently allocated to each rural area health service to support the recruitment of doctors, nurses and other clinical staff.
Recommendation 12 (c) of the Garling report recommends developing rural education facilities. Rural clinical schools already provide a strong focus for education and training of rural doctors, nurses and allied health staff. New South Wales will continue to review education and training support for rural clinicians as part of stage two of the review of the existing education and training investment. I have taught courses for the diploma of child health and advanced paediatric life support to some of the doctors from Parkes and Forbes and I can tell from personal experience that they are distinguished by their commitment. There has also been a commitment to abolish the compulsory patient contribution for pensioner concession cardholders under the Interstate Patient Travel Assistance Scheme.
Ms KATRINA HODGKINSON (Burrinjuck) [12.37 p.m.]: I speak to the motion moved by the member for Dubbo, which the member for Macquarie Fields did not. I do not think I heard the words Parkes or Forbes at all during his contribution. It is extremely important that the Treasurer release the required funds for the planning process as proposed. Once the facilities required have been determined funds should be allocated in the budget for the proposed developments as a matter of urgency. As we heard, there has been only one planning meeting in relation to this matter, and that was held in February 2008. What is going on with the health system in regional New South Wales? It is an absolute abomination and an absolute mess. My electorate of Burrinjuck borders the electorate of Dubbo and, obviously, we have many shared facilities and resources. Citizens from the Weddin shire will often go to Parkes or Forbes for their medical services or to any number of other towns in the region. But for 10 weeks now Grenfell hospital has been without a visiting medical officer.
Dr Andrew McDonald: Grenfell is not Parkes or Forbes either.
Ms KATRINA HODGKINSON: I am about to tell you, Mr Parliamentary Secretary, in your total ignorance, that if somebody passes away in Grenfell the body has to go to Forbes. That would not happen if we had the services in Grenfell. If the Parliamentary Secretary got his act together—and as Parliamentary Secretary Assisting the Minister for Health he should have some say in the way funds are expended—he might have some realisation of the lack of funding that is out there in regional New South Wales in my electorate, in the electorate of the member for Dubbo and in the electorate of the member for Wagga Wagga. And we are sick to death of it, as are our constituents.
I attended a meeting on 5 November in the park at Grenfell and 600 people turned up. The meeting was organised in only two or three days. That is a demonstration of the level of frustration people are experiencing because there is no visiting medical officer at the Grenfell hospital. People must travel to health facilities in other towns to access the services they need. The Greater Western Area Health Service [GWAHS] has organised a locum, who has occasionally visited Grenfell. Some weeks he simply does not turn up. That does not leave the local population in very good hands. I call on this Government to take urgent action to fix this problem.
I met for half an hour with the chief of staff of the Minister for Health this morning—the Minister for Health is unavailable. I was accompanied by Weddin shire councillors, Mayor Maurice Simpson, Deputy Mayor Nevin Hughes and General Manager Trevor Lobb, who travelled here from Grenfell. Even the chief executive officer of GWAHS has been unwilling to meet with the local shire council to discuss this issue. Weddin does not have a huge population—it cannot be compared with Campbelltown or inner Sydney—but it is an important population and the shire covers a very large geographical area. Having 600 people attend a meeting indicates that there is a serious problem. 20616 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 3 December 2009
For the chief executive officer of GWAHS not to agree to a meeting with the council is terrible. It demonstrates apathy and it is inexcusable. I call on the chief executive officer to arrange a meeting with the council in the next week. He should be able to do at least that before going on Christmas holidays. GWAHS has been advertising for a visiting medical officer for Weddin for the past six weeks. It is a wonderful place and the two doctors in town running private practices have full patient lists. There is a great opportunity for a doctor to move to Grenfell to open a practice, to service the hospital as a visiting medical officer and to make a lot of money living in a beautiful community. It cannot be that hard to recruit a visiting medical officer for Grenfell hospital.
Regional New South Wales is facing many problems. I totally support the motion of the member for Dubbo because it is extremely relevant to communities throughout New South Wales. We are disgusted that we have been treated like second-class citizens. The closure of maternity units across the State, including in my home town of Yass in December 2004, is appalling. We cannot get a renal dialysis unit at Young, which has a new hospital, because the Government says there are too few patients. I disagree; many patients are travelling to Canberra each week for dialysis. The Opposition demands action by this Government and it wants it now.
Mrs JILLIAN SKINNER (North Shore—Deputy Leader of the Opposition) [12.42 p.m.]: I support the motion moved by the member for Dubbo, in particular because it congratulates the Parkes and Forbes communities on their commitment to improving their health services. In that regard I refer to the incredible work done by the community of Forbes to establish a renal dialysis unit. Members might remember that I raised this issue in a question to the former Minister for Health, who promised to establish a unit at Forbes after it was revealed that a young Aboriginal woman had to travel to Orange three days a week—it is a very long drive— leaving her young son at home. The Minister said it would happen, but it took two years of constant pressure from the people of Forbes and my raising it regularly for anything to be done.
The last time I was at Forbes I was delighted to be met outside the hospital by Debbie Annis-Brown, a dialysis patient, her helper and her young son Jared to thank me for the work we did with the community to establish the dialysis unit at Forbes. The nursing staff and others were just as grateful. That is what happens when a community works together. The hospital badly needs to be redeveloped. The Government promised years ago that that would happen and it reconfirmed that commitment just days before the State election on 19 March 2007. The Labor Party issued a list of rural health promises, allegedly fully costed by Treasury. I can table that document if members are interested. It promised the construction of a new hospital, full redevelopment of the Wagga Wagga hospital, a new health service for the Bega Valley and the redevelopment of both Parkes hospital and Forbes hospital. It is outrageous that no money was committed to progressing any of those projects in the mini-budget or in this year's budget. That is a betrayal of the people of Parkes and Forbes and the other communities that have been desperately hanging on for the new facilities that are so sorely needed.
The Parkes and Forbes communities are very lucky to have wonderful general practitioner proceduralists who provide much of the care at their hospitals with the help of nursing staff and allied health professionals. I have met with them many times. Unfortunately, this State Government is out of touch, it has the wrong priorities and it has not provided the funds necessary to ensure that these services are up and running. The New South Wales Government has conceded that it has no plans to complete either the Forbes or the Parkes hospital in the near future. It says that it is relying on Federal Government handouts. Of course, its submissions to the Federal Government for capital funding from the Health and Hospitals Fund were so flawed that it got almost nothing. It certainly got no money for the big hospital rebuilds that might have been expected given that money was provided to other States for that purpose—including, extraordinarily, the only State with a Liberal government. As at September 2009 the Government had announced no commencement dates.
We now have no full-time Minister for Health. We have had a string of health Ministers and goodness knows who will be the Minister by close of business today. It is not even guaranteed that the current Minister for Health will be in the job. Perhaps the Parliamentary Secretary would like to step up and take over responsibility for health. He seems to respond to all the letters I send to the Minister for Health and he replies to health-related motions in this Chamber. Unfortunately, he simply reads out documents prepared for him by somebody else. I support the motion of the member for Dubbo calling on the Treasurer to provide funding not only for the planning process but also for the building of these facilities. It is nonsense for the Parliamentary Secretary to move an amendment suggesting that the Garling recommendations on rural health will ensure that the hospital is built. They will not. I support the motion.
Mr DARYL MAGUIRE (Wagga Wagga) [12.47 p.m.]: I am delighted in speaking to this motion to support the people of Parkes and Forbes. I understand how they feel. Many communities in this State have had 3 December 2009 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 20617
hospitals promised to them and are now expressing extreme frustration. They include Parkes, Forbes, Dubbo, Tamworth, Wagga Wagga, Bega, Lismore and the northern beaches. Promises have also been made about the fourth pod at Port Macquarie Base Hospital and Royal North Shore Hospital, which is partly constructed. This story does not change across New South Wales. Promises have been made but the Government has failed to deliver them other than to give a tick to the planning stage—after that it is an absolute struggle. The people of Wagga Wagga have been struggling to get $4 million to progress the development of their hospital but, of course, no money has been forthcoming for capital works.
The same thing has happened in Parkes and Forbes—there was an initial meeting and then the community was abandoned. They were given false hope. I understand the member's frustration at not being able to progress the capital works project. As I have said in this place previously, Tumut needs a new hospital. The community has been holding meetings about the hospital since 1999 and area health service officials stated several times that the town was on the priority list and that planning would begin. However, they have been let down badly. The Tumut & Adelong Times of 1 December reports that Tumut residents are complaining about missing out on a mental health forum. They complained that the Federal member, Mike Kelly, had omitted Tumut from the very important health forum that is being run nationally. The article quoted Mr Kelly's spokesperson as saying it was:
… unclear on why Tumut had been left off the initial list of forums, which Mr Kelly held in Cooma, Bega, Braidwood, Queanbeyan, Batemans Bay and Narooma throughout September and October.
You can imagine the community's disappointment when it has been ignored again by its Federal member, who promised a brand new hospital on his election. Absolutely nothing has happened. Can you blame the community for being upset and attacking the Federal member? This is happening because Tumut has now been redistributed out of the Federal electorate of Eden-Monaro. He has cut the people of Tumut adrift. He has abandoned the community. He has abandoned Tumbarumba and Batlow, terrific communities—like Parkes and Forbes. I have friends who live in Parkes and Forbes. They tell me about the problems they are experiencing in accessing important medical services but, importantly, how vital it is that they have new bricks and mortar, new infrastructure.
In most regional and rural communities such as Wagga Wagga, Tumut and Bega once you lose your nucleus of physicians, doctors, et cetera it is very difficult—nigh on impossible—to replace them. Some of these communities have in place a group of dedicated physicians, nurses and others that they do not want to lose. That would be the case in most of those major centres such as Dubbo, Wagga Wagga et cetera. The problem is the medical staff are working in decrepit conditions. Like Tumut Hospital, the places are falling down. They are contaminated with asbestos and they have not been upgraded to reasonable standard. Indeed, the assessment guidelines have been changed to make them acceptable so the public goes on being hoodwinked.
It is just not efficient to have doctors and nurses working in these dilapidated pieces of infrastructure. They do not attract or help to retain specialists. That is part of the problem and that is what communities such as Parkes and Forbes, as well as Wagga Wagga and Tumut, are fighting for. They do not want to lose that important health infrastructure network they have for specialist clinicians and others. They want to attract more people to their shires and towns, and they need to be assisted with investment in planning and in the provision of bricks and mortar, infrastructure. That is why this motion is important and that is why I am appalled that the Government has tried to amend it by adding a reference to the Garling report, because the Government is already supposedly adopting those recommendations and they have nothing to do with infrastructure.
Mrs DAWN FARDELL (Dubbo) [12.52 p.m.], in reply: I thank the members for Macquarie Fields, Burrinjuck, North Shore and Wagga Wagga for taking part in debate on this issue, which is so important to my community. I acknowledge the comments of the member for Macquarie Fields about capital works programs and developments at Bathurst and Orange. I mentioned earlier that those projects went over budget, and the difficulties at Bathurst certainly put the nail in the coffin for Parkes and Forbes when it came to available funds for infrastructure.
The member for Macquarie Fields also mentioned the Garling report and moved an amendment to my motion. I made a submission to the Garling inquiry. I attended a meeting with Professor Garling at Dubbo Base Hospital and I certainly read all of the report, as I did James Wood's report on community services. It is important not only to make submissions but also to read the reports. There are many recommendations in the Garling report but, unfortunately, I hear from some medical staff in my area that all that is changing is that different medical staff have different coloured badges. I mentioned to the health Minister when she recently 20618 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 3 December 2009
visited Dubbo that when a member of staff of one of those facilities complained about an issue the authorities did not give a hoot about the Garling report. This person's name is embedded in my mind, and that attitude will be their undoing one day.
The member for Burrinjuck spoke about the importance of releasing funds, as I have been saying. She mentioned also that Grenfell people do use facilities at Forbes. That is another reason why we need two developments, two new hospitals, not one Taj Mahal in the middle of a paddock between those two facilities. It is not just about the community. Many nurses live at Grenfell, Trundle or Condobolin, and they travel to Parkes and Forbes to nurse there. It is hard enough to attract medical staff in those areas, and it is not convenient to go to one hospital at Parkes if you are living at West Wyalong or Grenfell or Young. The member also mentioned that the chief executive officer of the Greater Western Area Health Service has not yet met with her council. That concerns me. I met with him last Monday. I have offered to give to the member for Burrinjuck the mobile number of the chief executive officer, Mr O'Connor, so she can contact him. I am certain that after a phone call he will make contact with her.
The member for North Shore spoke of her visit to the Parkes and Forbes area and the problem with dialysis services in Forbes. That has been dealt with. Dialysis services are not used only by the people of Parkes, Forbes and Dubbo and surrounding areas. The notorious Newell Highway is another issue for the Government, but visitors travelling from Victoria to Queensland use that highway and come through those areas. If the tourists need dialysis services they book ahead and take up the majority of the dialysis time. They break their journey half way, stay overnight and book in for dialysis. The Greater Western Area Health Service has recognised the need to increase the number of chairs for dialysis, particularly in Forbes.
The member for Wagga Wagga listed many other hospitals in the same position as Parkes and Forbes that have been let down after their communities were given false hope. The people have worked hard—all volunteers, not on paid salaries like Ministers, members of Parliament and bureaucrats in the health system—for their communities. Forbes and Parkes have wonderful people on their health councils. Malcolm in Parkes and Laurel in Forbes, and the mayors, Phyllis Miller and Ken Keith, and previously Robert Wilson, have worked hard in their communities to access facilities. As the member for Wagga Wagga said, they do not want to lose their medical network. Doctors are now working long hours and the community is trying to improve its infrastructure and facilities to attract further professionals to come to the area and stay and work there. As was mentioned, dialysis services have been taken away.
The member for Burrinjuck mentioned that maternity services had been taken away. Condobolin Hospital is one of those affected. Anyone living within 100 kilometres of Condobolin cannot deliver there any more because it is not safe, yet it is quite safe to have your baby alongside the road! This has happened on three occasions, but that is a debate for another day. I urge support for my original motion. It is important that the Treasurer release these funds. Our planning can start as soon as funds are released for the planning process. Let the planning begin so that within an acceptable period Parkes and Forbes can celebrate improved facilities.
Question—That the amendment be agreed to—put.
The House divided.
Ayes, 48
Mr Amery Ms Gadiel Mr Morris Ms Andrews Mr Greene Mrs Paluzzano Mr Aquilina Mr Harris Mr Pearce Ms Beamer Ms Hay Mrs Perry Mr Borger Mr Hickey Mr Sartor Mr Brown Ms Hornery Mr Shearan Ms Burney Ms Judge Mr Stewart Ms Burton Ms Keneally Ms Tebbutt Mr Campbell Mr Khoshaba Mr Terenzini Mr Collier Mr Koperberg Mr Tripodi Mr Coombs Mr Lalich Mr West Mr Corrigan Mr Lynch Mr Whan Mr Costa Mr McBride Mr Daley Dr McDonald Ms D'Amore Mr McLeay Tellers, Ms Firth Ms McMahon Mr Ashton Mr Furolo Ms Megarrity Mr Martin 3 December 2009 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 20619
Noes, 37
Mr Aplin Mrs Hancock Mr Richardson Mr Baird Mr Hartcher Mr Roberts Mr Baumann Mr Hazzard Mrs Skinner Ms Berejiklian Ms Hodgkinson Mr Smith Mr Besseling Mrs Hopwood Mr Souris Mr Cansdell Mr Humphries Mr Stokes Mr Constance Mr Kerr Mr J. H. Turner Mr Debnam Mr Merton Mr J. D. Williams Mr Dominello Ms Moore Mr R. C. Williams Mr Draper Mr O'Dea Mrs Fardell Mr Piccoli Tellers, Mr Fraser Mr Piper Mr Maguire Ms Goward Mr Provest Mr R. W. Turner
Question resolved in the affirmative.
Amendment agreed to.
Motion as amended agreed.
BUSINESS OF THE HOUSE
Business Lapsed
General Business Notice of Motion (General Notice) No. 569 called on and, pursuant to Standing Order 99, lapsed.
BUSINESS OF THE HOUSE
Postponement of Business
General Business Notice of Motion (General Notice) No. 570 called on and postponed on motion by Mrs Judy Hopwood.
BUSINESS OF THE HOUSE
Business Lapsed
General Business Notice of Motion (General Notice) No. 571 called on and, pursuant to Standing Order 99, lapsed.
GOODS AND SERVICES TAX REVENUE
Mr JOHN WILLIAMS (Murray-Darling) [1.08 p.m.]: I move:
That this House condemns the Government for its inability to correct former Premier Carr's inequitable division of the State's GST revenue.
When Labor was last in Opposition it condemned the then Liberal-National Coalition Government for inaction in failing to correct what was believed to be an inequitable position. With the introduction of the GST, Bob Carr went down to Canberra to discuss the implementation of a measure to recognise the States whose budgets were challenged, in order to support the services those States were required to deliver. As part of that measure it was suggested that the other States should contribute towards those States. As a consequence, Bob Carr went to Canberra to negotiate on behalf of the State of New South Wales the division of the GST revenue. Bob Carr gave away $2.3 billion of our State's revenue, and it went to South Australia and Queensland.
Not only did Bob Carr roll over, and not only was he naive enough to do this, but he actually announced that he was the first Premier to agree to it and said that he had done a great deal. He said, "We have negotiated a great deal on behalf of the State of New South Wales." When the dust had settled, the New South 20620 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 3 December 2009
Wales Government then said, "We have made a mistake. It has been a hell of a mistake: we have cost the Government $2.3 billion. We should now get the Opposition to see if John Howard can correct it." So the New South Wales Government absolutely begged the State Opposition to ring John Howard to see if we could get back the $2.3 billion that Bob Carr, in his sheer stupidity, naivety and generosity, had given away. But the damage had already been done. Then the Government started to blame the New South Wales Coalition for Bob Carr's ineptitude at negotiating a fair deal for New South Wales.
Mr Daryl Maguire: And Michael Egan.
Mr JOHN WILLIAMS: The then Treasurer, Michael Egan, also. I will say no more. The Bib and Bub show went to Canberra, and they got treated the way they deserved to be treated. Rope-a-dope, I think it was called. In any event, they took the rope and the soap, and as a consequence cost us over the years the best part of $23 billion, which could have been well used by this State. Immediately Queensland got the money that State decided, "We have got nothing to do with the dough. We might subsidise our petrol prices." So Queensland's money subsidised that State's petrol prices. The New South Wales Government was quite happy to tell us about the fact that Queensland was introducing that subsidy, and it was supported by the Carr Government.
The Carr Government had tipped the money in and then supported cheaper petrol for Queensland residents—which of course was the Queensland Government's decision. Then the Carr Government tried to pin that on the New South Wales Opposition. The Carr Government said to the Opposition, "Ring John Howard and get it corrected; have it fixed." The Carr Government ran a misleading campaign. It went out to the electorate and ran a campaign that was full of absolute lies and misrepresentation. The Carr Government lied in every publication it put out about the division of the GST and virtually blamed the Howard Government for the fact that the New South Wales Government was $2.3 billion light in its budget.
The renegotiations for the division of the GST then came up. And what did the Government do? It sent a boy on a man's mission. The Government sent the Treasurer, Eric Roozendaal, down to Canberra. The laugh was on! When he got into the room he found out that he was totally out of place. The Government sent the head prefect of New South Wales to Canberra to negotiate the division of the GST on behalf of the State of New South Wales. He was going to correct all the things that had happened in the past. It must be remembered that the New South Wales Government misled the public by saying that John Howard should have corrected this anomaly, and that Kevin Rudd would correct it. But Kevin Rudd, as we all know, could not do anything about it. It was purely a Council of Australian Governments agreement, which meant that the Federal Government sat down with the State Treasurers and Premiers and they decided on the GST division.
The fact that Eric Roozendaal represented the State of New South Wales is an absolute joke. He went down there to correct the $2.3 billion shortfall and came out the other end with a $3.1 billion shortfall! Very well done! Eric Roozendaal had all the excuses under the sun. He found out that his negotiating skills were zero, that the Treasurers of the other States were Treasurers who knew what they were doing, who had the facts and figures. They steamrolled our little boy that the Government sent down to Canberra. Eric Roozendaal managed to get himself around the place. He got to the meeting; he did not get lost—someone must have been holding his hand—and then they steamrolled him. And that cost the New South Wales Government $3 billion per annum.
One would have to think that when we start looking at the life of this Government—which is not long—it has already cost us $6 billion. That $6 billion could well have gone to the New South Wales Roads budget, and certainly to the Health budget. This State needs that money. With regard to the division of the GST, New South Wales is supporting South Australia and Queensland. Those States have mining industries that support them. They have major royalties coming out of mining. The New South Wales Government has done nothing to encourage mining development in this State. In fact, it has probably stood in the way of mining development. It has largely done that with its legislation and occupational health and safety laws, which refer to the chain of responsibility of those in management positions in mines. That is an absolute deterrent to mining development. For this reason we cannot get the management we need in mining in New South Wales.
However, Queensland and South Australia are doing very well, and that is partly because of the extra GST contribution from New South Wales, which is $3 billion. That money, $3 billion, is going to States that already derive substantial royalties from mining. Queensland and South Australia are now demonstrating that they are operating better than New South Wales. New South Wales was the premier State. Eric Roozendaal took us from the premier position. He went down to Canberra and negotiated on behalf of the people of New South Wales. As I said, the Government sent a boy on a man's job. He is the weakest Treasurer, and obviously he is the Treasurer that New South Wales does not need. 3 December 2009 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 20621
That is a huge cost for us to bear, but it is a cost we have to bear because the Government chose to send a representative who simply was not good enough at the negotiating table. As I said, the Treasurer has been steamrolled by the Treasurers of the other States. We see how the other States operate: they operate pretty well. They do not have an Eric Roozendaal; they have real men running their treasuries. The Treasurers of the other States took Eric Roozendaal to the cleaners, emptied him out, and sent him home, leaving New South Wales $3 billion poorer.
Mr DAVID HARRIS (Wyong—Parliamentary Secretary) [1.18 p.m.]: The Opposition has a hide to move a motion today about the division of GST revenue between the States, given the raw deal that New South Wales has received, not through any lack of trying by this State to get a better one. Under the Council of Australian Governments agreement all States have to agree on revenue allocation. For years our Treasurers fought as hard as they could to win the maximum amount for New South Wales. It is easy for Opposition members, who have never been involved in those negotiations, to sit back and comment on whether the allocations were enough. Since the introduction of the GST the people of New South Wales have trusted Labor Governments in this State to continue to provide the required infrastructure and services. If the people thought the Opposition could have done a better job with the GST revenue that was allocated to this State, the Opposition would not have spent the past 14 or 15 years in the political wilderness.
This debate really demonstrates what good economic managers this State's Labor Governments have been. In the time the GST revenue has been around, Labor Governments have continued to work to rebuild this State and its infrastructure. Even when this State did not receive its proper share of GST revenue, the Government continued to rebuild every hospital in the State. The Government is spending billions of dollars on building infrastructure. The same applies to police stations, both in city and country areas. Earlier this week, with Police Minister Daley, I was at Wyong police station where the first sod of earth was turned for the $14.6 million Wyong police centre. That was an election promise which I am proud to announce I have kept to my electorate.
I note that the member for Gosford is sitting in the Chamber and that the member for The Entrance is in the chair as Assistant-Speaker. We are all proud of the public hospitals that have been rebuilt in our area, and they offer fantastic facilities. Not only have those hospitals been rebuilt but, as the Parliamentary Secretary Assisting the Minister for Health mentioned earlier today, the Government is increasing the services they provide. It is not just about bricks and mortar; it is about providing additional services to meet the needs of local communities. For example, the increased services at Wyong Hospital include a new medical assessment unit, a high-dependency unit, a 50-bed mental health unit, an emergency department, new imaging and improved cancer treatment facilities. We three members are continuing to work hard to obtain radiotherapy services on the Central Coast to meet public demand.
The Opposition has actually congratulated the Government today on the fantastic job it has done in keeping the State's triple-A rating during the global financial crisis. The Government and this State put on the best Olympic Games ever, anywhere in the world, and they have been fully funded and paid off. The Government also gave $5 million to Brookvale Oval, which is close to the hearts of the member for Manly and me.
Dr Andrew McDonald: Bring back the Bears!
Mr DAVID HARRIS: I am part of that campaign as well, but I am a Manly boy at heart. The Government has provided infrastructure services in every part of the State, not just in selected areas where it holds seats. Every day in question time the Premier and other Ministers have stood up and announced where the infrastructure services are going. The list includes the North Coast, Western New South Wales, the South Coast, the Riverina, the Central Coast, Illawarra, Newcastle and all parts of Sydney. The Government has kept this State's triple-A rating and has made sure that the required infrastructure has either been delivered or that its delivery is planned. The allocation of funding to schools, something very dear to my heart, has also been increased. Broadband has been put into every school and classrooms have been connected. There are computers in classrooms. Roads have been given increased funding. The Government has a record budget in every single portfolio even though it is behind in GST revenue.
That has happened because of the good economic management. Retaining a triple-A rating while providing funding for services and infrastructure requires balance, and the Government has that in full measure. Let us compare the Government's achievement with the policies of the Opposition, which have been described as similar to the answer to this riddle: How long is a piece of string? 20622 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 3 December 2009
Dr Andrew McDonald: How long is a piece of string?
Mr DAVID HARRIS: I am not really sure. But I am sure the Opposition will tell us one day when they get one of their policies finished in enough detail for anyone to see anything. I am also not confident about that because I was walking past one of the Opposition offices the other day and noticed that the photocopier is still waiting to be fixed. The Opposition will still be behind the eight ball when the press finally asks where its policies are, one or two days before the next election, and the same old excuse will be dragged out.
Dr Andrew McDonald: Is the string measured in metric, or in feet and inches?
Mr DAVID HARRIS: That is right. The Opposition does not say what its economic policy is in one go, you have to listen to what it broadly says. The Opposition says the Government should cut revenue and taxes, and that this State is the highest taxed in the known universe, yet Opposition speakers always want the Government to increase spending. Their mantra is, "Reduce revenue: increase spending. Reduce revenue: increase spending." In order to do that the State would have to incur a huge deficit or lose jobs, which is the Liberal-Nationals Coalition way. The Coalition went into the last election with what were described as Barry O'Farrell's top-draw policies, the public ones that he thinks are really popular. I think Nick Greiner had the policies first and Barry O'Farrell took them over. But if he were to get into office he would undoubtedly claim the Opposition could not do any of those things because there was a really big black hole in the State's finances. He would have to slash and burn, which is the Max Moore-Wilton way of doing business.
When Max Moore-Wilton was involved with Sydney airport—and I am not sure if he is still involved—it became the costliest place to visit in Sydney, given the few minutes commuters travel on the Airport Railway. Are they the sort of people we want forming economic policy? Are they the sort of people we want looking after the people? Those on this side are focused on providing infrastructure and building hospitals, police stations, schools and roads in every community in the State—not discriminating for some and against others. It is time for the Coalition to stand up and acknowledge that the Government is delivering all those benefits across this State. Opposition members must be walking around with blinkers on.
If Opposition members visited the electorates on the Central Coast they would see new railway stations, car parks and bus interchanges. They would drive on the brand-new $42 million Tuggerah Straight road, past the brand-new $14.6 million Wyong police station, and further up the road they would see a $42 million aged care facility. They would then drive past two new schools, a brand-new hall that has been built at Gorokan Primary School, and then on to the Norah Head lighthouse, where there is a new car park, money has been allocated to fix coastal erosion, and the surf club has been given funding. Those things have happened in my electorate. The member for The Entrance and the member for Gosford could say exactly the same thing and, no doubt, the member for Macquarie fields could also list lots of new facilities in his electorate.
The community can see where the State's tax dollars are being spent. Given the GST revenue allocated to New South Wales, today's motion should be congratulating the Government for keeping State's triple-A rating and delivering fantastic infrastructure, with record budgets in every area that have provided increased health, education and community services. That is what the State Labor Government has done. If the Opposition could come up with some of its own ideas, that would be a nice change. At least the Opposition should say to this State's Labor Government, "You have done a pretty good job. In the years you have been in power you have had to deal with difficult and uncertain economic conditions, but you have still managed to give this State the advantages that it now enjoys."
Mr MIKE BAIRD (Manly) [1.28 p.m.]: Today we are debating a substantial motion about a critical issue facing the people of New South Wales, but there are few Government members in the Chamber. The member for Wyong was elected to this Chamber at same time I was—and it is true that I share his very good taste in supporting rugby league teams—but I note that he, the member for Macquarie Fields and the member for Gosford are the only Government members in the Chamber to participate in the debate.
The reason that only three Government members are present is because the rest of them are trying to work out who is going to run the State. This is a sign that the Government has lost touch. The GST allocation is a critical issue. It will blow a hole in the State budget over the next four to five years. All of us will pay for it. Eventually mismanagement catches up and at a cost. The Government cannot continually defer problems by using spin. It ultimately catches up with it. The member for Wyong kept talking about record budgets. That is the Government's solution. The Treasurer and the Premier say, "We are doing a good job in Health because we are spending more money." 3 December 2009 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 20623
Mr David Harris: We have one of the world's great health systems.
Mr MIKE BAIRD: We have a very good Parliamentary Secretary for Health. The whole purpose of government is to deliver outcomes. The Government may spend record amounts of money but the community wants to know what it is doing with it. How is the Government improving services for families in this State? How is it looking after the mums and dads in every community and suburb across this State? It is not. Today, while the leadership debacle is going on, a critical piece of economic data came out.
Pursuant to standing orders business interrupted and set down as an order of the day for a future day.
[The Assistant-Speaker (Mr Grant McBride) left the chair at 1.31 p.m. The House resumed at 2.15 p.m.]
DISTINGUISHED VISITORS
The SPEAKER: Order! I welcome Mr Hermiz Shahen, President of the Members of the Assyrian Universal Alliance, a guest of the member for Smithfield.
RETIREMENT OF SIMON BENSON FROM NEW SOUTH WALES PRESS GALLERY
The SPEAKER: I acknowledge that this is Simon Benson's last question time. Simon has been with the Daily Telegraph for 15 years, in the New South Wales Press Gallery as a State political editor for six years and president of the New South Wales Press Gallery for three years. I thank him for his cooperation with the Parliament throughout that period. Simon was awarded the Sir Keith Murdoch Award for Journalism in 2005 and the Eureka Prize for Environmental Journalism in 2001. Simon met his wife, PJ, in the New South Wales Press Gallery and they were married last year. I understand Simon is going to the much calmer waters of Canberra as chief political reporter for the Daily Telegraph. The Parliament thanks Simon Benson.
QUESTION TIME ______
[Question time commenced at 2.21 p.m.]
LEADERSHIP OF THE GOVERNMENT
Mr BARRY O'FARRELL: My question is directed to the Premier. Given the Premier's damning critique of his party and the factional forces behind his challengers as treacherous, malignant and disloyal, why will he not simply move and support a motion of no confidence in his Government and give the community the election it so desperately wants and deserves?
Mr NATHAN REES: If we were ever to do that and if the Coalition were ever near the Treasury benches public housing in New South Wales would disappear.
The SPEAKER: Order! The Leader of the Opposition will come to order.
Mr NATHAN REES: This is the fundamental platform of the Coalition alternative government in New South Wales. First, the Coalition would scrap public housing. The Coalition went to the last election with precisely that policy. Second, only two elections ago, the Coalition was going to scrap the Department of Community Services. Third, the Coalition has a dishonest wallpapering plan to reform the New South Wales health system that simply does not go anywhere near delivering the fundamental health reform that is needed in New South Wales and, indeed, Australia. Members opposite also have a long history of walking away from a commitment to public education in New South Wales. That is in their DNA. This Government has backed public transport decade after decade. Under a Coalition government it would be returned to private hands. That is the reality. The people of New South Wales—
The SPEAKER: Order! The House will come to order.
Mr NATHAN REES: —have a very a clear choice: A Labor Government—
The SPEAKER: Order! Members will cease interjecting. 20624 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 3 December 2009
Mr NATHAN REES: —built on accountability, transparency and delivery of services, all independently assessed as some of the very best in Australia, if not the world, or a Coalition which does not believe in global warming and which wants to dismantle the universal health care system.
The SPEAKER: Order! If members continue to interject I will call them to order. I remind members that today is the last sitting day of the year.
Mr NATHAN REES: The Opposition has been prepared to mislead the people of this State time after time. We know that the people of New South Wales value social justice and a fair workplace. That would be under threat. Tony Abbott's ascension means that the Coalition is now signed back on to WorkChoices. Members opposite stand for WorkChoices, private health cover and private education. Members on this side of the House make no apologies, and never will, for ensuring that we reach out to those less able to look after themselves, to give them a hand up and not to leave them to the vagaries of market forces and the Coalition's scorched earth economics.
ELECTION CAMPAIGN FINANCE REFORM
Mr DAVID HARRIS: My question is addressed to the Premier. Will he update the House on campaign finance reform?
Mr NATHAN REES: I thank the member for his question and his longstanding interest in this matter. Over recent months the Government has made the restoration of accountability and integrity in government a hallmark. The people of New South Wales deserve open, accountable and transparent government and the confidence that all decisions are made in their best interests. Over time, the people of this State have come to perceive that this is not always the case. To rectify this perception, I have made a concerted effort to restore community confidence. I am proud to lead a Government that is determined to make the hard decisions, to make fundamental and sweeping reform to our political system and to take a principled stand. There will be no more talk, but decisive action to restore integrity and public confidence. Central to this goal is the reform of our existing political donations laws.
Since becoming Premier, I have consistently supported a move towards a public election funding model. To date, such reform has not been pursued in New South Wales on the basis that a coordinated, national approach would be the best way forward. I continue to support that approach and New South Wales will continue to work closely with the Commonwealth to progress this issue. However, national reform will take time. Until national reform is achieved, I am determined that New South Wales will take the lead on this important issue. I make no apologies for that. That is why I announced the ban on developer donations, which the Leader of the Opposition took a week to support. That is also why the Government recently announced reforms to the planning system and an end to lobbyists serving on government boards. That is just the beginning. The big task is a sweeping reform of our whole electoral funding system. That effort is now underway.
At the Australian Labor Party State Conference last month I announced that the Government would refer the issue of election funding to the Joint Standing Committee on Electoral Matters for inquiry with a view to introducing a public funding model. In making this referral, the Government deliberately chose to make this an inclusive exercise to ensure all parties have a stake in the new system. We all need to change. We all need to end the political arms race once and for all. That is why the draft terms of reference for the inquiry were recently sent out for comment to a wide variety of members in this place.
Today I can advise the House that the terms of reference for the committee's inquiry have now been finalised. Contrary to what some commentators and members have said, the final terms are broad and unfettered, with the only requirement that the committee report by 12 March next year. The terms of reference have been informed by feedback from members, and I thank them for their contributions and interest in this matter. It is a great shame that the Leader of the Opposition used the opportunity to continue to play partisan politics and to continue to criticise, complain and whinge. That is not surprising from a man who talks the talk but consistently fails to actually translate his rhetoric into any substantive action. The Coalition is still receiving donations from big tobacco. Despite this, I am confident that the inquiry will produce dividends for the people of New South Wales.
The final terms of reference specifically call on the joint standing committee to build on the work of the Legislative Council Select Committee on Electoral and Political Party Funding conducted last year and to 3 December 2009 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 20625
consider any relevant reports or recommendations made by that select committee. There can be no doubt that last year's inquiry laid a solid basis for this work, but now we must go further. A couple of issues were left unresolved by the Legislative Council committee last year, such as the amount by which public funding would need to be increased under a new scheme, and the constitutional implications of a ban on all donations bar small donations by individuals. I urge the joint select committee to tackle those issues. The terms of reference specifically require it to do so.
I have also asked the committee to consider the effect of any proposed new measures on the ability of new candidates, including independent candidates and new political groupings, to contest elections. At its core, the committee has a significant task—to determine a public funding model for New South Wales, a model that will provide the Parliament and people of New South Wales with an electoral system of which they can be proud. I thank committee members in advance for this very important work. The task at hand is nothing less than restoring integrity to our political system. The people of New South Wales deserve nothing less.
LEADERSHIP OF THE GOVERNMENT
Mr ANDREW STONER: My question is directed to the Premier. Is his statement that a malignant and disloyal group has made "the business of government almost impossible" and that any replacement as Premier will be a puppet to Eddie Obeid and Joe Tripodi an admission that nothing will change in New South Wales until there is a change of government?
Mr NATHAN REES: No.
RIVER RED GUM FORESTS PROTECTION
Dr ANDREW McDONALD: I address my question to the Premier.
The SPEAKER: Order! The Leader of The Nationals and the member for Bathurst will allow the member for Macquarie Fields to ask his question.
Dr ANDREW McDONALD: Will the Premier update the House on the New South Wales Government's efforts to save the Riverina red gums?
Mr NATHAN REES: I thank the member for his question and his longstanding interest in river red gums and the protection of the environment generally. Protection of the environment has always been a priority of Labor governments. Over 8 per cent of the landmass of New South Wales is now preserved forever, a 50 per cent increase since we came to office. Our national parks are the envy of the world, visited by some 40 million people every year. Those opposite would love nothing more than to mine them—mine them, log them, and burn them. Under Labor the proud tradition of conservation and protection will continue. Our national parks are part of what makes Australia, Australia. They are our nation's gift to the world, and our trust to hold for future generations.
It was Labor that permanently protected 348,000 hectares of iconic forests in the Brigalow Belt and Nandewar forests. It was Labor that declared 283,000 hectares of Wollomi wilderness west of Sydney. It was this Labor Government that last year declared the Yengo wilderness area. It will be New South Wales Labor that will save the iconic river red gums, those precious forests and wetlands that are unique and so priceless. The river red gums cannot be sacrificed and the river red gums will not be sacrificed.
The SPEAKER: Order! The member for Burrinjuck will come to order.
Mr NATHAN REES: They are the last big piece to the conservation puzzle in New South Wales. The interim report and draft recommendations of the Natural Resources Commission have been provided to me today. They present a disturbing picture of the state of these mighty forests. Most concerning are the impacts that river regulation and climate variability have had on timber yields. Early estimates are showing a 50 per cent decline in long-term sustainable yields, requiring serious industry adjustment. Furthermore, the ecosystems of the Riverina red gum forests have been profoundly affected by the current drought and we urgently need to redress the imbalance between water extraction and environmental flows. These are not small problems to overcome, but the evidence is compelling and it is clear what needs to be done. Today I inform the House that the Government will declare a major new national park in the Millewa Group Riverina Red Gum Forests. 20626 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 3 December 2009
[Interruption]
They are anti-national parks. The Barmah-Millewa Group forests represent the heart of the red gums, the jewel in the conservation crown. This iconic forest covers both sides of the New South Wales-Victoria border and contains the largest area of river red gum forest in the world. Recognised as a highly significant wetland complex the Barmah-Millewa forests form one of six icon sites defined under the Living Murray program. They house precious species such as the Superb Parrot, Koala populations and the Barking Owl. The Natural Resources Commission has recommended that:
The Government should establish appropriate additions to the National Reserve System prioritising the following forest groups and possible tenures:
—National Parks in wet refugia and riparian corridors such as the Baroonga group of forests, Millewa forests and riparian forests on the Lachlan and Murrumbidgee.
I accept that recommendation 100 per cent, which is why today I can confirm that these iconic forests will be preserved for all time and their preservation will be enshrined in the law books of the State. With this declaration comes an immediate $48 million assistance package to ensure workers are appropriately compensated. We understand what impact this decision will have on their lives. They will not be overlooked. They will not be empty-handed.
[Interruption]
Mr NATHAN REES: I take it members opposite are against this.
The SPEAKER: Order! I call the member for Burrinjuck to order. I call the Leader of The Nationals to order.
Mr NATHAN REES: In addition, the Government will prepare a long-term transitional strategy for the region over the next three months.
The SPEAKER: Order! I call the member for Barwon to order.
Mr NATHAN REES: This will mean smart industry consolidation, combining value-adding, better marketing and new opportunities in ecotourism. This strategy will include an additional job creation package both within the new national parks and the broader Riverina region. These new jobs will be created in park management and construction jobs associated with park infrastructure. The workers of southern New South Wales will be looked after. We will not let them down. The Natural Resources Commission will provide its final report on 21 December embodying the measures I have announced today plus further recommendations on multiple use forests in areas such as Koondrook and Perricoota.
The Government will carefully consider those recommendations and then prepare an integrated forestry operations approval to cover all future forestry operations in the region. This will give long-term certainty to the timber industry and put it on a sustainable basis. When you get an opportunity like the river red gums you cannot let it pass. No responsible leader could ever allow that to happen. Our landscapes are too ancient and too precious to allow that to happen. We have fought too hard and too long to achieve magnificent conservation measures in New South Wales for these to be undermined.
The SPEAKER: Order! I call the member for Murrumbidgee to order.
Mr NATHAN REES: Political inconvenience is the difficult option; political convenience is the easiest possible resort. We are all tempted towards the soft choices and the lazy options. That is the situation we have confronted in the Legislative Council for the past few years. In an effort to seek passage of our bills through the Legislative Council we have made agreements and undertakings that have stretched the Labor Party's environmental beliefs to the limit. With the proposal to allow hunting in national parks the limit of our tolerance has been reached. Accordingly, I advise the House today that there will be no hunting in New South Wales national parks. And—here's a memo to The Nationals—there will be no mining either. Our national parks will be safe. Labor's great conservation journey will continue.
The SPEAKER: Order! Members will cease interjecting. 3 December 2009 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 20627
LEADERSHIP OF THE GOVERNMENT
Mr BARRY O'FARRELL: My question is directed to the Minister for Planning. Given the Premier's statement that a treacherous, malignant and disloyal group of Labor members has made the business of government in New South Wales impossible, will she rule out taking a senior role in any reshaping of the Government resulting from the influence and efforts of Joe Tripodi and Eddie Obeid?
The SPEAKER: Order! Members will cease interjecting. The Leader of the Opposition has asked his question. Members will listen to the response in silence.
Ms KRISTINA KENEALLY: Let me be absolutely clear on this. I am nobody's puppet. I am nobody's protégé. I am nobody's girl. I am the Minister for Planning in this Government, a Minister for Planning who is working with local government, stakeholders and the development industry as we meet the challenges of a growing and ageing population in New South Wales. I am the Minister for Infrastructure, who is working with the Minister of Transport and the Government so we can deliver a transport blueprint that matches the infrastructure required for the new development to house our growing population. Under this Government a Metropolitan Strategy lays out how we will sustainably support population growth in New South Wales. Under the Opposition we would see all new growth in Sydney on the fringe. That is what the Leader of the Opposition promises for Sydney, a planning system that will move all new urban growth to the fringe. That will consume all developable land in Sydney within 30 years.
The SPEAKER: Order! Members will cease interjecting. I call the member for Terrigal to order.
Ms KRISTINA KENEALLY: That will create an infrastructure bill of an additional $12 billion. That is not a recipe for sustainable growth.
The SPEAKER: Order! The Leader of the Opposition will come to order.
Ms KRISTINA KENEALLY: That is not a recipe for economic growth. It is a recipe for economic disaster.
The SPEAKER: Order! I call the member for Epping to order.
Ms KRISTINA KENEALLY: The Government is delivering Australia's best planning system, one that creates certainty, one that delivers efficiency and transparency, and one where decisions are made at the most appropriate level. On the other side of the House we have a proposal to shift all new development to the fringe, a proposal to scrap the 10-day housing code and to bring the politics back into planning decisions by stripping joint regional planning panels and the Planning Assessment Commission.
The SPEAKER: Order! I call the member for Clarence to order.
Ms KRISTINA KENEALLY: On this side of the House we have a clear prescription for economic and sustainable growth—on the other side of the House, economic disaster and the loss of jobs and investment for the people of New South Wales.
The SPEAKER: Order! The House will come to order.
BARANGAROO REDEVELOPMENT
Ms ALISON MEGARRITY: My question is addressed to the Premier. What is the latest information on plans to redevelop Barangaroo?
Mr NATHAN REES: As we know, Sydney is the best city in the world—
Mr Adrian Piccoli: With seven million people in it?
Mr NATHAN REES: Which I corrected, you goose. The $2.5 billion Barangaroo project is another chance to make Sydney bigger and better. Barangaroo will create more than 20,000 jobs in the new financial precinct, including 3,000 construction jobs over the life of the project's creation. The Government has 20628 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 3 December 2009
previously announced that we would create a more natural headland and larger northern cove for Barangaroo where currently there is little more than a concrete slab. The mini-budget was full of difficult decisions. One of these was to delay the construction of this headland park.
Today I am pleased to inform the House that the Government will be bringing forward $30 million over two years to fast-track this park. The headland park will ultimately be funded from the proceeds of the development sites and the Government will provide forward funding to enable its earlier design and construction. The park will return this part of the western harbour and its foreshore to the community after more than 100 years of industrial use. It will complement the southern part of Barangaroo, which will house Sydney's new financial precinct and link to the Asia-Pacific region.
The SPEAKER: Order! There is too much audible conversation in the Chamber.
Mr NATHAN REES: Once completed, Barangaroo will provide a new extension of the central business district to accommodate Sydney's growing financial role in the Asia-Pacific region, including space for over 15,000 workers. Key features of the parkland and public open space at Barangaroo will include a large headland park at the northern end of Barangaroo; new southern and northern coves, a continuous foreshore promenade from King Street to Walsh Bay, completing the 14-kilometre long foreshore walk from Woolloomooloo to Anzac Bridge; a concealed car park under the headland park; and promenade and parklands, including in the southern commercial precinct.
The SPEAKER: Order! The member for Murrumbidgee will come to order.
Mr NATHAN REES: This is the most significant piece of land in Sydney. We get one chance to get it right—just one chance to ensure that this historic parkland on the world's greatest harbour is protected as open space, locked away for every family, every child and every visitor to New South Wales.
LEADERSHIP OF THE GOVERNMENT
Mr ANDREW STONER: My question is directed to the Deputy Premier. If Nathan Rees is deposed as Premier, will she resign or will she collaborate with what the Premier described as the "malign and disloyal group" who specialise in "treachery" and be part of their new Cabinet?
Ms CARMEL TEBBUTT: There seems to be one theme and one theme only coming from the Opposition side of the House today. This Government is committed to focusing on the things that matter to the people of New South Wales. My support for the Premier is well known and clear. Yesterday we saw that the Premier is capable of coming into this House and outlining his health reform agenda in Australia. Have we heard anything from those on that side of the fence? The Prime Minister has laid down the challenge on one of the most important issues confronting our country. He said he wants a dialogue about health reform. He has recognised that our ageing population, increasing demand and the growing cost of medical technology are placing unsustainable pressure on health systems right across Australia.
The Prime Minister has laid down the challenge and the New South Wales Government has responded to that challenge. We have put forward a plan that would end the cost shifting and see a seamless health system for the people of New South Wales and the people of Australia. We have said we are prepared to work with the Commonwealth to achieve that. Do we see anything coming forward from members opposite?
The SPEAKER: Order! I call the member for Murrumbidgee to order.
Ms CARMEL TEBBUTT: Members opposite put themselves forward as the alternative Government of New South Wales but they offer nothing to the people of our State.
The SPEAKER: Order! I call the member for Wakehurst to order.
Ms CARMEL TEBBUTT: They have no plans, no strategy and one health policy. The member for North Shore puts out one health policy whatever the issue. The Opposition has no plans to address the transport challenges that confront our State and no plans to address any of the other issues that confront our State. The people of New South Wales recognise that. Of course Opposition members are excited whenever they sense there is any sign of difficulty on our side of the fence. The true challenge is what do members opposite offer to the people of New South Wales? They offer absolutely nothing.
The SPEAKER: Order! I call the member for Willoughby to order. 3 December 2009 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 20629
SCHOOL LEARNING ADVANCES
Mr PAUL PEARCE: My question is addressed to the Minister for Education and Training. Can the Minister update the House on advances in learning in New South Wales schools?
Ms VERITY FIRTH: To support the delivery of the digital education revolution, last month the New South Wales Rees Government signed a $280 million four-year contract with Telstra to provide faster, more reliable broadband for over 2,400 schools and TAFEs across New South Wales. The contract is the largest of its type in Australia and will bring the benefits of improved broadband services to more than 1.2 million students. All up, Telstra will lay 4,500 kilometres of fibre optic cable across our State to complete this network, generating over 150 jobs in the process.
The benefit of a single statewide contract provides tremendous flexibility that allows bandwidth use to grow to meet educational demand. Telstra has informed us that this will be not only the largest network in Australia but also one of the largest networks in the Southern Hemisphere. The great thing about a flexible system is that bandwidth provided to schools can be increased or decreased to meet temporary spikes in demand as well as growth or declines in student population. It means giving schools the capacity they need at any given time rather than a set amount.
The SPEAKER: Order! There is too much audible conversation in the Chamber. The Minister has the call.
Ms VERITY FIRTH: What is particularly great about this contract and will revolutionise digital learning in our schools is that the speed of broadband in most schools will now be between 10 to 20 times faster. As we know, broadband is the blackboard of the twenty-first century and this new network will give our public schools in New South Wales the same broadband speeds that are used in many of Australia's largest companies. It will revolutionise the way that children learn and the way that teachers teach in a modern twenty-first century environment. It is not just students who will benefit. In April the New South Wales Government announced an investment of $16.5 million in order to deliver 25,000 laptops to secondary school teachers over three years. We are already halfway through that process.
A total of $10 million has been allocated for teacher development, so that these laptops can be used as learning tools in the classroom to engage students in their learning, and to allow teachers access to online curricula. This will ensure we engage students in the sorts of ways they are used to being engaged. Nowadays in education we compete with a lot of technologies. We compete with iBoxes, wikis, and everything one could imagine. We need to make sure that the way we teach is relevant and available for students in the technologies they use. All of this is complemented by the Digital Education Revolution, which is a $386 million investment in conjunction with the Federal Government. As part of the program we are rolling out laptops to every school student in years 9 and above, and we will ensure they have their own computer to work with by 2012.
We celebrated the commencement of the student rollout last term with the Deputy Prime Minister at Fairvale High School, in Sydney's south-west. Over the second half of this year, around 10,000 laptops were delivered every week to high schools around the State. The response has been absolutely amazing. The rollout to year 9 students and their teachers will be complete by the first week of December. From next year, each new commencing year 9 cohort will be issued with a laptop for the life of the program. The students will have those laptops in their hands in year 9, they will be able to use them throughout years 9, 10, 11 and 12, and then they will be able take the laptops with them to university and on to further studies.
Staff of the education department, as well as principals and teachers, have worked hard to make the rollout a success. We have had some great contracts. Software licensing contracts have been negotiated that give our New South Wales public school students access to a sophisticated toolkit of office and creative programs. In fact, New South Wales students will be the first customers anywhere in the world to be provided with Microsoft's Windows 7. So, when we say our students are leading the way, they really are leading the way. IBM Australia has completed the first phase of a $70 million upgrade to wireless broadband services in every high school across the State, which will now be complemented by this contract. Over 400 school-based technology support officers have been recruited to assist with technical problems as they arise in schools.
As I said, the rollout of laptops to teachers, funded by the New South Wales Government, is well underway; 60 per cent of all high school teachers now have their own device. Policies and procedures documents have been developed in consultation with the Secondary Principals' Council, to guide schools in the 20630 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 3 December 2009
implementation of this exciting program. The Digital Education Revolution in New South Wales is the biggest rollout of educational information technology equipment and software anywhere in the world. This is an exciting initiative that is expanding the reach of every child's education, opening the classroom to a range of information and resources that teachers have never before had access to.
We even have the proof of this in terms of teachers' comments to us about the program. Public sector schoolteachers are very positive about this program. We have been making sure we have good feedback, to see how the program is working in the classroom and how the teachers are being supported. A teacher from the Central Coast region wrote:
… staff have been amazed at the enthusiasm of students of ALL academic levels to work with their new netbooks. Previous reluctant learners have been particularly engaged by the activities on their netbooks. Some of our "more challenging" groups have been transformed.
In order to get our students to do the basics—reading, writing and maths—we have to keep them interested and engaged. As I said, we are competing with a hell of a lot of new technologies that our kids are already involved in. We need to make sure that those technologies are transferred into the classroom, to keep students interested and engaged in their studies. For our younger students, this is done through interactive whiteboards and videoconferencing rooms. For example, students in New South Wales can have a language class and speak directly to students in China using the videoconferencing facilities in our public schools. For our older students, keeping them interested and engaged is obviously done through the use of laptops.
It is hard to imagine a job in the future that will not require high computer literacy skills. For every job—from a quantum physicist to a mechanic—nowadays people need computer skills. This is about equipping our kids with the skills they need for their future employment, the skills they need for their future social networking and interaction, and the skills they need to be productive citizens in the twenty-first century. This is about students using the key tool of the future as part of their everyday learning. This transformation of our schools is breaking down geographical and social barriers by connecting students to each other and the rest of the world, and it is making our classrooms learning environments of the twenty-first century.
OLSTAN MINE PROPOSAL
Mr GREG PIPER: My question is addressed to the Minister for Planning. Can the Minister advise the House on the nature of the legal advice provided to the Government regarding the permissibility of the previously proposed Olstan auger mine? Will the advice be made public?
Ms KRISTINA KENEALLY: I thank the member for Lake Macquarie for his question. I note his concern on behalf of his community in relation to the proposal for the Olstan mine. The member for Lake Macquarie has introduced a bill in this place that seeks to amend the mining State environmental planning policy [SEPP], because of his concern that that mining SEPP was not able to stop the project in question. I am advised that the legal advice we have received shows that the mining SEPP worked exactly as it was designed to do—that is, the Olstan mine, which would have had a combination of pits and underground mining, a substantial proportion, from memory some 46 per cent—
The SPEAKER: Order! I call the member for Terrigal to order for the second time.
Ms KRISTINA KENEALLY: From memory, some 46 per cent of the coal was proposed to come from the Olstan mine pits. Once we received legal advice that that was open-cut mining, we advised the proponent of that outcome. In our view, and given the legal advice that we were provided, the mining SEPP operated exactly as it was supposed to operate in this circumstance—that is, it prohibited open-cut mining in the Lake Macquarie local government area. It is my preference that we are able to release this advice, and I am currently seeking advice from the department on how we might do that.
BUILDING THE COUNTRY FUND
Mr GERARD MARTIN: My question is addressed to the Minister for Regional Development. Can the Minister update the House on the progress of the Government's $85 million Building the Country Fund?
Mr PHILLIP COSTA: What a fabulous question to be the last question for the year! It is not even a challenge! I thank the member for Bathurst for his question and his interest in regional and rural New South Wales. I know how hard he works for Country Labor— 3 December 2009 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 20631
The SPEAKER: Order! Members will cease interjecting.
Mr PHILLIP COSTA: I have so much good news to share with the House this afternoon, so I ask members to allow me to do so.
Mr Barry O'Farrell: Start with who will be Premier tomorrow. Start at the top.
Mr PHILLIP COSTA: I will start at the top. To date our Building the Country Package has unlocked more than 1,100 direct jobs and secured more than $350 million in investment across rural and regional New South Wales. These are immediate benefits from our stimulus package for the bush. To date, cheques have been written to upgrade more than 40 country halls across New South Wales—a total investment of more than $1 million to help country towns spruce up their proud community facilities during these tough times.
Mr Thomas George: Name them!
Mr PHILLIP COSTA: I will name them.
The SPEAKER: The member for Lismore asked for it!
Mr PHILLIP COSTA: I do not object to the interjection. I will name a few of the halls that have been upgraded, because these are the ones I have visited, some in my role as Minister. In my short 60 years, at one stage or another I have visited these places: Millthorpe School of Arts Hall, Kendall Community Hall, Pambula Town Hall, Hay War Memorial Community Hall, Collie Country Women's Association Community Hall, Ebor War Memorial Hall, Pilliga Country Women's Association Hall, and Louth Community Hall. I had the great pleasure to join you, Mr Speaker, at the Kentucky Memorial Hall and Literary Institute when we opened that one.
The SPEAKER: It was an excellent event.
Mr PHILLIP COSTA: It was an absolutely wonderful day out. Another country hall that has been upgraded is Ivanhoe Community Hall. I remember visiting Ivanhoe when I worked for the Royal Far West Children's Health Scheme, which assisted in bringing kids to Sydney for medical treatment. Hillston Community Hall has also been upgraded. I also visited the Hillston area as part of my work for the Royal Far West Children's Health Scheme. Menindee Community Hall has also been upgraded.
Only recently I flew with the fine member for the Murray-Darling to visit Menindee. The festive season is coming upon us so I can refer to him as the fine member for Murray-Darling. The Government has also invested $1 million thus far to upgrade 10 country libraries, providing new and additional resources to country communities. I will not name them all. Almost $90,000 in grants have been provided from our Small Communities Awareness Fund to promote our small towns and businesses and keep them thriving. Today, I am pleased to announce the worthy recipients under the second round of the Small Chambers of Commerce Fund. The list will be available.
Mr Andrew Stoner: Anything for Barham?
Mr PHILLIP COSTA: Absolutely, we have looked after the bush. A total of 27 projects across the State will receive grants of up to $5,000 for signage, websites and business directories aimed at attracting visitors and boosting economic activity in their townships—from Grenfell to Gundagai, from Boggabri to Brewarrina and from Tea Gardens to Tenterfield. I am so pleased Grenfell was included.
Mr Kevin Greene: What is your connection with Grenfell?
Mr PHILLIP COSTA: That is where my mother was born. It is wonderful town. It also happens to be the same place where the horse was born that I backed on the weekend. I will not tell you its name—
Mr Daryl Maguire: What did it pay?
Mr PHILLIP COSTA: It paid a lot. Up and down the coast, right into central New South Wales and the Far West, this money is being injected into local economies. From January next year applications to the fund will be accepted and assessed as they are lodged. The Government is very proud of these programs, which are 20632 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 3 December 2009
delivering great resources to our communities, so we can get assistance to the community as quickly as possible. This money is being rolled out as quickly as possible. Each grant is not a lot of money but it makes a big difference, particularly to small communities.
Mr Andrew Stoner: It makes a great photo opportunity.
Mr PHILLIP COSTA: It does, indeed. You should join me in one. Junelle Parr, President of the Hillston Development Group, said that the funding of $3,2000 for the New South Wales Government would be a great boost for the local shopping campaign—that is, Please Shop Here in Hillston. Junelle said:
This campaign is part of our marketing strategy for Hillston to promote our town as a great place to live, visit or shop.
Mr Adrian Piccoli: Why won't you let any water go down to Hillston?
Mr PHILLIP COSTA: I have been to Hillston. It is a great town. I will work on that one and I will tell you what I want you to do in a moment. Junelle continued:
In the lead up to Christmas, we're expecting our campaign to encourage people to shop in Hillston, bringing much-needed spending to our local businesses.
This is proof that our money is making a difference in our small regional towns. We have, and we are, continuing to deliver some outstanding programs across the bush. A sombre note before I move on—and many members in this Chamber would relate to this—quite a large part of New South Wales is in serious drought and, as a consequence, a significant number of people need hope and support, and need to focus on the future. These grants, as small as they are, offer an opportunity to look into the future. For example, the Community Broadband Development Program provides $11.6 million to help small and remote towns set up community-based high-speed broadband facilities. A number of applications have been received for that program and 11 projects have been funded. The Small Communities Awareness Fund helps small and more isolated communities develop promotional websites.
Mr Adrian Piccoli: But you just took 200 jobs out. You took 200 red gum jobs out.
Mr PHILLIP COSTA: No, we just put another—
The SPEAKER: Order!
Mr PHILLIP COSTA: You missed the 1,100 that I mentioned earlier. The Water Adjustment Innovation Fund is a program to look at ways to help communities, particularly in drought-stricken areas—the second round has just closed. The pièce de résistance is our Local Infrastructure Support Fund, where the Government is investing many millions of dollars into rural and regional New South Wales. I had the pleasure of recently opening an expansion of a new plant at Moss Vale. The Government has put some dollars into the infrastructure of that site and the number of workers there has grown from 40 to 88. That plant manufactures, of all things, irrigation pipes. Those pipes will deliver water right across New South Wales. I had the pleasure of going to Albury to open a plant that is manufacturing irrigation pipes two metres in diameter. Industry out there is doing some wonderful work.
Mr Adrian Piccoli: What are they for?
Mr PHILLIP COSTA: We are delivering water in those pipes, and that is what it is all about. Through the Building the Country Grant, the Government is delivering to New South Wales, and on-the-ground projects are being delivered in a timely manner. The Government expects both sides of this House to back our rural communities and make sure they are not forgotten. We need to make sure that those of us in this prestigious place understand that the people on the other side of the sandstone curtain deserve the same level of support and interest. That is exactly what the Government is doing with the Building the Country Fund. At this time of year we need to give special thought—
[Interruption]
The SPEAKER: Order! The member for Murrumbidgee will cease conducting a debate across the chamber. 3 December 2009 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 20633
Mr PHILLIP COSTA: —to the people in the Lachlan, because without rain they will continue to be in desperate times. As this is the last question for the year, and I have been able to articulate the great work that the Government is doing in building the country, I take this opportunity to wish everyone a very happy and prosperous Christmas.
Question time concluded at 3.06 p.m.
PRINTING OF PAPERS
Motion by Mr John Aquilina agreed to:
That the following papers be printed:
Report of the Sydney Cricket and Sports Ground Trust for the year ended 28 February 2009 Report of Riverina Citrus for the year ended 30 April 2009 New South Wales Report on State Finances 2008-09 Statutory Audit Report of the Legal Profession Admission Board for the year ended 30 June 2009
Reports for 2008: Industrial Relations Commission of New South Wales Parramatta Stadium Trust Technical Education Trust Funds
Reports for the year ended 30 June 2008: Animal Research Review Panel NSW Institute of Teachers
Reports for the year ended 30 June 2009: Aboriginal Housing Office Administrative Decisions Tribunal Anti-Discrimination Board of New South Wales Architects Registration Board Art Gallery of New South Wales Attorney General's Department Australian Museum Trust Australian Technology Park Barangaroo Delivery Authority Board of Studies and the Office of the Board of Studies Board of Surveying and Spatial Information Building and Construction Industry Long Service Payments Corporation Building Insurers Guarantee Corporation Fair Trading Administration Corporation Motor Vehicle Repair Industry Authority Cancer Institute NSW Casino Liquor and Gaming Control Authority Centennial Park and Moore Park Trust (Volumes One and Two) Chipping Norton Lake Authority Community Relations Commission Consumer, Trader and Tenancy Tribunal Corrective Services New South Wales Country Energy Delta Electricity Department of Aboriginal Affairs (Volumes One and Two) Department of Ageing, Disability and Home Care Department of Commerce Department of Community Services Department of Environment and Climate Change Department of Health (including financial statements of Public Health Organisations under control of the Department of Health) (Volumes One and Two) Department of Juvenile Justice Department of Lands Department of State and Regional Development Department of the Arts, Sport and Recreation Department of Water and Energy Election Funding Authority EnergyAustralia Eraring Energy Forests NSW Greyhound Racing NSW Guardianship Tribunal Harness Racing New South Wales Health Care Complaints Commission Historic Houses Trust 20634 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 3 December 2009
Housing New South Wales Hunter Development Corporation Independent Transport Safety and Reliability Regulator Integral Energy Internal Audit Bureau (trading as IAB Services) Judicial Commission of New South Wales Landcom Law and Justice Foundation of New South Wales Legal Aid New South Wales Library Council of New South Wales Lord Howe Island Board Luna Park Reserve Trust Macquarie Generation Maritime Authority Mine Subsidence Board Ministry for Police Ministry of Transport Museum of Applied Arts and Sciences New South Wales Bar Association New South Wales Chiropractors Registration Board New South Wales Crimes Commission New South Wales Dental Technicians Registration Board New South Wales Electoral Commission New South Wales Environmental Trust New South Wales Film and Television Office New South Wales Fire Brigades New South Wales Health Foundation New South Wales Lotteries Corporation New South Wales Optical Dispensers Licensing Board New South Wales Optometrists Registration Board New South Wales Osteopaths Registration Board New South Wales Physiotherapists Registration Board New South Wales Podiatrists Registration Board New South Wales Psychologists Registration Board New South Wales Rural Assistance Authority New South Wales Rural Fire Service New South Wales Treasury—Crown Entity New South Wales Treasury—Office of Financial Management New South Wales Treasury—Office of State Revenue Newcastle Port Corporation NSW Food Authority (Parts 1 and 2) NSW Institute of Sport NSW Institute of Teachers NSW Police Force NSW Self Insurance Corporation NSW Treasury Corporation Nurses and Midwives Board Office of the Protective Commissioner and Public Guardian Office of Transport Safety Investigations Parramatta Park Trust Port Kembla Port Corporation Privacy NSW Professional Standards Council Professional Standards Department of the Law Society of New South Wales (Volumes One and Two) Public Transport Ticketing Corporation Public Trustee of New South Wales Racing NSW Radiation Advisory Council Rail Infrastructure Corporation RailCorp Redfern-Waterloo Authority Rental Bond Board Roads and Traffic Authority SAS Trustee Corporation (incorporating the controlled entities of State Super Financial Services Australia Limited, Barba Pty Ltd Valley Commerce Pty Limited, and Duquesne Utilities Pty Ltd (for the period 1 July 2008 to 4 February 2009) State Emergency Service State Records Authority of New South Wales State Sports Centre Trust State Transit Authority Superannuation Administration Corporation (trading as Pillar Administration) Sydney Ferries Sydney Harbour Foreshore Authority Sydney Metro Sydney Olympic Park Sydney Opera House 3 December 2009 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 20635
Sydney Ports Corporation Teacher Housing Authority of New South Wales TransGrid Transport Infrastructure Development Corporation Wollongong Sportsground Trust
Reports for the year ended 30 June 2009 of the following Catchment Management Authorities: Border Rivers—Gwydir Central West Hawkesbury-Nepean Hunter-Central Rivers Lachlan Lower Murray Darling Murray Murrumbidgee Namoi Northern Rivers Southern Rivers Sydney Metropolitan Western
DEPARTMENT OF THE LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY
Report
The Speaker tabled the report for the year ended 30 June 2009 of the Department of the Legislative Assembly.
Ordered to be printed.
DEPARTMENT OF PARLIAMENTARY SERVICES
Report
The Speaker tabled the report for the year ended 30 June 2009 of the Department of Department of Parliamentary Services.
Ordered to be printed.
STANDING COMMITTEE ON NATURAL RESOURCE MANAGEMENT (CLIMATE CHANGE)
Report
Ms Noreen Hay, as Chair, tabled the report entitled "Return of the Ark—The adequacy of management strategies to address the impacts of climate change on biodiversity", including relevant extract of minutes.
Report ordered to be printed on motion by Ms Noreen Hay.
COMMITTEE ON CHILDREN AND YOUNG PEOPLE
Report
Mr Robert Coombs, as Chair, tabled the report entitled "Kids 9-14 years".
Ordered to be printed on motion by Mr Robert Coombs.
PETITIONS
The Clerk announced that the following petitions signed by fewer than 500 persons were lodged for presentation:
Wagga Wagga Base Hospital
Petition requesting funding for and the commencement of construction of a new Wagga Wagga Base Hospital in this parliamentary term, received from Mr Daryl Maguire. 20636 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 3 December 2009
Tumut Renal Dialysis Service
Petition asking that the House support the establishment of a satellite renal dialysis service in Tumut, received from Mr Daryl Maguire.
Tumut Hospital and Batlow Multiple Purpose Service
Petition asking that vital equipment be provided immediately to both Tumut Hospital and Batlow Multiple Purpose Service, received from Mr Daryl Maguire.
Tumut Hospital Anaesthetic Services
Petition asking that anaesthetic services at Tumut Hospital be made available immediately, received from Mr Daryl Maguire.
Mobile Breast Screening Units
Petition requesting that mobile breast screen units be reinstated in areas within the North Coast Area Health Service, received from Mr Donald Page.
Princes Highway Rest Areas
Petition requesting adequate toilet facilities on the corner of the Princes Highway and Sussex Road, received from Mrs Shelley Hancock.
South Coast Rail Services
Petition opposing any reduction in rail services on the South Coast, received from Mrs Shelley Hancock.
South Coast Rail Line Staffing
Petition opposing the relocation of and reduction in staff on the South Coast Illawarra rail line, received from Mrs Shelley Hancock.
Bus Service 311
Petition praying that the Government urgently improve bus service 311 to make it more frequent and more reliable, received from Ms Clover Moore.
Sexton Hill Road Deviation Western Route
Petition opposing the Roads and Traffic Authority Sexton Hill deviation preferred option and requesting a western route, received from Mr Geoff Provest.
Adoption Laws
Petitions opposing any adoption law changes that take away the right of adopted children to be raised by a mother and a father, received from Mr Malcolm Kerr and Mr Geoff Provest.
Culburra Policing
Petition requesting increased police numbers in the Culburra area, received from Mrs Shelley Hancock.
Shoalhaven Police Station
Petition requesting funding for the establishment of a new police station in the central Shoalhaven area, received from Mrs Shelley Hancock. 3 December 2009 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 20637
National Parks Tourism Developments
Petition opposing the construction of tourism developments in national parks, received from Ms Clover Moore.
Pet Shops
Petition opposing the sale of animals in pet shops, received from Ms Clover Moore.
Game and Feral Animal Control Amendment Bill 2009
Petition opposing the Game and Feral Animal Control Amendment Bill 2009 in its entirety, received from Ms Clover Moore.
The Clerk announced that the following petitions signed by more than 500 persons were lodged for presentation:
Woy Woy Hospital Rehabilitation Unit
Petition opposing the closure of the rehabilitation unit at Woy Woy Hospital, received from Mr Chris Hartcher.
Lymphoedema
Petition requesting additional funding for lymphoedema treatment services and increased ancillary support for lymphoedema management throughout New South Wales, received from Ms Verity Firth.
CONSIDERATION OF MOTIONS TO BE ACCORDED PRIORITY
Political Donations
Mr DAVID HARRIS (Wyong—Parliamentary Secretary) [3.11 p.m.]: My motion, of which I gave notice earlier, should be accorded priority because it is an important issue. A couple of weeks ago at the Australian Labor Party State conference the Premier moved to take decisive action on political donations. The Premier said that this was the beginning of political donation reform but, more importantly, action had to be taken at a national level. The Opposition supports the Premier, I believe, but the Opposition always wants more. The Premier has already referred the matter to a committee for recommendations. In Canberra the Federal Opposition has killed off legislation to create a national approach. The bill aims to increase the transparency of political donations by lowering the threshold, removing the loophole of donation splitting, banning foreign and anonymous donations, increasing reporting obligations, and preventing profiteering by tying public funding to genuine campaign expenditure. On no fewer than five occasions in the past year the Federal Opposition blocked this legislation.
If the Coalition were serious about election funding reform it would talk to its Federal colleagues and decide on a coordinated approach. They do not have one at the moment. My motion deserves priority because over the coming summer months, when the Federal Parliament is in recess, the Federal Coalition needs to make important decisions. It has to decide whether it wants to support election funding reform. Incredibly, the Federal Opposition will not support a bill that lowers the disclosure threshold from $10,900 to $1,000—a decrease sought by the State Coalition. The disclosure threshold had been $10,000, but following indexation by the Howard Government every year it grows and it is now up to $10,900. If the Opposition were serious about election funding reform they would support this motion and ask the Federal Coalition to support the bill that would bring Australia into line with other countries.
Mr Andrew Stoner: Point of order: The purpose this debate is to establish the priority of the motion, as opposed to debating the motion, which the member for Wyong is doing.
The SPEAKER: Order! I extend a degree of latitude to both sides of the House during consideration of motions to be accorded priority. I will hear further from the member for Wyong.
Mr DAVID HARRIS: It is a case of the pot calling the kettle black: The Opposition debates the motion for which it seeks urgency every single time. Its members have a long history of double standards. The 20638 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 3 December 2009
Federal Coalition should support the bill that will bring Australia into line with other countries, including the United States of America, the longest continuous democracy under the one Constitution. The Federal Coalition has moved to block greater integrity in Australia's electoral laws five times in less than a year. If the mob opposite is serious about election funding reform it will move to take a national approach. It will support my motion and send a message to its new Federal leader to get on board so that election funding reform is introduced across Australia.
Leadership of the Government
Mr BARRY O'FARRELL (Ku-ring-gai—Leader of the Opposition) [3.15 p.m.]: Two days following the State Labor conference this year Nathan Rees said that the sacking of Joe Tripodi was the best day of his life. In politics a week is a long time. The intervening period has been an eternity for Nathan Rees. We do not know who the Premier will be at five past six tonight. I am a great reader of the Daily Telegraph horoscopes, written by Jonathan Cainer. The Premier is an Aquarian. Today's horoscope for Aquarius is:
You may be having difficulty in communicating with another individual or perhaps with a group, a committee or an organisation.
That is the problem in the Labor Party: it is dysfunctional and there is no communication. At nine o'clock this morning we heard the most damning indictment of a party by its leader in the history of this country. The Premier effectively described Labor in terms that the New South Wales public has come to understand, that is, as rotten to the core. At his press conference he gave voice to the public's concerns after 15 years of Labor that New South Wales Labor is rotten to the core. He described its members as treacherous, disloyal and malignant. He described them as being run by an old regime. He actually told us who that old regime was because he said:
I will not hand the Government of New South Wales over to Obeid, Tripodi or Sartor.
He went on and in words that will come back to haunt the Labor Party between now and the next election he said very clearly:
Should I not be Premier by the end of this day, let there be no doubt in the community's mind, no doubt, that any challenger will be a puppet of Eddie Obeid and Joe Tripodi.
The Minister for Planning refused to deny that she would take part in a Government that Joe Tripodi and Eddie Obeid will reshape at six o'clock this evening. Sadly the people of New South Wales are the losers. Whatever happens today, the public misses out. If Mr Rees is replaced, whether by Kristina Keneally who seems to be the short half-head favourite, Frank Sartor or, as I hope, Noreen Hay, the next Premier will be a puppet of Labor heavyweights Eddie Obeid and Joe Tripodi. If Mr Rees survives, in his own words he will continue to be impaired by what he describes as treacherous and malignant forces in his own Government from getting on with the job of government. As a result, the people of New South Wales will continue to put up with what they have had to bear for the past 14 years.
The Labor Party is more interested in themselves than average people across the State. Members of the Labor Party are more concerned about their jobs than the hundreds of jobs that are lost every day in this State. Members of the Labor Party are more concerned about the provision of their services, their positions and their ranks rather than the provision of services to the people of Sydney who have to cope with overcrowded trains and congested roads. They front up to overcrowded emergency departments. They are concerned about their schools and communities. And if it is bad in the city, in the country those issues are writ much larger. We are descending into hell. The Premier's favourite author is John Milton who wrote Paradise Lost. One of the great quotes from that book is:
Better to rule in hell than to serve in heaven.
It is neither heaven nor hell for Nathan Rees. And it is neither heaven nor hell for the people of this State, who do not have the government they deserve, who want a change and who want the chance to choose the next Premier of New South Wales. They do not want to leave it to the backroom of the Labor Party. They do not want to leave it to the disloyal, the treacherous, the malignant forces that Nathan Rees outed this morning, the same forces that put him in the job 15 months ago without reference to the public of New South Wales. And the losers—the people who miss out—are the public of New South Wales.
If the Premier, the Deputy Premier, the Minister for Planning, the Minister for Education and Training and the Minister for Regional Development are so confident that they are doing a fabulous job for the people of 3 December 2009 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 20639
New South Wales they should put it to the public and give the public of New South Wales the election that they deserve, the election that they want. Give them hope of a better future. Give them hope of a Liberal-Nationals Government that is focused on their concerns. Give them hope of independent electorates, which will be served by a government that listens, that acts and that will address the needs of New South Wales, because we cannot continue to live in this hell. We cannot continue to live in despair in a dysfunctional State where the Government has broken all of those processes and is destroying people's futures.
Question—That the motion of the member for Wyong be accorded priority—put.
The House divided.
Ayes, 48
Mr Amery Mr Gibson Mr Morris Ms Andrews Mr Greene Mrs Paluzzano Mr Aquilina Mr Harris Mr Pearce Ms Beamer Ms Hay Mrs Perry Mr Borger Mr Hickey Mr Sartor Mr Brown Ms Hornery Mr Shearan Ms Burney Ms Judge Mr Stewart Ms Burton Ms Keneally Ms Tebbutt Mr Collier Mr Khoshaba Mr Terenzini Mr Coombs Mr Koperberg Mr Tripodi Mr Corrigan Mr Lalich Mr West Mr Costa Mr Lynch Mr Whan Mr Daley Mr McBride Ms D'Amore Dr McDonald Ms Firth Mr McLeay Tellers, Mr Furolo Ms McMahon Mr Ashton Ms Gadiel Ms Megarrity Mr Martin
Noes, 39
Mr Aplin Mr Hazzard Mrs Skinner Mr Baird Ms Hodgkinson Mr Smith Mr Baumann Mrs Hopwood Mr Souris Ms Berejiklian Mr Humphries Mr Stokes Mr Besseling Mr Kerr Mr Stoner Mr Cansdell Mr Merton Mr J. H. Turner Mr Debnam Ms Moore Mr R. W. Turner Mr Dominello Mr O'Dea Mr J. D. Williams Mr Draper Mr O'Farrell Mr R. C. Williams Mrs Fardell Mr Piccoli Mr Fraser Mr Piper Ms Goward Mr Provest Tellers, Mrs Hancock Mr Richardson Mr George Mr Hartcher Mr Roberts Mr Maguire
Pair
Mr Campbell Mr Constance
Question resolved in the affirmative.
LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL VACANCY
Joint Sitting
The SPEAKER: I report the receipt of the following message from Her Excellency the Governor:
MARIE BASHIR Office of the Governor Governor Sydney, 3 December 2009
I, Professor Marie Bashir AC, in pursuance of the power and authority vested in me as Governor of the State of New South Wales, do hereby convene a joint sitting of the Members of the Legislative Council and the Legislative Assembly for the purpose 20640 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 3 December 2009
of the election of a person to fill the seat in the Legislative Council vacated by the Honourable Henry Tsang, and I do hereby announce and declare that such Members shall assemble for such purpose on Thursday the third day of December 2009 at 4.30pm in the building known as the Legislative Council Chamber situated in Macquarie Street in the City of Sydney; and the Members of the Legislative Council and the Members of the Legislative Assembly are hereby required to give their attendance at the said time and place accordingly.
In order that the Members of both Houses of Parliament may be duly informed of the convening of the joint sitting, I have this day addressed a like message to the President of the Legislative Council.
POLITICAL DONATIONS
Motion Accorded Priority
Mr DAVID HARRIS (Wyong—Parliamentary Secretary) [3.30 p.m.]: I move:
That this House:
(1) condemns the Federal Opposition for failing to support the Australian Government's efforts to clean up donations at a Federal level;
(2) calls on the New South Wales Opposition to pressure their Federal counterparts to support the Australian Government's important integrity measures; and
(3) congratulates the New South Wales Government on its continued efforts to improve openness and transparency, including donations reform and the regulation of lobbying activities in New South Wales.
Labor Governments across Australia are determined to clean up donations at State and Federal levels. Liberal Governments are coming along for the ride but, sadly, their ride involves blocking any attempt to reform campaign finance. The Commonwealth Electoral Amendment (Political Donations and Other Measures) Bill 2009 aims to increase the transparency of political donations by lowering the threshold, removing the loophole of donation-splitting, banning foreign and anonymous donations, increasing reporting obligations, and preventing profiteering by tying public funding to genuine campaign expenditure. It is a great piece of legislation. It is all about protecting democracy and it is worthy of the support of members on both sides of the House. Yet the Federal Coalition has repeatedly moved to block debate on the bill—five times in less than a year. That is correct: the Federal Coalition moved to block greater integrity in Australia's electoral laws five times in less than a year.
In June 2008 the Federal Opposition referred the bill to a committee for more than 12 months. In the committee report, which was tabled ahead of time in October, Opposition members recommended that the measures should be delayed further. The Opposition and Senator Fielding blocked the bill in the Senate last week at the second reading stage before any amendments were put. On 16 March in the House of Representatives the Opposition voted against the bill and on 18 March, again with the support of Senator Fielding, it delayed debate until at least May—a full 12 months after the reforms were first introduced. The Federal Coalition continues to hide behind procedural arguments rather than engage in debate on the substance of the bill.
That bill would lower the donation disclosure threshold from $10,900 to $1,000, ban overseas donations and prevent profiteering from public funding. That would bring Australia into line with other countries, including the United States—the longest continuous democracy under the one constitution. One wonders how any of that could be argued against on policy grounds. The Opposition says it wants an open process. However, every chance it gets it moves to block the bill. The Federal Opposition has publicly professed to support campaign funding reform time and again, but it has blocked the bill time and again. It has opposed greater transparency and accountability time and again. It is little wonder that it has done so when the Liberal Party's submission to the green paper on donations, funding and expenditure states:
Our current electoral system is working well, and the case for change has not been demonstrated.
What is the Federal Opposition saying? Is it saying that it prefers significant donations to be hidden from proper public scrutiny? Is it saying that it is not interested in political accountability? Does it have something to hide? Members on this side of the House do not have anything to hide. We all know that modern political campaigns are an expensive exercise and we do not deny that political donors are key participants in the political process. However, we want reforms to ensure that contributions, including donations and gifts, are open and transparent. 3 December 2009 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 20641
The Labor Party is determined to restore public confidence in the system and to provide greater accountability for all candidates and political parties. It was a Federal election promise, and one that the Rudd Government is carrying through with.
The Howard Government created a system that effectively allowed conflicts of interest to go largely unnoticed. The Howard Government arrogantly increased the declarable limit for disclosure of political donations, which was at a low of $1,500. It was ramped up to $10,000, and with CPI increases that is equivalent to $10,900 today. That is a huge jump in the limit required before donation details must be made public. The bill seeks to amend the Commonwealth Electoral Act 1918 to reduce the threshold of donations from the current $10,900 to $1,000. It also seeks to remove the CPI indexation and prohibit foreign and anonymous donations below $50. I stress again that that is what the Federal Opposition has voted against. Is the Federal Opposition saying that it is happy with chunks of money going into party coffers without the public knowing? Is it saying that it is against greater transparency in the political process? I will compare that with what members of the New South Wales Opposition have to say:
The best option is a ban on all but individual donations and a cap on them.
It is individuals who get to vote not corporations and not overseas companies, not overseas individuals.
The Leader of the Opposition said that on 2BL on 16 November 2009. Even the whingeing, whining Leader of the New South Wales Opposition has enough sense to take a stance on campaign reform. He might not be able to bring himself to turn off the tap when it comes to developer donations, but at least he has the backbone to disagree with his Federal colleagues when he knows they have got it wrong. As has been said on a number of occasions in this place, New South Wales is leading the way on campaign funding reform. However, we also need national reform. I call on members of the New South Wales Opposition to pressure their Federal counterparts to support the Australian Government's important integrity measures.
I call on the New South Wales Leader of the Opposition to stand up to his Federal colleagues. This is his chance to prove that the Opposition is serious and that it is not simply talking about what we should do in New South Wales. It should support national reform. We know that without such reform loopholes will always be exploited. Unless we close those loopholes we will not have an open and proper process. This is the chance for the Leader of the Opposition to prove to the people of New South Wales that he does not oppose greater integrity in our electoral laws.
Mr BRAD HAZZARD (Wakehurst) [3.37 p.m.]: On this day of days, when the Premier has announced that he is leading one of the most rotten governments ever to hold office in New South Wales and that if the position of Premier is given to anyone other than him we will see a rotten continuation of a rotten government run by Joe Tripodi and Eddie Obeid, the member for Wyong has tried to shift the focus onto the Federal Opposition. The member for Wyong and other members of this place should be worrying about government in New South Wales. The people of New South Wales want this Government to focus on the delivery of good government. I move:
That the motion be amended be leaving out all words after "That " with a view to inserting instead:
(1) condemns the Government for its culture of decision for donations; and
(2) calls on the Government to adopt the Coalition's commitment to donation and election expenditure reform.
The member for Wyong droned on about issues that he said needed to be addressed at the Federal level. While it is clearly desirable that there be Federal reform at some point, it is within the Government's capacity to achieve meaningful reform in New South Wales. Why does the New South Wales Labor Party not want to move on those areas of the law that it can change? Why is it happy to allow so much to continue? The answer is simple: for 15 long years it has developed a culture of and capacity to get decisions for donations. Right across the planning system in New South Wales we have that evidence.
Part 3A came in in 2005 under former Minister Knowles. One of the major leadership contestants for the premiership of New South Wales today, the Hon. Frank Sartor, was the proponent of and strong advocate for part 3A, and his possible contestant, the current planning Minister, Kristina Keneally, is also a strong proponent and supporter of part 3A. Why are they supporting it? It is not on a sound planning policy basis, because if they were supporting a sound policy basis approach to this issue they would want a level playing field for everybody. They would want the complete removal of any opportunity for partiality in decision-making. Part 3A of the Environmental Planning and Assessment Act opens up the opportunity for a partial decision, for a decision to be 20642 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 3 December 2009
made knowing money has been given to the Labor Party, as it has regularly been given by some of the applicants under part 3A. Unfortunately, therefore, part 3A has been used and abused by the current Government.
Mr Gerard Martin: That's not right.
Mr BRAD HAZZARD: We have just had an interjection by no-brains Bundy over here who does not get anything that goes on in this place most days.
Mr David Harris: Point of order: Debate was proceeding quite reasonably and everyone was quite civil, but the member for Wakehurst cannot help himself: he has to start personal attacks on members. I refer you to the standing order requiring members to refer to members by their proper titles.
The DEPUTY-SPEAKER: Order! The member for Wakehurst knows that standing order very well. I am sure he will withdraw his comment.
Mr BRAD HAZZARD: No, I was not planning to withdraw anything.
Mr Gerard Martin: Why don't you do your grubbiest?
Mr BRAD HAZZARD: As just indicated by the member for Bathurst, he does not want me to. I think the normal course would be that if the member were offended—and I do not think he would be, because he uses far worse language regularly than he is now—
Mr Gerard Martin: Not coming from a grub like you, I wouldn't.
The DEPUTY-SPEAKER: Order! The member for Bathurst has indicated that he does not wish the member for Wakehurst to withdraw his comment.
Mr BRAD HAZZARD: The alternative Premier of New South Wales has challenged the briefly to be Premier of New South Wales, Nathan Rees, to support the bipartisan recommendation of the Legislative Council inquiry, and I will set out what those recommendations are. The first one was to ban all but individual donations by citizens. Will the Labor Party do that? Of course not, because Labor members know they are absolutely dependent on them. They are on life support from the union movement in New South Wales. Whilst from time to time the union movement adequately represents its individual members, when it comes to election time the union movement lines itself up with this dysfunctional and corrupt Government, and that is the problem.
Again, the message goes to those on the Government side to think through the issue. We ask them simply to take account of what the Legislative Council inquiry wanted, and that is to ban all but individual donations by citizens. Secondly, the Legislative Council recommended that we impose annual limits on the amount individuals can donate. Again, that is a concept the Labor Party has major difficulty with. The third recommendation is to cap campaign spending by candidates, parties and other groups. It is a simple concept. The final recommendation is to restrict taxpayer-funded Government advertising in the lead-up to an election. This Government has a corrupt approach to almost every aspect of the way it goes about its business.
Mr Gerard Martin: That is not true.
Mr BRAD HAZZARD: The member should listen to what was said this morning by his current Premier, who will be Premier for another two hours and 15 minutes.
Mr David Harris: He wasn't talking about the Government.
Mr BRAD HAZZARD: Who was he talking about?
Mr David Harris: He was talking about some members.
Mr BRAD HAZZARD: So now it is only some members of the Government. So the member for Wyong is pointing out to the public of New South Wales that only some of the Labor Party are corrupt and rotten, as per what Nathan Rees said this morning. This is a ridiculous motion attacking the Federal Opposition when we need to focus on how rotten the New South Wales Government is, and it is time the Government was changed. 3 December 2009 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 20643
Mr GERARD MARTIN (Bathurst) [3.44 p.m.]: I speak following another eccentric and erratic contribution by the member for Wakehurst. The member has gone on about corruption. He should look at some of his colleagues from The Nationals, because it was the National Party in the 1980s that started the white shoe brigade and the brown paper bags. Indeed, it was a member from his neck of the woods, the Liberal Premier Robert Askin, who invented the brown paper bag and corruption. He should be aware of where the seeds were sown.
Mr Brad Hazzard: Point of order: This debate is clearly within the ambit of the Government's motion or the Opposition's amendment, but the member for Bathurst is seeking to raise spectres of people past such as Mr Farquhar and the Labor Party Minister who went to jail.
The DEPUTY-SPEAKER: Order! There is no point of order. The member for Wakehurst will resume his seat. The member for Bathurst has the call.
Mr GERARD MARTIN: The member for Wakehurst raised this issue. He brought Liberal personalities into it. I am reminding him of the history of the other side. They are the true pioneers of corruption in this State. We heard the Premier announce in Parliament today the terms of reference for the select committee on electoral reform. We know what we are doing with our select committee. This Government is grabbing the issue by the scruff of the neck. The Premier has admitted that the ban on developer donations is a partial solution, and it will make a difference when we get that action from the Federal Government. We are not getting that action because the Coalition in Canberra day after day is using its numbers in the Senate to thwart good legislation. They will pay a heavy price for that down the track, particularly now that they have the mad Abbott. It must be something about those northern beach suburbs and the eccentric oddballs they elect.
We saw the hypocrisy of the other side in the upper House inquiry into Badgerys Creek, and all the issues around that that were going to be exposed. The prosecutors from The Nationals and the Liberal Party, along with a few inept Greens, tried to dig up all this stuff. What was the end result? Naught. This Government has been able to get on with developing the State and not one bit of this mud has stuck. By his priority motion today the member for Wyong is spotlighting the hypocrisy of that side of the House. Whether it be at the State level or at the Federal level, they are hypocrites when it comes to this issue. Time after time they slip up. One of the worst examples of the type of people the Coalition has is the member for Hawkesbury. Even people on that side of the House are disgusted by his conduct. We know what a bully he is, and he lets his ethics drag along the ground on this issue. To give the member for Wakehurst his due, he was very close to scuffing this bloke last week and dragging him out and kneecapping him, he was so disgusted by the member for Hawkesbury's contribution.
No doubt the people of New South Wales deserve an open, accountable and transparent Parliament. They deserve to be confident that all decisions are made in the best interests of the community, and that is exactly what we are doing. We are highlighting the hypocrisy of the other side. What is happening in the Federal sphere has been delayed by the Liberal Party with its secret foundations, where it gets its slush funds and the neo-right Nazis and the right-wingers who try to influence behind the scenes. Once again the member for Wyong has shown up the hypocrisy of the other side. At least someone is sitting between the member for Hawkesbury and the member for Wakehurst, who is keeping right away from him, and that is showing some good sense.
Mr ROB STOKES (Pittwater) [3.49 p.m.]: How dare the Labor Party seek to lecture this Parliament on the need to do something about the corrosive and anti-democratic influence of developer donations! On the day after Unions New South Wales entered some private, hidden deal to flog off the priceless waterfront bushland heritage Currawong Beach to property developers, who have been major contributors to the New South Wales Australian Labor Party [ALP], the Labor Party seeks to lecture the Parliament on donations reform. How completely out of touch!
Regardless of whatever principles the New South Wales Labor Party might have been founded on, do Labor Party members not understand that the New South Wales ALP has now become inextricably linked to the interests of property developers? Do they not see that they are the problem? They are the very smell they say they seek to remove. The reality is that the New South Wales Labor Party has built its empire and political hegemony on the patronage of property developers. Labor owes its power and political fortunes to property developers. We need only look at the figures: they speak for themselves. 20644 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 3 December 2009
The New South Wales ALP has accepted more than $14 million from property developers over the last 10 years. Since Labor introduced part 3A of the Environment Planning and Assessment Act, the best piece of legislation that money from property developers could buy, the Labor Party has received $5 million in donations from property developers. Just last year the proponents of major projects that were called in under part 3A of the Environment Planning and Assessment Act gave $1,313,910 to the New South Wales Australian Labor Party. It is no surprise then that 99.15 per cent of all part 3A approvals before the Minister have been approved.
There is a clear pattern of donations to the New South Wales ALP coinciding with positive decisions for the developer. That cannot be ignored or explained away. If Labor were fair dinkum about donations reform it would end ministerial meddling in development assessment: it would end ministerial power over development applications. The Government said that the Planning Assessment Commission would take control of 80 per cent of matters currently before the Minister for determination. That has not happened. Even if it did, the Minister gets to determine which applications, which parts of applications or which issues would go to the Planning Assessment Commission. And even then she would maintain control over who sits on the Planning Assessment Commission, so they would be left in no doubt as to whose applications they would have to favour in order to keep their jobs.
If the Government were serious about donations reform it would take away the instrument that entices developers to donate. It is as simple as that. Donations are a symptom of the malaise in planning in this State. They are a symptom, not the cause. The cause is the massive ministerial discretion that gives them an interest in perverting the outcome by making donations to the Labor Party. As for the lobbyists register, that is a complete farce. Lobbyists act for clients but who do the clients act for? For example, some of the lobbyists on the lobbyists register act for lawyers. Well, who do the lawyers act for? That is not clear. If the massive ministerial discretion in individual development applications were removed then the real cancer in our body politic, cultivated and infected by New South Wales Labor, would be removed. The Labor Party should not dare to presume any moral high ground on this issue.
The Labor Party is the party of property developers. It is the cause, not the solution. I want to close with a challenge. Under the Election Funding and Disclosures Amendment (Property Developers Prohibition) Bill 2009, introduced by the Premier and passed in this Parliament this week, in prohibiting donations from property developers it states that a property developer is "a corporation engaged in a business that regularly involves the making of relevant planning applications by or on behalf of the corporation in connection with the residential or commercial development of land, with the ultimate purpose of the sale or lease of land for profit".
That describes Unions New South Wales in its continual attempt over the past 30 years to enter into joint ventures with property developers to rezone, subdivide and residentially destroy Currawong Beach. That is what this is all about. There have been constant attempts by the Labor Party to enter joint ventures with property developers. Now they have entered one with a property developer who is, itself, a major donor to the ALP. So any money Labor now accepts from the unions will be contaminated, laundered and infected. It will poison anyone who touches it because Unions New South Wales has converted itself into a property developer. This Government is the government of property developers. Government members cannot hide from it, no matter what they do.
Mr DAVID HARRIS (Wyong—Parliamentary Secretary) [3.54 p.m.], in reply: I thank all members who participated in the debate: the member for Wakehurst, the member for Bathurst and the member for Pittwater. The Government is already moving on State election funding laws. The Premier has said quite clearly that this is a start and that following recommendations of the committee, the terms of reference of which were worked out today, he will go further. Before the next election the Government will move to a full public funding model. The Opposition agrees with the banning of donations from corporations but that donations should be allowed from individuals. The Federal Coalition is fighting to keep in place a high level of disclosure. [Quorum called for.]
[The bells having been rung and a quorum having formed, business resumed.]
This is the third quorum that Opposition members have called on me in three days. Apparently they do not like my carefully crafted arguments. The member for Pittwater referred to the number of part 3A 3 December 2009 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 20645
applications that have been approved. He seemed to forget that 97 per cent of all local government development applications are approved; only 3 per cent are not approved. If the member is suggesting that part 3A is corrupt then local government is also corrupt because it approves 97 per cent of development applications—a higher figure than for part 3A approvals. In conclusion, we have in Premier Nathan Rees someone who has had the courage to bring forward these reforms, someone who has challenged the Opposition. Unfortunately, however, the Opposition has not risen to the challenge—as usual.
Question—That the words stand—put.
The House divided.
Ayes, 49
Mr Amery Ms Gadiel Ms Megarrity Ms Andrews Mr Gibson Mr Morris Mr Aquilina Mr Greene Mrs Paluzzano Ms Beamer Mr Harris Mr Pearce Mr Borger Ms Hay Mrs Perry Mr Brown Mr Hickey Mr Sartor Ms Burney Ms Hornery Mr Shearan Ms Burton Ms Judge Mr Stewart Mr Campbell Ms Keneally Ms Tebbutt Mr Collier Mr Khoshaba Mr Terenzini Mr Coombs Mr Koperberg Mr Tripodi Mr Corrigan Mr Lalich Mr West Mr Costa Mr Lynch Mr Whan Mr Daley Mr McBride Ms D'Amore Dr McDonald Tellers, Ms Firth Mr McLeay Mr Ashton Mr Furolo Ms McMahon Mr Martin
Noes, 38
Mr Aplin Mr Hartcher Mr Roberts Mr Baird Mr Hazzard Mrs Skinner Mr Baumann Ms Hodgkinson Mr Smith Ms Berejiklian Mrs Hopwood Mr Souris Mr Besseling Mr Humphries Mr Stokes Mr Cansdell Mr Kerr Mr Stoner Mr Debnam Mr Merton Mr J. H. Turner Mr Dominello Ms Moore Mr R. W. Turner Mr Draper Mr O'Dea Mr J. D. Williams Mrs Fardell Mr Piccoli Mr R. C. Williams Mr Fraser Mr Piper Tellers, Ms Goward Mr Provest Mr George Mrs Hancock Mr Richardson Mr Maguire
Question resolved in the affirmative.
Amendment negatived.
Question—That the motion be agreed to—put.
The House divided. 20646 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 3 December 2009
Ayes, 54
Mr Amery Mr Furolo Ms Moore Ms Andrews Ms Gadiel Mr Morris Mr Aquilina Mr Gibson Mrs Paluzzano Ms Beamer Mr Greene Mr Pearce Mr Besseling Mr Harris Mrs Perry Mr Borger Ms Hay Mr Piper Mr Brown Mr Hickey Mr Sartor Ms Burney Ms Hornery Mr Shearan Ms Burton Ms Judge Mr Stewart Mr Campbell Ms Keneally Ms Tebbutt Mr Collier Mr Khoshaba Mr Terenzini Mr Coombs Mr Koperberg Mr Tripodi Mr Corrigan Mr Lalich Mr West Mr Costa Mr Lynch Mr Whan Mr Daley Mr McBride Ms D'Amore Dr McDonald Mr Draper Mr McLeay Tellers, Mrs Fardell Ms McMahon Mr Ashton Ms Firth Ms Megarrity Mr Martin
Noes, 34
Mr Aplin Ms Hodgkinson Mr Smith Mr Baird Mrs Hopwood Mr Souris Mr Baumann Mr Humphries Mr Stokes Ms Berejiklian Mr Kerr Mr Stoner Mr Cansdell Mr Merton Mr J. H. Turner Mr Debnam Mr O'Dea Mr R. W. Turner Mr Dominello Mr O'Farrell Mr J. D. Williams Mr Fraser Mr Piccoli Mr R. C. Williams Ms Goward Mr Provest Mrs Hancock Mr Richardson Tellers, Mr Hartcher Mr Roberts Mr George Mr Hazzard Mrs Skinner Mr Maguire
Question resolved in the affirmative.
Motion agreed to.
BUSINESS OF THE HOUSE
Suspension of Standing Orders: Routine of Business
Motion by Mr John Aquilina agreed to:
That standing orders be suspended at this sitting to permit:
(1) the moving of a motion "That the House take note of Christmas felicitations" prior to the commencement of private members' statements with the following speaking time limits:
(a) Leader of the House—10 minutes;
(b) Leader of the Opposition—10 minutes;
(c) Leader of The Nationals—5 minutes;
(d) member for Bathurst—5 minutes;
(e) member for Wagga Wagga—5 minutes;
(f) member for East Hills—5 minutes; and
(g) member for Lismore—5 minutes; and
(2) private members' statements to be taken at the conclusion of Christmas felicitations.
3 December 2009 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 20647
The DEPUTY-SPEAKER: Order! It being almost 4.30 p.m., the House will now proceed to General Business Orders of the Day (for Bills).
ROAD TRANSPORT (DRIVER LICENSING) AMENDMENT (DEMERIT POINTS) BILL 2009
Agreement in Principle
Debate resumed from 26 November 2009.
Mr THOMAS GEORGE (Lismore) [4.14 p.m.]: When I last spoke to the Road Transport (Driver Licensing) Amendment (Demerit Points) Bill 2009 the debate was interrupted. The letter from Nicola Ribbon continues:
Issue 3, I live 20km out of town and calling a taxi is financially out of the question. School buses are available but not guaranteed, as it will depend on availability of seats. If it is possible to get a lift into town I could then be faced with the possibility of being stranded in town.
Issue 4: There is only one service available to help and that is the medical bus which will only take my daughter to specialist appointments NOT THERAPIST and only within 100km. Most of her Specialist appointments are in Brisbane or Sydney. Family Support Network has no one available until next February. The preschool bus will only take children to and from preschool if they live and attend preschool in Lismore. My last option was In-Home Family Daycare who has just sent me a letter saying they have exceeded their funding and no new hours are available, which means my hours that were supposed to start next week are no longer available. There is a possibility Interchange will help for a couple hours per week but at this stage a volunteer is not confirmed and this time is supposed to be used as respite from my daughter.
Issue 5: The sacrifice my partner will have to make to take myself and my daughter to medical appointments will adversely affect our business and ultimately will affect our ability to pay our mortgage. My partner is an electrician and we employee 3 apprentices. Apprentices are unable to work without a qualified supervisor so for each hour we lose $54.50 … in wages plus the income lost due to stop work. Basically it is a loss to our business of a possible $224.50ph …
Issue 6: I am also concerned about walking my daughter to school transition as it starts at 11am I only live 1km from the school but I am concerned about the heat bringing on a seizure, not to mention the traffic and walking with my 2 year old, there are no foot paths and the grass edges are difficult to push a stroller as they are sloped. The idea of walking to Bexhill for any supplies for these reasons is plain stupid. And it's not a good idea with a high risk pregnancy walking in our summer's heat anyway.
Issue 7: My daughter has a range of behavioural issues and disorders; I can't expect anyone would truly understand what that would be like unless they had a child like this. Sometimes she behaves okay and other times she is dangerous and full-on. I am under constant stress and frustration. I have suffered depression and sleep deprivation since having her. I know without having a break from her, I will go completely insane!
Issue 8: My daughter starts Primary School, I know that if the school calls because something has happened I will be compelled to jump in my car and rush to her. My eldest son also starts High School and I am concerned if he misses his bus, I will have no choice to drive in and get him as dad works out of mobile range.
As a result, as you can imagine, the impact of this restriction severely and detrimentally affects my family, our business and the families of our employees. I can't force other people to help and there is no other service I know that can help me. What can I do?
This is an example of someone who lives in the country with no access to public transport, who has every problem in the world and who has lost her licence. What is she to do? I have used this example to highlight why the bill is so important to people who live in country and regional New South Wales who have lost demerit points and, consequently, their licences.
Mr GEOFF CORRIGAN (Camden) [4.18 p.m.]: I shall make a brief contribution to the debate on the Road Transport (Driver Licensing) Amendment (Demerit Points) Bill 2009 in support of my colleague the former chairman of the Staysafe committee, Mr Paul Gibson, who spoke very determinedly against the bill last week. At that time he outlined his reasons for opposing the bill in great detail. I refer members to his speech. If people plead guilty before a magistrate, they have admitted the offence and they will lose points. They cannot plead guilty and not lose points.
I appreciate the comments of the Leader of The Nationals in relation to this bill, but I do not agree with him. As the former chair of Staysafe said, the more we wind back the penalties imposed for speeding or make it less onerous for people to obtain a drivers licence, the more the road death toll will increase. This year there has been an increase in the road death toll. That increase is not due to bad policing or poor roads. It is due to the overconfidence of drivers and their not being aware of road safety. Yesterday the Staysafe committee tabled a report on pedestrian safety, as a result of a ministerial reference from the former Minister for Roads. Because of an increase in the number of deaths of pedestrians, the Staysafe committee recommended the reintroduction of covert speed cameras. 20648 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 3 December 2009
This recommendation had the support of all committee members—Government, The Nationals, Liberals and Independents. We must look at the reasons for an increase in road deaths. If ordinary citizens make one mistake on the road, go to court and admit the offence, under section 10 they will not have to pay a penalty. However, they will still lose points. If they do not make further mistakes they will not have to worry about a further loss of points. However, if they are serial offenders and keep going back before the judiciary, they must pay the price. I add my strong support for the comments of the member for Blacktown and oppose this bill.
Mr JONATHAN O'DEA (Davidson) [4.21 p.m.]: I wish to make a brief contribution to the Road Transport (Driver Licensing) Amendment (Demerit Points) Bill 2009, which was introduced by the Leader of The Nationals. I support his excellent initiative. The bill aims to resolve an inconsistency in the law relating to driver challenges to fines or traffic infringements on the basis of an acceptable excuse. A matter goes before a court and the judge decides that the fine should be overturned. Under this bill, if drivers choose to defend themselves in court for a low-level speeding or red light offence it could result in one of two outcomes: the charge is upheld and the driver is subject to a penalty of a fine and demerit points or the charge is dismissed under section 10 and the driver does not pay a fine or lose points.
I want to highlight two questions on notice asked this year and the answers given by the Minister for Roads and the Minister for Transport. The first question was asked by the member for Mount Druitt in relation to the number of people who had lost their licence through demerit point suspensions. In 2005, 28,451 people lost their licence. That number dramatically increased to 61,243 in 2008. I asked a similar question, which was answered only in the past few days by the Minister for Transport. In the first 10 months of 2009 more than 50,229 people lost their licence. In 2004 the number was 31,863. Over 2004 and 2005 roughly 30,000 people a year lost their licence. Last year and this year on an annualised basis roughly double that number, or 60,000 people, lost their licence.
While I acknowledge that road safety is important and the rules that apply to our roads must be enforced, the doubling of the number of people who have lost their licence indicates that perhaps we have gone too far. Perhaps magistrates should have the power not to impose demerit points for relatively minor offences in extenuating circumstances. The Government realised it had gone too far and acknowledged there was a problem with the number of people losing their licence when it made the decision earlier this year to change the system and revert to a one demerit point loss for the lowest level speed offences. It previously had imposed three demerit points for these offences, which resulted in a large increase in the number of licence cancellations.
The initiative proposed by the Leader of The Nationals is in the same vein. By giving magistrates this sensible power, it addresses an imbalance and reduces an inconsistency in the law. Predictably, the Labor Government is off the road. As we have seen again today, the Labor Government favours malignancy over consistency. The treachery and disloyalty of factional players show that the Government is more interested in performing a puppet show than concentrating on good governance in New South Wales.
Mr ANDREW STONER (Oxley—Leader of The Nationals) [4.26 p.m.], in reply: I thank the members representing the electorates of Maitland, Cabramatta, Blacktown, Camden, Baulkham Hills, Lismore and Davidson for their contributions to the debate. The Road Transport (Driver Licensing) Amendment (Demerit Points) Bill 2009 is a simple one. It is about fairness for the motorists of this great State. It acknowledges a current inconsistency or anomaly in the law—that is, where drivers who have been fined for a low-level speeding offence or traffic light offence go to court and successfully argue mitigating circumstances. They are technically found to have broken the law but the judge exercises discretion under section 10 of the Crimes Act and effectively dismisses the fine. Technically the law was breached, but the judge accepts that there were valid reasons for the offence and decides not to impose a fine.
The anomaly is that the Government considers in those circumstances that another penalty ought to apply. As argued by my colleagues the members representing the electorates of Baulkham Hills, Lismore and Davidson, that is not a fair scenario for drivers who have broken the speed limit—and I do not refer to dangerous speeds but to low-level speeding offences of less than 10 kilometres per hour over the limit. In those cases, the road safety implications are not huge.
A judge may accept that the reason for exceeding the speed limit was valid—perhaps a speed sign was obscured. Any motorist in this State will testify that it is often the case that overhanging trees or other objects obscure speed signs. Quite often the motorist is not aware of the speed limit, or perhaps the driver is attending a medical emergency, or perhaps a passenger in the vehicle is experiencing the onset of a heart attack.
[Business interrupted.] 3 December 2009 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 20649
LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL VACANCY
Joint Sitting
At 4.30 p.m. the House proceeded to the Legislative Council Chamber to attend a joint sitting to elect a member to fill a seat in the Legislative Council vacated by the Hon. Henry Tsang.
At 4.43 p.m. the House reassembled.
The SPEAKER: I report that at a joint sitting this day Shaoquett Moselmane was elected a member to fill the seat in the Legislative Council vacated by the Hon. Henry Tsang.
ROAD TRANSPORT (DRIVER LICENSING) AMENDMENT (DEMERIT POINTS) BILL 2009
Agreement in Principle
[Business resumed.]
Mr ANDREW STONER (Oxley—Leader of The Nationals) [4.40 p.m.], in reply: Prior to the joint sitting I was talking about the circumstances in which a driver might be given a reprieve of sorts by a court under section 10 where the explanation provided was valid. I was talking about a medical emergency, for example, where a passenger may be suffering a seizure or a heart attack or may be about to give birth. In those circumstances it is only fitting that for a low-level speeding or traffic light offence, a judge exercise his or her discretion to excuse the driver from the fine. This Government thinks that in those circumstances, when a judge accepts valid reasons, the judge should penalise the driver by imposing demerit points.
This Government has form with regard to demerit points. Several years ago it changed the demerit points system to increase the number of demerit points imposed for low-level speeding offences from one to three. As a consequence, we saw a record number of licence suspensions and disqualifications. That stood to reason because for minor offences such as exceeding the speed limit by four or five kilometres an hour during a double demerit period a driver would effectively lose six demerit points. If that happened twice within a three-year period, the drivers licence would be suspended or cancelled. As a result, a record number of drivers lost their licence and this Government was forced into an embarrassing backdown earlier this year. It was forced to reduce the penalty to one demerit point for low-level speeding offences. I highlight that parallel: The Government got it wrong then with regard to demerit points and it is getting it wrong now. It was out of touch with drivers in this State then and it is out of touch with them now.
Government members offered a range of excuses for opposing this legislation. Never to my knowledge has this Government supported a private member's bill. I suggest that that is simply because they are introduced by members of the Opposition They probably supported the Speaker's bill, but he is not a member of the Opposition. The Opposition has introduced private member's bills in the past and, lo and behold, a few months later the Government has announced the policies in those bills as its own, having previously opposed them. That is gross political opportunism and hypocrisy, and the trend continues with this bill.
The Government has offered a number of spurious reasons for opposing this bill. For example, the member for Cabramatta said that any legislative amendment to relax the current application of demerit points would likely result in a large increase in offences contested in the court system. That is arrant nonsense. That is like saying that judges will decide that no fine should be applied—that is, exercise their discretion under section 10—for no valid reason. The member is suggesting that the court system is a lottery, that offenders do not need a valid reason for having a fine waived and that they will be let off. If that is the reason for opposing the bill, it is obviously not valid. People will still have to go to court to argue the point, to prove to the court that there was a mitigating circumstance or to offer a valid reason for having committed that offence. It will not result in a sudden flood of applications to the court. It is simply fair that if someone is not fined then they should not lose points.
The member for Blacktown said that points are deducted only if a person pleads not guilty and is found to be guilty or pleads guilty with an explanation. That is true, but that is not what this bill is about. If a person pleads not guilty and is found to be guilty, of course both demerit points and a fine should be imposed. The member went on to say that demerit points are imposed when a person pleads guilty with an explanation. That is precisely what this bill is about. Where there is a valid reason or an explanation for the offence and the judge exercises his or her discretion to impose no fine, an additional penalty should not be imposed in the form of demerit points.
In presenting these spurious reasons for opposing this bill, Government members are effectively saying that judges do not have the intelligence to exercise discretion in these matters. I beg to differ: I think our judiciary generally gets it right. Members of our judiciary are intelligent, they study case law and they apply 20650 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 3 December 2009
precedents. If a driver who had a long history of traffic and speeding offences were to seek the application of section 10—the waiving of a fine—and if this legislation were passed, I think a judge would take that into account. Serial offenders will not avoid the imposition of demerit points if this legislation is passed.
The member for Maitland said that whether a person has defended the charge or pleaded guilty, he or she has been found guilty of the offence and according to this bill, because a section 10 order has been made, no demerit points will be imposed. He said that that is not the way the system works. What a genius! Of course that is not the way the system works and that is why the Opposition has introduced this bill. If a judge accepts the reason and a fine is not imposed, neither should the demerit points. It is simply a case of fairness to the drivers of this State.
As I said, the Government has got it wrong in the past on demerit points and it is wrong again now. It is clearly out of touch with New South Wales drivers. It should stop playing its political game of opposing everything suggested by the Opposition and then accusing it of having no policy. What hypocrisy! The Government should support good policies. The member for Maitland made another comment that perhaps is the best reason to support the legislation. He said:
All I can say is that it must be an attempt to gain popularity with the electorate.
Is that not part and parcel of being a good Government—listening to the people, doing the right thing and enacting fair laws? The member for Maitland is right; it is about listening to people. If that makes them popular, well and good. They should support the legislation.
Question—That this bill be now agreed to in principle—put.
The House divided.
Ayes, 36
Mr Aplin Mr Hazzard Mrs Skinner Mr Baird Ms Hodgkinson Mr Smith Mr Baumann Mrs Hopwood Mr Stokes Mr Besseling Mr Humphries Mr Stoner Mr Cansdell Mr Kerr Mr J. H. Turner Mr Debnam Mr Merton Mr R. W. Turner Mr Dominello Ms Moore Mr J. D. Williams Mr Draper Mr O'Dea Mr R. C. Williams Mrs Fardell Mr O'Farrell Mr Fraser Mr Piper Ms Goward Mr Provest Tellers, Mrs Hancock Mr Richardson Mr George Mr Hartcher Mr Roberts Mr Maguire
Noes, 48
Mr Amery Mr Gibson Mr Morris Ms Andrews Mr Greene Mrs Paluzzano Mr Aquilina Mr Harris Mr Pearce Ms Beamer Ms Hay Mrs Perry Mr Borger Mr Hickey Mr Sartor Mr Brown Ms Hornery Mr Shearan Ms Burney Ms Judge Mr Stewart Ms Burton Ms Keneally Ms Tebbutt Mr Collier Mr Khoshaba Mr Terenzini Mr Coombs Mr Koperberg Mr Tripodi Mr Corrigan Mr Lalich Mr West Mr Costa Mr Lynch Mr Whan Mr Daley Mr McBride Ms D'Amore Dr McDonald Ms Firth Mr McLeay Tellers, Mr Furolo Ms McMahon Mr Ashton Ms Gadiel Ms Megarrity Mr Martin 3 December 2009 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 20651
Pair
Mr Constance Mr Campbell
Question resolved in the negative.
Motion negatived.
Bill not agreed to in principle.
LEGISLATIVE COUNCIL VACANCY
Joint Sitting
The SPEAKER: I table the minutes of the proceedings of the joint sitting of the Houses of Parliament of New South Wales held to choose a person to fill the vacancy in the Legislative Council caused by the resignation of the Hon. Henry Tsang.
Ordered to be printed.
SAVE THE GRAYTHWAITE ESTATE BILL 2009
Agreement in Principle
Mr PETER BESSELING (Port Macquarie) [4.55 p.m.]: I move:
That this bill be now agreed to in principle.
In presenting the Save the Graythwaite Estate Bill 2009 to the Legislative Assembly today, I note that the objects of this bill are to require the Graythwaite Estate to be retained in public ownership and subject to public control; to preserve areas of open space at the Graythwaite Estate and to allow public access to such areas; to preserve the heritage significance of the Graythwaite Estate; and to impose appropriate controls on the future development of Graythwaite Estate. In 1873 Sir Thomas Dibbs purchased a parcel of land on the north shores of Sydney known as Euroka, which included commanding views of the harbour and a substantial house, which he undertook major renovations upon including adding a third floor, extending the verandah, and adding a new kitchen and servants quarters.
In 1882 Sir Thomas decided to make Euroka his home and it was around this time that the property was renamed Graythwaite after the ancestral home of his wife. Under its original name of Euroka, the estate played an important role in the foundations of democracy in our great country. In 1853 it was home to Edwin Sayers, who was elected as member for St Leonards in the first New South Wales Parliament, which was Australia's first Parliament. This important role continued 19 years later, when Sir Thomas' brother George took up residence in the home until 1881. Sir George, as he was later to become, was also elected to the Legislative Assembly and the sixteenth of this month will mark 135 years since his election to this very Parliament, where he was appointed as State Treasurer and served several terms as Premier.
Sir Thomas Dibbs was born on 31 October 1832 in Sydney and began work in the Commercial Banking Company of Sydney at the age of 14, where he worked for the next 69 years until his retirement in 1915. During this time he had become a doyen of the Australian banking community and was president of both the committee of inquiry into public accounts in 1900 and the Bankers' Institute of New South Wales in 1901. Sir Thomas was also commodore of the Royal Sydney Yacht Squadron and his philanthropic interests included the Sydney Naval Home and the Queen Victoria Home for Consumptives—that is, people with pulmonary tuberculosis. The excellent website set up by the friends of Graythwaite describe the events of the early twentieth century in the following terms:
The tragedy of the ANZAC landing at Gallipoli on 25 April 1915 was a pivotal moment in the building of the Australian psyche. The news of the appalling level of casualties did not reach the Australian public until 7 May. Today we can only imagine the growing disbelief, then grief, as the immense scale of the tragedy gradually became known.
Like virtually the whole country, Sir Thomas Dibbs was horrified by the carnage at Gallipoli. His response was to write to New South Wales Premier William Holman, just one month after the first reports of the Gallipoli 20652 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 3 December 2009
campaign were published in Sydney newspapers, generously offering Graythwaite Estate to be used as a convalescent home to wounded soldiers and sailors. In the memorandum of transfer for the property, Dibbs describes his gift of his magnificent home to the State as being due to "my admiration of and sincere sympathy for those brave men who have so unselfishly given their services and their lives fighting for the Empire in the cause of justice and liberty".
How many people in our twenty-first century society, with the means to do so, would even consider such an immediate and generous response? Graythwaite deserves particular consideration, given the history and the circumstances surrounding his unique gift to the wellbeing of our society—wellbeing in every sense of the word. This is a property defined not by its grand presence and magnificent grounds; Graythwaite is defined by its Anzac values, the same values that gave our nation a sense of identity and continues to define the national character, 94 years after our troops descended on Anzac Cove. In the words of the official Gallipoli campaign historian C. E. W. Bean, the Anzac spirit "stood, and still stands, for reckless valour in a good cause, for enterprise, resourcefulness, fidelity, comradeship and endurance that will never own defeat".
That "endurance that will never own defeat" can be related to the fight by the friends of Graythwaite and the push by the broader community to save the estate. Graythwaite was not just a convalescent home; Anzacs lived and died at Graythwaite—people like 19-year-old Alcid Amidy, who was admitted to Graythwaite at the tender age of 21 after losing both feet; 22-year-old Grafton dairy farmer Roy Phillips, whose spinal cord was severed during battle; 39-year-old Private Robert Martin from Narrandera, wounded on the western front in 1917, who, unable to walk or talk, was admitted to Graythwaite in 1918, where he spent the rest of his life; and 22-year-old Coonamble grocer Tom Whitton, whose legs were amputated following the Battle of the Somme. Graythwaite is a living tribute to these brave soldiers because it was home for men who, according to the RSL general secretary Mr Lipsomb in 1923, "sacrificed their health and strength in the service of their country" and who were "fated to a life of suffering". Sir Thomas' own grandson, Second Lieutenant Thomas Graythwaite Burton Dibbs, was killed on 27 August 1915 at the age of 23.
In the second reading debate following the introduction of this bill in the other place Ms Lee Rhiannon, MLC, noted that in March 2006 the North Sydney Central Coast Area Health Service started action in the Supreme Court to enable it to sell the estate for development. In August 2008 the Supreme Court found that the current use of Graythwaite as a nursing home for patients with no prospect of recovery was not consistent with the use for which Sir Thomas Dibbs gave the Graythwaite Estate—for convalescence. As a consequence, the court found that the Graythwaite estate had failed in its responsibilities. A second round of court proceedings then began to determine the best use for Graythwaite Estate. Two schemes were proposed to the court. Firstly, the Department of Health proposed that Graythwaite Estate be sold and the proceeds be used for a rehabilitation facility at Ryde Hospital.
Secondly, it was proposed that the Graythwaite Trust be filled by a Commonwealth grant of $15 million to the Returned Services League for the provision of care services to veterans and that the grounds of Graythwaite Estate be leased for a peppercorn rent to North Sydney Council for use as a regional park for North Sydney's central business district. This proposal also included that the Commonwealth provide $5 million for restoration of the Graythwaite mansion, and that St Vincent's and Mater hospitals construct a new rehabilitation facility adjacent to the Graythwaite mansion. The Commonwealth Government, the RSL, North Sydney Council, St Vincent's and Mater hospitals, and the Friends of Graythwaite supported this proposal.
Ms Clover Moore: Mr Acting-Speaker, I draw your attention to the state of the House.
ACTING-SPEAKER (Mr Wayne Merton): Order! I advise the member for Sydney that a quorum has already been called on this sitting day.
Ms Clover Moore: So we do not need to have a quorum now?
ACTING-SPEAKER (Mr Wayne Merton): Order! As I understand the standing orders, it is customary for there to be one quorum a day. A quorum has already been called today. The member for Port Macquarie has the call.
Mr PETER BESSELING: This proposal was the basis of a rare opportunity—a win for the local community, a win for the public health of New South Wales residents, a win for the conservation of the memory of Sir Thomas Dibbs and his former home, and a win for a lasting communal attachment to the brutal realities of 1915 and the triumph of human spirit that followed. In the Supreme Court both the New South Wales Health 3 December 2009 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 20653
scheme and the RSL scheme were called "worthy schemes" by Justice Windeyer. Despite his final determination, finding in favour of the scheme proposed by the Department of Health on the basis that it would help more distressed citizens, Justice Windeyer found, in relation to the rehabilitation care consideration, that "on balance the increase in places favours the RSL scheme" and in relation to the property itself that "the RSL scheme provides for its retention. This consideration favours the RSL scheme". Justice Windeyer further noted that the number of beds in the whole system would increase under this scheme.
This is a sound endorsement of the benefits of the scheme that was proposed by the RSL and supported by the Australian Government, along with the local community. Contrary to the subsequent decision by the New South Wales Government to support the sale of the estate to the Shore grammar school, this bill aims to keep the estate in public ownership and in public control as a lasting legacy of the property's rich historical value to Australia and the early philanthropy of a generous community member. Prior to the last Federal election the community and political will to save the Graythwaite Estate was evident through the support of both the Liberal and the Labor candidates for the Federal seat of North Sydney, the electorate within which the estate resides. The Federal member for North Sydney, Joe Hockey, MP, supported the Federal Government funding model, saying that "we will ask the court to transfer ownership of the Graythwaite Estate to the Commonwealth and it would be our intention to vest the property in the Sydney Harbour Federation Trust, the Australian Government agency that manages several significant heritage sites around our harbour".
The Federal Labor candidate at the same election, Mr Mike Bailey, said that "provided Mr Hockey's proposal for Graythwaite is sound, Kevin Rudd and Labor will fully support it". Aside from the bipartisan support by both major political parties, the real value of this estate to the community was recognised by the Australian Labor Party Premier of 1916, William Arthur Holman, MP, who said that the gift of Graythwaite "would be honoured for all time". I take this opportunity to congratulate the community members involved in the campaign to Save the Graythwaite Estate on their efforts. In particular, I congratulate Suzanne Clarke-Nash and Tim Hughes on having the courage of their convictions and on their positive actions in bringing this issue before the New South Wales Parliament. I congratulate also Ms Lee Rhiannon, MLC, on introducing this bill and the members of the other place on passing this legislation for consideration in this House today.
Graythwaite Estate is a living link to Gallipoli and all that it means to our national identity. It is a unique and priceless jewel in the crown of the State's harbourside parkland that should be protected for current and future generations. This bill seeks to achieve these goals and to ensure that the legacy of Sir Thomas Dibbs is secured in the very same grounds that hold such a rich history in the hearts of Australians. In commending this bill to the House I leave members with the simple few words of Sir Thomas's ancestor and great granddaughter, Georgina Kernohan:
Selling Graythwaite amounts to a betrayal of Sir Thomas Dibbs' gift.
I commend the bill to the House.
Debate adjourned on motion by Mr Alan Ashton and set down as an order of the day for a future day.
SEASONAL FELICITATIONS
Mr JOHN AQUILINA (Riverstone—Parliamentary Secretary) [5.10 p.m.]: I move:
That the House take note of Christmas felicitations.
I take this opportunity to wish the Speaker, his family, the Deputy-Speaker, the Assistant-Speakers, the Acting-Speakers, including you, Mr Acting-Speaker, and all their families the very best for the festive season. I thank them for their work while in the chair during what has been and continues to be a very difficult period. As I have stated during previous Christmas felicitations, being in the chair at times can be very difficult. I know that when Opposition members sit in the chair at times they find it very difficult because of the occasional antics of their colleagues and the various tests to which they put Acting-Speakers of their own political persuasion. It can be difficult to be totally impartial. I have had some experience and, generally speaking, they all do an excellent job.
I thank also the Whips—the Government Whips, the member for Bathurst and the member for East Hills, with whom I have a close association, and the Opposition Whips, the member for Wagga Wagga and the member for Lismore. Over many years now we have established a good working relationship and a good 20654 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 3 December 2009
understanding of one another. We do not really have to explain things at great length. We know what works and what does not work. The Leader of the Opposition laughed at that, but we do have a good understanding of such matters and for the most part we manage the business of the House efficiently.
I acknowledge the hard work of other staff. Everyone makes a huge contribution. In particular, I mention those staff not visible around Parliament House, the staff in our electorate offices. Last week a number of electorate office staff were present in Parliament to receive accolades from the Speaker in recognition of their long years of service to the Parliament through their members. I am enormously indebted to my electorate staff over a period stretching to almost 28 years. They are the faceless people who are front-line soldiers working on behalf of members. While we are here in Parliament on a day-to-day basis they are the face of members for the constituency and deal with an incredible amount of work on our behalf.
I single out my electorate assistant, Sandra Caldwell, who has been an outstanding help to me over many years. She has a wide breadth of knowledge and understanding of electoral matters. She understands explicitly what is required when representations are made and on my behalf is able to formulate very efficient letters and present them to me. In this technological age, even though members may be a long distance from their electorate offices, it is easy to prepare, sign and post letters or to email material. Sandra Caldwell has mastered all of these things and I thank her very much.
I extend a special thanks to Ruth Apps, who was my original electorate secretary back in 1981 when I first became a member. She is now 83 and works casually one or two days a week, which is outstanding. She has mastered the new technology and knows all facets of the Parliament. It is a great credit to her that, at the age of 83, nearly 84, she is able to take an active role in electoral matters. When I have been in my electorate office it has been almost comical to witness some quite elderly constituents telling Ruth about how encumbered they are because of their age. They talk about their age not realising that Ruth in some cases is 10 or 15 years older, but Ruth is still sympathetic to their concerns. I thank also my other assistant, Janine Drury, who, as I stated last year, had just got married. She has now celebrated her first wedding anniversary. Janine, too, has been with me for a long time.
In the Parliament many staff members deserve our thanks. In particular I acknowledge the attendants, who are here from very early in the morning until very late at night. They are always pleasant and helpful: they are always ready and keen to assist. The member for Wagga Wagga and the Leader of the Opposition can attest that the cleaners are here at a very early hour. The member for Wagga Wagga and I are always here between 6.30 a.m. and 6.45 a.m. and the first people we greet are the cleaning staff. They are always very helpful and assist us in many ways, and I thank them. I thank also the catering staff.
In particular, I make mention of the Hansard staff, as I have in every speech on seasonal felicitations for the past 28 years. I do so again today. As I have said previously, I regard them as the disciples of Midas— Midas being the king who had the golden touch. Everything he touched turned to gold. So, too, with the Hansard staff: they turn our leaden words into gold. I sincerely thank them for that.
I commented earlier in the year—and the Leader of the Opposition might mention it also—that the character and the nature of the parliamentary staff and parliamentary assistance is changing. When many of us came into this place many years ago we were introduced to people who had faces, personalities and character. These people were of great help and assistance to us as the years passed. Sadly, a lot of those people are now leaving the Parliament and the way in which members of Parliament are being served is changing quite dramatically.
I make special mention of three people, not because they are the only ones but because they had an impact on me—David Clune, who was in charge in Parliamentary Research; Greg McGill, who was the Financial Controller; and Greig Tillotson, who was the Parliamentary Librarian. Those three people had long histories in the Parliament. We have spoken about them on other occasions and complimented them on their work. I reiterate how much we miss them as we come to the festive season and thank them for their work and assistance. In particular, I thank them for giving a personal face to the Parliament, particularly when now so many of our requests and responses are dealt with by email. I accept that is a necessity and I do not mean to be critical of the system or individuals or groups now in this place; however, it lessens the personal connections that we all appreciate.
I thank all the Clerks of the Parliament, particularly Russell Grove, who this year celebrated his thirty-first year as Clerk of the Legislative Assembly. I think he continues to be the longest-serving Clerk in the 3 December 2009 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 20655
Westminster system. I thank also Mark Swinson, Les Gönye and many others who have served in a temporary capacity as Clerks at the table. We appreciate their invaluable service in providing us with assistance with complete impartiality. It is always gratefully received and we thank them for that.
I mention too my personal staff here in the Parliament. Priscilla Armstrong-Guirguis provides great assistance and has an intricate knowledge of the workings of the Parliament. She has great charm and has the ability to consistently and easily charm the member for Wagga Wagga in getting on with the proceedings of the House. It is wonderful to have this great cooperation and makes my job much easier. I acknowledge also Danielle Kolodziej, who has been working for me for just over a year. She is well on the way to motherhood, and I congratulate her on that. I thank the people who have worked for me on a temporary basis, in particular Julie Apps, the daughter of Ruth Apps. She undertakes a fair amount of relief work for me in the Parliament.
There are so many things I want to say but 10 minutes has gone so quickly. I conclude by once again wishing everyone in this place and everyone connected with us a merry Christmas and all the very best. I express in a very deep and sincere way my thanks and those of the Premier, the Government and all members of the Government.
Mr BARRY O'FARRELL (Ku-ring-gai—Leader of the Opposition) [5.20 p.m.]: I join with the Leader of the Government in extending Christmas felicitations to all members and those who work in this building. Mr Speaker, as you know better than anyone, our work is significant. It reflects the hopes, dreams and aspirations of people across New South Wales, and in our hands, in the services that we provide to them, we determine whether they are able to pursue the opportunities that this State and this nation have always provided. For all the tumult and shouting, for all the anxiety and stress and, at times, humour—although too little, I say— the parliamentary process works well. Most of the issues that come before this House, as has been demonstrated in this Chamber on legislation at least over the past two days, are non-contentious. But there are contentious matters, and those matters are fiercely contested, as our democracy allows. In a year in which we continue to celebrate significant anniversaries from World War I, we are reminded that democracy is what that conflict and sacrifice was all about.
Mr Speaker, I first pay tribute to you and your staff, Margaret, Lucy and Joe, who, despite provocation at times and the odd teasing from me, still manage to behave politely to me and ensure that I have a cup of coffee welcoming me when I come to have a chat with you. I thank you for that. I am pleased, Mr Speaker, that your name is not in the mix for the leadership of the Labor Party this afternoon and that you will be the Speaker at least until the end of this parliamentary session. I hope that when we return in February you will be the Speaker and will continue to do a good job in this Chamber.
I acknowledge and thank all Chamber officials, the Clerks at the table, and all the attendants who sit in this Chamber and those who do not at times, for everything that they do. They work long hours and put up with a lot. They endure the stresses, strains and anxieties but, unlike us, they cannot give voice to them. I acknowledge all the Parliament staff, beginning with the staff of the Department of Parliamentary Services. In particular, I thank our electorate staff, who were honoured by the Leader of the House. There would not be a member in this Chamber who would not give tribute to our front-line staff—electorate secretaries and assistants—who hold the fort for us. They pull up the ramparts at times but otherwise deal professionally and competently with those that we seek to serve. I acknowledge someone who left us this year: Isaac from level two who suddenly retired but who has been with me through my journey, firstly, in discovering the level two gym and, secondly, in continuing to use it. I will miss him.
I acknowledge the Hansard staff, in relation to whom the Leader of the House likes to use adages about Midas and golden words. I think that Hansard is proof that sows' ears can be turned into silk purses. That is what the Hansard staff do every time they transcribe our words. I particularly pay tribute to Santa's cave on level 8, where I notice this year for the first time, uncharacteristically, the Hansard's Christmas lights have seeped into what is the semi-public hall that leads to this Chamber and members of the House have been alerted to the fact that Hansard staff are engaged in a competition, which I suspect the Greens in another place hate, to adorn their windowless offices with wonderful Christmas decorations at this time of the year.
I acknowledge the catering and the library staff, particularly Greig Tillotson. On a previous occasion in this Chamber I made mentioned of David Clune, of the Parliamentary Library. Greig Tillotson is the Parliament's ninth parliamentarian historian. The first was Walter McEvilly. The second was Conrad Martens, the landscape painter whose friends secured the position for him because they thought that the rigours of being a landscape painter needed more rest and relaxation within these confines. I continue to marvel at the job done by 20656 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 3 December 2009
Greig Tillotson. I miss Greig Tillotson and place on record again my disappointment that his position has not been filled. It is a position that, in a sense, pre-dates responsible government in this State. I know that in 15 months, if the matter has not been sorted, it will be sorted, and there will be another Parliamentary Librarian to reflect that.
I acknowledge the Leader of the House, the Leader of the Government who demonstrates that, despite the dysfunctionality that applies to government, occasionally it can be got right in this Chamber. I acknowledge the Leader of Opposition Business, the member for Murrumbidgee, who does an extraordinary job for which I am grateful. I acknowledge all the Whips, including Ray Hadley's friend the member for Bathurst, and the member for East Hills. I particularly pay tribute to my two Whips, the member for Wagga Wagga and the member for Lismore, who do a remarkable job and put up with the Leader of the Opposition in some of those stressful moments and do so with good humour and, if they do not, they simply walk away and get on with their business. I acknowledge Maryann Winterflood in the office of the member for Wagga Wagga, who puts up with my teasing but who, nevertheless, at the end of Question Time continues to give me a rating. Of course, I also thank Di Leahy, who does an extraordinary job for all of us. I acknowledge Ilse van de Meent, who also does an extraordinary job making the member for Lismore look competent and professional and in touch with everything.
I acknowledge my parliamentary team. We cannot work without a team behind us no matter what job we do. I pay tribute to all members of the Liberal Party and The Nationals, from my deputy, Jillian Skinner, down, and my Coalition colleague, Andrew Stoner, and his team. We have demonstrated over the past 2½ years a unity, a focus and a discipline that is required by any Opposition, of those who seek to govern in a State. And that is why we are trying to get ourselves ready.
I acknowledge also the media. Whether we like it or not, we cannot live without the media, and today and yesterday they demonstrated their capacity to handle changing circumstances with great aplomb. We seem to have had a fertility cluster on level 6 this year with a number of members of the Press Gallery falling pregnant. Recently Alex Smith gave birth, and another member of the Herald Bureau, Andrew Clennell, is awaiting the birth of a child. We know that Louise Milligan will be leaving, along with son Rory, heading to southern climes. We have all had a relationship with Simon Benson—one that people will characterise in different ways. Simon Benson has been a terrier on behalf of the Daily Telegraph. He has been prepared to call it and write it as he sees fit. I have been on the receiving end of that, all of which he does professionally and I bear him no ill will.
As we speak we do not know whether this will be a red wood or a gum tree Christmas. I simply want to reflect to Nathan Rees that any New South Wales Opposition Leader knows how tough the job of politics can be. Past occupants of my position also know how ephemeral and fleeting can be the occupancy of major offices within this Parliament. I wish Nathan Rees and his wife well in the spirit of the season. We do not agree on much inside or outside this House. I regret, because he has not been a member of this Parliament very long, that I do not know him particularly well. But Christmas is the season of goodwill and peace upon earth to all and, in that sense, I wish him well for whatever the future brings him. Whilst I have my criticisms of him and views about him, I do not believe that anyone steps up to any of these jobs without wanting to make a contribution.
I extend Christmas greetings to members opposite, to the Parliamentary Secretary at the table the member for Blue Mountains, with whom I continue to enjoy a good relationship. My saying that has probably destroyed his career further—sorry, Phil. There are still relationships that exist across the aisle, as the Americans say, or across the Chamber, and that is as it should be.
No matter how important is the work of this place or how significant is the job we are sent to do by our communities, and no matter how rewarding, satisfying or frustrating we find it, at the end of the day our lives, like those of every other citizen, will be defined by our family and our friends. Our success in life will not be measured by legislation, railway lines or references in the history books but by the way in which our family and friends regard us, whether we have family and friends. That is one of the perspectives that we all need to keep at times, no matter, as I said when I commenced, how great the tumult and the shouting.
The point of Christmas is to remind us about the importance of families. Families, I think, suffer the most during our careers; they feel the sleights and the criticisms more than we do. Our children feel the absence of parents more than perhaps we are prepared to admit. I extend good Christmas felicitations to all members and their families for the coming month. 3 December 2009 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 20657
The SPEAKER: Firstly I wish all members a very happy Christmas. To members' families and friends, obviously it is always a busy year and we wish them well. I join with the Leader of the House and the Leader of the Opposition. I know that the Leader of The Nationals, the member for East Hills and many others are about to make a contribution. I would like to give a special thank you to all the staff of this place. So many work so hard. I note that the Hansard staff are especially in the Christmas spirit at the moment. I thank them, as the Leader of the House and the Leader of the Opposition did, for their continued tremendous work in this place.
I acknowledge Russell Grove, the Clerk of the Legislative Assembly, and thank him for his frank and fearless advice to me as the Speaker and for his belief in this place. His advice is constructive and objective, and I know how strongly Russell feels about the institution of the New South Wales Parliament, particularly the Legislative Assembly. I also thank Russell's wife, Frances, for her patience in supporting Russell in his herculean effort on behalf of the New South Wales Parliament. To the whole team of Clerks—including Mark, Ronda, Les and Stephanie—thank you for the work you continue to do for this Parliament.
I also thank the Attendants, who do a tremendous job supporting not only members of Parliament but also the public in this place. I also extend my thanks to the Catering staff and the staff of the Library. The Education Department officers are fabulous contributors to this place. They strongly believe that this is the people's Parliament, and they work very hard to pursue that goal. I also want to thank my personal staff— Margaret, Lucy and Joe. I have to say, they are more than staff to me; they are friends and, indeed, family. Their work in supporting me, this place, and indeed all members, regardless of political persuasion, is something that our office prides itself on. I give thanks to them. They also believe in the institution of Parliament and work very strongly to support the objectives that we believe are appropriate.
I take this opportunity to thank both the Leader of the House and the Leader of the Opposition for the courtesies they have extended to me as Speaker. The respect for the office of Speaker is something that I believe is still alive and well in this place, and I thank them for that. The Whips and their staff also undertake a courtesy to my office that is appreciated enormously by me. I also want to take this opportunity, as others have done, to thank my electorate office staff. Diana in my office, who has been with me for many years in various capacities, and Kylie, Julie, Rosemary, Lisa and Steve all do a tremendous job supporting either the member or the Speaker, or both, and I thank them very much for the work they do.
Before I conclude I want to make this point. The Parliament requires resources in order to operate. I think it is incumbent on both sides of politics to consider expenditure issues in a constructive and objective way. I know it is difficult, and that the focus tends to be on the expenditure of the Parliament and it can be painted in very negative terms. But I think we should be proud of our institution and should ensure that it is properly resourced so we can effectively and efficiently run the business of Parliament for the benefit of the people of New South Wales. I, as an Independent Speaker, will continually put up what I consider to be appropriate requests for resources that I believe can be properly argued to the community as appropriate. From the perspective of both sides of politics, I believe that is something we should be united upon.
Happy Christmas to each and every member of this place. In my capacity as Speaker, as I have visited the various constituencies I have not met a member who is not here to serve their community—and that cuts across all sides of politics. I think we should remember that, particularly in the Christmas season. Happy Christmas to everyone.
Mr ALAN ASHTON (East Hills) [5.37 p.m.]: Mr Speaker, congratulations and thank you for your efforts this year. The job of Speaker is not easy, as you know. I also want to thank your staff for the support they have provided, not only to you but also to all of us in this Chamber. I thank the 51 members of the Labor Government for their support in attending divisions in the House and for mostly attending to their House duties. I thank my colleague Gerard Martin—Man Mountain—for his great support and leadership as Government Whip. I also thank his boss in the Whip's office, Jan Clifford, who, as everyone in the Whip's office knows, is essential there. I also thank Fran, who comes down from Bathurst to help Gerard and keep the show going for us.
I know that time will run out on me. As I said, I thank the Speaker. I also thank the Deputy-Speaker and Assistant-Speakers. I particularly thank the Acting-Speakers, the members representing the electorates of Charlestown, Mulgoa and Baulkham Hills, and the Acting-Speaker, the member for Lismore, who is now in the chair. I also thank the Opposition. In particular, I thank the Leader of the Opposition for his kind words on behalf of the Opposition regarding the Parliament, the staff and the Government. We know that we have to fight because we are fighting hard for the people of New South Wales. We get it right a lot on both sides of this 20658 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 3 December 2009
Chamber, but we also get it wrong a lot of times. However, it is a better democracy than any other. As Winston Churchill said, "Democracy is the worst political system, except for all the rest." I think that is something we need to keep in mind when we are at times yelling at each other—that we are not fighting civil wars in this place.
I also want to thank Daryl Maguire, the Opposition Whip for the Liberal Party, and Thomas George for his cooperation as the Whip for The Nationals. So much happens in this Chamber that members do not realise, where we have to cooperate and plan things so they run smoothly. I thank the Leader of the Government in the House, the Hon. John Aquilina, and his staff—Priscilla Armstrong-Guirguis and Danielle Kolodziej—for their help and advice, and for their lack of panic when we might be panicking about things that are left open. I also acknowledge the Leader of Opposition Business, Adrian Piccoli, for his cooperation in doing the difficult job he has to do when he mostly does not have the numbers.
I thank the Clerks—Russell, Mark, Ronda and Les—and their assistants—Helen, Elaine, Stephanie and Vicki—and others that might have helped out at times. Their advice is always appreciated. I thank all those who work in the Library. It is great to be able to go down to the Library and get some books to read, or even request research be done by the Library; I think that is fantastic. It is an underutilised resource in some ways, because of Google and so on nowadays. But they do a great job helping me, and I really appreciate dropping in there and having a chat, getting information, and finding some good books on cricket, politics, rugby league, or any other sport that has been invented.
I want to thank the staff at my electorate office—Christine, Joanne and Allan—who are ably supported by Myrna, Sue, Shawn and lately Rosanna. I am proud of them all and I thank them for the loyal work and service they have continually done for me since 1999. Chris, Jo and Allan recently received 10-year continual service awards from the Speaker of the Legislative Assembly and the President of the Legislative Council. That was a great honour. I am probably one of the few members of this place who have maintained such continuity of staff.
We all have to eat in this place. I want to thank those in the Members Dining Room, the Strangers Dining Room and the Members Bar, especially Cathy, Greg and Tanya in the Dining Room. It is essential that we get a chance to be there and work together, that we have a chat about the day's events, or simply have a chat about things that have nothing to do with politics at all. I want to thank the Attendants in this Chamber. They know who they are: time will not allow me to mention all their names. I also thank the Attendants at the front desk for the work they do. The staff who are working in the new Cafe Quorum are doing a great job as well. The cafe has become very popular and we appreciate the work that has been done down there. It is great to go down there and have a cup of tea or coffee in a slightly different atmosphere.
Nothing we say here would matter much if Hansard staff did not take it down correctly. I appreciate their Christmas spirit in dressing up for the occasion as I make my felicitations speech. Happy Christmas to the reindeers in the Hansard gallery.
I wish a happy Christmas to all the administrative staff, those on level 8 who do so much work for us— I suppose they also pay us—they give us much other advice as well. Finally, I thank my family, which I always forget to do. My wife, Linda, our daughters Gemma and Breanna who, for the last nearly 11 years, have helped me out since my election in 1999. Considering that I have been in public life for 30 years, minus four years, that is not a bad achievement. I was first elected to Bankstown council in my very early 20s. With those few words, happy Christmas, happy holidays, to everyone and thank you to all here who make our job so much easier. We do enjoy it, despite the appearances we may sometimes give.
Mr ANDREW STONER (Oxley—Leader of The Nationals) [5.42 p.m.]: It seems that another eventful year is coming to an even more eventful end. On this most ominous day for New South Wales politics, I offer my Christmas greetings for 2009. Once again, we could not do what we do without the unwavering support of the staff of this place. On behalf of the New South Wales Nationals, I thank all the people involved in the orderly running of this place: the Speaker, the Deputy-Speaker, the Assistant-Speakers, the Temporary-Speakers, the Leader of the House, the shadow Leader of the House, and the Coalition Whips, Thomas George and Daryl McGuire, who do a terrific job.
I thank also the Government Whips, Alan Ashton and Gerard Martin. After six years they are getting a little more efficient at counting the votes during divisions! I thank also the Clerks, Russell, Mark, Les and Ronda; the Serjeant-at-Arms, Greg Kelly; and the attendants, Richard, Ian, April and Joe. Their efforts are 3 December 2009 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 20659
appreciated, certainly by me and all The Nationals in this place. To the diligent and patient Hansard staff, the efficient staff of the Procedure Office and members' services, I say thank you. I thank also the Accounts staff and the Building Services staff for helping us to be equipped to do our jobs. I thank the catering staff as well: an army marches on its stomach, and we are always well fed and watered in this place. The Cafe Quorum, as mentioned by the member for East Hills, is a big improvement. I acknowledge the friendly and efficient staff there who help me to keep caffeinated on a daily basis.
I thank the Security staff and the Special Constables. The Library staff do an excellent, highly professional job of research and support for members in this place, as do the Information Technology staff. To the members of the media, all the very best for the festive season. Thank you for your role in our parliamentary democracy. It is an important role, which is acknowledged, I am sure, even by those members who find themselves on the receiving end of some of their items.
I have said many times before in this place that I have the best electorate in New South Wales. I know many other members would say exactly the same thing about their electorates. I feel doubly blessed in that I think I have the best team in politics behind me. I refer specifically to my electorate office staff, Patricia Baker, Jodie Griffiths, Kelly Wheeldon, as well as Mary Tarr and Marg Batemean who have helped out on a temporary basis during the year. Indeed, I thank all electorate office staff, who really are at the coalface with constituents, difficult inquires and sometimes difficult customers and, on top of that, have the difficult job of looking after their member. In Sydney I have a great team of young people, who do an absolutely wonderful job.
My chief of staff, Pete McConnell, my media adviser, Rod Bruce, my policy adviser, Ben Shine, my wonderfully efficient personal assistant, Bree Price, my advisers Erin Stott and Sandy, and Ilse in the Whip's office do a wonderful job for me in Sydney and for The Nationals generally on the twelfth floor. Thank you to you all for your hard work over the year. I thank also The Nationals upper House staff, Emma, Alice, Jonathan, Verity, Aidan and Sara.
I wish all members and staff, and their families, a happy, holy and safe Christmas. This brings me to the reason for the season and these felicitations. Australia remains a Christian nation with a Christian heritage and, of course, Christmas is the time we celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ, which heralds a message of hope and joy for all Christians. I hope all members and the public remember the reason for the season and do not get caught up too much in the commercialisation or overindulgence that all too often accompanies the festive season.
Finally, I encourage those who are taking holidays to be careful. I am sure I will see some people from this place in my beautiful electorate on the mid North Coast. However, the road on which they will travel remains a very dangerous road, as are many other roads in the State. I urge everyone to please be careful, take rest breaks, do not speed, do not drink and drive, and arrive safely at your destination for a great holiday.
Mr DARYL MAGUIRE (Wagga Wagga) [5.47 p.m.]: I have much pleasure in joining in this debate to offer my very best wishes to all for the coming festive season. The year has flown very quickly and we need to acknowledge the very important contributions to this Parliament that so many people make. Since I was elected to this place in 1999, as was the member for Lismore, who is in the Chair, I have come to rely on the very hardworking staff, the people who make this Parliament work. I thank the Clerks, the Assistant Clerks, the Library staff, Hansard, Security, Catering and all the people who make life easier in this place.
It can be difficult for country members to be away from their electorate and their home. To have the friendship and the support of the dedicated staff here is, for me—and I know for you, Mr Assistant-Speaker— one of those privileges that we enjoy and appreciate. Members of Parliament cannot do their job without their staff. I thank my staff, Margaret, Paula, Brenda and Susan, who work in the Wagga Wagga office. One may think that by having four staff that we are blessed, but those ladies job share. They do a marvellous job. Sue has just started working in my office and is fitting in very well. She has been a great acquisition and we are delighted to have her in the Wagga Wagga office. Electorate staff are at the front line; quite often they are the first contact for people who have an issue to be addressed. It is important that the staff are on their toes, and my staff certainly are.
I thank Maryann and Dai in the Sydney office. Dai Le was our candidate in the Cabramatta by-election, and recorded a 23 per cent swing. Sadly, she did not win, but she is a great staff member who works very hard with ethnic communities. I appreciate that in my capacity as Deputy Chairman of the Asia-Pacific Friendship Group and the good work that we do. I have enjoyed the interaction this year with my fellow colleagues. I thank 20660 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 3 December 2009
the Leader of the House, John Aquilina, and his assistant, Priscilla. I thank also Thomas George, The Nationals Whip, and his assistant, Ilse, who helps us, and all the staff in the back rooms of the Liberals and The Nationals. In particular, I record my appreciation to Natasha Luschwitz, who helps me in my role as Secretary to the Shadow Cabinet. It is quite a demanding job from time to time, and I appreciate Natasha's help.
A number of people have left Parliament House this year as a result of the hangover from the Costa cuts. I refer in particular to Greg McGill and Greig Tillotson. A function was held for Greg McGill but sadly I was not able to attend the function for Greig Tillotson. However, I really appreciated their help. I understand that Gladys Kleiner is also to leave Parliament. If there is one person in this place whose friendship and help I have appreciated it is Gladys Kleiner. She is a delightful person who always went out of her way to help members, me in particular. I wish her well in her retirement, perhaps a little early. Sadly, because of restructures, a number of people will leave, and Gladys is one of them. I know that she enjoys her grandchildren and her family. I wish her the very best in her retirement years ahead.
I place on record my thanks to my office also for two exciting projects they have taken on. The first project is to seek sponsorship for 113 AIDS orphans in Nakuru, at the Pistis Academy. My office is continually fundraising for that orphanage. I will be approaching my parliamentary colleagues to sponsor a child for $50 per year. I have calculated that $50 for each of those 113 orphans will be sufficient money to feed them. The second project, which I understand is a world first—and it is sponsored in Wagga Wagga—is to create a regional oxygen bank to provide portable concentrators to people with degenerative lung disease. I hope that all communities will see the good in this project and get behind it, which will give new mobility and independence to those people restricted by that insidious disease. I wish you all the very best Christmas and a happy New Year.
Mr THOMAS GEORGE (Lismore) [5.52 p.m.]: It is an honour to stand here at this time each year to indicate our appreciation and sincere thanks to all those who help make this Parliament such a professional environment for the members of this House and for the people of New South Wales. Firstly I pay tribute to my Lismore staff: Karen Wilson, Bronwyn Mitchell and Christine Marshall. Bronwyn and Christine are presently in Sydney in order to attend a training day tomorrow. As a team they work well together to make me look good. As all members know, whilst we are away from our electoral offices our staff continue to deal with our constituents, and they do a tremendous job. Ilse van de Meent, who works in my Sydney office, began working for me earlier this year and has really matured into the job. Ilse has responded to everything that has been asked of her in her role as assistant to the Opposition Whip. She has done a fantastic job and settled into the team.
The Leader of the House, John Aquilina, is a pleasure to work with although we do not see eye-to-eye all the time. Priscilla Guirguis provides a professional service in supporting him. She will not let much out. You do not know one hour ahead what is going to happen. But that is Priscilla's job, she does it very well, and I thank her. To the Government Whips, Gerard Martin and Alan Ashton, we also do not see eye-to-eye all the time but we know that when we are in trouble or we need assistance we can go to each other—and that works both ways. I thank Jan Clifford in Gerard's office for her work.
The Liberal Whip, Daryl Maguire, does a fantastic job and I can rely on him to be here all the time. Daryl and I work well as a team. He also has a very good assistant in Maryanne and I thank her for her support. Deputy Whip Russell Turner is always there when needed. As a Temporary Speaker you do need to have access to someone when there are vacancies in the Chair filled. I have always been able to call on Russell and I thank him. I thank the Leader of The Nationals, Mr Andrew Stoner, and Deputy Leader Adrian Piccoli. I also thank Peter McConnell, Erin, Ben, Rod, Bree and Alex in the office of the Leader of The Nationals for doing a tremendous job. They are young, dedicated and loyal, with their whole life ahead of them. They are our future and a pleasure to work with. I thank them all. When you are a Whip you sometimes have to crack the whip and they respond, which is greatly appreciated.
I thank Hansard for making our speeches look so good on paper. Sometimes when one is involved in debate things are misstated but Hansard always sorts our jumbled words to make us all look much better than at times we deserve. I thank all staff who provide services to members—Security, Accounts, the Information Technology Section, the Library, cleaners, and catering. I noticed in the November issue of Assembly Lines that Carlos Andrade and Jenny Gallagher got married, and I extend my best wishes to them. As Acting-Speaker I have come to appreciate a different side to the Clerks. I thank Mark, Les, Russell, Ronda and the team for the professional advice they offer to us as members of the Speaker's team and to all members of Parliament. I say thank you to Greg Kelly and the attendants Peter, April, Ian and Richard, who are always there when needed. 3 December 2009 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 20661
I thank Joe, Margaret and Lucy from the Speaker's office. Joe is the hardest worker in the team because he always makes sure that Speakers are always available to be in the Chair. Joe, I hope you do not suffer from gout too much next year.
The year 2009 has been a great one. On a personal note, I married my lovely wife Deb this year, I proudly turned 60, and the year is not over yet. I trust that everyone has a safe, happy and holy Christmas. Let us look forward to good health in 2010.
ACTING-SPEAKER (Mr Matthew Morris): Order! I endorse the comments of the member for Lismore.
Mr GERARD MARTIN (Bathurst) [5.57 p.m.]: It gives pleasure to stand here on the last sitting day of the year and to join in this felicitations motion, which is really about saying thank you and reflecting on the year. I do so in no particular order but I would like to start from the Whip's office. I thank all those in this place, government, opposition and staffers, who have worked with our office over the year. I particularly thank Jan Clifford, who is my right hand in the Whip's office. Anyone who has been around this place for any time would have great respect for her and appreciate the tremendous work she does, often under pressure, with great dignity and grace. It has been my pleasure over the last seven years to work with her. I also have excellent electorate staff. Fran, my EO2, Diane—who has just joined me from the office of the late Federal member Peter Andren— and Olivia, Helen and Anita. As members of Parliament our electorate work is only as good as our electorate staff.
I also thank The Leader of the House, John Aquilina and Priscilla Guirguis from his office. The Whip's Office and the office of The Leader of the House work closely together. In this place nothing ever runs as the daily program indicates it should. Quick changes need to be made while thinking on your feet. John is an experienced parliamentary craftsman, if I can put it that way, and Priscilla is as sharp as a tack in knowing what to do at the right time while working under pressure. I thank them both for their assistance and cooperation. I thank my colleague Deputy Government Whip Alan Ashton, who I sometimes compare to a terrier dog because if there is a problem I send Alan. For example, if a member should be on duty in the House or if someone is a bit slow coming to the Chamber to make a private members' statement, Alan is off the leash and has it fixed. Alan's depth of knowledge about how this place works is always fitting.
Really it is the parliamentary staff who make this place work. I begin by thanking the Speaker and his staff, who all members have many dealings with. I thank Mark Swinson, Stephanie Hesford and Les Gonye, at the head of the table, for their wise counsel over the years and, at times, their patience. When members who have been in this place for as long as I have still ask questions, they look at you as if you should know the answers after 10 years but, with good grace, they still give you the correct answer.
There have been some major changes in the Parliament over the last couple of years, particularly in the structure and staffing. I know it has not always been easy for the staff; there have been a lot of changes. However, I think most of the staff have borne that with good grace and reacted to the changes and made the Parliament a better place as a result. That applies right through the building, starting at the ground floor level with the library and Café Quorum staff, and the dining facilities staff. I think we are blessed with the quality of the staff. After you have been here 10 years or so it is not hard to strike up good friendships with the staff and whilst there is always respect for members I can certainly say that over the years I have come to consider some of the staff as particularly good friends.
I acknowledge also the long-suffering Hansard reporters who sit there and report our speeches and occasional mumblings. They are very professional and if there is a problem with the draft the next day you get a very prompt and courteous service to deal with that. To all those people who have assisted the Government Whip's office this year I say thank you very much. I wish everybody a very happy and safe Christmas and we look forward to an interesting 2010.
Question—That the motion be agreed to—put and resolved in the affirmative.
Motion agreed to.
SPECIAL ADJOURNMENT
Motion by Mr John Aquilina agreed to:
That the House at its rising this day do adjourn until Tuesday 23 February 2010 at 1.00 p.m. 20662 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 3 December 2009
PRIVATE MEMBERS' STATEMENTS ______
VANUATU WORK BY MACQUARIE COLLEGE STUDENTS
Ms SONIA HORNERY (Wallsend) [6.01 p.m.]: It has been a tumultuous few weeks. We have all read the headlines, we have all seen the television news—drunken displays of vomiting and other antisocial behaviour and acts of miscreants that just disappoint and dismay. Let us hope that these few weeks of madness do not destroy people's reputations forever. This unfortunately seems to be repeated year after year. I speak of course about an event known as schoolies, particularly on the Gold Coast, where young people's antics damage not only the individuals involved but also the community's view of young people in general. As we know, this is not a true reflection of the youth of today.
In my electorate of Wallsend, year 12 students from Macquarie College took a very different path to their schoolies activities. Theirs was not one of hedonism and debauchery but a humane sense of what they could do with this time to help make the world a better place. Members may well ask what these fine young citizens chose as an alternative to the glitz of the Gold Coast. They too took a journey, one that will never be forgotten, to the small village of Olwi on the tiny tropical island archipelago of Vanuatu, in the South Pacific. Now this might sound glamorous to some, but I can assure members that it would be no understatement to say that the conditions faced by these students were a far cry from their comfort zone.
On the nine-day trip, 19 students and five staff members had their eyes opened to living among people who strive daily for the basics in life that we take for granted. The students camped in a rural village where they had access to tank water but no electricity, sewer or phone connection. The roads in the village area were all dirt and in quite bad condition and disrepair. There were pit toilets and showers were a bucket shower from a 44-gallon drum. This was a complete rural village experience. Students walked to most locations due to the unpredictable nature of bus travel in rural Vanuatu. For the team it has been an invaluable cultural experience. The trip was also about making a tangible difference to the people of Olwi village. This specifically was practical support for the village in the area of education. Mr Aaron Williams, year 12 coordinator, explained it thus:
Olwi was chosen due to the connection of teachers, past and present that have trained Vanuatu teachers, some of whom are from Olwi.
Education in Vanuatu is problematic at best. Unlike Australia, education in Vanuatu is not free. There are many children who are unable to go to school, let alone finish high school, as the statistics show. Twenty-five per cent of children will never go to school, only 55.8 per cent will reach grade 6, and only 18.2 per cent will continue on to high school. These statistics give an insight into the difficulties facing this tiny inland. This is where the students of Macquarie College stepped up. They helped to fix the classrooms, build equipment for the children and host the kids club, and donated their time to help with reading and writing activities at Olwi school. It was not all slog and hard graft. One of the highlights was the food, cooked with loving care by their hosts in the traditional way. It was universally agreed that there was not enough time for the year 12 graduates to do all they wanted or all that was needed. What did the students garner from the experience? It was put so succinctly by one of the students:
It puts everything into perspective - it is not about us but about others.
That is why the students of Macquarie College hope to create a tradition of endof year 12 service and celebration for current and future year 12 groups. I wish all involved in this endeavour the very best now and in the future. I say to the students at Macquarie College they set a wonderful example for others, particularly our youth, to think about and follow.
COFFS HARBOUR HOSPITAL
Mr ANDREW FRASER (Coffs Harbour) [6.06 p.m.]: I raise an issue that is very important not just to the people of Coffs Harbour electorate but also to the whole of the North Coast. I will read a letter that was delivered anonymously to my electorate office today.
Dear Andrew
Please find enclosed an editorial that will be given to the Coffs Harbour Advocate today.
3 December 2009 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 20663
We desperately need your help to fight the ridiculous staffing cuts that are happening in the NCAHS. We have seen massive cuts to cleaning, security and administration services and Mr Crawford is only 40% through his FTE reductions.
We are now facing massive cuts to clinical front line positions. Mr Crawford has stated that the positions that have been put up for recruitment will not be signed off and will now form part of the restructure. This will result in a huge burden of care to be taken up by nursing staff and will directly impact on the safety of patients.
Within the last 2 weeks we have had 2 nurses assaulted on surgical ward and there was no security response as there were no security personnel available. We have nurses cleaning floors due to the lack of cleaning staff. Nurses taking down violent patients in ED, Birthing suites are not cleaned after 1.30am and closure of some Community Based Services.
This situation is untenable and will have far reaching effects on quality care and patient safety. It is no longer safe to be a patient in NSW hospitals and it is no longer safe to be a staff member.
The nurses of Coffs Harbour Hospital are pleading with you to support them in what is the worst health crisis we have ever witnessed.
Andrew we need a voice that is loud and strong and will last longer than a lunchtime rally and we know that you are passionate about the services that our community deserve.
As you are aware we risk our jobs writing to you hence the anonymity. Nurses will be rallying not for a pay rise or an improvement in our award entitlements, we are fighting now for our patients safety. We no longer will stand by and witness the complete devastation of health services in our community. We have a strong mandate under the Nurses Act to advocate for patient care and patient safety and this is what we intend to do.
We hope that you will be able to carry us across the line. We look forward to you attending our lunchtime rally and creating havoc in the media. This is the only way that we can put the pressure on NSW Health to fill vacant vital positions and cease their senseless annihilation of frontline clinical and support services.
Please find enclosed a copy of just some of the positions that will not be signed off for recruitment.
I am unable to read out all the positions because there are pages of them. In their letter to the editor they say that birthing suites are not cleaned after 1:30 a.m., nurses and patients are at risk of harm due to the reduction in security staff, communication with the general public is significantly reduced due to cuts in ward clerk positions, there are potential service cuts and bed closures due to the non-recruitment of vacant front-line clinical positions, and infection control nursing positions are gone, leaving no infection control coverage of the smaller hospitals.
Over the past 12 to 18 months Coffs Harbour Health Campus has had two of the worst vancomycin resistant enterococci [VRE] outbreaks that we have witnessed in Australia. Yet it has no infection control nursing positions. The nurses are not supported by security staff. As members know, babies do not arrive on a time schedule and deliveries are being made in birthing suites that have not been cleaned. This deplorable situation at Coffs Harbour is also happening at Lismore and in other hospitals on the North Coast. An article in the Northern Star, a paper in the electorate of the Acting-Speaker (Mr Thomas George), states:
North Coast Area Health will employ a public relations person on a six-figure salary to rebuild its image in the community as it continues to slash 400 positions from hospitals across the region.
The full-time position of a Caring Together liaison officer, which is advertised on the health services internal intranet site, offers the successful candidate between $88,048 and $100,375 annually.
Part of the job description is to "develop effective communications strategies for NCAHS [North Coast Area Health Service] in relation to major or contentious issues, promotional campaign and community concerns".
They do not need a liaison officer or a spin doctor. They need real doctors, real nurses and real cleaners immediately, otherwise patient health and nurses safety will suffer.
LITHGOW AMBULANCE SERVICE
Mr GERARD MARTIN (Bathurst) [6.11 p.m.]: I refer to an incident that occurred in my electorate and place on record the excellent work done by my staff in relation to this issue. It relates to a 000 call for an ambulance to attend a person who had suffered a cardiac arrest on a property 28 kilometres out of Lithgow. Unfortunately, the gentleman died. Controversy arose about the arrival time of the ambulances. A radio station announcer in Sydney highlighted the matter, but did not state the correct facts. In the best tradition of Sydney radio journalists, it was all about getting a scalp and being abusive. I spoke by phone on the radio program but I hung up because the interviewer was not interested in the real story.
I want to place the facts on the record to defend the Ambulance Service, my staff and, less importantly, me. First, I pass on my sympathies to the McFadden family, whom I have known for many years, on the 20664 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 3 December 2009
untimely death of Kevin. Recently we have made arrangements for Mrs McFadden to listen to the tapes from the radio control room. For privacy reasons, it is not appropriate for 000 calls to be made public. However, I am advised that a review of the tapes by the family and others has confirmed that the ambulance was not lost. In fact, the first ambulance arrived at the scene as the second call was in progress. In all, three ambulances were dispatched. An Ambulance Service briefing note states:
BACKGROUND
• The case involved a 1B response to a male collapsed in a paddock at the above address, the initial report was that the patient was unconscious; breathing status was unable to be determined at that time.
• Lithgow Car 6660 was correctly identified as the nearest resource and deployed from Lithgow Station. Consequently this car was backed up by single officers in cars 6664 and 6662.
• A second call was received by the Western Operations Centre @ 1709Hrs confirming that the patient was in cardiac arrest and cardiopulmonary resuscitation was being performed.
• Car 6660 did receive further direction to the patient's location as a result of information received in the second call.
• A radio message from car 6660 when they arrived on scene was that the directions and the numbering of this location did not align—they did not indicate that this had caused any delay in their response to this incident.
• Car 6660 did clarify the exact location of the incident for the benefit of the two vehicles that were still proceeding to the scene.
• Car 6662 appeared to proceed past the location of the incident, however there is no evidence to indicate that this impeded upon the response time for the initial response to this patient.
• VisiCad records indicated that there was an 18 minute response to his incident.
The property is 28 kilometres from Lithgow on a rural road. When the ambulance arrived the patient was deceased at the scene. The response time was 18 minutes. Given the location, the response time appears to be within expected time frames. I met Mrs McFadden in Portland and discussed the incident with her. I took the matter up immediately with the authorities. Mrs McFadden supplied further evidence to my office. We arranged for the regional superintendent to meet with her at her house to go through the process. Mrs McFadden said she preferred to have the information in writing. She received a letter on 13 November 2009 setting out the facts. Subsequently Mrs McFadden wanted further information.
We arranged on 23 November 2009 for the ambulance personnel involved to speak to her. They emailed my office to say that they had spoken to Mrs McFadden and answered her inquiries and that she seemed to accept their response. Then the radio station became involved and sensationalised the matter. At no time did my office staff wipe their hands of the case. We ensured that Mrs McFadden received all the information she requires. We will continue to provide any assistance. It is important that I place on record support for my staff, who were unfairly impugned by the radio station.
SHOALHAVEN HEALTH SERVICES
Mrs SHELLEY HANCOCK (South Coast) [6.16 p.m.]: On the final day of the sittings I wish to discuss the health services in the Shoalhaven. On a day of immense turmoil in the ranks of the Labor Party, I plead on behalf of my constituents, many of whom are elderly, that the New South Wales Government—which continues to tear itself apart as we speak—gets back to the business of running the State, particularly health. The Shoalhaven is blessed with incredible health professionals who strive daily to provide their services for the benefit of the community. Doctors, nurses and clinicians work under incredible pressure, particularly those who work in the public hospital system, as they face growing waiting lists, outdated equipment, under-resourcing and staff shortages in many key areas, particularly in rural and regional areas such as my electorate.
The New South Wales Government has produced plan after plan and made continual promises to fix the health system. In relation to waiting lists, we now know that the many promises made by successive health Ministers to halve waiting lists simply have not eventuated. In fact, waiting lists in the Shoalhaven have increased by 50.7 per cent since 2003. There are now 1,480 patients on the waiting list for Shoalhaven hospital. On a weekly basis, if not daily, I am faced with people in pain who cannot even get on to a waiting list or whose operations have been cancelled because of staff shortages, or other reasons. Recently an explosion of a medical air supply compressor resulted in the closure of two theatres and the intensive care unit, leading to further cancellations of long-awaited surgery. It seems that the Government members are not interested in these 3 December 2009 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 20665
problems. They are more interested in their own leadership problems. This piece of equipment was more than 50 years old. Staff knew there were problems with it and reported it to the area health service and the Government. The Government did nothing to renew or replace the equipment.
This week a resident told me of the collapse during a storm of part of a ceiling in one of the wards at Shoalhaven hospital that resulted in water cascading over two elderly male patients. I point out that Shoalhaven hospital was recently redeveloped. Part of the roof was promptly replaced, but the underlying causes of the inundation were not addressed. No doubt in the next storm two more patients will be drenched. The same resident spoke of the health system's inability to provide him with vegetarian meals, despite prior discussions with his doctor and a dietician. I have raised this issue before about hospital food at Shoalhaven hospital. Family members are forced to bring food to their relatives due to this Government's inability to cater for the specific dietary requirements of patients.
This has been going on at Shoalhaven hospital for years. Mental health also continues to be a serious issue in the Shoalhaven district, with no psychiatrists at all working in the area and only one acute care mental health bed in Shoalhaven hospital. I have spoken about this issue for years and I have referred to the promises that have been made but that have not been kept to provide 12 to 14 acute care mental health beds at Shoalhaven hospital. More lives have been lost because of this Government's broken promises on mental health. I refer, finally, to radiotherapy services in the Shoalhaven—an issue that I have raised on countless occasions in this place and locally. Our community has raised almost $1 million towards the provision of a linear accelerator. Our campaign has been running for years without one word of support or encouragement from this Government.
According to Cancer Council reports, cancer patients continue to be forced to travel to Wollongong for radiotherapy services and many are opting out of treatment due to the distance. The Cancer Council was reporting not just on Shoalhaven patients but on patients throughout New South Wales who are opting out of radiotherapy services because of distance and dislocation to their families. Only this morning the Cancer Council stated that it supports the provision of a cancer care centre in Nowra, but it appears as though this Government is not listening. As I speak one Premier is about to be dumped and another is about to be installed in office. Labor Party internal factional brawling must end and the Government must turn its attention to the problems facing this State in every portfolio area. The people of New South Wales have had enough.
Ms Linda Burney: Point of order: The member, who is making a private member's statement about health services in the Shoalhaven, should not be referring to anything else.
ACTING-SPEAKER (Mr Thomas George): Order! There is no point of order. The member for South Coast has the call.
Mrs SHELLEY HANCOCK: Health services in the Shoalhaven are crumbling but not one member of this Government is concerned about mental health or about cancer patients. The member for Canterbury finds amusing the fact that I am raising this issue on behalf of constituents that I represent on this last sitting night of the year.
TRIBUTE TO MARY DIMECH
Ms LINDA BURNEY (Canterbury—Minister for Community Services, and Minister for Women) [6.21 p.m.]: Today I pay tribute to Mary Dimech whose contribution to multicultural affairs both in the Canterbury electorate and much more widely is unsurpassed. Sadly, Mary passed away recently after succumbing to a long illness. I recognise Mary's bravery and achievements and I express sympathy to her family and her friends. Mary's story began in Malta 1951. As a young girl she travelled with her family to Tasmania and then to Sydney's western suburbs. Mary studied social work at the University of New South Wales and set out, quietly, to change the world. Recently a close friend of Mary said to her:
Always you have offered us a clear vision—of what a society driven by inclusion, justice and equality could be like. My first memories of you are you quietly trying to translate your impulse for loving kindness into a social force.
Mary, an activist, and effective one at that, was a determined advocate for all minority groups, in particular, migrant communities and women. From 1974 Mary worked in Melbourne with the Broadmeadows Care Welfare Agency and she helped to set up Maltese Welfare Victoria. In the 1980s she worked for the London Volunteer Services Council, was active in organisations such as the London Migrant Action Group, and joined other women at the Greenham Common protests against nuclear weapons. I repeat the words spoken by Mary's friend:
You were consistently courageous in taking on the call to freedom of people shackled by the ignorance and meanness of power. You always, in the words of the civil rights movement, kept your eyes on the prize; that people would share equally in the gifts of the world, and receive respect as human beings. 20666 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 3 December 2009
Back in Sydney Mary was the first chairperson of the Ethnic Childcare Cooperative, was closely involved with immigrant Women's Speakout, and worked for the Ethnic Communities Council of New South Wales and the refugee trauma service STARTTS. At the Australian Council for the Arts Mary led the way to its first multicultural arts policy, helping the burgeoning of multicultural arts across Australia. At the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission Mary was director of its Race Discrimination Unit at a difficult time when John Howard was making his own contribution to race relations. Mary wrote a number of journal articles and book chapters that contributed to critical thinking about discrimination, immigration, women and social change. I again quote the words spoken by Mary's friend:
Yours was a formidable intelligence and you have always been a powerful force for good. You managed to challenge and confront injustice, meanness and hypocrisy without judging the people who you seek to change.
Most recently, Mary was manager of the Multicultural Services Unit at Community Services, which is now a part of the Department of Human Services, for which I am responsible as Minister for Community Services. Through her persistence and strength of personality Mary gradually changed the culture of community services and how it worked with culturally diverse families. She did that through interpreter services, multicultural caseworkers, African sessional workers and training caseworkers on culturally reflective practice. Mary achieved so much because of her intelligence, strength and commitment to the rights of all people, but also because of her humanity and generosity of spirit.
Mary never judged people or put them down; she was always respectful and was generous with her time. Her team at Community Services sometimes referred to her style as "Dimechism, " whereby even the toughest bureaucrats succumbed before unyielding charm and reasonableness, and finally gave Mary the migrant program for which she had been asking. Because of her popularity she sometimes had to enter the building through the underground car park rather than through the front entrance to ensure that she made it to meetings on time. That was mainly because so many work colleagues were keen to speak with her. Mary Dimech was also a wonderful friend of non-government organisations in the Canterbury area, working with vulnerable and disadvantaged communities.
Mary worked closely with the Metro Migrant Resource Centre for more than 10 years as a trusted adviser who, as a qualified social worker, had a fierce reputation as an informed and relentless advocate for all minority groups and refugee and immigrant women in particular. Mary's expertise in refugee torture and trauma and other related health issues saw immediate and positive health outcomes through the development of policies that local non-government organisations adopted. Mary led the involvement of key Canterbury-based services, such as the Muslim Women's Association, in developing pilot projects targeting vulnerable children requiring out-of-home care through the establishment of culturally and religiously appropriate foster carers from the local community. Mary Dimech was a leader and a role model for a generation of people trying to bring about a more inclusive and just world. My deepest sympathies go to Mary's family and friends. Her legacy will live on.
SUTHERLAND SHIRE COUNCIL RATES
Mr MALCOLM KERR (Cronulla) [6.26 p.m.]: Tonight I refer to an important matter in my electorate—that is, the cost of council rates. A paid advertisement in the St George and Sutherland Shire Leader—a column inserted by Mayor Kelly under the heading "Infrastructure Levy"—states:
Community input is being sought on plans by this council to introduce a special infrastructure levy to upgrade and replace the Shire's ageing infrastructure.
The column goes on to state:
If approved it would fund the upgrade or replacement of all public toilets in the Shire over the next three years, a long overdue upgrade of the Sutherland Entertainment Centre and spending would be trebled on improving the surfaces of playing fields.
Mayoral minute No. 6/09-10 makes it clear what is at stake in relation to this levy. The levy would be in addition to the Minister's rate pegging limit of 3.5 per cent, so the actual increase would be a total of 9.5 per cent. The mayoral minute has this to say in relation to toilet facilities:
The public toilets across the Shire are generally old and in poor condition.
One would have thought that councils were responsible for such basic services. Mayor Kelly, who is a member of Shire Watch, said in her election brochures:
Shire Watch fought to ensure council rates do not increase above the state compulsory limit.
3 December 2009 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 20667
The election material goes on to state that council would:
• Slash council administration costs and put more money in to services and facilities
• Build new public toilets, wharves and jetties across the Shire.
• Spend more money on basics. • A form entitled "Your Say" is available on the website of Sutherland Shire Council, but that is the only consultation that has been carried out. If the council were serious about consultations it would have included it in the rate notices. The council receives significant State and Federal funding for roads, cycleways, stormwater and other basic services. In fact, the council receives more than $38 million in grants and contributions, and the entertainment centre that it wants to upgrade is currently running at a loss of $1,482,000. It is incredible that the council would seek this increase.
CHATSWOOD CENTRAL BUSINESS DISTRICT
Ms GLADYS BEREJIKLIAN (Willoughby) [6.29 p.m.]: I support Willoughby City Council in its bid, which has been ongoing for a number of years, to classify the Chatswood central business district as a subregional centre and not a major centre under the Metropolitan Strategy. That is enormously different from the State Government's vision for Chatswood. In reality, Chatswood is and has always been a subregional centre. People from adjoining areas use Chatswood for commercial and retail activities and to get around other parts of the city. Chatswood is the largest retail and office centre on the North Shore of Sydney. It is strategically located within the global arc of Sydney and it has an important role in transporting people through the area to all other parts of Sydney. Under the 2005 Metropolitan Strategy Chatswood was identified as a major centre, but it is already more than twice the size of other identified major centres in floor space, employment numbers and other criteria that determine what should be a subregional centre.
I make that point because taking care of so many employees and so many people who travel through the area brings with it responsibilities. The State Government needs to acknowledge that and it needs to acknowledge the status that Chatswood has held for many decades. It is a growing centre and the Government's failure to acknowledge that impacts on the area's ability to thrive and grow and make an even greater contribution to the greater Sydney area. I thank the House for its generosity in allowing me to make these comments and I urge the State Government to consider the issues I have raised.
Private members' statements concluded.
The House adjourned, pursuant to standing and sessional orders, at 6.32 p.m. until Tuesday 23 February 2010 at 1.00 p.m.