948
LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY
Thursday 21 March 2002 ______
The Clerk announced the absence of Mr Speaker.
Mr Deputy-Speaker took the chair at 10.00 a.m.
Mr Deputy-Speaker offered the Prayer.
BUSINESS OF THE HOUSE
Routine of Business
Mr WHELAN (Strathfield—Parliamentary Secretary) [10.00 a.m.]: As Parliament sat late last night it was not possible for members to contribute to the Address-in-Reply debate. I therefore propose that the Address-in-Reply debate commence tomorrow at 10.00 a.m. Members should indicate to their Whips whether they desire to speak in that debate. A large number of members also wish to make private member's statements. I therefore propose that private members' statements commence at 2.00 p.m. tomorrow. A Minister may also deliver a second reading speech but debate on that bill will be adjourned.
LOCAL GOVERNMENT AMENDMENT (ETHICS REVIEW PANEL) BILL
Second Reading
Debate resumed from 14 March.
Mr BARR (Manly) [10.02 p.m.]: The purpose of this bill is to provide greater certainty to members of the public and to councillors on the appropriate conduct of councillors and council. A vast grey area exists when dealing with the behaviour of members of local government. Although the Minister for Local Government has the ultimate sanction of dismissing council, his only powers are those of persuasion. There is a lot of public concern about the conduct of councillors and many perceive councils as getting away with things. I will couch my speech in positive terms in an attempt to improve the standards and conduct of councils and councillors and to give the public greater confidence in the conduct of councillors. The Minister floated the notion of a sin bin, which I think was quite impractical. In many council areas with a ruling majority, it could be used to its advantage against the minority. We must be careful about that.
Let me give honourable members the background to this legislation. To understand the operation of this bill we must examine the existing regulatory system and determine how the proposed ethics review panel would fit in. Several bodies deal with serious breaches of conflict of interest or pecuniary interest in local government. These include the Independent Commission Against Corruption [ICAC], the New South Wales Ombudsman, the Minister and the Department of Local Government and the Pecuniary Interest Tribunal. ICAC has a wide power to investigate corrupt conduct. Its brief includes local government and I understand that it deals with a large number of complaints and allegations. However, the focus of ICAC is on corruption in the sense of a breach of public trust which leads to inequality, wasted resources and wasted public money, which is serious. This kind of blatant and serious wrongdoing is a fairly small proportion of the complaints against councils.
On a spectrum of actions and responses the remedies available to ICAC represent one extreme along with the Pecuniary Interest Tribunal. The Pecuniary Interest Tribunal has the power to prosecute breaches of pecuniary interest and, as I mentioned earlier, it has chosen to focus exclusively on the most serious and blatant cases. The last time I spoke in debate on this bill I said that the Department of Local Government received 788 complaints about councils and councillors in the 2000-01 financial year. Of those complaints 168 related to pecuniary or conflict of interest issues, yet only one of those complaints was prosecuted and taken to the Pecuniary Interest Tribunal. Towards the other end of the spectrum, which is marked by the ineffective code of conduct and self-regulation, are the New South Wales Ombudsman and the Department of Local Government. Both bodies receive and investigate complaints about behaviour that may be less blatant and less serious than those considered by the ICAC or the Pecuniary Interest Tribunal. 21 March 2002 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 949
The Department of Local Government is widely considered in the minds of the public to be the State Government watchdog over local issues. It receives a huge number of complaints and calls for information and assistance. The problem is that the department and the Minister have powers that are not suited to handling routine complaints. Although they can advise councils and exert some pressure to improve the situation, they hold no sanctions or power to require actions for less serious complaints. The only recourse is for the department to hold a public inquiry into a council and for the Minister, if appropriate, to sack a council and appoint an administrator. Naturally that is done only in the most serious circumstances. But borderline or unethical behaviour does not have any remedy as such. The Ombudsman investigates and reports on complaints about the conduct of New South Wales departments or agencies, or their employees. Councillors are not employees, so that presents a problem. The Ombudsman investigates conduct that may be illegal, unreasonable, unjust or oppressive, improperly discriminatory, based on improper motives or irrelevant grounds, or based on the mistake of law or fact. The problem is that the powers are not set up to address the behaviour of councillors other than through conciliation. Where the problem is not structural but is cultural or individual, many complainants are unsatisfied with the outcomes achieved by the Ombudsman. During the 2000-01 financial year the Ombudsman received 3,438 complaints about local councillors. Obviously he investigated those complaints but there was some dissatisfaction about the outcomes. The ethics advisory panel that I have proposed aims to supplement rather than conflict with the jurisdiction of these bodies. Although they have a wide range of powers and interests, it is clear that they have failed to clean up local government to the degree expected by the community. Once again, I do not want to be negative about local government as many councillors put in long hard hours, are totally honest and try to do the right thing. Nevertheless, there is a perceived problem on the part of the community about many council areas. We need to address this problem. One way to address the problem is to look at ethical standards and provide a body that assists the public and assists councillors in improving and lifting their game and lifting standards. So the bill will create an ethics review panel. The functions of this panel will be:
(a) to review the probity and ethical behaviour of councillors,
(b) to ascertain whether councillors are complying with their duty under section 439 to act honestly and exercise a reasonable degree of care and diligence in carrying out their functions …
(c) to review the compliance of councillors with their relevant codes of conduct adopted by their councils under section 440,
(d) to make recommendations and provide advice to councillors on the ethical implications of their conduct,
(e) where the Panel considers it appropriate, to publish recommendations …
(f) to report to Parliament regarding the ethical behaviour of councillors and any other matters considered by the Panel. The review panel may also instruct, advise and assist councils, councillors and members of staff of councils on ways to improve ethical behaviour and practices. The panel may educate councils, councillors, members of staff of councils and the public on strategies to improve ethical behaviour and practices of local governments. The panel may also educate and disseminate information to the public on the detrimental effects of unethical behaviour in local governments and the importance of maintaining the integrity of local governments. The panel must prepare annual reports of its operations, and furnish a report to the Minister. The report must include, among other things, a description of the matters referred to the panel, a description of matters investigated by the panel, recommendations for changes in the laws of the State or administrative action the panel considers should be made as result of the exercise of its function. The report must also include any other general recommendations regarding the ethical behaviour of councillors, code of conduct and other ethical issues relating to local government, and a description of its activities during the year relating to educating and advising functions. The annual report of the local government's ethics review panel is to form part of the annual report of the Department of Local Government, which is submitted to Parliament. The panel is a non-judicial body. One of the aims of the legislation is to provide a non-judicial-type approach to dealing with this difficult, large, grey area in local government. The Department of Local Government has been reluctant to prosecute matters before the Pecuniary Interest Tribunal unless the matter is an open and shut case. If the department pursues action before the Pecuniary Interest Tribunal and does not succeed, its armoury and ability to persuade councils is weakened and it is regarded as a toothless tiger. The department, because it does not want to use resources and create precedents that make it more difficult to oversee local councils, has been reluctant to pursue matters before the Pecuniary Interest Tribunal. Hence, very few cases have come before the tribunal. I cited one from 2000-01. The new panel will advise councils and councillors, and it will receive and examine complaints from the public or other councillors about the conduct of a councillor. 950 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 21 March 2002
The primary sanction of the panel will be to name the councillor and the issues in its annual report or other reports. It is not a judicial issue and no other penalty will apply. It is important to maintain flexibility when trying to control the conduct of councillors in their workings with the council. Members of this Chamber have told me that in many councils developers who actively pursue development activities in the local government area also sit as councillors. The public sees, prima facie, a conflict of interest. Many communities are concerned that these developers get an inside running. Because they are councillors and, therefore, get to know the workings of the system they have an advantage in the local government area. It would be undemocratic, and perhaps legally impossible, to try to preclude people from various occupations seeking election. Everyone should have the right to stand for council, but the issue is what their interests are when they come to the council and how they use or abuse those interests.
Of all the tiers of government, local government is the area in which people are most able to exert influence and gain benefits from being on the council. We have not yet adequately addressed that problem. Hopefully, this bill will resolve the problem. The panel will have the power to delegate officers to take evidence and the ability to take natural justice proceedings. Such proceedings will be informal, in a similar way to the hearings of the Independent Commission Against Corruption. Third parties will be protected. Officers of the panel will be able to administer an oath and require documents to be presented, similar to the power of departmental representatives under section 431 of the Local Government Act. It is intended that investigation officers from the Department of Local Government will be able to act for both the department and the panel at the same time, if necessary.
The panel will report to Parliament each year under privilege, setting out the matters it has dealt with and making any general or specific recommendations it might consider necessary. The panel will have the power to make general recommendations regarding the ethical behaviour of councillors, specific ethical issues and councils code of practice. It also reports on behaviour of individual councillors. It will have the power to counsel individual councillors on their behaviour, either confidentially or publicly. The panel will have disciplinary powers, including recommending that a councillor make an apology, or take appropriate action and issue reports on individual councillors. The Ethics Review Panel will have the power to refer matters to the Director-General of the Department of Local Government for investigation, as well as the Ombudsman and ICAC.
The panel will also have the discretion to adopt a general education awareness-raising role, which may include preparing guidance material, running education seminars and counselling. This is an important bill. We must grasp the nettle on this long-running matter. Clearly the department has not yet been able to deal with this matter to the public's satisfaction. We must give the public certainty about councils and councillors and the way they behave. If we do that we enhance the democratic process of this very important tier of government, local government. The starting point for any democratic system is a strong, viable, local government system. I am hopeful that both the Opposition and the Government will support the bill. I know they are still running the slide rule over it. I commend the bill.
Debate adjourned on motion by Mr Yeadon.
YOUNG OFFENDERS AMENDMENT (REFORM OF CAUTIONING AND WARNING) BILL
Bill introduced and read a first time. Second Reading Mr STONER (Oxley) [10.09 a.m.]: I move:
That this bill be now read a second time. It is with great pleasure that I introduce the Young Offenders Amendment (Reform of Cautioning and Warning) Bill. The bill has a number of objects. The first object is to amend the Young Offenders Act 1997 to provide that young offenders who have previously been convicted or found guilty of an offence by a court or who have previously been dealt with under the Act ought not be warned or cautioned under the Act. The second object of the bill is to require that a parent of a young offender be given notice when the offender is warned or cautioned under the Act. The third object of the bill is to provide for more expeditious application of the scheme established by the Act. The bill would provide for more expeditious application of the scheme in four ways. First, it would require that a warning, caution or conference be given or held as close as possible to the date when the offence 21 March 2002 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 951 to which it relates was committed. Second, it would deprive the child of the opportunity to delay the matter by refusing to choose an adult to be present at the time of admission, caution, giving of explanation or conference. Third, it would give investigating officials the power to appoint a respected member of the community to be present if the child refuses to choose an adult. Fourth, it would remove the discretion of conference administrators and others to overturn referrals for conferences in favour of cautions.
Juvenile crime is a huge issue in rural New South Wales, and indeed throughout the State. Time and again I have been approached in my electorate of Oxley by residents, business people, victims of crime, community groups and even police officers who are concerned about seemingly unabated juvenile crime. Other members share this experience. The message we are consistently getting as parliamentary representatives is that a core group of young offenders is repeatedly committing mainly nuisance crime, with no fear of the consequences.
The current legislation governing such crimes committed by young people, the Young Offenders Act 1997, was intended to give young people who had made a mistake by breaking the law a second chance. That is, they would receive a warning or caution, or in other circumstances participate in a youth justice conference, without the opprobrium of a court appearance or a police record hanging over their heads in future years. Whilst this is an admirable objective, the Young Offenders Act as it stands is full of loopholes in relation to the young recidivist offenders who are making life hell for many law-abiding citizens in our communities.
The reality of this legislation, almost five years since its implementation, is that hardened juvenile criminals are receiving multiple warnings, often for similar crimes, because there is nothing in the Act to prevent that. Similarly, many young offenders are receiving repeated cautions, which, although slightly more formal than a warning, convey many rights to the young person, including the right to determine who is present. There is also no requirement for parents to be told that the child has been apprehended for committing a crime for which they received a warning. So we have the ludicrous situation in which some hard and young thugs repeatedly commit crimes, in the knowledge that they are likely to get off virtually scot-free, without their parents ever knowing.
The Act also gives young offenders enormous rights—for example, to choose which adult or adults are to be present when making an admission or receiving an explanation in relation to an offence, and to give consent to the giving of a caution. These rights, aside from representing significant red tape for investigating police, also effectively enable those in the know to manipulate the outcome, which usually results in a warning rather than a caution or youth justice conference. So again we have a situation where these repeat offenders know very well their rights, which they can use to manipulate the system without ever being forced to acknowledge their responsibilities to the community.
The Act also places time restrictions on the giving of cautions. Of most concern is that under section 26 the caution must be at least 10 days after a notice of caution is given. In this time, many of the problem offenders we are talking about have committed a string of other crimes. Surely commonsense dictates that the caution ought to take place as soon as possible after the commission of the office offence and apprehension by police, in order to provide a stronger link between the undesirable behaviour and the consequences, in terms of a formal caution. By the time they receive a caution, some of these kids have forgotten about which offence they committed.
One feature of the current Act that I do support is the provision for youth justice conferences, which involve the offender and the victim or representatives of the victim and usually result in some type of restorative justice, such as repairs to damaged property and an apology. However, youth justice conferences occur too infrequently, as young offenders who know their rights under the Act are able to avoid them. Additionally, conference convenors currently have the power to refer cases back for cautions or warnings against the wishes of investigating police, and this often occurs.
In the almost five years since the Carr Labor Government brought in the Young Offenders Act, juvenile crime has skyrocketed. It is only now that the Attorney General is reviewing the operation of the Act. We have had five long years of people suffering bag snatchings, house break-ins, vandalism, property theft and stand- over tactics. In country communities like Kempsey, Coonabarabran, Macksville and Narrandera people have had a gutful of lawlessness that sees citizens, especially the elderly, living in fear, afraid to leave their homes in the knowledge that they are likely to be the victim of break and enter or assault. In fact, I have received petitions from literally thousands of people from those and other towns who are disgusted with a system that has allowed young criminals to wreak havoc and walk away with nothing more than a weak slap on the wrist. 952 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 21 March 2002
The system can also be demoralising for police who put in a great deal of effort in apprehending juvenile offenders, only to effectively be laughed at by the young criminal who gets off with yet another warning or caution. Another outcome is that non-juvenile criminals may be getting younger friends or siblings to take the rap, in the knowledge that they will get off with a very weak slap on the wrist. This was certainly the case with a friend of mine in Kempsey, a dear lady who has now had her bag snatched twice. In the first instance, an adult offender took her bag; however, his 14-year-old relative admitted the offence when police found the perpetrator. Of course, he was let off with a warning or caution.
We must not forget that during the recent bushfire crisis most of the deliberately lit fires were lit by juveniles. The Premier, in his grandstanding during that crisis, intervened to ensure that young people apprehended for lighting those fires would not receive a warning or caution. But that is precisely what has been happening. The amendment to the Young Offenders Regulation 1997 introduced by the Government following the Premier's tough talk, however, does very little to address the fundamental problems with the Young Offenders Act. All it does is require that youth justice conference outcome plans arising from arson or bushfire offences include visits to burns units and victims, and some reparation for the offence. But this was the probable outcome under the Young Offenders Act without the amended regulation. The Director of Public Prosecutions stated on 4 January:
The mechanism already exists for that to be done. There's no need for any change to the law to enable that to happen. It can happen now.
So it is clear that the Premier's statements and the subsequent amended regulation were nothing more than spin and rhetoric—an attempt to jump on the bandwagon of public opinion, which was running high following the bushfire crisis. Of even more concern, the amendments did nothing to address the fact that juvenile arsonists under the Young Offenders Act can still get away with a mere warning or caution, never getting anywhere near a youth justice conference. In fact, they could be warned or cautioned on multiple occasions. So the Premier's tough talk and the Government's legislative response were nothing more than window dressing and a cynical attempt to manipulate public opinion. I should like to relate the experience of two of the many thousands of people who want something done about juvenile crime. A man from Kempsey recently wrote to me:
Violence is continuing to get worse here if you read the paper it is full of crime and home invasions. I have been threatened to be killed for bringing in the police to their hood and am extremely worried as are my family which the youngest child is 9 weeks old. The last couple of days my windows on the house have been completely smashed several times and in the last three months they have set fire to 2 houses because white people lived in there and I'm worried I'm next. The police have been helpful in their advice but at the moment their hands are tied because nobody talks to the police here for fear of retaliation. My children do not sleep the whole night through anymore they wake up screaming and I'm forced to sleep during the day for short periods because I also can't sleep at night due to safety concerns for my kids. By the way the last attack happened in the middle of the day while my 9 week old baby was asleep and it is getting to the stage where my family can't go to the shop without harassment, some of the aboriginal families are using 10 year old kids to smash my house up as the kids can't be charged and the police are powerless, I have to sit up virtually 24/7 with a video camera to try to catch these people as this is the only way the police can do something.
Pursuant to sessional orders business interrupted.
CRIMES (SENTENCING PROCEDURE) AMENDMENT (GENERAL SENTENCING PRINCIPLES) BILL
Second Reading
Debate resumed from 14 March.
Mr McGRANE (Dubbo) [10.30 a.m.]: I support the bill. I believe that it will have the support of members on all sides of the political spectrum because it deals with a problem that affects every neighbourhood and every part of New South Wales. I commend the Hon. John Tingle for having introduced the bill in the Legislative Council, and the honourable member for Northern Tablelands for having assumed the carriage of it in this House. I might add that this is the second occasion on which a bill introduced by the Hon. John Tingle in the other place has come to this House by the same process. The first bill was the Workplace (Occupation Protection) Bill, which was passed by both Houses of Parliament and is now law. The current bill follows on from that legislation and the two go hand in hand.
The Crimes (Sentencing Procedure) Amendment (General Sentencing Principles) Bill does not seek fixed penalties for any specific crime. The inclusion of a clause to that effect was opposed by a number of members in the other place concerned that it implied mandatory sentencing. The current bill is innovative in that it confers on the Director of Public Prosecutions [DPP] the right to appeal a sentence or request a retrial if the 21 March 2002 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 953
DPP believes that the court did not take into account the personal circumstances of the victim. That option is not available under the current legislation. In this sense, this bill weights the balance of law towards those members of the community who are defenceless and vulnerable.
Whilst at first glance fixed penalties may appear attractive to many, the bill as presently drafted will generate more scrutiny and contemplation of the cowardly nature of the crimes that the bill seeks to target. In essence, it means that the judge will have to scrutinise details of the attack and check on issues relating to the vulnerability of the victim. The aim of the bill is to differentiate between certain types of offenders who target the defenceless and vulnerable. It will, therefore, provide protection for the older and more vulnerable members of our community. Of course, as well as the aged there are other vulnerable sectors of the community. Every community has some type of concerned action group.
In Dubbo we have a group called Concerned Citizens Action against Crime. That group is linked into another seven groups throughout regional New South Wales. They work together in a loose fashion, in the sense that they have a common goal to make their communities safer. They liaise with their local members of Parliament, and they liaised with the Hon. John Tingle and the honourable member for Northern Tablelands in regard to the framing of this bill. The retirement industry has become one of the few growth industries in regional New South Wales as more and more of our older citizens elect to retire to the larger regional cities or to smaller communities instead of the metropolitan and coastal areas. This situation has come about because of the high cost of real estate in the metropolitan area. Gilgandra, Narromine, Wellington, Parkes, Tullamore and towns of that size all have retirement villages.
The trend is good for those who retire to those villages because they are amongst friends and probably close to family, but, more importantly, the presence of retirees creates jobs in the smaller country areas. Apart from loneliness—and hostels and retirement villages are one way of overcoming that problem—the biggest problem people face when they grow older is security. At the moment there is not enough emphasis on those who perpetrate criminal offences against the vulnerable members of our community. The purpose of this bill is to provide the Police Service and the courts with power to prosecute such offenders.
The instances of attacks against older people in New South Wales increased from 794 in 1995 to 1,502 in 1999—a 100 per cent increase in four years. Although I do not have the current figures to hand, I believe they would show an increase in the number of such attacks. This situation has to stop. We need tougher penalties to deal with these cowardly criminals who target vulnerable members of our community. My understanding is that the House will support the bill. I hope that will be the case. A bipartisan approach is an indication of the concern that all members of Parliament have for our elderly citizens and other defenceless members of the community. Enough is enough, so far as these cowardly criminals are concerned! I commend the bill to the House.
Mr HARTCHER (Gosford) [10.37 a.m.]: This bill lays down a series of principles that the court should take into account in imposing sentence upon a convicted criminal, and those principles are unexceptional. In fact, they reflect what is largely the practice now, a practice determined by long usage and by decisions of courts, of both original and appellate jurisdiction. There is a view in the community that the sentences being imposed upon serious offenders do not reflect community expectations. The Premier, in answer to a question in this House recently concerning a decision of the Court of Criminal Appeal to increase the sentences imposed upon three young gang rapists, made the point that the judges of the Court of Criminal Appeal emphasised in their judgment that the primary role of sentencing is the protection of the community. The Premier stated that that was also the aim of his Government.
It is therefore of concern that new section 21A, which relates to general sentencing principles, places the need to protect the community from the offender as low as paragraph (g). While the mover of the motion in reply may well make the point that each of these paragraphs is to be given equal weight, and that the order in which they are printed does not necessarily reflect their importance, the community would expect the need to protect the community from an offender to be the primary purpose of sentencing, as was enunciated by the Court of Criminal Appeal only two weeks ago, and endorsed by the Premier and the Carr Government only this week. The Coalition parties have long argued, and will continue to argue, that the primary purpose of sentencing is to protect the community. There is no point in having sentencing principles that simply relate to offenders. Sentencing principles must, above all, relate to the protection of the community.
The Coalition will not seek to amend or oppose the bill. I am sure the Minister in his reply will say that all the criteria will be given equal weight and that the courts must take them all into account. Nonetheless, I place on record the Coalition's position: protection of the community is the primary purpose of sentencing 954 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 21 March 2002 principles. A coalition government will advance that principle and adhere to it. The personal circumstances of offenders are significant. They are an important criterion, which is why judges have discretion when imposing sentences. However, the Coalition is of the view that the personal circumstances of offenders will always be second to the need to protect the community.
We are not as concerned about whether offenders—and it is overwhelmingly male offenders—had a hard childhood, a drinking habit or an unfortunate drug addiction as we are about the need to ensure that the community is protected in its daily life. People have the right to walk the streets and to live in their homes in safety. People have the right to protection of their property and of their families. Community protection and community safety are the guidelines of all civilised sentencing. The Carr Government's failure to ensure that that need is reflected in the sentencing process has caused, and will continue to cause, much criticism of the Government.
In 1999 the Premier, in one of his many speeches on this issue, promised to address lenient sentences for serious crimes by introducing sentencing guidelines for a range of offences, including sex offences, home invasion, drug trafficking, burglary, armed robbery and high-range drink driving. What have we seen since then? Last week the Attorney General, who has an army of legal advisers, a whole department, Queen's Counsel, Senior Counsel and the Crown Solicitor behind him, got it so wrong that his case was thrown out of the Court of Criminal Appeal. The Attorney General made a mistake that no first-year law student would be allowed to get away with. The Court of Criminal Appeal ruled that the application before the court was invalid and had to be thrown out. The five judges of the Court of Criminal Appeal said that the application was invalid because it was lodged in September yet the legislation was passed only in December. That revealed the Attorney General's incompetence and that of his department and advisers. The five judges of the Court of Criminal Appeal then raised questions about where the Attorney General is going with sentencing guidelines. That shows how much confidence the five judges have in the Attorney General, who has an armoury at his disposal. The senior Public Defender argued one side of the case and the Crown Advocate argued the other side of the case, but the Attorney General could not lodge his application within the legal requirements. The Attorney General should hang his head in shame. He should make a ministerial statement apologising to Parliament for his incompetence and that of his department. However, he simply tries to sweep the matter under the carpet and pretend it never happened. Today in a carefully presented speech he will pretend it never happened. He will not acknowledge that he and his department blundered, and blundered badly. That blunder was exposed by the five judges of the Court of Criminal Appeal. The Premier's rhetoric on increasing maximum sentences is ongoing. Each time there is a public outcry about a sentence that has been imposed the Premier gives that special look to the television cameras and pledges to increase penalties. Then the Attorney duly introduces into Parliament legislation to increase maximum penalties, which means nothing. The legislation means absolutely nothing because the simple fact is that maximum penalties are imposed only extremely rarely. Judges simply continue the pattern of imposing sentences without having regard to what the Premier and the Attorney General say about maximum sentences. For example, the Court of Criminal Appeal sentencing guideline for armed robbery is a maximum of four to five years imprisonment. However, the discount for a guilty plea starts at about 25 per cent. That means that an offender who pleads guilty can expect his sentence to be reduced by one-quarter simply because he admitted responsibility. Let us look at the statistics. The offence of break, enter and steel carries a maximum penalty of 14 years imprisonment. The Premier and the Attorney General will always look at the cameras and say that the maximum sentence is 14 years imprisonment. Some 97 per cent of break, enter and steal offences are heard in the Local Court, and 57 per cent of offenders do not go to gaol. The Government never mentions that more than half of those who break into properties and steal from them do not go to gaol. All the Government says is that the offence carries a maximum penalty of 14 years imprisonment and that it will support sentencing criteria to protect the community. Of that 57 per cent, 56 per cent of offenders receive a non-parole sentence of six months or less. So virtually only one-quarter of offenders receive a sentence of more than six months imprisonment.
During debate on the bail amendments we heard a great deal about how the Government will protect the community from repeat offenders. Some 50 per cent of repeat offenders do not go to gaol although they have a prior criminal record. And the Government is talking tough about denying them bail. I do not intend to detail the statistics for all offences. The statistics for a range of offences expose the Government as a rank hypocrite. Indeed, it is no surprise that the idea of putting general sentencing principles in a statutory form did not come from the Government; it came from the honourable member for Northern Tablelands. 21 March 2002 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 955
Mr Debus: It actually comes from the Government amendment.
Mr HARTCHER: I congratulate the honourable member for Northern Tablelands on the interest and initiative he has shown. He is showing much more zeal than the Attorney General. I look forward to hearing the Attorney General defend the department's incompetence last week, which was exposed by the Court of Criminal Appeal. This Government is not tough on crime. Despite all the rhetoric, the Government is doing little to ensure that community expectations are reflected in the sentences for a range of serious offences. The Opposition has exposed, and will continue to expose, the Government's Achilles heel until March 2003.
Although the Government has been in office for eight years, the community has lost confidence in its capacity to ensure that serious sentences are imposed for serious crimes. The Premier's rhetoric of being tough on crime and tough on the causes of crime, which he has borrowed from Prime Minister Blair in the United Kingdom, has been exposed as hollow rhetoric. He is not tough on crime, he is not tough on criminals when they are brought before the courts and he is not tough on the causes of crime. The Attorney will argue that the courts are independent and that the Opposition does not understand the separation of powers and is attacking judicial independence. The Opposition is not doing any of that, and the Attorney knows that is not the case. The Opposition is ensuring, through the Parliament—the responsible body elected by the community to reflect its views—that the judges of this State understand the community's expectations.
The community expects that hoodlums and criminals, especially if they are repeat offenders, will go to gaol. All the honeyed words that the Government offers about judicial independence and discretion are not an answer to the fact that community expectations are not being satisfied. The satisfaction of community expectations on a genuinely important community issue through the constitutional framework of this State is what people expect from their Parliament, and what they are entitled to from the Parliament and the Government. The Coalition will continue to raise this issue in the months ahead, and it will expect to receive the support of the community as it pushes this issue for 2003.
Mr DEBUS (Blue Mountains—Attorney General, Minister for the Environment, Minister for Emergency Services, and Minister Assisting the Premier on the Arts) [10.50 a.m.]: The Crimes (Sentencing Procedure) Amendment (General Sentencing Principles) Bill is the amended form of the bill introduced by the Hon. John Tingle, MLC, as the Crimes (Sentencing Procedure) Amendment (Assaults on Aged Persons) Bill in the other place in late 2001. An important focus of this amended legislation is the enhancement of sentencing procedures for crimes committed against vulnerable persons. This focus is consistent with current sentencing principles and, like a similar provision in the Commonwealth Crimes Act, it will require the courts, at sentencing, to give particular attention to the personal circumstances of a victim of crime.
The honourable member for Gosford became very agitated about the deferral last week in the Court of Criminal Appeal of the application for a guideline judgment for sexual assault. The essential reason for the delay was to accommodate any decision Parliament might make in dealing with the bill that is now before us. When the original application for the guideline judgment for sexual assault was lodged some months ago we could not have known that this bill would not have got through Parliament by last week. The bill was introduced into the Legislative Council last year by the Hon. John Tingle and we are now debating it. Once the bill is passed, which I feel certain it will be, the Court of Criminal Appeal will be able to give consideration to it in its guideline judgments, as it would like to do. In other words, the delay represented as cataclysmic by the honourable member for Gosford is no more than a prudent measure to ensure that the Parliament and the Court of Criminal Appeal are able each to discharge their responsibilities with respect to sentencing in a useful and sensible way. The bill introduced in the other place, as I have said, focused upon the elderly. The Government has effectively broadened the significant protections of the bill to a far wider number of vulnerable people in society. While noting the fears of the aged and the particular callousness of those who victimise them, the Government believes that vulnerability to crime cannot be seen as isolated to the elderly alone. Rather, it extends to many groups of vulnerable people including those in particular occupations and those with mental or physical disabilities. The bill, as amended, recognises that victims of criminal activities must be afforded protection in all circumstances—be they aged, young, weak, infirm, alone or at any other risk—and the Government firmly believes that it is through the broad application of strong sentencing principles that are clearly defined that this outcome is best achieved. This expansive approach clearly identifies general sentencing principles to be taken into account in the determination of sentence. A new section 21A (1) of the Crimes (Sentencing Procedure) Act 1999 will outline the clear principle that the court must impose on an offender a sentence of a severity that is appropriate in all the circumstances of the case at hand. 956 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 21 March 2002
In achieving that purpose the bill takes into account a far-reaching set of factors to be taken into consideration by the courts on sentence. These include the age of the victim, and particularly whether the victim is very old or very young, any physical or mental disability and any vulnerability arising out of the nature of the victim's occupation. The bill therefore operates for the protection of numerous groups in our community. One example is our nurses and other health professionals. Affording better protection to our nursing professionals accords with community expectations. I, like my colleague the Minister for Health, am aware of the concerns held by the New South Wales Nurses Association and the Australian Nursing Federation regarding nurse safety.
This bill's provisions complement the joint advertising campaign launched by the Minister for Health, with the Nurses Association, in the middle of last year. This half-million dollar anti-violence awareness campaign was aimed at countering attacks by patients and visitors on nursing professionals. I trust that the measures proposed in this bill will be welcomed by nurses throughout the State. Another group to benefit from this bill's passage will be police officers. All members would be aware of the increased risks faced by frontline service providers. Like their counterparts in the nursing profession, the New South Wales Police Association is properly concerned to ensure that its members receive protections that are commensurate with the risks involved in the course of performing their duties.
I met with senior officials of the Police Association just last week and discussed the need to ensure that the sanctions available act as a strong disincentive to infringement of the rights of police officers. It is perhaps stating the obvious to say that police officers face special risks simply by virtue of the nature of their work. They are often called in to deal with violent or potentially violent situations that members of this place or ordinary members of the public would simply not have to contend with. It is, therefore, entirely appropriate that this bill affords them the greater level of protection they require.
Also of importance is the fact that this bill will operate in respect of all crimes, not just assaults and other crimes against the person. The significance of this is illustrated by the fact that the Criminal Law Review Division of my department advises me that fraud against the aged is 2.2 times more common than physical assaults against them. Research completed by the Australian Institute of Criminology shows that the actual prevalence of assault and violent crime against aged persons, although inexcusable in any circumstance, occurs far less often. The Government's amendments assure the effectiveness of the bill and guarantee that it will operate to protect those who are vulnerable and punish those who prey on them.
The bill ensures that established sentencing principles are required by legislative force to be taken into account on sentence where it is appropriate. The Government's amendments are modeled upon section 16A of the Commonwealth Crimes Act 1914 but with significant modifications. In framing the Government bill statements made by the High Court in Wong v The Queen [2001] HCA 64 about the relationship between section 16A of the Commonwealth Crimes Act and sentencing guidelines have been addressed. The Government's bill explicitly states in new section 21A (4) of the Crimes (Sentencing Procedure) Act 1999 that the matters to be taken into account by a court under section 21A are in addition to any other matters that the court is required or permitted to take into account under the Crimes (Sentencing Procedure) Act 1999 or any other law.
Most notably, the matters to be taken into account under section 21A are in addition to the taking into account by the court of any relevant sentencing guideline issued by the Court of Criminal Appeal under division 4 of part 3 of the Crimes (Sentencing Procedure) Act 1999. As was foreshadowed by the Government when moving its amendments in the other place last November, Government amendments to division 4 of part 3 of the Crimes (Sentencing Procedure) Act 1999 have now been enacted to ensure certainty by way of a legislative basis for sentencing guidelines.
Those amendments included a new section 42A of the Crimes (Sentencing Procedure) Act 1999, which provides that a guideline expressed in a guideline judgment is in addition to any other matter that a court is required to take into account under division 1 of part 3 of that Act and does not limit or derogate from any such requirement. Accordingly, the taking into account by a court of a sentencing guideline is in addition to the matters to be taken into account in new section 21A and does not limit or derogate from a requirement to take those matters into account. Section 21A (4) confirms the operation and effect of existing section 42A of the Act. A proper and balanced accommodation between the requirement of a sentencing court to take into account sentencing guidelines and the matters contained in section 21A is thus achieved.
The general sentencing principles set out in the bill codify longstanding sentencing principles at common law, such as those outlined by the Court of Criminal Appeal in Regina v Bradley, 26 October 1993, 21 March 2002 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 957 unreported, where the court held that specific and general deterrence must be provided by sentences for offences against elderly persons and other such victims. That case involved an elderly victim of a bag snatcher. The bill is well balanced. Its principles acknowledge and encourage the presence of contrition by the offender, recognise the role to be played by rehabilitation and yet strongly recognise the need to protect the community, adequately punish the offender and deter future commissions of similar criminal activity. The bill will also guarantee strong public confidence in the courts of New South Wales through the promotion of clearly defined sentencing principles. A strong message needs to be sent that the community will not tolerate assaults and other criminal activities perpetrated against our most vulnerable citizens and those whose occupation make them vulnerable to aggressive conduct. It is these groups that this legislation squarely protects.
However, before I close it is appropriate that I remind the House of the statistics concerning prison sentences at the moment. I do this particularly in response to some of the quite peculiar propositions put forward by the honourable member for Gosford in his contribution. The Bureau of Crime Statistics and Research figures released at the end of last year for 1990-2000 refer to the percentage of proven charges receiving a prison sentence. They indicate, quite contrary to the propaganda of the honourable member for Gosford and his cohorts, that the percentage of proven charges receiving a prison sentence rose for seven out of nine major categories of offences during that decade. Charges for murder, assault, sexual assault, sexual assault against children, robbery, break and enter, and fraud have each shown a significant upward trend in the proportion of proven charges that are receiving a custodial penalty. That does not fit with the simplistic nostrums of the honourable member for Gosford.
In the Local Courts the percentage of proven charges receiving imprisonment remained largely unchanged between 1993 and 2000, with the exception of charges for break and enter. The percentage of break and enter charges given a sentence of imprisonment by the Local Courts rose from 34 per cent in 1993 to 37 per cent in 1997. The average prison sentence imposed by the higher criminal courts for proven robbery charges— the more serious offences—declined between 1999 and 2000, but those sentences reflect the fact the less serious forms of robbery are now being dealt with by way of a prison sentence, whereas previously they might have received a lesser penalty. The average prison sentence imposed in the Local Courts for opiate dealing increased significantly from 1993 to 2000.
That is sufficient information to demonstrate that the honourable member for Gosford and those who sit with him have made empty charges and suggestions. Without any evidence whatsoever, they have claimed that there has been some kind of softening on criminals—a claim that is proven to be incorrect by every piece of objective evidence available. Nevertheless, the matters that I have discussed in relation to this bill are of great significance. I believe that this bill—which was introduced in another place by the Hon. John Tingle, and supported by the Government and by the honourable member for Northern Tablelands and the honourable member for Dubbo—will reinforce the views of the Parliament to the courts. It is a most useful and important piece of legislation. I commend the bill to the House.
Mr FRASER (Coffs Harbour) [11.05 a.m.]: I support the bill. I commend the Hon. John Tingle for introducing the bill in the Legislative Council. I also commend the honourable member for Northern Tablelands, who has carriage of the bill in this House. This bill deals with protecting the elderly and vulnerable. The Minister criticised the comments made by the honourable member for Gosford, but by supporting the bill he has made an admission that the courts and the legal system have not dealt with these matters in the way the public expects. I recognise the show girls and rural achievers who are in the gallery today. I am sure that they will support this legislation because it will give them a feeling of greater security in the communities they represent.
I recognise the following show girls in the gallery: Margaret Roser, Camden Show Society; Alicia Pope, Hawkesbury Show Society, Rebecca O'Neill, Coffs Harbour Show Society—which is in the best electorate and area in New South Wales; Monique Amor, North Coast National A. & I. Society; Julianne Carroll, Wagga Wagga Show Society; Rachael Hamblin, Ganmain Show Society; Megan Angel, The Rock Show Society; Susan Bower, Singleton Show Society; Edwina Thompson, Dunedoo Show Society; Claudia Wythes, Canowindra Show Society; Edwina Thompson, Dunedoo Show Society; Claudia Wythes, Canowindra Show Society; Rachelle Welsh, Eugowra Show Society; Niaomi Ridley, Condobolin Show Society; Julie Corkhill, Boorowa Show Society; Sarah Holley, Tenterfield Show Society; and Belinda McMillan, Moree Show Society.
I compliment Kate Woodward from Dorrigo—also in the best electorate in New South Wales—who was last year's miss show girl. Last year I embarrassed Kate by predicting that she would be the winner—and she was. Kate has carried out her duties with great dignity and poise. The community of Dorrigo and I are very 958 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 21 March 2002 proud of her and she is held in great respect across the whole of New South Wales. Last year Kate opened the Dorrigo show with great dignity and poise in fairly trying conditions—the microphone did not work and a storm was coming over the horizon. I will not embarrass this year's Coffs Harbour show girl by predicting her as the winner, as I did with Kate last year. The North Coast girls have an edge because they live in a great electorate.
I also recognise in the gallery the rural achievers: Debbie Williams, Dubbo; Michael Conners, Cherrybrook; Amy Perfrement, Currabubula; Kylie Bailey, Wee Waa; Sally Barton, Armidale; Andrew Hamilton, Leeton; Brad Gavenlock, Hannam Vale; Michele Kumm, Armidale; and Kate Woodward, Dorrigo. I apologise to them for not being at the morning tea this morning. I had duties to perform in the House. I wish them all well. I know they will all enjoy themselves in Sydney. Parliament tends to be a boring place at times but they have come to see how democracy works, which is great for us and great for them. I hope they enjoy the show. I commend the bill to the House.
Mr TORBAY (Northern Tablelands) [11.09 a.m.], in reply: I thank all honourable members who contributed to the debate on this bill. The honourable member for Dubbo worked closely with me in putting forward the views of the community on the bill originally introduced by the Hon. John Tingle in the other place. The honourable member for Gosford, the shadow Attorney General, made a contribution that overwhelmingly supported the bill. Despite raising some issues not directly related to the bill—but nonetheless answered by the Attorney General—the honourable member for Gosford indicated the support of the Opposition for this bill. The honourable member for Coffs Harbour also expressed his support for the bill, but he then deviated from discussing the bill to acknowledge the presence of a number of people in the public gallery.
The bill was well supported by all who spoke in the debate, be they Government members, Opposition members or crossbench members. As the Attorney General said, the original bill introduced by the Hon. John Tingle was the subject of substantial Government amendments in the other place. Those amendments broadened the bill's provisions to encompass not only the elderly but also the very young and those with disabilities, as well as a number of occupations. The Attorney General, in his detailed contribution to the debate, outlined the significant benefits of the bill. They were the core reasons that the Hon. John Tingle introduced the bill. I am sure all honourable members would agree that their communities have indicated that community expectations in respect of sentencing are not often satisfied by the judicial system.
The bill spells out general sentencing principles that reflect community opinion. I am pleased that members of all political persuasions have seen fit to support the bill. Bills introduced by Independent members, members of Opposition parties and crossbenchers are rarely passed by both Houses. This is not the first bill of the Hon. John Tingle to do so. This is the second bill that I have introduced in this Chamber on his behalf that will become law. I think that says that this is good legislation. This measure, as the Attorney General pointed out, follows a number of law and order initiatives that the Government is introducing. This measure raises the bar on law and order and accountability issues. I am delighted by that. Honourable members do not always have to engage in political point scoring; there are some issues dealt with in this Parliament on which everyone agrees and which do the right thing by the community. We do not see enough of that in this Chamber. I am delighted that the debate on this bill has focused on the issues.
As the Attorney General also pointed out, this bill allows the Government to seek guideline judgments. The case referred to by the shadow Attorney General, the honourable member for Gosford, and the Attorney General can now go through the process of guideline judgments. If this legislation is passed—as it appears it will be, without opposition—the Government will be free to pursue such guideline judgments. Sentencing principles are very important. The original discussions between the Hon. John Tingle, various community members, the honourable member for Dubbo and me sought to ensure tougher sentences for those who would seek out some of the most vulnerable people in our community and commit offences against them. Statistics on these abhorrent offences were showing that legislative action needed to be taken. It is pleasing that the Government amendments broadened the provisions of the bill to include the very young and those with disabilities, as well as various occupations. The two occupations mentioned by the Attorney General were policing and nursing. But the provisions of the bill are much broader than that.
Whilst the community and the Parliament have been overwhelmingly positive, some concerns have been raised that this measure attempts to dictate to the judiciary and require the imposition of the principle of mandatory sentencing. That is clearly not the case. The Attorney General summed up the position well in his closing comments, indicating that the bill is balanced, sets general sentencing principles and allows the Government to seek guidelines judgments. The bill has the overwhelming support of the community, who called for repeat offenders who seek out the most vulnerable in our community to be given tougher sentences. We 21 March 2002 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 959 should do everything in our power to stop these crimes. This bill complements bail legislation that is being debated in this Parliament. The bill is a move in the right direction to protect the community. I commend the bill to the House.
Motion agreed to.
Bill read a second time and passed through remaining stages.
PARLIAMENTARY ELECTORATES AND ELECTIONS AMENDMENT (ENROLMENT AND VOTING) BILL
Second Reading
Debate resumed from 16 November 2000.
Mr STEWART (Bankstown—Parliamentary Secretary) [11.18 a.m.]: The amendments proposed in this bill are unworkable, unfair and unnecessary. There are two major reasons that the amendments relating to identification for enrolling to vote are flawed. The amendments will make enrolling to vote more difficult for many ordinary people. They may even discourage some people from applying to enrol at all. Residents of rural and remote New South Wales in particular could face significant obstacles finding acceptable referees and sufficient documentary proof of identity. In the face of potential voter disenfranchisement, there should be overwhelming evidence that a change such as this is justified. There is, of course, no evidence at all of that kind.
The new identification requirements are also objectionable because they are not consistent with the changes that the Commonwealth Government has been considering for its own electoral identification requirements. The bill does not even conform in that regard. It would be a great burden for voters, and potentially very expensive for the State, to put in place a new identification system that is different from the Commonwealth's proposed new arrangements. If New South Wales were to adopt a new system, it should be one which aims for maximum consistency with the Commonwealth, quite obviously, to reduce confusion and costs.
The bill also proposes that every New South Wales voter should re-enrol under the new identification requirements. More than four million voters are currently enrolled in New South Wales. There is absolutely no need to spend millions of dollars to force millions of voters to re-enrol. Even the Commonwealth's proposed new requirements would not apply to people who are already on the electoral roll. Such a process would simply be a shameful waste of public money and would discourage many qualified voters from re-enrolling. It would also very strongly undermine public confidence in the electoral system. The proposal for a voter identification card is also a very mischievous attempt to disfranchise New South Wales voters.
First, it may not be possible to guarantee that all newly enrolling voters receive their cards in time for an election and it could create unnecessary confusion for voters who do not receive their cards in time. Second, the bill assumes that it is a good idea for the State to incur extra cost by inventing the identity of people who forget their cards or who cannot bring their cards to the polling booth on election day. It is not a good idea and it would be a total waste of public money. All the amendments proposed by this bill are ill-considered and totally unwarranted. The bill will not achieve its aims, unless those aims are to undermine the integrity of the New South Wales electoral system.
Mr FRASER (Coffs Harbour) [11.21 a.m.], in reply: If ever I have heard drivel, the speech that has just been delivered by the honourable member for Bankstown, the Parliamentary Secretary Assisting the Minister for Roads, is it! I would love to know who wrote that speech for him. I refer to the weekend edition of the Australian Financial Review of 2 and 3 December 2000, in which a banner headline is "RORTS Queensland's Vote Scandal Spreads". People in this Parliament or throughout Australia who believe that rorting in Queensland began in Queensland are having themselves on. The New South Wales right of the Australian Labor Party has for years rorted the system. The Parliamentary Secretary has said that there is not one skerrick of evidence of rorting, but let us examine the evidence of Joe Moran, who stood as a Labor Party candidate for election as the Coffs Harbour representative in 1988.
In 1988 the Port Stephens election result was contested because of shady practices put forward by the then member's handing out of cheques, et cetera. The matter was taken to the Court of Appeal, which decided that a new election should be held. At that time Joe Moran lived in Macksville and he intended to stand against 960 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 21 March 2002 the sitting member, Matt Singleton, but he went down to Port Stephens as an organiser for the ALP to assist in the by-election. The first place he called to when he arrived at Port Stephens was the post office, where he changed his electoral enrolment to an address which was a commercial block of land in Port Stephens. No-one lived at that address. It was a commercial block and it had no residential facilities. Someone of a quite studious disposition realised that no-one should be living at that address and checked out the enrolment. That person found out that Mr Moran had illegally enrolled at that address in order to provide an additional vote to the then honourable member for Port Stephens, yet the Parliamentary Secretary is telling me that there is no electoral fraud. Mr Moran was charged and fined, and probably should have been gaoled.
As a result of the Queensland experience, the Queensland Premier introduced the Electoral and Other Acts Amendment Bill 2002. I am bemused by that bill because, although the Premier of Queensland has encompassed a number of measures in the legislation, he has not cleansed the Queensland electoral roll. I will deal with the Queensland bill in more detail when I examine the remarks made by the Queensland Premier during his second reading speech. My purpose in bringing forward this legislation is to cleanse the New South Wales electoral roll. The Parliamentary Secretary suggested reasons why voter identification cards should not be introduced.
Mr Brown: It would be a waste of money.
Mr FRASER: The honourable member for Kiama suggests that they are a waste of money. That is funny, because at the most recent State election in 1999 every person who was enrolled to vote at that election received a note from the Electoral Commissioner telling them that they were on the roll, and that is basically a voter identification card. It was suggested to electors by the Electoral Commissioner that they take that piece of paper to the polling booth on voting day to claim their vote. The principle underpinning that suggestion is absolutely no different from the principle that is embedded in the bill before the House. The principle of the voter enrolment card is that each and every one of us has a right to be assured that our vote is not negated by a dud vote that has been put on the roll by the Labor Party.
I can show members opposite some documents which prove that in one preselection ballot in Western Sydney 11 people were shown to be living in a one-bedroom flat. I suggest that that would not be physically possible. However, in an internal preselection ballot for the ALP, someone was stacking the branch and put 11 names at one address. In fact, one of the people named has admitted that he had nothing to do with that ballot. Although not so much electoral fraud, it was fraud within the preselection system. The same type of activity went on in Queensland. The Australian Labor Party members were using that device to ensure that a particular candidate won preselection for that branch, and that is what the Queensland legislation is all about. That is why Premier Beattie said that he would cleanse the system and sort the system out.
The legislation introduced by the Queensland Premier is basically designed to resolve preselection issues within the Labor Party. It has nothing to do with electoral fraud in the wider sense of the term. The bill is all about sorting out the mess that the Labor Party got itself into because its system of preselection dictates that a candidate must be on the roll and must live within a specified area before a member of the ALP has an opportunity to participate in the preselection ballots for a local Labor candidate at a local branch meeting. Although the Queensland Premier may have resolved some of the internal problems of the Labor Party in Queensland, what he has not done is resolve the wider issue of electoral fraud in Queensland.
Mr Brown: What about the fraud in Coffs Harbour?
Mr FRASER: That comment reflects the frivolous way in which members opposite participate in debate. The honourable member for Kiama has been a member of this House for only five minutes, figuratively speaking. He is probably worried about his own preselection because he is not much of a performer.
Mr Stewart: He is rock solid.
Mr FRASER: How does the Parliamentary Secretary know that he is rock solid? Because members of the Labor Party have the branches stacked. How many people registered in one-bedroom flats has the honourable member for Kiama got voting for him in his preselection ballot? I could release a document about a Western Sydney electorate in relation to a preselection in Western Sydney. That document came from the political party to which the honourable member for Kiama belongs. While I will not embarrass the honourable member by doing so, I assure him that it exists. The bill requests people to provide two forms of identification to the Electoral Commissioner. 21 March 2002 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 961
For example, a primary identification document could be a certified copy of an extract of a birth certificate or a citizenship certificate which shows the voter's name. In addition, a voter could produce a current passport bearing his or her name. People can produce an expired passport, provided it was not cancelled and that it was current within the preceding two years. That is fair, that is democracy. I have said before in debate in this House that people can register their dogs to vote in New South Wales. If a dog's name is Lassie Brown, that name would be entered on the document, the document would be signed, it would be sent to the Electoral Commissioner and Lassie Brown would be entered on the roll.
Mr Brown: Point of order: The honourable member for Coffs Harbour is misleading the House. Dogs and cats cannot be registered in this State. Electoral forms are quite clear. Only people can be registered to vote. The honourable member for Coffs Harbour is not being truthful.
Mr ACTING-SPEAKER (Mr Lynch): Order! There is no point of order.
Pursuant to sessional orders debate interrupted.
PUBLIC LIABILITY INSURANCE
Mr ARMSTRONG (Lachlan) [11.30 a.m.]: I move:
That this House:
(1) notes the overwhelming community support, as evidenced in two community meetings held in Cootamundra and Forbes, for reform of public liability insurance, and support for capping or reducing damages for personal injury, and the exemption of volunteers and small community organisations from liability.
(2) calls on Federal, State and local governments to launch an education program aimed at convincing people to "stop suing each other" and to "accept responsibility for themselves".
Since I gave notice of this motion and after holding two forums on public liability insurance in Cootamundra and Forbes there has been an overwhelming response to this issue from people in every town, village, city and suburb in New South Wales. Public liability insurance is an issue that affects virtually everyone. The social, cultural and sporting life of our communities is seriously affected—in some cases it is drastically affected— because of the cost of public liability insurance. In some cases people simply cannot obtain public liability insurance cover for special annual events. Town centenary celebrations cannot be put off—100 years is 100 years. If we cannot obtain public liability insurance to cover such an event we will have to wait for another hundred years. I doubt whether many people will be around for the second celebration.
Every year the New South Wales Land Rover Club, which is based in Newcastle, organises a week- long drive somewhere in New South Wales for its patrons. At present that club simply cannot afford public liability insurance. A small hotel in Burcher—Burcher is located in the west of New South Wales and it has a population of 40—is owned by a resident of the Ryde district. For some years patrons of Burcher Hotel have been travelling to Ryde to play cricket on Ryde oval with members of the Ryde Returned Services Leagues Club. This year the cricket team was told that it needed its own public liability insurance. As the average age of cricketers is over 60, it is not likely that they will be doing any damage. However, they might fall over on the cricket oval. A group of 14 people who have strong religious beliefs and who meet in a room at one of our larger city council chambers have been told that they cannot have that room unless they carry their own public liability insurance. This crisis has reached dramatic levels. A letter dated 17 March states:
I am an active supporter of sport in New South Wales and my sport of Cycling is currently experiencing difficulties in maintaining its viability through the burden of costs imposed on it from outside parties.
Recently as you may be aware the costs of Public Liability Insurance Premiums are being steeply increased across various Councils and Shires in our state to the point where Cycling New South Wales and its clubs are now being asked to pay beyond their means.
The effect of this is that my club and others will find it impossible to meet the demands of insurance premiums, will be forced to close and will not be able to provide the health and other benefits that sport provides. There can be no doubt about the benefit of sports across the community both in terms of peoples wellbeing and the contribution this makes in reducing the burden on the taxpayer in the health bill.
Kind regards
David Page Cycling New South Wales 962 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 21 March 2002
There is nothing more basic than cycling down the street or round the park or using a cycle for exercise or for fun. I received this completely unsolicited letter—
Mr George: I received it too.
Mr ARMSTRONG: The honourable member for Lismore, and I suspect most other honourable members, also received this letter, which states that it might be impossible for people to cycle in the future as they simply cannot afford to obtain insurance. Tomorrow the 2002 Royal Easter Show will commence. Over the past 150 years one of the highlights of the show has been the ring events—ponies, hacks and harness horses. It is a wonderful spectacle. Most of those ponies are ridden by juveniles in a number of classes, for example, the under 9 and under 10 classes. Those juveniles ride ponies for recreation. During the 1993-94 bushfires more than 8,000 horses were moved in the county of Cumberland. I do not know how many ponies were moved during the Christmas bushfires. Riding is a major recreational sport. The largest horse riding association in Australia is the Australian Stock Horse Society, which has just under 10,000 members. A few years ago the Roads and Traffic Authority informed me that 8,000 to 9,000 recreational horses are moved every weekend around this State. Events such as camp drafts, rodeos and charity gymkhanas will not be able to be held and riding schools and clubs will be unable to function because they simply cannot afford the public liability insurance premiums. It is the responsibility of the Government to ensure that quality of life is maintained in our community, which is one of the reasons I have moved this motion today. Yesterday the Premier referred to a number of aspects concerning public liability insurance and he said that those matters were under consideration or they were matters to which this Government was going to give further thought. The Premier included in those aspects a cap on insurance premiums, an exemption for volunteers and charitable organisations and a threshold. Those measures would be welcome but so far nothing has happened. His statements have not helped anybody. The Premier and the Government will have to change the regulations and introduce legislation if they wish to assist those organisations. We must move quickly in this area. On 27 March Senator Coonan will hold a national conference on public liability insurance in Canberra. Each State will be represented at that conference. I suspect that there will be much rhetoric but it will take 12 months or more before we see the results of that conference. However, the cyclists, horse riders, Land Rover clubs and the Tumblong Progress Association—which is staging a centenary celebration in the Burrinjuck electorate—cannot wait for 12 months. Cricketers in Burcher and Ryde, a wool festival in Forbes and a billycart race at Hay cannot wait for another 12 months. Honourable members will remember the saga involving the selling of Anzac Day pins at various malls. I understand that the Government has taken action in that regard, mainly through RSL clubs. Some organisations have got together and they are pooling their resources so that they can bulk buy public liability insurance. The Government should give them every encouragement and assistance to achieve that aim. The New South Wales Agricultural Society council has pooled its insurance for some years now. It has been able to obtain cover for the next 12 months for an increase of only 5 per cent on last year's premium. Queensland has just gone through the same exercise. Its increase in premiums is 70 per cent and the increase in premiums for South Australia is 15 per cent. More work must be done in this area. New South Wales is fine as claims in this State are low. As individuals we all have a responsibility for the health and welfare of others. If I slipped and fell down a step at the home of any member I would view that fall as being my fault. If my grandchildren are playing in the local council park one of them might climb up an old peppertree, fall out of the tree, and break an arm. That is what kids do. Kids also fall off ponies. Although they should not do so, kids also go down public pool waterslides backwards and crack their teeth. It might cost more than $12,000 to have their teeth fixed. If the council owns the waterslide, they then try to recover that $12,000 from the council. But if a similar incident occurs in my backyard, they get nothing. Surely there are risks in life that we have to take. People cannot expect councils, governments, supermarket owners or apartment block owners to take responsibility for accidents that occur as part of our daily lives. After all, human beings are fairly clumsy. I call on the Government to spend a little bit of funding on educating people in that regard. We must remember that when we put our kids on a bike, let them climb up a peppertree or go down a waterslide in a public pool, they are our responsibility. That is part of growing up; it is part of life. We must not expect someone else to give us a free meal ticket just because of an accident for which we were responsible. Mr STEWART (Bankstown—Parliamentary Secretary) [11.40 a.m.]: The Government is well aware of the enormous increases in premiums being paid by non-government organisations, voluntary organisations 21 March 2002 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 963 and small businesses for public liability insurance. Many of the largest increases seem to apply to organisations that can least afford them, organisations that make an integral contribution to the community by providing aged care; support to children, teenagers and adults with disabilities; much-needed recreational activities in country towns, and out-of-school care. Church groups are also affected. As the honourable member for Lachlan rightly pointed out, rural groups are especially hard hit by the increases. Finding a solution to this problem is critical for the whole community. As we all know, the Premier made a comprehensive statement on this matter yesterday. The Premier's statement provided considerable detail of what the Government proposes to do and what, in complementary fashion, the Commonwealth should undertake to do. The statement has been generally well received as a responsible and well-considered package based on detailed research and analysis. It is a shining example of New South Wales leading the way on important issues.
In contrast, the Opposition spokesperson on this issue, the honourable member for Southern Highlands, contented herself with chanting a few poorly considered slogans and making a couple of motherhood statements without any real meaning or substance; they were simply rhetoric without any foundation. The paucity of the Opposition's contribution to this vital debate is shown in an article in the Cooma-Monaro Express of 14 March. In that article the former member for Monaro, Peter Cochran, a strong stalwart of the National Party and a good mate of the honourable member for Lachlan who is known to members of this House for his robust communication style, put his finger on the weaknesses of the honourable member for Southern Highlands. In the article Peter Cochran slammed her pathetic politicisation of this issue. He derided her for meaningless political spin doctoring that does nothing to address the real problems being faced in country areas. How right he is! What robust country commonsense he shows!
Ms Hodgkinson: Point of order: The Parliamentary Secretary is clearly misleading the House. The honourable member for Southern Highlands has worked very hard on this issue.
Mr ACTING-SPEAKER (Mr Lynch): Order! The Parliamentary Secretary has the call.
Mr STEWART: I want to give credit to the honourable member for Lachlan as well. At the outset he acknowledged that this public liability crisis must be addressed by a multipronged approach. We applaud that; it is a sensible and commonsense approach. He shows sensible leadership in that regard. It is a great tragedy that he no longer leads the National Party. As he said, insurance companies, lawyers, and State and Federal governments must all come to the party. He has not indulged in the simple-minded sloganeering and rhetoric of the honourable member for Southern Highlands. Members of the House, with the exception of the honourable member for Southern Highlands, know that we cannot find the answers to this problem unless we first analyse its causes. It is important to note that the premium increases have a number of causes, including the increasing number of claims, cyclical economic factors and the collapse of HIH Insurance.
The latest JP Morgan 2002 interim insurance survey, also known as the Deloittes Trowbridge survey, dated 25 February states that the main reason for insurers' withdrawal from the market is that the business has been unprofitable. The report notes that the business has been historically underpriced and that there has been an increase in both the size and frequency of claims. Other sources indicate that HIH had a market share of about 40 per cent of public liability policies, a massive market share. Other insurers do not want all of that business. A further factor in insurance pricing increases is likely to be the introduction of new prudential standards by the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority [APRA]. These standards require insurers to have greater capital reserves and to charge premiums to cover a higher level of risk than before. Those new standards make public liability insurance less attractive for insurers and more expensive for consumers.
In addition to these market-based reasons for increasing public liability insurance premiums, it cannot be denied that the number of claims and the amounts awarded in contested claims have increased. The Government has highlighted that. According to APRA, the number of liability claims has increased by around 50 per cent in the past three years. The factors I have described as driving public liability insurance increases are national issues. They are not matters that the State Government can resolve. The Government has made that point repeatedly. National leadership is essential on this issue. The Commonwealth Government must act to address the causes of the public liability insurance crisis and develop solutions. The Government welcomes the offer of a forum extended by Senator Coonan, the Minister for Financial Services Regulation.
It is incontestable that the Federal Government has exclusive responsibility under the Commonwealth Constitution for the regulation of the insurance industry. Despite the urging of the Premier and the Treasurer, the Howard Government has refused to acknowledge any responsibility for public liability insurance. The Premier wrote to the Prime Minister on 22 November last year calling for a national insurance summit. No response was 964 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 21 March 2002 received until 27 January this year. Given the collapse of HIH and other factors that have contributed to this public liability insurance crisis, it is appalling that it took the Prime Minister until 27 January to reply to a letter that the Premier wrote in November last year. In his reply the Prime Minister said he saw no need to convene a national summit on this issue. The Commonwealth Assistant Treasurer, Senator Coonan, now acknowledges the gravity of the situation —and so she should. There will be a summit on 27 March that will be attended by all States and Territories to discuss public liability.
Mr George: Thanks to Helen Coonan.
Mr STEWART: Thanks to this State initiating the direction and focus. The New South Wales Government looks forward to playing a constructive role in those discussions. Some of the solutions I have already suggested lie not with government but with the insurance industry. The industry needs to be accountable and to take responsibility for this problem. The industry will need to consider improving the way it undertakes risk profiles of certain organisations, so that an organisation with an excellent claims history is not unfairly burdened by premiums. The industry will also have to look at developing improved long-term risk management practices of its own.
In addition, as I have already said, it is clear that insurance companies will have to follow other branches of the financial services industry and demonstrate a greater commitment to their social obligations towards consumers and the wider community. The comments I have made should not be taken as meaning that the State Government is not acting to address the problem. The State Government has already held discussions with the Insurance Council of Australia, the New South Wales Council of Social Services, arts and sporting organisations and local government about the causes and effects of the problems with the public liability insurance. A $600 million rescue package has been put in place as a consequence of the collapse of HIH Insurance.
The matter is now in hand with the focus of this summit. I reiterate that the Government is especially aware of the position of volunteers who can be exposed to claims, even when they do their best to provide a safe service. The contribution of volunteers to the community cannot be underestimated, and the Government wants to extend some protection to the services they provide. The strategies I have outlined will shield volunteers from unmeritorious claims that deter community groups from providing services to the community at large.
In conclusion, I reiterate that this complex problem is not confined to New South Wales. It is a national problem, and a comprehensive national solution is required. Monitoring the insurance industry for anticompetitive practices under the Trade Practices Act, considering the need to subject the industry to price monitoring under the Prices Surveillance Act and examining the current conduct of insurers towards consumers, including small businesses, to assess whether unconscionable tactics are being used are matters that should be discussed at the summit. We must deal with the problem in partnership with the Federal Government and with the co-operation of other States. The ball is in the Federal Government's court, and we need the Federal Government's assistance with this massive problem.
Mr GEORGE (Lismore) [11.49 a.m.]: I support the motion moved by the honourable member for Lachlan. Like all members of this House, I am concerned about the affordability and availability of public liability insurance and the impact of premiums on small business communities, groups, local councils, halls, showgrounds—the list goes on. I have been unable to find one place on the map that is not affected by the problem of public liability insurance; it affects each and every one of us in this State. Public liability insurance is the responsibility of State governments. It is all very well for the Parliamentary Secretary to say that it is a national problem, but it is the State Government's responsibility. The State Government collects millions of dollars each year in stamp duty, and it must do something about the problem. Rhetoric is not good enough; the State Government must take action.
Thank goodness the Howard Government is doing something about the problem. Senator Helen Coonan has organised a conference to be held on 27 March, and I expect the New South Wales Government to participate. Like all members of this House, I have received many letters about public liability insurance. I received a letter from the Northern Rivers ME/CFS/FM Support Association Incorporated, a small organisation in Lismore, thanking me for meeting them to discuss the dreadful situation with public liability insurance in this State. That organisation received a letter from GIO Australia which stated:
I refer to your policy …
Please be advised that due to changed underwriting guidelines GIO Australia is unable to offer renewal of the above policy. 21 March 2002 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 965
Everyone is facing the same problem. I received a letter from the Northern Rivers Regional Organisation of Councils Incorporated. I am pleased to welcome to the gallery the Mayor of Richmond Valley Council, three Richmond Valley councillors and Mayor Bob Gates of Lismore City Council. They wrote to me on 11 December. Local government is facing big problems with public liability insurance. I also received a letter from Robert Clarke of Levuka Park, a four-wheel drive park at Urbenville, which stated:
Our business attracts several thousand people annually from southern Queensland who inject a huge amount of cash into the local shops …
That injection of money in the local economy is much needed in these small areas. The letter further stated:
One of my fellow Park owners who have motor bikes have been hit with huge premium increase of 1400 per cent which makes it difficult to remain viable …
Sir we do need your support to lobby the NSW Government to enact Legislation to cap the ridiculous payouts for very minor injuries, rehabilitation should be used with some compensation for income loss.
I received a good submission from North Coast Financial Services, which specialises in insurance. The Managing Director, Tim Parry, made five sensible suggestions, which the Government should take on board. I will highlight his suggested strategies to help alleviate the problem. The submissions stated:
I. Cap on common law payouts …
II. Limit common law payouts only to those suffering severe and permanent injury …
III. Put some strength into the effectiveness of "disclaimer notices" …
IV. Massive lump sums should not be given. Instead, a lifetime annuity should be made available to the injured person and this should cease on that persons death. Enough money should be made available for every initial expense such as medical, carers, house or vehicle modifications etc. After that weekly payments should be made.
V. More stringent supervision of the insurance industry is necessary, with adequate prudential resources and regular thorough reporting. I encourage the Parliamentary Secretary to take those suggestions on board. I am honoured to support the motion moved by the honourable member for Lachlan. Mr HICKEY (Cessnock) [11.54 a.m.]: I thank honourable members for the opportunity to participate in this debate. Public liability insurance is undoubtedly one of the most pressing issues facing the Australian community. It is not only a New South Wales problem, as the Opposition would have us believe; it is a nationwide problem that can be fixed only by the concerted efforts of all States and Territories, as well as leadership from the Commonwealth Government. That is why I support the Premier's efforts to tackle this difficult issue. I note some of the measures announced in the House yesterday by the Premier. The public liability package, which is being taken to today's meeting of State Treasurers, contains a series of measures designed to keep frivolous cases out of the courts. I am only too aware of the crucial need to balance a person's right to sue and the need to rein in spiralling legal and insurance costs. In the Hunter alone many community events have had to be cancelled because of ridiculous and unsustainable insurance premium hikes. It has also affected many council-sponsored events. Indeed, councils are bearing much of the brunt of the public liability issue. For example, Dungog Shire Council has been forced to erect a childproof fence and locked gate around the historic steamroller that sits in Lions Park. That will prevent children from exploring this relic from the past—a pastime enjoyed by children for more than 40 years. Gresford in the Hunter has been forced to cancel the annual Easter Fair billycart derby because of a steep hike in insurance costs to cover liability. The derby is the central fundraising event for the town, which has a population of only 400. It attracts more than 1,000 people and undoubtedly is the town's major tourism drawcard every year. A Dungog Shire Council survey found that three businesses have closed, including a bed and breakfast operator. As well, two community groups have had to cancel events because of the public liability crisis. In Singleton the crisis has threatened the use of 14 rural halls which are used for weddings, fundraisers and birthday parties. And the famous Scone horse festival, which involves some 100,000 people, is also threatened. Other events under threat are the Gloucester community markets, the Upper Hunter billycart championships, the Quirindi annual fundraising parade, Merriwa's Festival of the Fleeces and the Turill July fireworks night. The community is paying the price for the lack of commitment by the insurance and legal professions to take this issue seriously. I am aware of the comments made by the legal profession about the proposals put 966 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 21 March 2002 forward by the Premier, and I believe they are unhelpful. Why should a person who is drunk or on drugs be able to claim damages? Why should a good samaritan risk being sued when he or she is helping out in an emergency? Why should a criminal be able to sue his victim after committing a crime? These are just some of the areas the Government is attempting to rectify, as the Premier outlined in his statement yesterday.
We have already begun to tackle this issue with measures including a $600 million rescue package in the wake of the HIH collapse and the review of law reform to mitigate rising insurance costs. We have also introduced a regulation to ban lawyers from advertising in personal injury matters, which encourages unnecessary litigation. The Government is also closely examining options to help councils in New South Wales. The Public Bodies Review Committee has looked extensively at the issues and reported to the Government. Unfortunately, the collapse of HIH exacerbated the situation, preventing a thorough response to the report's recommendations.
The Government has set up a task force to examine the issues surrounding the HIH collapse and public liability generally on local government. It has representatives from the Cabinet Office, Treasury and the Department of Local Government. It is time now for the Federal Government to take this issue seriously, as this Government has done. I hope that next week's summit to be convened by Assistant Treasurer Senator Helen Coonan will look seriously at what New South Wales has done and put on the table. We need a national solution to this national crisis. There should be a partnership between the Commonwealth and the States. The Premier instigated the meeting between the States and the Commonwealth. He also wrote to the Prime Minister proposing an inquiry into the issue. [Time expired.]
Ms HODGKINSON (Burrinjuck) [11.59 a.m.]: I support the motion of the honourable member for Lachlan and congratulate him on taking the initiative during the Christmas break away from this place by holding two community meetings at Cootamundra and Forbes. Those meetings were very well attended: people from throughout the State converged on Cootamundra and Forbes to put their points of view and let the authorities know how they felt about public liability insurance premiums and their effects on people. I also support the second part of the motion calling on Federal, State and local governments to launch an education program aimed at convincing people to stop suing each other and accept responsibility for themselves.
Often it is easier to understand issues by considering examples. So in this debate I will relate a little story about Tumblong, which is in my electorate and which, as mentioned by the honourable member for Lachlan, has a problem with public liability insurance. During 1989 the Tumblong community decided to form the Tumblong War Memorial and Citizens Association Incorporated to run the local hall and tennis courts. This association was formally incorporated on 27 March 1990. Small rural community organisations such as this are required by State legislation to hold public liability insurance. Since incorporation, the association has been continuously covered for public liability insurance by GIO Insurance.
For several years the association has been concerned about the increasing cost of this insurance. Premiums have risen from $228 in 1999-2000 to $280 in 2000-01 and this year to $423. Matters were brought to a head earlier this year when a decision was made to hold a Back to Tumblong reunion over this year's Easter holidays. I will be delighted to attend the event on Easter Saturday. The association is fortunate that it has a public officer who is active and cautious. He wrote to GIO asking the company to confirm that the planned event was covered by the association's insurance policy. It was not. However, GIO offered further coverage—at increased cost, of course. The association is now facing premiums of $907 this year—an almost fivefold increase over the cost of insurance just two years ago. The association will be able to meet this additional cost and the Back to Tumblong weekend will proceed. But warning bells have been rung by the letter the association received from GIO, which stated in part:
It is noted that your policy expires in November 2002. Under our present underwriting guidelines it is likely that unfortunately we will not be inviting renewal of the policy when it falls due.
The letter from GIO further stated:
I'd like to take this opportunity to thank you for your past custom and wish you well for the future.
In the immortal words of the great author Douglas Adams, this was like saying, "So long and thanks for all the fish" or "It was nice to have you as a customer but we will not be seeing you again". What is the future facing the Tumblong War Memorial Hall and Citizens Association and many small community groups? Will the Tumblong association go the way of the Yass junior girls basketball competition, the Gundagai Sport and Recreation Club, the Goulburn to Canberra cycle race and the Bungonia market day, which are all in my 21 March 2002 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 967 electorate? I have also received representations from the Tumut Montreal Theatre, the Goulburn Rodeo Club, the Tully Park Early Birds Golf Club, the Country Women's Association—a terrific organisation—Brungle Community Hall, the Goulburn Kart Racing Club, the Talbingo Progress Association, the Windellama Progress Association, the community of Bookham and many more.
As the honourable member for Lachlan and the honourable member for Lismore have accurately pointed out, public liability insurance is squarely a State government responsibility. The organisations that I have mentioned and many other community organisations throughout rural New South Wales need swift government action. The State Government is getting $40 million per annum from stamp duty on insurance premiums. I can hear the Labor Right screaming out as I say this, but perhaps the State Government could consider eliminating this stamp duty for a year to let people get back on their feet again. To profit at the expense of community organisations is lunacy. [Time expired.]
Mr BROWN (Kiama) [12.04 p.m.]: The people of Kiama also are very concerned about public liability insurance. They will be very concerned to hear the comments by the honourable member for Burrinjuck and other Coalition members that this is a State government responsibility. It clearly is not just a State government responsibility. However, the Carr Labor Government is looking at the issue very seriously and is in fact leading the country to try to resolve the public liability crises that are affecting many community groups. The insurance industry is governed by a Federal body called APRA, the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority. Under section 51 of the Commonwealth Constitution the Federal Parliament clearly has power to regulate the insurance industry.
If I wanted to become an insurer I would have to apply for a licence through the Federal Government. If I satisfied the required checks by the Federal Government I would be granted a Federal licence. APRA regulates the industry but two other Federal agencies are involved with insurance—the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission and the Australian Securities and Investments Commission. Those three Federal government agencies look after the insurance industry. So it is inappropriate for the Opposition to try to brand the Carr Labor Government with the responsibility of fixing up insurance. There are many things that the State can do and is looking to do—it is leading the country. However, the Federal Government should also take significant responsibility in this issue.
What has brought on this public liability crisis is the inability of the Federal Government to ensure that its regulatory agency, APRA, monitors the insurance industry. Only last year there was the devastating collapse of HIH. Not long before that collapse APRA ticked off HIH as an insurance company to continue delivering insurance to many different communities in the country. When HIH collapsed not only public liability policies but also home warranty building insurance and other insurances became ineffective, which caused a lot of grief.
Mr George: Which again is a State responsibility.
Mr BROWN: The State Government does not regulate the insurance industry. HIH was a nationally registered insurance company.
Mr George: Point of order: My point of order relates to relevance. The honourable member for Kiama stated that home warranty insurance in not a State matter: It is definitely a State matter. Home warranty insurance is not a Federal matter.
Mr ACTING-SPEAKER (Mr Lynch): Order! There is no point of order.
Mr BROWN: Once large insurers in our jurisdiction collapse they find it difficult to get reinsured by international insurance companies. Insurance companies seek reinsurance mainly from offshore companies. If the market is not big enough in jurisdictions in this country for insurance companies to be reinsured, that creates a problem. This large problem needs to be solved intelligently. It does not need the Opposition to say that the Carr Labor Government should fix the international insurance crisis that is affecting many communities in this State. But the Government is willing to talk to Helen Coonan and put the plans on the table. We all have a legitimate interest in ensuring that our community groups can continue to hold their functions by being insured.
Mr ARMSTRONG (Lachlan) [12.09 p.m.], in reply: I thank all honourable members from both sides of the House for their participation in and contribution to this most important debate. Each speaker has made significant points, but one point they all have in common is that they have acknowledged that this is major problem in our community. They have acknowledged that the problem can be rectified by governments and that 968 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 21 March 2002 unless we move expeditiously there will continue to be a fractionation of community events and the culture and economy of our suburbs and towns in New South Wales. As I said in my presentation, much of the activity has probably stemmed from the two forums I held earlier this year. I expected to get about 40 people at Cootamundra and 60 at Forbes, but almost 300 people attended those two forums.
I acknowledge the speakers who gave up their time and attended the forums at their own expense. There were representatives from the Insurance Council of Australia, the Plaintiff Lawyers Association, WorkCover, local government, the Shires Association and Business Australia, previously known as the Employers Federation, as well as Mr Ian Douglas of Clayton Insurance, a well-known underwriter from Cremorne. Their contributions were pivotal in ensuring that the forums provided a full understanding of the problems and an expression of the varying views. There was obviously a big difference between the views of the Plaintiff Lawyers Association and Business Australia, for example. There was good democratic argument, which is what we need in such discussions.
I welcome this debate today, because this matter must be debated. I welcome the Helen Coonan conference and the Federal Government taking some responsibility for what is essentially State legislation. The States are the Crown, and this legislation is Crown legislation. This State has the capacity to make a difference. If the Leader of the House had called for an adjournment of business today and put a few changes to regulations, I am sure that if they were sensible and practical—like those enunciated by the shadow Minister for Small Business—we could make a difference, probably in the next week or so.
But if we are going to play the blame game as to whether it is a Federal problem or a State problem, the victims will be those who are trying to raise money to put in a local swimming pool, those trying to raise money to keep the County Women's Association and the Red Cross going, and those who are trying to hold their annual events. They do not have time to listen to us being rhetorical. I ask the Government today to take a bipartisan approach and wave the white flag. I know that might be a utopian idea, but let us wave the white flag and deal with the smaller issues that can help the volunteer organisations. We all agree upon the threshold in principle but let us assist those volunteers who may be at some risk from litigation this week and every other week. We can then look at the bigger picture.
The honourable member for Kiama indicated that some of the problems are due to the HIH collapse and the events of September 11, and that may be so, but let us start at the beginning, help our own people first and then deal with the bigger picture down the track. This matter is urgent for various organisations ranging from horse groups to cultural organisations. An art patron holding an art show in his garden on a Saturday afternoon would have a public liability policy on his home, as many people do, but that would not cover the local art group coming into his garden. I appeal to the Government and to honourable members on both sides of the House to support my motion. We have all agreed on most points. I understand that the Government will oppose my motion. If it does that it will be damned for playing pure politics. I ask the Government to support the principle, because in doing so it will be supporting many of its own policies. I challenge the Government to support my motion in a positive step for the community.
Question—That the motion be agreed to—put.
The House divided.
Ayes, 37
Mr Armstrong Dr Kernohan Mrs Skinner Mr Barr Mr Kerr Mr Slack-Smith Mr Brogden Mr Maguire Mr Souris Mr Collins Mr McGrane Mr Stoner Mr Cull Mr Merton Mr Tink Mr Debnam Ms Moore Mr Torbay Mr George Mr O'Farrell Mr J. H. Turner Mr Glachan Mr Oakeshott Mr R. W. Turner Mr Hartcher Mr D. L. Page Mr Webb Mr Hazzard Mr Piccoli Ms Hodgkinson Mr Richardson Tellers, Mrs Hopwood Mr Rozzoli Mr Fraser Mr Humpherson Ms Seaton Mr R. H. L. Smith 21 March 2002 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 969
Noes, 49
Ms Allan Mrs Grusovin Mr E. T. Page Mr Amery Ms Harrison Mrs Perry Ms Andrews Mr Hickey Mr Price Mr Aquilina Mr Hunter Ms Saliba Mr Ashton Mr Iemma Mr Scully Ms Beamer Mr Knowles Mr W. D. Smith Mr Black Mr Lynch Mr Stewart Mr Brown Mr Markham Mr Tripodi Miss Burton Mr Martin Mr Watkins Mr Campbell Mr McManus Mr West Mr Collier Ms Meagher Mr Whelan Mr Crittenden Ms Megarrity Mr Woods Mr Debus Mr Mills Mr Yeadon Mr Face Mr Moss Mr Gaudry Mr Newell Tellers, Mr Gibson Ms Nori Mr Anderson Mr Greene Mr Orkopoulos Mr Thompson
Question resolved in the negative.
Motion negatived.
DISTINGUISHED VISITORS
Mr SPEAKER: I acknowledge the presence in the public gallery and welcome to Parliament the South Australian Government Whip, Robyn Geraghty, the member for Torrens, who has visited this House to watch how the Government Whip runs this Chamber.
RURAL CRIME
Mr GEORGE (Lismore) [12.25 p.m.]: I move:
That this House:
(1) notes that the rural crime working party delivered its recommendations for changes to policy and legislation to the Government 16 months ago in October 2000;
(2) recognises the number of cattle, sheep, tractors, motorbikes, trikes, machinery, drenches etc which have been stolen during this 16 months;
(3) condemns the Government for its failure to address the recommendations of the rural crime working party and its lack of action in the fight against rural crime; and
(4) calls on the Government to urgently release the recommendations of the rural crime working party and to implement policies to counter rural crime in New South Wales.
At the outset might I say that it was 16 or 17 months ago that I raised in this House the Carr Government's non- acceptance at that time of the Rural Crime Working Party's report. It has since been tabled. I now wish to indicate some problems with the report that has been delivered. Stock theft in particular and rural crime generally are major problems. This is a matter of concern to all livestock owners and land-holders in this State. The growing scourge of stock theft is robbing farmers of their livelihoods. In 1989-90 the cost of stock theft in this State was $1.4 million. Given current stock prices, the cost is well in excess of $3 million.
Under the Carr Government the Stock Squad was abolished, with the result that stock theft has been continually on the rise. There has been a spate of serious stock thefts over the past 18 months right across this State. Farmers and primary producers deserve the support of this Parliament and government organisations such as the Police Service to address this problem. The Carr Government has sat on its hands for too long. I had the pleasure of representing the National Party at forums that it conducted throughout the State. As a consequence, we made submissions to the rural crime working party. I would like to express concern at the tardy manner in which the Government is dealing with the recommendations of the working party. 970 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 21 March 2002
The recommendations address the hunting of feral pigs and goats, and I call on the Carr Government to urgently address those problems. The Wool, Hide and Skin Dealers Act is to be amended to reinforce the powers of the police force to clamp down on stock theft and rural crime. One major issue that must be addressed is stock identification. Unless we have proper means by which to identify livestock, not only in New South Wales but nationally, we will waste our time implementing any stock identification system. Most honourable members would be aware that cases of stock theft taken to the Local Court have been thrown out due to failure to adequately identify stolen livestock. We must have a means of identification that is clear, quick and unquestionable. This will require industry and government working together. It is not up to the Minister on his own to come up with a stock identification system. The industry must work with the Minister and government to come up with a national livestock identification system. I stress the importance of it being a national system.
It has been claimed that producers will need support to implement the measures outlined in my motion. However, suppliers of identification material suggest that costs will naturally decrease if there is a national system. The measures will be affordable for producers. We need to begin implementing an identification scheme as of yesterday, so to speak. The Police Service intends to train rural police officers with a one-week course on the basics of livestock practice and identification. As someone who has been involved in the livestock industry for the major part of a lifetime, I can assure the House that for some matters a 10-year learning period is insufficient. It will not be possible for police officers to learn what they need to know in one week. They may obtain background information in that short period, but rural people know that a one-week course will be insufficient. Mr Glachan: It is nonsense. Mr GEORGE: It is total nonsense to suggest that police officers can be totally educated about livestock in a week. As my motion indicates, people who have a rural background need to be recruited to the Police Service so they can handle rural crime. Much fanfare has surrounded the announcement of 32 police officers who will be appointed as rural crime investigators. Once again I make it quite clear to this House that those appointments do not represent an increase in the number of police officers. Thirty-two police officers who have been in the Police Service for some time and who have other tasks to perform are being given extra duties. Sadly, thieves do not stop their activities while crime investigators have a weekend off. Investigators who are following a lead may find that by the time they come back to work after a weekend off the stock have disappeared—they may have been slaughtered—and the cheques have been made out. I reinforce what has been said about the need for sufficient resources to back up rural crime investigators. To do otherwise would mean that their appointment is just a bandaid solution. The need for a commonsense approach to the provision of stock statements requires serious consideration. I agree that a stock statement is necessary, and on behalf of the National Party I encourage a move towards a national system of livestock statements. Recently it was brought to my attention that as a result of a crackdown on producers who do not have stock permits more checks are being carried out. There are quite large saleyards at Wagga Wagga. Ms Hodgkinson: And very good saleyards. Mr GEORGE: They are very good saleyards. Recently a person was telephoned by his agent and informed that he had a dead sheep and two "downers" in the saleyards. He was asked to collect and dispose of them. That is normally done at saleyards. Plenty of people take home animals that are not able to be sold and do the right thing by disposing of them. At Wagga Wagga, the person was pulled up and asked, "Have you got a permit for these three sheep?" He did not have a permit and he ended up with a fine of $150. The penalty notice states that he was fined for moving two live sheep and one dead sheep without a permit. The policy has gone from one extreme to the other. For months in this State there was no control on the movement of stock. If the example I have cited is a sample of the new approach to the implementation of the policy, I deplore it. I ask for commonsense to prevail. The approach exemplified in the incident to which I have referred is unacceptable. Mr Campbell: Make up your mind—do you want control or do you want no control? Mr GEORGE: If the honourable member for Keira supports that type of control, he has a lot to learn about the rural way of life. Mr Newell: You tell us how laissez faire you want us to be. Mr GEORGE: I look forward to hearing the contribution of the honourable member for Tweed. No doubt, in line with his usual practice, he will make no comment. I will be interested to hear what he has to say about stock theft in the Tweed electorate. The Lismore, Tweed and Clarence electorates have a major stock theft problem. I am pleased that the Minister for Local Government, Minister for Regional Development, and 21 March 2002 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 971
Minister for Rural Affairs and honourable member for Clarence is at the table. I will be looking for support from the honourable member for Tweed, who has seen fit to interject. I hope he will take part in this debate. I certainly encourage the use of stock statements, but when implementation of the policy goes from one extreme to the other it is hard to accept. In the example I cited the person was merely disposing of animals that were not able to be sold. He was doing so because, under RSPCA conditions applying to saleyards, the owners of stock have to dispose of animals that have died or that are in poor condition. Before honourable members interject, they ought to know the workings of saleyards and the rural industry.
Mr WOODS (Clarence—Minister for Local Government, Minister for Regional Development, and Minister for Rural Affairs) [12.35 p.m.]: The Government opposes the motion moved by the honourable member for Lismore. I seek leave to table a joint press release headed "Rural Crime Measures" which was issued by the Minister for Police and the New South Wales Farmers Association on 27 February 2002.
Leave granted.
Document tabled.
Mr SLACK-SMITH (Barwon) [12.35 p.m.]: I support the motion moved by the honourable member for Lismore. The incidence of rural stock theft and rural crime is increasing at a very rapid rate throughout New South Wales. It is a multimillion dollar industry run by professionals. New South Wales is the laughing-stock of Australia. In 1998 there were 766 reports of stock stolen in New South Wales, compared to 234 in Queensland. No convictions were recorded in New South Wales, yet Queensland achieved a 40 per cent success rate. The reasons why Queensland has done so well are quite simple. First, Queensland has an identification program. Second, Queensland has a stock squad in the Queensland Police Service. Police officers in the stock squad are active, they have experience, and they have a thorough knowledge of stock and of livestock husbandry. New South Wales has nothing. In spite of that, the Minister for Police has been saying that 32 police officers will be trained in rural crime investigation.
At the Barwon Local Area Command, which is in my electorate, those so-called rural crime investigators have to deal with the highest incidence of stock crime in New South Wales. The area stretches from Pallamallawa north to the Queensland border along to the Newell Highway, and 50 kilometres east and west of Pallamallawa. The police constable who is the so-called rural crime investigator is also in charge of the Pallamallawa police station, which is a sole police officer station and residence. The police officer is also the special weapons instructor in the region. Constable Allan Bridge spends a great deal of time doing his job. He is a very fine police officer. He has great experience, a lot of commonsense and is a very hard worker. However, because he does not have the time, he will not be able to get the rural crime investigation job done. His position is typical of police officers throughout rural New South Wales.
I support the remarks made by the honourable member for Lismore with respect to identification. I am sure that members opposite agree about the need for stock identification in New South Wales. It is amazing that New South Wales is the only State in Australia that does not have any stock identification laws. Producers do not have to earmark, brand, tattoo, or use radiofrequency tags or plastic tags. New South Wales is a Mecca for stock thieves in Australia. Even if a stock thief were charged there would be no way in the world a conviction would result because the stock cannot be positively identified.
Under the current law, the only way livestock can be identified in New South Wales is by the owner proving that the offspring is being mothered by an animal that has the owner's identification. That is the only legal way to establish the identity and ownership of an animal. Rural theft is a huge problem, and it is not confined to livestock. A barrel of chemicals taken out of a shed on a property could be worth $50,000 or $60,000. The theft of chemicals is another example of rural crime. I keep chemicals on my farm under lock and key, but thieves have only to break that lock to take the chemicals that I keep in my storeroom. Thank goodness I have good caretakers and staff on my property.
Theft, which is a huge problem, is occurring across the board. I believe that the fines for stock theft are inadequate. Recently $20,000 worth of goats were stolen from a farm at Inverell. The thieves were given 200 hours of community service. No wonder thieves are willing to take such a risk. I am disgusted that the Carr Labor Government has ignored this problem. The Minister for Police is running around New South Wales making airy-fairy statements. Nothing is being done to prevent crime in rural New South Wales. Crime in that area is increasing. Crime will not stop unless we go back to good old-fashioned policing and we have a stock squad in regional and rural New South Wales. 972 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 21 March 2002
Mr McGRANE (Dubbo) [12.40 p.m.]: I, like the honourable member for Barwon, support the motion moved by the honourable member for Lismore. As other members have said, theft is a serious problem in regional New South Wales. Earlier today honourable members stood united in their support for the Crimes (Sentencing Procedure) Amendment (General Sentencing Principles) Bill, which was introduced in this House by the honourable member for Northern Tablelands and which was aimed at protecting vulnerable people in our community. This motion is about protecting vulnerable farmers in our community. Thieves in rural New South Wales are professional. Goods are stolen from farms on consignment. Thieves know what they want to steal and they have a market for the goods even before they are stolen.
Professional thieves have no fear of being caught because there is no crime squad and there are too few police officers. The Government said that an additional 32 police officers would be assigned to a crime working party. However, as I understand it, that does not represent an additional 32 police officers. The officers required to fill those positions, which have not yet been funded, will be taken from the police force. The Government said that an additional 32 police officers would assist in preventing crime in rural New South Wales, but if those positions are not funded and there are no back-up vehicles it will not assist in preventing crime. Stock theft is really big business. Thieves may steal 90 head of cattle—which may be valued at $500, $600 or $700 a head. That is a lot of money.
Some 18 months ago a property at Gilgandra in the Tooraweenah area lost 90 head of cattle. Thieves stole the farmer's cattle and portable yards, set them up some distance down the road, loaded the cattle onto trucks and disappeared. Those cattle, which had no means of identification, were probably in saleyards within 24 to 36 hours and then transferred to a meatworks. The farmer said to me, "The thieves erected the portable yards in a much more efficient manner than I have ever been able to do", which just shows how efficient these people are. A truck came onto a property in my electorate, thieves loaded goods onto that truck, the truck bogged down, they telephoned for another truck and then offloaded the goods from the first truck onto the second truck.
Thieves know when farmers leave their properties. They know when someone has gone to town. They ring up their mates and say, "Joe Bloggs is in town. There is no-one on his property." When the farmer comes home he finds that his place has been raided and various things have been stolen. We need a police force that pursues these thieves and brings them to justice. That will not happen unless the police force is adequately funded and more emphasis is placed on preventing crime in rural New South Wales.
Mr WEBB (Monaro) [12.45 p.m.]: I support the motion moved by the honourable member for Lismore, who has an incredible amount of experience in the stock industry in New South Wales. This important motion has been moved in support of agricultural producers in New South Wales. Many people who live in country areas make a valuable contribution to the agricultural industry. It is interesting to note the value of stock that is stolen each year. At present lambs are worth about $148, so thieves would not need too many lambs to make quite a lot of money. A chainsaw, a motorcycle worth over $5,000, fuel, a gate and fencing material have been stolen from my property. That left gaps in the fence which could have resulted in stock escaping onto the road. All honourable members would be aware that farmers are responsible for any stock that are found on the roads.
Every year expensive shearing equipment is stolen from woolsheds at shearing time. Saddlery which was stolen out of tackle sheds was traced to New Zealand and the ring of thieves was apprehended. That problem is compounded because this Government has refused to engage a specialist stock squad and employ additional investigators in the police force. Police already investigate stock and other theft, but that takes some time. As the honourable member for Lismore said earlier, we need experienced police investigators with rural backgrounds who know how to identify goods and produce, and who have an understanding of country issues, rural production, saleyard techniques and the transporting of stock and rural goods. Those officers must be deputised as special constables within the Australian Capital Territory, New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland and South Australia to assist them in tracking stolen goods across State borders.
As I said earlier, stock thieves run for cover—sometimes as far as New Zealand—to sell stolen goods. We need an effective stock identification system in New South Wales. I support the suggestion made earlier by the honourable member for Barwon that we have a national stock identification scheme. Compulsory branding and tagging will enable police to track and identify stolen stock. I have heard stories about whole herds of cattle being taken out of a paddock—usually at night—from an absent landlord's property, from a paddock down the road or from a neighbouring property. The honourable member for Dubbo said earlier that in some cases the value of those herds is $90,000. 21 March 2002 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 973
In one hit, a few truckloads of stock are stolen and taken across the Victorian or Queensland borders, to continue their production for someone else's benefit. This practice must cease. I call on the Government to provide additional police resources, confirm where the stock squad rural crime investigators will be located, and name them. This would give agricultural producers the opportunity to co-operate and communicate with those people and put an end to this dreadful problem. I support the motion and applaud the honourable member for Lismore for moving it. Mr GEORGE (Lismore) [12.50 p.m.], in reply: I thank the honourable members representing the electorates of Monaro, Barwon and Dubbo for supporting my motion. Their contributions have finally brought home to me that members on this side of the House are the only members who are representing country people. The Minister for Local Government, Minister for Regional Development, and Minister for Rural Affairs, who represents the seat of Clarence, and the honourable member for Tweed, where rural crime is a serious problem, did not contribute to the debate. The only contribution made by the other side of the House was the issuing of a press release. That shows that Country Labor does not represent country people; the Coalition represents country people. Country areas need additional police with proper resources. I encourage the Minister to use local people to back up police. I am sure that volunteers with plenty of experience can advise police and assist them with respect to rural crime. The Government's press release refers to on-the-spot fines. However, we need intelligence to back up the on-the-spot fines. For example, a bloke may receive an on-the-spot fine for being on a property illegally and the following week he may receive another on-the-spot fine for being on another property illegally. We need intelligence to show a pattern of such offences. If we do not have such intelligence on-the-spot fines will be a waste of time. I plead with the Government to understand that rural people simply want to be heard. Rural crime is a major problem that is robbing them of their livelihood. As the honourable member for Dubbo said, if 90 head of cattle, at a value of $45,000, are taken from a property tonight a policeman might come out to investigate. Yet, if a city store is broken into tomorrow and 20 video recorders are stolen 10 or 15 police will be on the job looking for the perpetrators. Mr Glachan: Don't count on that. Mr GEORGE: The honourable member for Albury says, "Don't count on that." I simply ask the Government to understand that rural crime is a serious problem for country people. The problem must be addressed. It is appalling that 16 months after the tabling of a report by the Rural Crime Committee to the Minister the Government has finally issued a press release on the matter. A proposal relating to livestock identification will go before Cabinet in the near future. It took 16 months to get to this stage—I hope it does not take another 16 months to get to the "near future". If a national identification scheme is not established we will be wasting everyone's time, including that of the police. The establishment of a national identification scheme must be a priority. When the rural crime investigators—whoever they may be—are appointed we will be pleased to know who they are so we can try to work with them. Country members are continually presented with rural crime problems. As the honourable member for Monaro said, even drenches and other items are being stolen from property sheds. We need to tighten up on this issue. The Government has simply issued a press release today, which is an indictment on rural and country people. I am embarrassed to think that that is what the members of Country Labor think of country people. Question—That the motion be agreed to—put. The House divided. Ayes, 36 Mr Armstrong Dr Kernohan Mr Slack-Smith Mr Barr Mr Kerr Mr Souris Mr Brogden Mr Maguire Mr Stoner Mr Collins Mr McGrane Mr Tink Mr Cull Mr Merton Mr Torbay Mr Debnam Ms Moore Mr J. H. Turner Mr George Mr Oakeshott Mr R. W. Turner Mr Glachan Mr D. L. Page Mr Webb Mr Hartcher Mr Piccoli Mr Hazzard Mr Richardson Ms Hodgkinson Mr Rozzoli Tellers, Mrs Hopwood Ms Seaton Mr Fraser Mr Humpherson Mrs Skinner Mr R. H. L. Smith 974 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 21 March 2002
Noes, 47
Ms Allan Mrs Grusovin Mr E. T. Page Mr Amery Ms Harrison Mrs Perry Ms Andrews Mr Hickey Mr Price Mr Aquilina Mr Hunter Ms Saliba Mr Ashton Mr Iemma Mr Scully Ms Beamer Mr Lynch Mr W. D. Smith Mr Black Mr Markham Mr Stewart Mr Brown Mr Martin Mr Tripodi Miss Burton Mr McManus Mr Watkins Mr Campbell Ms Meagher Mr West Mr Collier Ms Megarrity Mr Whelan Mr Crittenden Mr Mills Mr Woods Mr Debus Mr Moss Mr Yeadon Mr Face Mr Newell Tellers, Mr Gaudry Ms Nori Mr Anderson Mr Greene Mr Orkopoulos Mr Thompson
Question resolved in the negative.
Motion negatived.
COMMITTEE ON CHILDREN AND YOUNG PEOPLE
Report: Learning to Run … Review of the Second Annual Report of the Commission for Children and Young People for the 2000-2001 Financial Year
Mr CAMPBELL (Keira) [1.03 p.m.]: The sixth report of the Committee on Children and Young People examines the issues raised in the second annual report of the Commission for Children and Young People, as statutorily required under section 28 (l) (c) of the Commission for Children and Young People Act 1998. I am pleased to inform the House that, based on the information presented to the committee at its public hearing on 6 December 2001, the Committee on Children and Young People is confident that Commissioner Calvert and her team have adequately completed the commission's second full year of operation. The committee found that throughout the preceding financial year the Commission for Children and Young People continued to fulfil its statutory obligations, the most crucial of which is perhaps the child-related employment screening process, known as the Working with Children Check.
Under part 7 of the Commission for Children and Young People Act, the Commission for Children and Young People has the function of assessing the criminal record of, and any apprehended violence orders or relevant disciplinary proceedings conducted against, an individual employed or seeking employment involving children. The purpose of the screening process, which was implemented on the advice of the Wood royal commission, is to asses whether the applicant poses a risk to children, ensuring that all people in New South Wales who work with children are of credible character and worthy of interaction with our children and young people. The commissioner has reported to the committee that 12,000 employers are now registered as participating in the scheme, and that in the first year of operation 222,000 preferred applicants were screened, 0.6 per cent of whom warranted further investigation.
Of those who were screened, 67 individuals were rejected as being unsuitable for employment. Prior to the introduction of the Working with Children checking process there would have been no bar to prevent these individuals working with children. This is evidence of the moves forward that have been made in child protection since the days preceding the Wood royal commission. I draw attention to the fact that, despite the achievements of the Working with Children check to date, the commission has identified three areas which require improvement if the program is to be as effective as possible. Most of these areas flow from oversights of technical detail when drafting the legislation. The Committee on Young Children is currently in the process of considering these matters and will shortly table a report on it in Parliament. I encourage all honourable members to take note of this subsequent report.
In addition to the continuation of the initiatives undertaken in the commission's first full year of operation, this second year has seen the introduction of a number of new schemes by the commission. I note in 21 March 2002 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 975 particular the commission's emphasis on promoting participation by children and young people in decision making that affects their lives. To this end, the commission, with the assistance of children and young people, has produced the TAKING PARTicipation Seriously kit, which is a resource for organisations that want to encourage the participation of children and young people in decision making. I recommend that all Ministers encourage every agency within their portfolios to obtain a copy of this kit and to utilise it to develop as far as practicable policies and strategies to encourage the participation of children and young people in those agencies.
I reiterate the importance of consulting the commission on legislative issues which significantly effect children and young people. As the peak body charged with the safety, welfare and wellbeing of children in this State, the commission is in an unique position to offer insight into a diversity of matters effecting children. We have developed a useful resource in the commission and it is one that should be utilised. I take this opportunity to acknowledge that the work of the Commission for Children and Young People would not be possible without the assistance of a number of key bodies, organisations and agencies. In particular I draw attention to the Expert Advisory Committee for the Commission and the Young People's Reference Group. Both bodies work closely with the commission to assist it in fulfilling its statutory function. The committee recognises their work and commends them for their contribution.
One young person who has just completed a term on the Young People's Reference Group is Mitchell Hamey from Wollongong. From my discussions with him, I am sure he would admit that he has learnt a great deal from his time on the reference group. I congratulate him on his contribution. The commission's work is also supported by a number of government agencies and departments. In the first report of the Committee on Children and Young People on the review of the commission's first year of operation it was recommended that each Minister should reinforce with its agencies the relationship with the commission. I am pleased to note that Commissioner Calvert reports that the commission has continued to foster good relations with the human services agencies at both the State and Commonwealth levels, and I commend those agencies.
The commission admits that it has less contact with some other government agencies and as a result the development of a relationship has been a somewhat slower process. That reportedly stems from a failure to recognise how some issues effect children. I again reiterate that it is important for all agencies to foster a working relationship with the commission and to recognise that children are affected by a whole range of areas, including those outside the realm of what have traditionally been considered areas exclusive to children, such as education and community services. I encourage those other agencies to analyse what areas of their work affect children. They should be strongly assisted in the process by obtaining a copy of the TAKING PARTicipation Seriously kit, to which I referred earlier. In conclusion, I take this opportunity, on behalf of myself and the committee, to congratulate Commissioner Calvert and her staff on another successful year of operation. I also thank the committee staff for their advice and effort in preparing this report for Parliament and supporting the functioning of the committee. I commend the report to Parliament.
Report noted.
BUSINESS OF THE HOUSE
Bills: Suspension of Standing and Sessional Orders
Motion by Mr Woods agreed to:
That standing and sessional orders be suspended to permit the introduction and progress up to and including the Minister’s second reading speech forthwith of the Criminal Procedure Amendment (Sexual Assault Communications Privilege) Bill and the Courts Legislation Amendment Bill.
CRIMINAL PROCEDURE AMENDMENT (SEXUAL ASSAULT COMMUNICATIONS PRIVILEGE) BILL
Bill introduced and read a first time.
Second Reading
Mr DEBUS (Blue Mountains—Attorney General, Minister for the Environment, Minister for Emergency Services, and Minister Assisting the Premier on the Arts) [1.12 p.m.]: I move:
That this bill be now read a second time. 976 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 21 March 2002
The Criminal Procedure Amendment (Sexual Assault Communications Privilege) Bill seeks to amend the Criminal Procedure Act 1986 in order to address issues arising out of the decision of the Court of Criminal Appeal in Regina v Norman Lee [2000] NSWCCA 444. The policy behind the sexual assault communications privilege is that the benefits of counselling services provided to a sexual assault victim should not be compromised by the prospect that communications made in connection with those services may later be revealed to the accused or disclosed in court. The Government has taken the view that the public interest in preserving the confidentiality of counselling communications, including counsellors’ notes, in order to protect the counselling relationship and thereby assist the victim in overcoming the trauma of the attack often outweighs the public interest in allowing inspection of the notes by the accused or his or her lawyer. The application of the privilege is discretionary, so that whether or not evidence of counselling communications may be subpoenaed or adduced is determined in accordance with a statutory balancing exercise. Under the existing terms of the Criminal Procedure Act 1986, counselling communications may only exist, and the privilege may only apply, where there is a relationship in which one person is counselling, giving therapy to or treating another person for any emotional or psychological condition. The court in Regina v Norman Lee interpreted this to mean there must be some defect or illness or disease or abnormality in the state of mind of the person receiving counselling, and that the counselling must consist of the provision of expert advice by "persons skilled... in the treatment of mental disease or trouble". This was a most disturbing result. First, it suggested that the sexual assault communications privilege may only protect counselled persons who suffer from a recognisable psychiatric illness. This was clearly not the intent of the legislation. Sexual assault counselling typically seeks to address feelings of shame, humiliation and fear, which are a perfectly normal reaction to such an attack. Most sexual assault victims probably do not suffer from a recognised psychiatric illness. Second, the decision paved the way for a later court to decide that the sexual assault communications privilege only applies to counselling provided by a psychiatrist or other specialist who is qualified in the diagnosis of mental illness. This would exclude social workers, who presently provide the great bulk of sexual assault counselling in New South Wales. Third, by characterising counselling as the provision of expert advice, the decision misunderstood the role of a sexual assault counsellor, which is essentially to listen to the thoughts and feelings of the victim and provide verbal and other support and encouragement. The principal purpose of this bill is, therefore, to ensure that the sexual assault communications privilege is capable of protecting confidential communications made in connection with counselling provided by counsellors who lack formal training or qualifications in the diagnosis of psychiatric and/or psychological conditions and which takes the form of listening to the thoughts and feelings of the alleged sexual assault victim and providing verbal or other support, rather than providing expert advice. This purpose is achieved by inserting a new definition of counselling into the Criminal Procedure Act 1986. Counsellors will not need training or qualifications in the diagnosis of mental illness in order to satisfy that definition. Rather, they will need to have undertaken training or study, or have experience that is relevant to the process of counselling persons who have suffered harm. This wording is similar to section 79 of the Evidence Act 1995, which identifies persons who are eligible to give expert opinion evidence, but it is broader in that it does not include the requirement of specialised knowledge. The new definition will also specify that counselling includes listening to and providing verbal or other support or encouragement to the counselled person. It may, but need not, include the provision of advice, therapy or treatment. These amendments are designed to ensure the legislation reflects the realities of sexual assault counselling, and to prevent technical legal argument going to the mental state of the alleged victim. It is recognised that there has been continuing opposition to this privilege in some quarters. However, the Government does not consider that it represents an unfair infringement on a defendant’s right to a fair trial or to the best defence available. The sexual assault communications privilege is and always has been discretionary in its application, so that a court can still require counselling communications which include information material to the defence to be produced on subpoena or given in evidence. This bill will ensure the sexual assault communications privilege is capable of protecting a wide range of counselling communications, and that the Government’s policy is properly implemented. It will help to minimise the prospect that communications made in connection with counselling services provided to victims of sexual assault may later be revealed to the accused or disclosed in court and, therefore, to maximise the possible benefits of such counselling and further assist victims to overcome the trauma of the assault. I commend the bill to the House.
Debate adjourned on motion by Mr R. H. L. Smith. 21 March 2002 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 977
COURTS LEGISLATION AMENDMENT BILL
Bill introduced and read a first time.
Second Reading
Mr DEBUS (Blue Mountains—Attorney General, Minister for the Environment, Minister for Emergency Services, and Minister Assisting the Premier on the Arts) [1.18 p.m.]: I move:
That this bill be now read a second time.
This bill provides for amendments to a range of courts legislation to ensure that there can be no doubt about the validity of appointing a judge to another judicial office, or appointing a judge as an acting judge in another court. It has been the practice in New South Wales since at least 1976 to occasionally appoint judges from one court to acting appointments in other courts and tribunals. Similarly, acting judges in one court have been given concurrent appointments as acting judges in another court. There have also been instances where magistrates have received acting appointments as District Court judges. Last year four District Court judges had commissions as acting judges in the Supreme Court. Currently there are two acting judges holding concurrent commissions in the Supreme Court and District Court. There is also one magistrate acting as a District Court judge.
Two issues have been identified concerning the validity of such appointments. The first is whether currently serving judges are "qualified" to be appointed as judges or acting judges in another court. While the courts legislation generally requires that in order to be qualified for appointment as a judge a person should be a legal practitioner of at least seven years standing, it does not specifically include currently serving judges within the definition of persons qualified to be appointed as judges or acting judges. The approach in the past has been to assume that currently serving judges retain their prior status as barristers or solicitors—both of whom are qualified to be appointed provided they have practised for the required period—and are therefore qualified to be judges or acting judges. It is proposed to put this issue beyond doubt by an amendment to provide that a "qualified person" includes a person who holds or has held judicial office, whether in New South Wales or some other Australian jurisdiction.
The second and more significant issue is whether appointment as an acting judge in another jurisdiction may operate in some circumstances to impliedly surrender or vacate the original appointment in accordance with the doctrine of incompatibility of office. The Law on this subject is set out in the following passage from Chitty, Prerogatives of the Crown, 1820, page 87:
A person may ... lose an office merely by the acceptance of another office incompatible with that he already holds. Offices are incompatible, and cannot be holden together, when, from the nature or extent of the different duties and businesses attached to them, they cannot be properly and effectually executed by the same person; or when they are subordinate to, or interfere with each other, which creates a legal presumption, that they will not be executed with impartiality and honesty. Thus, an admiral commanding on a station loses his right to officiate there, by accepting a command on another station to which he is appointed. A Judge of the Court of Common Pleas loses his office by being appointed, and by becoming a Judge of the Court of King's Bench … And where the offices are incompatible, the office which the party first held is impliedly surrendered or vacated, by the acceptance of the new situation." It may be argued that an acting appointment from an inferior court to a superior court in the same appellate line—say from District to Supreme Court—would not give rise to the doctrine, provided the acting judge was not intended to hear appeals from the inferior court. This is the situation with the current appointment of District Court judges to the Supreme Court, but not to the Court of Appeal or Court of Criminal Appeal. However, it would be better to put the issue beyond doubt and to cure any defect in previous appointments by legislative amendment. There is nothing inherently problematic about the proposal that a judge of one court might act as a judge of a higher court in the same appellate line. Decisions of single judges of the Supreme Court are subject to appeal to the Court of Appeal and to the Court of Criminal Appeal. Yet Supreme Court judges not uncommonly sit for part of the time as appeal judges and part of the time as first-instance judges. The principles of bias and fairness operate to ensure that judges do not sit on appeals in respect of their own decisions. As I say, the bill is being introduced to put these issues beyond doubt and I commend it to the House. Debate adjourned on motion by Mr R. H. L. Smith.
[Mr Acting-Speaker (Mr Mills) left the chair at 1.24 p.m. The House resumed at 2.15 p.m.] 978 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 21 March 2002
STEM CELL RESEARCH
Ministerial Statement
Mr CARR (Maroubra—Premier, Minister for the Arts, and Minister for Citizenship) [2.16 p.m.]: This morning I was proud to launch the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation's campaign which is based on postcards to the Prime Minister, urging him to allow embryonic stem cell research to take place. The foundation hopes that people with type 1 diabetes, their family, friends and others who support embryonic stem cell research will sign nearly 15,000 postcards. Last week I saw the work that is being undertaken by Professor Bernie Tuch and his team of researchers who are working towards a cure for type 1 diabetes. Forty thousand people in New South Wales suffer from juvenile diabetes.
Mr SPEAKER: Order! The honourable member for Cronulla will remain silent. Mr CARR: A cure for the disease is the focus of the work of the foundation and the researchers. However, Federal Minister Kevin Andrews has announced that he is considering the imposition of a ban on embryonic stem cell research. Last week I joined with some of this State's top scientific researchers and I wrote to the Prime Minister, with the signatures of those researchers on the letter, stating our strongly held view that a ban would be a big mistake: It would delay research that is aimed at alleviating human suffering, and, by the way, it would be contrary to the recommendations on the subject of a two-year parliamentary committee, chaired by the Federal Minister. The parliamentary committee's inquiry concluded that certain types of stem cell research, including embryonic stem cell research, should be permitted in Australia. In addition, the Council of Australian Governments [COAG] in June 2001 committed itself to working towards a nationally consistent approach to regulate assisted reproductive technology and related emerging human technologies. Representatives from the New South Wales Government have been working closely on this matter with representatives from the Commonwealth and other jurisdictions through the COAG implementation working group. Our goal is to achieve a regulatory model that respects community concerns, if there are any, while nurturing this potentially lifesaving research. If the embryonic stem cell research is banned in Australia—and that is the implication of what Federal Minister Andrews appears to be entertaining—some of our best medical and scientific researchers would leave Australia to continue their work in more supportive environments such as the United Kingdom. For our part, I have said without any compunction that, if that were the stand taken by the Australian Government, then the New South Wales Government would allow this research to take place in New South Wales. By all accounts that would expedite the day when a cure can be found for Alzheimer's disease, when there can be a cure for multiple sclerosis, a cure for spinal cord injury and a cure for juvenile diabetes and cystic fibrosis. That is how exciting the research is, and I would not make light of it if I were the honourable member for Wakehurst. New South Wales and Australia must remain at the cutting edge of this lifesaving technology. We must to do the right thing by the daughter who is watching her mother disappear into the quiet world of a demented mind, the diabetic who is slowly losing his sight, or the quadriplegic in a spinal injury ward who is hoping that because of a breakthrough he might walk again. Mrs CHIKAROVSKI (Lane Cove—Leader of the Opposition) [2.20 p.m.]: It is fair to say that certain issues that are debated in this Parliament and throughout the community give rise to concern and division. Embryonic stem cell research is one of those issues. The community is looking for a cure for many of the diseases that the Premier has just mentioned. There is no doubt that we as a community would like to see injured people walk again. We would love to see children who suffer from cystic fibrosis not having to endure the terrible treatment they have to undergo daily just to be able to breathe and to survive. However, this is a very complex ethical and scientific issue. Mr E. T. Page: That's not hard for you. Mrs CHIKAROVSKI: The flippant attitude adopted by the honourable member for Coogee must appall all members of this House. Now he laughs, which only goes to show that it is about time the grumpy old men in the Labor Party left politics. This is a very sensitive and difficult debate. The Coalition has been consulting at large with members of the scientific community to emphasise our desire to talk to them about their concerns over this issue. We are disappointed that the Premier has walked away from the nationally consistent approach that was adopted. He is now pushing ahead of the meeting in April which has been convened to discuss this matter. It is disappointing that the Premier has not adopted the approach of his Federal colleague Simon Crean, who has said that he thinks it is important that people consult at large, and that members are fully informed and have the opportunity to make up their own minds about what they think on this issue. 21 March 2002 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 979
The national approach adopted by the Federal Government should be adopted by the Premier, as he indicated. Trying to make political capital out of an issue such as this does not reflect well on the Premier or his Government. The Premier should be doing as he agreed to do—take the proposals to the national meeting in April, sit down with his colleagues from other States, and work on a national approach. In doing so he will take into account the real concerns of people who are supportive of stem cell research. We know that considerable adult stem cell research is producing good results. The Premier should take into account the concerns of those who are in a difficult position with embryonic stem cell research. He should make sure that we in this country do not end up divided over an issue that should not be divisive but should be well thought through and, at the end of the day, done in the best interests of those people who most need stem cell research.
SOUTH-WESTERN SYDNEY POPULATION GROWTH
Ministerial Statement
Mr YEADON (Granville—Minister for Information Technology, Minister for Energy, Minister for Forestry, and Minister for Western Sydney) [2.23 p.m.]: I speak as the Minister for Western Sydney, and Minister for Energy and utilities. South-western Sydney is one of the fastest growing areas in this nation. In recent years the rate of growth in Hoxton Park alone, near Liverpool, has increased dramatically from 500 lots per year to an incredible 1,500 lots per year. It is anticipated that growth will continue at a rate of about 850 lots per year for the next decade. That is why later this year the Government will commence work on a $55 million upgrade of sewerage systems in the south-west. It is one component of a $280 million, six-year capital works program for the south-west under the upper Georges River waste water strategy. That strategy is expected to meet the needs of future population growth for more than 20 years into the future. The first stage is scheduled for completion in 2004 and the work involves transferring sewage flows from Hoxton Park, which is currently nearing capacity. The project also involves a major upgrade and expansion of the Liverpool sewage treatment plant to meet expected population growth. It is anticipated that by the year 2026 the population in this area will boom by 140,000. This includes suburbs such as Liverpool, Prestons, Horningsea Park, Carnes Hill, Edmondson Park, Ingleburn, Hinchinbrook, Green Valley, Cecil Hills, Abbotsbury and Bonnyrigg Heights. Tenders for the project are currently being examined and the contract will be announced in the next few months. As the Minister for Western Sydney, I am proud to say that this is only a small part of the estimated $714 million worth of capital works being undertaken by Sydney Water in Western Sydney up to 2006. This work is about ensuring that these basic services are available before new subdivisions and developments go ahead. It is about a vision for the anticipated growth of Sydney, and Western Sydney in particular. Mr MERTON (Baulkham Hills) [2.26 p.m.]: The development of Western Sydney, which has 10 per cent of this country's population, is of paramount importance. For many years Sydney Water has been a de facto planning authority for land releases and subdivisions. Large tracts of land that could have been developed for residential purposes could not be developed because of a lack of water and sewerage facilities. That has resulted in the price of land in Western Sydney escalating to such an extent that many people who want to move to Western Sydney are now unable to afford the prices. As the Minister said, Western Sydney is in great need of infrastructure, whether for water, sewerage, roads or transport. The needs are great. The area comprises 10 per cent of the Australian population. It is incumbent upon the Government to provide the necessary infrastructure so that young people can go to the best part of Sydney—Western Sydney—and build their homes on land that is affordable. Unless there are greater releases of land and available infrastructure facilities, prices will be beyond the reach of many people. The Opposition supports any efforts to provide additional infrastructure, land and resources to make land affordable in Sydney's west. UNITED MEDICAL PROTECTION Ministerial Statement Mr KNOWLES (Macquarie Fields—Minister for Health) [2.28 p.m.]: The silence that surrounds the Commonwealth Government about the future of United Medical Protection [UMP] and the growing national medical indemnity crisis now borders on negligence. Today in the Australian Financial Review the President of the Australian Medical Association [AMA], Dr Kerryn Phelps, is quoted as telling the Commonwealth Government, "The situation has gone out of control." She also described the present situation as "a national disaster which requires the Commonwealth Government to provide a capital guarantee to the medical insurance industry". 980 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 21 March 2002
I want it to be clearly understood that the Commonwealth Government has been repeatedly warned now by the insurance industry, by a broad range of professional medical groups such as the AMA and the professional colleges, and by State and Territory governments that it needs to immediately back up United Medical Protection. The warnings by all these groups are very real. The collapse of UMP, or major premium increases by UMP, will mean that many doctors will choose to no longer work in the private system. Some will simply stop working. Either way, the collateral damage is to the public health system. The Commonwealth Government has been forced to play catch-up with the collapse of HIH and Ansett Airlines. It seems extraordinary to all observers that when the Commonwealth Government can see the writing on the wall with UMP it seems determined to sit back and do nothing, other than have a conference at the end of April. Most likely by then it will be too late.
If the Commonwealth Government is playing some madcap game of brinkmanship it needs to stop it now. I know that the Commonwealth has a sense of how serious the position is, because it has been briefed in considerable detail by all the independent players associated with this issue. I suspect, though, that the Commonwealth Treasury is refusing to do what this Government did in New South Wales just before Christmas, and that was provide financial assistance to allow doctors to continue their work. It is fair to say that no-one in their wildest imagination would have predicted the events of September 11 and the impact on global insurance markets, but everyone can predict what is about to happen with medical negligence insurance in this country. I told the Commonwealth Minister for Health in Canberra some weeks ago that she was facing a train coming at her on the track. I make it abundantly clear that the train has arrived, and the Commonwealth Government needs to act now to deal with this issue seriously.
Mrs SKINNER (North Shore) [2.31 p.m.]: Yet again the Minister for Health has failed to give me the courtesy of letting me know that he intended to bring this matter on.
Mr Carr: Point of order: In seven long years I was never once notified. If the honourable member cannot handle it she should not be in the job.
Mr SPEAKER: Order! There is no point of order.
Mrs SKINNER: At least some members of the Government act with courtesy. It is predictable that the Minister should try to blame somebody else. He always blames somebody else. The Minister has known about the situation in relation to UMP not only for weeks, not only for months, but for years. The Minister should look at the review in his bottom drawer that tells him about the financial situation of UMP.
Mr SPEAKER: Order! I call the honourable member for Bankstown to order.
Mrs SKINNER: I am well aware of what Dr Phelps said to the Federal Minister because I had dinner with Dr Phelps this week, as does the Minister. This is not an exclusive relationship: she talks to me just as she does to the Minister. I am not going to disclose what she said about the Minister. UMP provides medical indemnity insurance for 90 per cent of the doctors in this State. This Minister had the gall to tell this House that their insurance premiums were going to drop by 12 per cent. He knew that UMP was in financial trouble. He misled this House. He should not dare to try to blame the Federal Minister. There is an APRA review into this matter. That will be the time to respond.
DISTINGUISHED VISITORS
Mr SPEAKER: I acknowledge the presence in the gallery of the former Premier of South Australia, now the Leader of the Opposition, the Hon. Rob Kerin. Members of the Royal Volunteer Coastal Patrol organisation who were today presented with the National Medal are also in the gallery. We congratulate them on receiving those medals and welcome them to Parliament
PETITIONS
Medically Supervised Heroin Injecting Rooms
Petition opposing the establishment of medically supervised heroin injecting rooms, and praying that the House pass legislation to establish rapid detoxification naltrexone drug rehabilitation centres, received from Mr Tink. 21 March 2002 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 981
North Head Quarantine Station
Petition praying that the head lease proposal for North Head Quarantine Station be opposed, received from Mr Barr.
Genetically Engineered Food
Petition praying that the House suspend the commercial release and trials of genetically engineered crops, support the implementation of mandatory labelling of food derived from genetic engineering and fund independent scientific research to investigate the potential risks to health and the environment, received from Ms Moore.
Hazardous Material Burning
Petition asking the House to amend legislation in relation to the regulations governing the burning off of hazardous material, received from Dr Kernohan.
Young Offenders Legislation
Petitions asking the House to amend the Young Offenders Act 1997 and the Parental Responsibility Act, received from Mr Piccoli and Mr Stoner.
Manly JetCat Services
Petition seeking reversal of the decision by Sydney Ferries to stop JetCat services to Manly at 7.00 p.m., received from Mr Barr.
Lane Cove Tunnel Works
Petition praying that the House initiate a review of Lane Cove tunnel works, received from Mr Collins. Moore Park Landscaping Petition calling for permanent removal of car parking from Moore Park, and praying that Moore Park be landscaped to the same standard as Centennial Park, with strategic mounding and tree planting to prevent future car parking, received from Ms Moore. Branch Line Above Rail Community Service Petition asking that above rail community service obligations on branch lines be reinstated until branch line infrastructure is upgraded to a standard to ensure competitiveness with main lines, received from Mr Slack- Smith. Kempsey and Macksville Pacific Highway Upgrade Petition requesting that the House improve safety on the Pacific Highway and fast-track the proposed bypassing of Kempsey and Macksville, received from Mr Stoner. John Fisher Park Petition praying that the Government support the rectification of grass surfaces at John Fisher Park, Curl Curl, and oppose any proposal to hard surface the Crown land portion of the park and Abbott Road land, received from Mr Barr. Manly Lagoon Remediation Petition praying that funds be made available to assist in the remediation of Manly Lagoon, received from Mr Barr.
Hawkesbury-Nepean Catchment Management Trust
Petition praying that the House reinstate the Hawkesbury-Nepean Catchment Management Trust as soon as possible, received from Mr Rozzoli. 982 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 21 March 2002
Queenscliff Geographical Names Board Classification
Petition praying that the House reinstate Queenscliff as a suburb with the Geographical Names Board, received from Mr Barr.
Old-growth Forests Protection
Petition praying that consideration be given to the permanent protection of old-growth forests and all other areas of high conservation value, and to the implementation of tree planting strategies, received from Ms Moore.
Northbridge Primary School
Petition seeking permanent classrooms to replace temporary demountable classrooms at Northbridge Primary School, received from Mr Collins.
Beat Policing
Petition calling on the Government to focus policing strategies and resources on beat policing, received from Mr Debnam.
Surry Hills Policing
Petition praying for increased police presence in the Surry Hills area, received from Ms Moore.
Malabar Policing
Petition praying that the House note the concern of Malabar residents at the closure of Malabar Police Station and praying that the station be reopened and staffed by locally based and led police, received from Mr Tink.
QUESTIONS WITHOUT NOTICE
______
HONOURABLE MEMBER FOR CABRAMATTA APPOINTMENT AS PARLIAMENTARY SECRETARY ASSISTING THE MINISTER FOR POLICE
Mrs CHIKAROVSKI: My question without notice is directed to the Premier. Will he explain why he has driven Detective Sergeant Tim Priest to resign from the staff of the Minister for Police by appointing the honourable member for Cabramatta as the new Parliamentary Secretary for Police, despite her well-documented record of denying policing problems in her electorate, including her unwarranted and baseless public denigration of Detective Sergeant Priest?
Mr CARR: The House will note that it is 100 days since the Leader of the Opposition promised a policy blitzkrieg, but all we hear during question time is whingeing and whining.
Mr SPEAKER: Order! I call the honourable member for Bega to order. Mr CARR: I regret the resignation of Tim Priest, who has given about half a dozen reasons why he wishes now to resign from his position. Mr SPEAKER: Order! I call the Deputy Leader of the Opposition to order. Mr CARR: He has given about half a dozen reasons why he desires to remove himself from his position.
Mr SPEAKER: Order! I call the honourable member for Pittwater to order.
Mr CARR: One reason was that he simply disagrees with the Commissioner of Police. We are not removing the Commissioner of Police. 21 March 2002 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 983
STEROID ABUSE
Ms BEAMER: My question without notice is directed to the Minister for Health. How is the Government responding to community concerns about steroid abuse in New South Wales?
Mr KNOWLES: I am sure the honourable member knows that anabolic steroids are currently classified as a schedule 4 drug. Prescription by a doctor is mandatory. Properly prescribed, anabolic steroids are clinically appropriate treatments for conditions such as arthritis, osteoporosis, some cancers, multiple sclerosis, muscle wasting associated with HIV, and hypogonadism. The illegal use and supply of anabolic steroids can carry fines and gaol terms.
Mr SPEAKER: Order! There is too much audible conversation in the Chamber. I include the honourable member for Wakehurst in that warning.
Mr KNOWLES: The most recent National Drug Strategy household survey revealed that lifetime steroid use for non-prescribed purposes, mostly associated with bodybuilding and fitness regimes, has increased from 0.6 per cent to 0.8 per cent in people aged 14 and over—an increase of the order of 30 per cent. Disturbingly, in New South Wales this means that potentially up to 40,000 people are either using, or have used, anabolic steroids. Steroid abuse has well-known side effects—testicular atrophy, acne, serious liver damage including cancer, arrhythmia, high cholesterol and jaundice. In women steroid abuse can lead to permanent voice change. Less recognised are the extraordinarily large swings in behaviour and mood. Normally, rational and moderate people can go berserk. Wild and frenzied behaviour is commonly known as roid rage.
At least two homicides in New South Wales have been linked to roid rage. Reports in the Medical Journal of Australia refer to such cases. In the first case, a 29-year-old male bodybuilder bashed his wife to death by repeatedly hitting her with a claw hammer. He then shot himself through the head. He had been taking steroids leading up to the murder. He tested strongly positive to stanozolol and testosterone. In the second case, a 22-year-old bodybuilder killed a woman by repeatedly bashing her head against a wall and kicking her. He then drove home and went to bed. The steroid nandrolone was in his blood. The murderer indicated that, as a result, he had more energy, more aggression, increased libido and was constantly uptight. Until he used steroid he had never been known to be violent. Those are just two classic cases of roid rage.
We learned a lot about blood testing procedures in the context of the Olympic Games. We now need to improve systemic collection of data around steroid abuse. Today I announce a range of measures aimed at dealing with steroid abuse and roid rage. Currently, the maximum penalty for the illegal supply of steroids is a $2,200 fine, or imprisonment for two years, or both. The Government will amend the provisions of the Poisons and Therapeutic Goods Act to ensure that the maximum gaol penalty for possession is the same as that for supply. That is, if someone is found in illegal possession of steroids the maximum gaol penalty will be two years in gaol, or a $2,200 fine, or both. We will establish a 1-800 line for users and their partners to link abusers into treatment and to provide counselling and other services for victims of roid rage.
Mr SPEAKER: Order! The honourable member for Gosford will remain silent. Mr KNOWLES: In partnership with Fitness New South Wales, the fitness industry representative body in this State, we will advertise these services as well as a separate 1-800 hotline in gymnasiums throughout the State to encourage people to dob in a steroid dealer. In addition, New South Wales Health will establish systems for enhanced surveillance of steroid abuse and its adverse effects. For example, we will adopt specific data collection codes in emergency departments to record presentations at hospitals by those suffering from the direct affects of abuse. Mr Hartcher: Point of order: Mr Speaker, when I have raised a point of order on ministerial statements you have said to the House that, when a Minister is indicating what the Government will do, it is relevant to take a point of order. The Minister is stating what the Government intends to do and he is referring to future policy which, in light of your rulings, constitutes a ministerial statement. I ask you to rule that the Minister's answer is a ministerial statement. Mr SPEAKER: Order! I must be suffering from selective amnesia. I do not recall saying that. There is no point of order. Mr KNOWLES: These will be important initiatives in dealing with this issue. Fitness industry representatives make it clear that steroid abuse and the potential for roid rage are real issues in some 984 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 21 March 2002 gymnasiums, particularly those in the bodybuilding end of the business. The measures we are taking, in co- operation with Fitness New South Wales, send a strong message that steroid abuse is simply not acceptable. Steroid abusers put themselves and the community at risk.
ARABIC COMMUNITIES YOUTH VIOLENCE
Mr STEWART: My question without notice is directed to the Premier. What is the latest information on the Arabic youth plan?
Mr CARR: In July last year I announced a comprehensive plan to respond to youth violence in Arabic- speaking communities. The Arabic-speaking community put to me the idea and the Government has embraced it in partnership with that community. A key part of the plan was that the community would take a leadership role. Since last July Government and Arabic-speaking community representatives have been working hard to implement the plan. Six members of the implementation group are of Arabic-speaking background, including three young men. The group is chaired by the Director-General of the Premier's Department.
In December the Minister Assisting the Premier on Citizenship reported in the House on the implementation of stage one. Stage one involves initiatives such as deploying the first two Arabic-speaking youth liaison teams to visit public spaces where young people gather and to see whether they can ensure that young people stay out of trouble. There was a care and education campaign. There was a pilot project involving five schools in the Bankstown district to reduce suspension and expulsion rates among students of Arabic- speaking background. There was training of 19 members of the Arabic-speaking community as mentors to help young people with behavioural and learning problems. There was an expansion of sporting activities and camps for Arabic-speaking youth through police and community youth clubs.
Today I am pleased to announce that $2.3 million will be allocated to fund stage two of the partnership plan. It will build on this solid partnership. It will focus, first, on continuing and extending youth liaison teams, second, on expanding education initiatives, third, on developing parent support programs and, fourth, on setting up sport and recreational facilities. The Government will put in place four additional youth liaison teams by June this year, bringing the total to six. Teams comprise people of Arabic-speaking background who are able to relate both to young people and to their families.
The teams are able to reach young people before their problems become serious or before they get into trouble, and before they become a crime statistic or a problem for police. Since 20 December last year more than 600 young people of Arabic-speaking background have been approached by the youth liaison teams. In the Liverpool, Parramatta and Bankstown areas they have visited shopping centres, entertainment precincts and other places where young people gather. Four new teams will work in Brighton-Le-Sands, Darling Harbour, the city and other areas.
Improving numeracy, literacy and job readiness among young people of Arabic-speaking background will be the centrepiece of stage two. Among the education initiatives there will be an expansion of the Gateways program, an education case management program, which we successfully trialled in Cabramatta. Gateways will now target more than 200 students of Arabic-speaking background who are at risk of being suspended. More than 20 schools in the Liverpool, Granville, Bankstown and St George education districts will participate in the program. Homework centres will also be set up. They will reduce suspension rates. We will see them trialled in schools in the Bankstown, Granville, Liverpool and St George districts. The centres will target more than 180 students with a high rate of absenteeism and truancy.
The Machismo program will be extended to three schools in the Bankstown, Granville and St George districts. The program works with boys to improve their communication skills, build self-esteem and help them keep out of trouble. A new program will be set up to develop stronger links between schools and local employers. The program will help young people in the transition from school to work by preparing them to enter the job market. An intensive family support service will be set up in Bankstown to provide specialist support and counselling to vulnerable families. A school-based support program will be trialled in the Canterbury- Bankstown area to help students and their families build stronger contact with their local schools.
Increasing youth participation in sport also remains a key part of this partnership. As a result of the partnership hundreds of young people have taken part in holiday activities and sports clinics. For many of these young people, this was their first involvement in organised sporting activity. For example, more than 70 people are participating in youth development camps held at Myuna Bay Sport and Recreation Centre; 200 children 21 March 2002 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 985 participated in holiday activities, including volleyball, swimming, soccer and ice skating; 30 girls participated in girls-only activities held at Bankstown indoor centre; and 120 girls participated in ice skating at Canterbury ice rink.
Police and community youth clubs will continue to receive funding to develop specific programs for young people at risk in the Bankstown, Parramatta, Burwood, Rockdale and Belmore areas. Large sporting clubs have been invited to set up activities that increase young people's participation in sport. Participating clubs include Canterbury, Parramatta and St George leagues clubs, Sydney Kings and Western Sydney Razorbacks. The success of this partnership is a result of active involvement and participation by community leaders, organisations and young people. A community trust is being set up to enable the Arabic-speaking and broader community to make financial contributions towards the partnership plan. The trust will specifically target the business community.
The Arabic-speaking community has shown courage in confronting the problem of youth violence and other antisocial behaviour. It has shown leadership in trying to resolve the problem. The committee is not doing it alone; it is doing it in partnership with this Government. Together we can make the plan work. Of course, there are no quick fixes, but the Arabic-speaking community has made an excellent start with stage one. Now with stage two, we will focus on the things that bring results: improving literacy and numeracy skills, better parenting, more involvement in sporting activities and direct contact with young people. I look forward to reporting to the House on further progress with this initiative.
HONOURABLE MEMBER FOR CABRAMATTA APPOINTMENT AS PARLIAMENTARY SECRETARY ASSISTING THE MINISTER FOR POLICE
Mr SOURIS: My question is directed to the Premier. Given the criticisms that the honourable member for Cabramatta made about Detective Sergeant Tim Priest and other courageous officers who exposed the failure of policing strategies and operations in Cabramatta, how can police throughout New South Wales have any confidence in dealing with her in her new role as Parliamentary Secretary Assisting the Minister for Police?
Mr CARR: The question seemed to be about this notion of confidence in dealing with policing or crime issues.
Mr SPEAKER: Order! I call the honourable member for Oxley to order.
Mr CARR: I wonder how many people of this State who saw the Leader of the Opposition enjoying herself in Silverwater prison would have any confidence in her ability to deal with any of these matters. The photographs told the story. There she was with Bassam Hamzy, who was convicted of murder, enjoying the hummus and the beautiful spread of Middle Eastern cuisine—
Mr SPEAKER: Order! I ask the attendants to collect the copies of newspapers from members.
Mr CARR: Isn't that sweet? They have these little workshops before question time. They all sit around a big table in the conference room, they get out the crayons, the scissors and the adhesive tape, and they all make up little posters.
Mr SPEAKER: Order! I place the honourable member for Bega on three calls to order.
Mr CARR: Then they hold them up and their leader gives out a gold star for the neatest poster. Then they march down to the Chamber for question time, none of them equipped with a policy, none of them equipped with an idea, but equipped with the little signs they hold up. Isn't that sweet, isn't it touching in its own way? The people in the public gallery will note that this is what members opposite consider Opposition. They come in with their little signs. It is rather touching, isn't it? They draw up their little signs, they come into the Chamber and they hold them up. In this House between 1983 and 1988 I witnessed Nick Greiner's Opposition, and they never resorted to anything like that.
Mr SPEAKER: Order! I place all members of the Opposition on three calls to order. If any member wants to test the patience of the Chair, now is the time to do so.
Mr CARR: Nick Greiner had policies, Nick Greiner had ability, Nick Greiner was a leader, and Nick Greiner had a team to back him. That is the difference. In Nick Greiner's days as Opposition leader there was 986 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 21 March 2002
none of this sitting around in a little workshop at 10 o'clock cutting out letters, pasting them on posters, admiring one another's handiwork, and before question time marching down to the Chamber with the intention of holding the posters up to show how clever they are. That is the Opposition.
Mr Hazzard: Point of order: Yesterday it was the Premier who was sitting here with a photograph, like a little schoolboy. It is quite inappropriate for him to now complain about what he initiated; indeed, it reflects poorly on him as Premier.
Mr SPEAKER: Order! The Premier has the call.
Mr CARR: Throw the net over him! The Leader of the Opposition vaulted over the barbed wire fence at Silverwater to have a lunch with Bassam Hamzy, Kevin Michael Geraghty, a cocaine importer, and Tarkan Tuncbliek, who was serving six years for armed robbery—
Mr Souris: You invited her.
Mr CARR: If she was invited and she accepted the invitation, that is dumb.
Mr Souris: But who sent the invitation?
Mr CARR: She was not forced to accept it.
Mr SPEAKER: Order! I call the Leader of the National Party to order.
Mr CARR: I suppose it is logical. George gets so few invitations, he thinks that if he gets one he must accept it. I will send him a few. We will put him on a few lists and send him a few invitations. The Leader of the Opposition also lunched with another man, who must remain nameless because he is about to face trial for two counts of manslaughter and one count of murder.
Mr Hartcher: Point of order: I refer to the standing orders relating to relevance. The question asked about police confidence in the honourable member for Cabramatta. The Premier has made no attempt to address that issue. Although he is entitled to respond to interjections, he has well and truly passed that point. He now has a responsibility to say why police have no confidence in the honourable member for Cabramatta.
Mr SPEAKER: Order! The honourable member for Gosford is in fact asking his colleagues to cease interjecting.
Mr CARR: Today the police Minister answered half a dozen questions on this subject, and answered them very well. It remains for me only to say this: The electorate will judge who has credibility on these issues. Someone who goes to lunch with criminals in Silverwater prison as a preferred way of spending her time as Leader of the Opposition has no credibility on crime. In fact, she has no judgment.
REDFERN-WATERLOO PROJECT
Mrs GRUSOVIN: My question without notice is addressed to the Premier. What is the latest information on the Redfern-Waterloo project?
Mr CARR: On 27 November last year I informed the House about the Government's renewed efforts to prevent crime and improve quality of life in Redfern-Waterloo. Today I am pleased to provide an update. The Government will invest $7 million over three years in a comprehensive package to reduce crime and improve public amenity. One of our first actions will be to set up a team of highly trained staff to provide case management for disadvantaged young people, that is, children who do not attend school, youngsters who are on the street at night because their home life is chaotic or unsafe and young people who drift into drugs, crime and prostitution and who cause fear among other residents, particularly older people.
In a departure from previous models, the Redfern-Waterloo street team will be managed by the Department of Community Services but will include staff from non-government agencies. As well, it will adopt a multidisciplinary approach. Team leaders will include not only child protection workers but drug and alcohol workers and Aboriginal elders. The street team will start on 1 July this year. A new family intervention and support service will start on 1 August and will provide intensive support to children and families who are in 21 March 2002 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 987 need of assistance but do not engage with traditional services. Practical help, such as fixing a broken fridge or washing machine, can be the first step to building the trust necessary to provide help with more sensitive areas such as domestic violence, drug abuse and truancy. We will trial this approach in Redfern-Waterloo, we will evaluate it, and we will extend it to other areas if it is found to be effective.
The new kindergarten to year 12 Alexandria Park Community School is being created as a result of the restructure of schools in the inner city. The school enjoys strong local support. Everyone associated with its initiation deserves our congratulations. The new school has created an opportunity to develop a model that maintains high educational standards while introducing activities to overcome truancy. A sports development program will bring young people back into the school community. The school will open in 2003. Local residents want better services, as well as jobs and training. To this end, the Government will spearhead the development of a master plan covering Redfern, Eveleigh and Darlington. It will revitalise local shopping strips, improve short-term and long-term employment opportunities, encourage a better social mix, enhance transport options and provide for the better location and distribution of human services.
Work will begin on the master plan on 1 July and is expected to be completed by 30 June next year. Aboriginal organisations are key partners in this project. The Government is committed to supporting the Aboriginal Housing Company and the local Aboriginal community in the redevelopment of the area known as The Block. Today I am pleased to announce that the Aboriginal Housing Company has agreed to be a partner in the master plan. The housing company recognises that redevelopment of The Block for Aboriginal housing is part of a broader revitalisation of the area. The Government will also work with South Sydney City Council on a public domain plan for Redfern-Waterloo. This will provide a strategic framework for all open space within the area.
Few areas of the State suffer such high levels of crime, drug abuse, unemployment, child abuse and family breakdown. Ironically, this is occurring right on the doorstep of a wealthy global city. I acknowledge the willingness of local residents to take responsibility for problems and to work in partnership with the Government to generate practical solutions. The community will be involved in the implementation of this project at every step. To ensure that funding is allocated efficiently, every element of the Redfern-Waterloo project will be subject to rigorous evaluation. The success of this initiative depends on a united effort by all parties.
I acknowledge South Sydney council's leadership and commitment as a key partner. I thank the honourable member for Heffron and the honourable member for Bligh for their efforts on behalf of the Redfern- Waterloo community. Finally, I call on the business sector to consider how it can contribute to these urgent tasks. Redfern Foundation is one example of corporations taking responsibility. Recently this group of civic- minded business people and professionals raised $200,000 for programs aimed at children and families in Redfern-Waterloo. The project we are embarking on in Redfern-Waterloo involves a long-term commitment. The combined efforts of government, the local community, the local council and business provide us with an opportunity to achieve lasting change, and we are backing all of this with money.
PRISONERS DRUG TESTING
Mr HUMPHERSON: My question is directed to the Minister for Corrective Services. Has the Minister asked his department to investigate allegations that 27 inmates at Long Bay gaol who were tested for drugs on one day late last month all tested positive but the results were suppressed so that the prisoners would not lose their access to day-release programs?
Mr AMERY: I hope the facts provided by the honourable member for Davidson in this case are a little better than the facts provided by the Opposition in the past couple of days. At the outset I join with the Speaker in welcoming to the Parliament the former Premier of South Australia Mr Rob Kerin. For a number of years he sat with me at meetings of the Agricultural Resource Management Council of Australia and New Zealand. I congratulate him on his performance last year in bringing his team back from a hopeless position to a close result in the recent State election in South Australia. Today we will have to investigate whether the Department of Corrective Services tested prisoners for drugs, found all the tests to be positive and then said, "We will cover this up." So we will get some facts on that. I advise the House that I am also conducting other investigations asked of me by the shadow Minister for Corrective Services.
I have had to investigate serious contraband found in the possession of the notorious criminal Phuong Ngo. The word "contraband" sounds serious. We must ensure that the property found on prisoners is confiscated 988 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 21 March 2002 and that any necessary action is taken quickly. To highlight the standard and quality of the questions asked by the shadow Minister, the contraband confiscated from the notorious criminal Phuong Ngo included a CD-ROM which was attached to the Business Review Weekly magazine. That magazine can be purchased at a local newsagency.
My office staff were impressed by the fact that I was able to identify a CD-ROM. I can advise the House that I took the CD-ROM home last night and played it on my turntable at 45 revolutions per minute. It was a lousy tune. I can advise the House that the other items taken from Phuong Ngo would not normally be taken from a prisoner in a gaol. They were taken from him only because he is being investigated through the Office of Local Government and others about his possible links with local government. The other two items were a couple of floppy disks. I understand that if you pay a bit extra you get firm ones, but I do not know.
Mr Fraser: That's hardly funny!
Mr AMERY: That is not bad for a bloke who only has to walk into a room to activate the automatic sprinkler system. The Leader of the National Party cannot do that; he has to start talking first. I can safely say to the House that I have no allegations to suggest that the Business Review Weekly may be conducting a secret contraband smuggling scheme in our gaols. I will say I understand that there are a number of magazines that can be purchased with a sealed plastic container. I have asked the department to make sure that these are checked in the future because heaven knows what else may be coming into the gaol with magazines with plastic containers. The last thing I would want is prisoners in our prison system getting access to free samples of shampoo, chocolate drinks or other products that may come in these sorts of packages. Heaven knows what Playboy supplies! I will make sure that those matters are checked out.
Mr Hartcher: You're trivialising a serious issue.
Mr AMERY: I do realise that this is a very serious issue. The public is calling out for a crackdown on Business Review Weekly CD-ROMS! They have been demonstrating all week that whatever we do, we should not let those things into prisons because one never knows what might happen.
Mr Hartcher: The only way you will win Gosford is with a political assassin. Release Phuong Ngo.
Mr AMERY: The honourable member for Gosford gives idiots a bad name. In relation to computers, we would of course be concerned if prisoners could contact the outside via the Internet and that is why this product was seized. I understand the only computers available in our prison system are for educational purposes, that is, to learn word processing, write letters and so on. I found out that although the disk does not work on my turntable it does work on the Internet. We have to make sure that prisoners do not have access to the Internet. I am very concerned about the continual attacks on the integrity of prisons officers in the corrections system. In the media in the past couple of days—and no doubt it will happen again following this question today, which implies that a correctional services officer acted corruptly—the honourable member said that the property found in the prisoner's cell is another example of his influence in political circles.
Having a Business Review Weekly CD-ROM is prima facie evidence that he has influence with political contacts. It is an interesting line of thought. He was obviously implying that he is being given some sort of favouritism by prisons officers. That is a slur on the professionalism of our prisons officers, and is something that will offend them. The issues raised by the honourable member today and yesterday are clear evidence that our prisons officers are doing the job well. He said that finding the CD-ROM was unusual, because only a couple of weeks ago I had a crackdown on contraband and this undermines that exercise. Think about it. If you have a crackdown on contraband and search for something and find it, that undermines the crackdown on contraband!
I would have thought that the whole program would have been undermined if they did not look for something, or if they did, did not find it. The honourable member's argument shows his lack of credibility in relation to this matter. I congratulate the prison officers on finding the products, and on their work each day finding contraband within our prisons system. I need not say much more about the disks. As I pointed out, we will be asking Corrective Services to look at this new mode of smuggling products into the gaol through magazines which I understand are purchased by Corrections staff and brought in for prisoners who order them. We will also be looking at what property is available to prisoners. But overall, the whole matter was grossly exaggerated. By the way, the floppy disk has been sent to ICAC to ascertain whether it contains anything that could help the local government people with their inquiries. 21 March 2002 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 989
HUNTER EMPLOYMENT ZONE
Mr HICKEY: My question without notice is to the Minister for Planning. What is the latest information about the Hunter employment zone at Tomalpin?
Dr REFSHAUGE: The honourable member for Cessnock is continually striving for jobs and investment in this important region. I am delighted to announce today that I have approved the development of the landmark Hunter employment zone at Tomalpin, near Cessnock. This 800-hectare development paves the way for up to $2 billion worth of investment in this growing region. It will kick-start some 10,000 new jobs, and at the same time protect significant tracts of environmentally sensitive land. Our announcement today heralds economic and social renewal right across the Hunter. It stands to be the biggest new economic zone in the State. Within the zone we are working to encourage sustainable, large-scale, job-generating developments, developments that will be close to infrastructure, resources and markets. Several investors have already expressed interest, including a $300 million enterprise with the potential of some 240 jobs. There will also be significant investments in infrastructure, including road and rail links, financed fully by the developer. The original draft plan was substantially reviewed and revised in response to public concerns raised during its initial exhibition.
Mr SPEAKER: Order! There is far too much audible conversation in the Chamber.
Dr REFSHAUGE: This meant that, on its second exhibition, 86 per cent of submissions supported the plan—an illustration of just how vital the community voice is in determining what changes to the original plan were required to best meet local needs. For example, after negotiation with the community, the area zoned for conservation rose from 1,320 hectares to 2,120 hectares. The zone now balances environmental conservation with creating sustainable economic and social opportunities for business and families, particularly those around the Kurri Kurri and Cessnock areas. The Hunter employment zone sets aside 870 hectares as a major industrial and employment-generating zone, a matching 870 hectares for the Lower Hunter National Park, 855 hectares for environmental protection, 400 hectares as a deferred area, eventually to be added to the Lower Hunter National Park, and 40 hectares for infrastructure and community facilities.
Importantly, the Hunter employment zone will have road access to the port of Newcastle and the F3, as well as a rail spur that will utilise the privately owned South Maitland Railway, which then connects with the northern line at Maitland, providing direct rail access to and from the port. I emphasise that we have set strict conditions on the rezoning to protect the local environment. For the first time ever within an industrial zone I have stipulated that development applications must be preceded by detailed management plans outlining how the environmental qualities of the site will be protected into the future.
Developments which pose unacceptable risks or hazards to people or the environment will not be permitted. Substantial areas are identified for environmental protection, including areas of Kurri Kurri sand swamp woodlands, which has been declared an endangered ecological community by the New South Wales Scientific Committee. Stringent management plans and ongoing monitoring of the site will ensure protection of air and water quality, as well as the area's unique biodiversity and Aboriginal archaeology. Careful consideration will be given to transport, bushfire planning, energy efficiency, waste management and urban design. Light and noise will be monitored to minimise impacts on the surrounding community.
As Minister for Aboriginal Affairs, I am pleased that significant indigenous cultural areas are protected within the zone, and that over 200 hectares of local Aboriginal land council land has been zoned for industry. If developed, this project would generate income for the local Aboriginal community. This landmark project has gone through an exhaustive planning and assessment process to get the best results for Hunter communities. Together with the Hunter Wine Country development and employment team, made up of local community and industry representatives, we identified the industrial potential of the site in 1997. Over the last four years we have worked across government and with the community to thoroughly investigate opportunities there. I am confident that we have come up with a plan that will maximise the benefits—benefits that will not only drive local improvements, but that will resonate right across the State. This Government is working to attract and keep major industries and jobs in the Hunter as one of the State's most vibrant and dynamic regions. This plan was born out of a strong need for more jobs in Cessnock, to save thousands of people from travelling out of the area to work. We are delivering a framework so that need can be met. The Hunter presents an enormously attractive environment for business and industry, and Tomalpin presents a rare land opportunity for large-scale 990 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 21 March 2002
employment developments. The Tomalpin employment zone illustrates just how much we can achieve together with a whole-of-government approach, working in partnership with the community. I thank the Cessnock City Council, the Mindaribba Local Aboriginal Land Council and the proponent for their work with us on this important project. I also thank, of course, the honourable member for Cessnock, who has ensured that all the views of his community have been heard and, as far as possible, accommodated in the decision.
HOSPITAL WAITING LISTS
Mrs HOPWOOD: My question is directed to the Minister for Health. Can the Minister give a guarantee that planned bed cuts will not go ahead in the restructure of the lumbar unit at Hornsby hospital given that today there are 343 more patients waiting for elective surgery at Hornsby than in 1995, when the Premier promised to halve waiting lists?
Mr KNOWLES: I thank the honourable member for Hornsby for what I think is her first question. Overall waiting times in the North Sydney Area Health Service—
Mr Debnam: Answer the question.
Mr KNOWLES: I will answer it. That is pretty depressing when I have a reasonable question from a new member of Parliament who seeks advice on behalf of her electorate, and I am happy to answer the question and provide facts so that she can go back to her community and give them the assurance that they seek. I bet she will be there at the opening of the upgraded emergency department, the paediatric section, and the maternity ward. It is all under planning. What are the facts about waiting times and waiting lists? Waiting lists have dropped in the North Sydney Area Health Service. As a matter of fact, the figures are on the web site.
I will refer to another fact, as I sense that she would want to be diligent in her role. She will understand, because of her former professional activities—to which I pay respect—that it is clearly an issue in places like Hornsby hospital. Indeed, it is an issue that affects many hospitals, not just in rural areas as it was traditionally, but around the State and merging into metropolitan areas, but particularly on the northern side of Sydney. A rapid decline in the number of nursing home beds has resulted in many elderly people—who are not sick but simply have nowhere to go because there are no maternity home beds—occupying acute beds. That, of course, is a matter of fact.
Mrs Skinner: Point of order: The question relates to maternity patients. I do not think they need nursing home beds.
Mr SPEAKER: Order! There is no point of order.
Mr KNOWLES: I would endorse what the honourable member for North Shore said. She makes a very serious point. Yes, hospitals are for treating people who are sick, or need the services of obstetric units. They should not be used to accommodate people who have been assessed by the Commonwealth Government as being suitable for a nursing home bed but are simply unable to get them. When Bronwyn Bishop—
Mrs Skinner: What about waiting lists?
Mr KNOWLES: Please remind me to come back to Bronwyn Bishop. I should say, so that community members in the public gallery will understand, that the honourable member for North Shore regularly puts out terror press releases about waiting lists. Sometimes the newspapers actually read the truth about what is happening: they too can pick it up on the web site. Her latest little effort was a blinder. I cannot get headlines like this: "Surprise drop in waiting lists". I appreciate the efforts of the honourable member for North Shore.
Mrs Skinner: That's a lie.
Mr KNOWLES: She is calling the editor of the Mount Druitt and St Marys Standard a liar? But back to Bronwyn Bishop.
Mrs Skinner: Back to Hornsby.
Mr KNOWLES: Yes, absolutely, back to Hornsby. The honourable member for Hornsby will do well to refer to Hansard, the great record of debates in this Parliament. If she does, she will see that I read onto 21 March 2002 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 991
Hansard the names of a number of nursing homes in the northern Sydney area that actually closed under Bronwyn Bishop's reign. Many of those were in and around the Hornsby area. As a consequence many elderly people who are not sick, but just have nowhere to go, are in acute beds at Hornsby hospital which, of course, would be better used by people who are ill, or having babies.
Yesterday, as a consequence of some investigations in Canberra, the Commonwealth Department of Health finally blew the whistle on Bronwyn Bishop and John Howard, who asserted before the election that there was not a shortage of nursing home beds. But yesterday the Sydney Morning Herald, at page 3, referred to the record of a Commonwealth inquiry. In New South Wales there are 4,400 beds short in the nursing home sector which were asserted to be funded by Bronwyn Bishop. As a consequence, many of the people to whom I referred are now living in hospitals, like Hornsby, Manly and many other places.
It may surprise community members in the gallery to learn, as country members know, that in some cases people have been living in country hospitals for up to eight years. True, there is a shortage of beds in the nursing home sector. True, many services closed in the North Sydney area under Bronwyn Bishop's reign. But I just want to spend a little bit more time to talk about what the Coalition might do about waiting lists. It may interest the House that on 15 January—not 2002, but 2001, that is 14 months ago—the Leader of the Opposition was interviewed by Terry Willesee, on his first day as a presenter at 2GB. She was asked by Willesee, with my apologies for his use of the vernacular:
Okay. How will you fix it and how long do you think is a reasonable time to wait to get into hospital to get your buggered knee fixed?
This was in the case of orthopaedic surgery. The Leader of the Opposition said:
Well, they're all the issues that we're looking at at the moment, in terms of our policy development, and you'll hear me talking a lot about that over the coming months.
Willesee asked:
But you will have the answers?
The Leader of the Opposition said:
Well, we'll... [try] to provide some practical solutions.
What might they be, I ask. Bear in mind this was Willesee's first day on the job and he was interviewing the Leader of the Opposition, who chose to raise the issue of hospital waiting lists. He asked, "What would you do?" and she said, "We're developing policy." Willesee tried again:
Do you really believe there is an answer to the waiting list problem?
There was a long answer, and Willesee interrupted and said:
Look, I may be wrong but you do seem to be ducking the question a little.
In her response—do honourable members remember the Vicar of Dibley?—she said, "No, no, no," which really meant yes. She was asked five times, "Is there an answer?" and, "Are you saying you will be giving us the answers?" and she said, "Well, that's what I said to you; that's what you'll be hearing me talk about over the coming month." On 15 January 2001 we were promised a health policy within a month, but we are still waiting. They have no policies, no nothing. Mrs Hopwood: Point of order: I have asked a serious question. My point of order relates to the relevance of the answer. Mr SPEAKER: Order! There is no point of order. NATIONAL PARKS AND WILDLIFE SERVICE FOX BAITING PROGRAM Mr BLACK: My question without notice is directed to the Minister for the Environment. What is the latest information on the Government's fight against the red fox? Mr DEBUS: I welcome the continuing interest that the honourable member for Murray-Darling and other members of Country Labor have in the quest to control the effects of predation by the red fox. Honourable 992 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 21 March 2002
members may recall that last year the Government announced a draft fox threat abatement plan, which it released for public comment. Today I am pleased to inform the House that that plan has been finalised and is ready to be put into action to fight the scourge of this terrible predator. Over five years $7.4 million will be spent to co-ordinate baiting programs on more than 80 priority sites across both public and private lands.
Mr Brogden: Point of order: The Game Bill is only part heard in this Parliament and debate will continue throughout the next sitting week. Matters now being raised by the Minister are anticipating the debate in respect of that legislation.
Mr DEBUS: To the point of order: This has nothing to do with the Game Bill. I am referring to a threat abatement program which is being put together by a number of Government departments. That has nothing even remotely to do with the Game Bill.
Mr SPEAKER: Order! There is no point of order.
Mr DEBUS: People know that the fox was introduced in the nineteenth century by English settlers. It has become by far the most serious predator to our native animal population. In the case of 34 native species that are nationally listed as endangered, foxes are either a known or a perceived threat. Leading researchers on pests estimate that the fox population in New South Wales is, astoundingly, between three million and six million. This opportunistic feeder can switch food types from living to dead prey—it even eats vegetable matter—and can eat 400 grams of food a night.
Mr SPEAKER: Order! There is too much audible conversation in the Chamber. I include the Deputy Leader of the Opposition in that warning.
Mr DEBUS: Since that predator has such a capacity for consumption and destruction, as it were, we can estimate, based on the fox population in this State, that each night approximately 300,000 native animals are at risk of being killed by foxes. The animals most at risk are medium-size ground-dwelling and semi-arboreal mammals that weigh between 450 grams and 5,000 grams. Possums, brown bandicoots and ground-nesting birds such as the mallee fowl and the plains wanderer or coastal birds such as terns and pied oyster catchers are all at especial risk from the fox.
Mr SPEAKER: Order! If the honourable member for Murrumbidgee and the honourable member for Pittwater want to carry on a conversation, they should leave the Chamber.
Mr DEBUS: Foxes are also known carriers of diseases, such as mange, that can be transmitted to wombats and dogs. There are also estimates that in some parts of New South Wales the lamb losses from fox attacks are as high as 30 per cent of a flock's lamb production. Clearly, this is a major problem for farming communities. The problem needs to be dealt with. The new plan systematically targets foxes where their impact on threatened species and on livestock is likely to be greatest. The cornerstone of the plan is to establish collaborative fox control programs across all land tenures—not just in national parks and Crown land but in all land tenures. The plan was prepared by the National Parks and Wildlife Service in association with State Forests, the Department of Land and Water Conservation and New South Wales Agriculture.
Mr Armstrong: Point of order: The Minister is well behind the times. The program he is enunciating was carried out by the Young Rural Lands Protection Board and the Pastures Protection Board at least a decade ago. Give us something new!
Mr SPEAKER: Order! There is no point of order. Mr DEBUS: It was not my proposition that nobody ever tried to do anything about foxes before, but it is my proposition that something new and better than ever before is being done. The plan, unlike the program conducted by the National Party 10 years ago, sets out a new scientific approach with standardised monitoring of both native fauna and foxes to help assess its effectiveness. In particular major multisite programs will benefit a number of particularly threatened native species such as the rufous bettong, brush-tailed wallabies, the southern brown bandicoot and Albert's lyrebird. This new plan will build upon the success of existing fox control programs throughout the State, such as the one in Mutawintji National Park, which has resulted in a 400 per cent reduction in losses of the population of yellow-footed rock wallabies since 1995. I have no doubt that this new plan will build on the success of the Young Pastures Protection Board. Mr SPEAKER: Order! The honourable member for Baulkham Hills will remain silent. 21 March 2002 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 993
Mr DEBUS: Additional programs will be established at key sites in the Hunter, the Central Coast, the Blue Mountains and the South Coast to expand those that have been recently established in the Ku-ring-gai Chase National Park and Garigal National Park—programs which have also been very successful.
Mr Armstrong: Point of order: Can the Minister tell us whether he will guarantee public liability cover where baiting is carried out by rural lands protection boards and pastures protection boards under this program?
Mr SPEAKER: Order! There is no point of order.
Mr DEBUS: The answer is on the National Parks and Wildlife Service web site. I feel sure that the Minister for Agriculture, computer literate as he is, will be able to direct his predecessor to the web site www.npws.gov.au, where he will find answers to all the questions that he has been asking. If he if he cannot manipulate his computer he can ring 1300 361967.
STATE RAIL PROGRAM CO-ORDINATOR TRANSFER
Mr R. W. TURNER: My question without notice is directed to the Minister for Transport. Will he reassure 30 State Rail employees in control centres at Orange and Junee that the transfer of the program co- ordinator position from Orange to Broadmeadow is not the first step in a hidden agenda to close centres ahead of the takeover by the Australian Rail Transport Corporation [ARTC] of interstate and regional rail lines?
Mr SCULLY: What an extraordinary question! It is obvious that the honourable member does not understand that there is a difference between train controllers and program co-ordinators. Program co-ordinators determine track availability—the track space for trains that are coming through—and train controllers manage the movement of trains. There have been discussions between State Rail Authority employees at Junee and Orange with a view to centralising program co-ordinators at Broadmeadow. However, no decision has been made. That consultation will continue. What I find extraordinary is the suggestion that is implied in the honourable member's question that there is something wrong with the ARTC proposal. Let me enlighten the House.
The National Party Federal Minister for Transport and Regional Services, John Anderson, wants the federally owned and federally run body to take over the interstate track. So the Commonwealth Government will take charge of the interstate track. It will be John Anderson's baby. John Anderson put this proposal to us and we have not rejected it. This Government, which is interested in ideas, has given the Commonwealth Government due diligence in this area. The Premier, the Treasurer and I have told the former Minister for Finance, John Fahey, and the current Federal Minister for Transport and Regional Services that we are willing to be involved in that sort of discussion. We would like to hear what the Federal Government has to put on the table.
The current proposal for a possible movement of program co-ordinators to Broadmeadow has nothing to do with the ARTC proposal. I assume that this split between the State National Party and the Federal National Party has the endorsement of the Leader of the Opposition. The Deputy Leader of the Opposition is not in the Chamber. I assume that the criticism implied in the honourable member's question means that the State National Party rejects the ARTC proposal. Has the honourable member for Orange told John Anderson that? I see John Anderson a few times a year. When I see him again I will ask him whether he is aware of this proposal. Do honourable members remember the super highway—the $2 billion road through the Megalong Valley which was to charge a toll of $60 for cars and $120 dollars for trucks? What nonsense! The honourable member is saying that we should not proceed with the ARTC proposal. The honourable member should not be worrying about trains and railway lines. He should be asking John Anderson why he has $111 million parked on a shelf in the Australian Rail Transport Corporation account. That money just sits there while we are giving the Federal Government due diligence. A number of members in this House have been talking about level crossings. I offer that as an example of where the $111 million could go. The honourable member for Orange has a number of level crossings in his electorate. Why does he not ask John Anderson to put some of that money into upgrading them? I have noticed level crossings in the electorates of other honourable members. Some of that money should be going into level crossings and upgrading interstate track, but John Anderson just leaves the money in that account. The honourable member for Orange suggests today that there is something wrong with the ARTC proposal. I would like members of the State National Party to look in the mirror and see the party that 994 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 21 March 2002
bastardised country rail services in this State. When the Deputy Leader of the Opposition was chief of staff to Bruce Baird several stations were closed, for example Yass Junction to Yass Town, Wagga Wagga to Ladysmith—that track was smashed to smithereens—Brocklesby to Corowa and Nyngan to Bourke. Those stations were wiped off the rail system. Other stations that were closed include Queanbeyan to Cooma, Goulburn to Crookwell and Glen Innes to Wallangarra.
On 26 October 1989 the National Party smashed the Glen Innes to Wallangarra rail line. The honourable member for Murray-Darling referred earlier to branch lines. In 1991 the following stations were closed: Moree to Delungra, Greenethorpe to Grenfell and Culcairn to Brocklesby. The Deputy Leader of the Opposition did not think that enough stations had been closed. Fifteen or 16 rail lines had already been closed, but he wanted to get rid of a few more. He and Bruce Baird took a big axe, chopped the sleepers and smashed the rail network. This Government reopened the Kandos goldmine line. The honourable member for Orange should not come into this House and ask me questions about country rail! He should apologise.
PHUONG NGO PRISON CELL CONTRABAND
Mr AMERY: I have a supplementary answer to a question that was asked yesterday by the honourable member for Davidson: The honourable member said, "How is it possible that prison officers have uncovered contraband in the maximum security cell of Phuong Ngo?" The alleged contraband was three computer disks. The honourable member followed this up in the media with claims that the incident showed that Ngo still had some influence over prison authorities. To state the obvious, it is the job of a prison officer to uncover suspected contraband that is held by inmates. Prison officers regularly search cells as part of their daily work. Phuong Ngo could not possibly still have an influence on prison authorities if prison officers at Lithgow found the disks.
The CD-ROM was attached to the Business Review Weekly, which this prisoner and no doubt other prisoners had purchased. He would have bought the magazine while he was at Long Bay gaol last year. A number of magazines are approved for prisoners to read—many of which can be bought over the counter at newsagents. That is consistent with clause 48 of the Crimes (Administration of Sentences) Regulation 2001. However, the department was not aware that the CD-ROM was attached to the Business Review Weekly. It is also believed that Ngo may have hidden it in a book when he was recently transferred to Lithgow. Had staff known that he was in possession of a CD-ROM at the time it would have been confiscated.
Clearly, this situation is unacceptable. I have requested the department to examine more closely any magazines and possible attachments that are brought in by inmates or prison officers for inmates. I have also asked for more thorough searches of prison possessions when prisoners are transferred from one gaol to another. The computers used by prisoners in our gaols are not linked to the Internet. No modems are attached to those computers. However, it is still deemed inappropriate and a potential risk to security to have an Internet access program in the gaol. I have been advised today that the other two disks were 3½-inch floppy disks which were given to Ngo by a departmental training officer at the Lithgow correctional centre. They contained educational materials which teach basic computer programs such as word processing. Corrective Services officers checked carefully to ensure that there was no other coded information on those disks. That is why it has taken some time to confirm their contents. The department advised me that training disks like these that are in the possession of prisoners are not considered contraband. However, they were seized in this case because the Lithgow officers were keen to ensure that there were no potential breaches of security or inappropriate content stored on them. They will now be forwarded to the Independent Commission Against Corruption for further examination. The computers to which Ngo would have had access in Lithgow have also been forwarded to the ICAC. As I have indicated to the House, Phuong Ngo is a political assassin. He was convicted of murdering a good friend of mine and a friend of many other honourable members—a Labor member of Parliament in this House. It is disgraceful for an Opposition member—in particular a shadow Minister—to claim that Phuong Ngo is getting favourable treatment by this Government. It is an absurd claim. We found the computer disks because of the diligence of prison officers who searched Phuong Ngo's cell in Lithgow. I cannot believe that searching a cell and finding something undermines our crackdown on contraband. I thought that is what prison officers are supposed to do. The CD-ROM will now be destroyed. Phuong Ngo is now working in the gaol's sewing shop, which makes inmate clothing and health industry linen. I assure the House that Ngo will continue to be closely monitored by prison authorities during his stay at Lithgow. Preparing answers to questions asked by the honourable member for Davidson takes up a lot of the department's time, but it helps the Government to undermine the credibility of this Opposition. 21 March 2002 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 995
PRISONERS DRUG TESTING
Mr AMERY: Further to the question asked earlier today by the honourable member for Davidson, I advise the House that I have been advised by the Department of Corrective Services, which carried out a very brief initial inquiry during question time today, that the department's policy is to immediately remove from all external programs any inmate who returns a dirty urine sample. I am advised that in the past three months only three minimum security prisoners at Long Bay have tested positive. Since then, one has been discharged and the other two were on prescribed medication, which accounted for their positive test results. I think it was last month that the activity in question took place. The question alleges corrupt activity by prison officers in suppressing the results of these tests. If any of these claims are substantiated, action will be taken by the appropriate authorities. Any further information that comes to hand on this matter will, of course, be brought to the attention of the House.
Questions without notice concluded.
PRINTING OF PAPERS
Mr WHELAN (Strathfield—Parliamentary Secretary) [3.52 p.m.], by leave: I move:
That the following papers be printed:
Report by the Attorney General pursuant to section 23 of the Listening Devices Act 1984 for 2000 Report of the Commissioners of Inquiry for Environment and Planning for the year ended 30 June 2001 Report of the Minister for Police entitled "Review of the Witness Protection Act 1995", dated December 2001 Report of the National Environment Protection Council for the year ended 30 June 2001 Report of the State Emergency Management Committee for the year ended 30 June 2001 Report of the State Rescue Board of New South Wales for the year ended 30 June 2001 Variations of the payments estimates and appropriations for 2001-02 in relation to the Olympic Co-ordination Authority and the New South Wales Department of Sport and Recreation, in terms of section 24 of the Public Finance and Audit Act 1983.
Honourable members would be aware that other reports have been tabled, but I have not sought the permission of the House to have them printed. Determination No. 3, 2001, of the Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal entitled "Department of Land and Water Conservation Bulk Water Prices from 1 October 2001", dated December 2001, is not recommended for printing because Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal reports are widely deposited in libraries, the report is voluminous and it is available on the web. The Gaming Machine Tax Act 2001—Revised Guidelines for the Community Development and Support Expenditure Scheme from 1 February 2002 is also not recommended for printing because the document is headed "Information Sheet 4/02" and is part of a series of information sheets. The document has an ISSN number and is already deposited in libraries and is also available on the web.
The Landcom Annual Review for the year ended 30 June 2001 is not recommended for printing because the report is not tabled under the Annual Reports (Department) Act or the Annual Reports (Statutory Bodies) Act, and it is also available on the web. The report of an investigation under section 430 of the Local Government Act 1993 relating to Tweed Shire Council, dated March 2002, is not recommended for printing because it is deposited in State and national libraries. We recommend against duplicating the report.
Mr HARTCHER (Gosford) [3.53 p.m.]: The Opposition acknowledges the changed procedures as outlined by the Leader of the House. On behalf of Opposition members I ask that the relevant web sites be identified. I have had the benefit of some discussions on that matter with the Clerk of the Legislative Assembly, and I am sure that he would agree with my request. I also ask that where documents are not to be printed, the web site be identified in the tabling of the documents or that the web site appears on the business paper so that members who wish to access the web site are able to do so readily.
Motion agreed to.
BILL RETURNED
The following the bill was returned from the Legislative Council with an amendment:
Anti-Discrimination Amendment (Drug Addiction) Bill
Consideration of amendment deferred. 996 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 21 March 2002
CONSIDERATION OF URGENT MOTIONS
Agribusiness Alternatives Program
Mr W. D. SMITH (South Coast) [3.55 p.m.]: This motion is urgent because new country industries such as those involved in agribusiness need immediate support from the Federal Government. We should debate this motion today to encourage country businesses to develop their new ideas and create new opportunities in rural and regional New South Wales. This matter should come before the House today because it is of immense importance to my constituency and the rural communities across the State.
Hunter Hospital Services
Mrs SKINNER (North Shore) [3.55 p.m.]: Whilst the motion moved by my colleague the honourable member for South Coast is undoubtedly important, it is hardly more urgent than a motion relating to the lives of patients. My motion relates to action to be taken by Hunter sub-branch members of the Ambulance Officers Union because they are so worried about the impact on patients lives of delays on their being able to get patients into hospitals. Last Saturday two ambulances were gridlocked in the emergency department of Belmont District Hospital, with two ambulance officers alongside patients on gurneys still taking responsibility for those patients because there were too few beds in the wards to admit the patients for treatment. As a result, the emergency department was gridlocked. I have spoken to an ambulance officer who has told me that neither of those patients had been through triage.
One of the patients was suffering from chest pains. The ambulance officers attending the patient wanted to hand her over to hospital care, but a nurse told the officers that there would be an hour's wait because no coronary beds were available. Ambulance officers persuaded the patient to stay, even though she had indicated that she would call a friend to request her to take her to a general practitioner instead. The patient waited 40 minutes before the ambulance officers, one at the foot of the stretcher and one at the head of it, noticed she was having a cardiac arrest. The ambulance officers had to revive the patient with shock treatment to resuscitate her and assist her to regain consciousness. They did this on an ambulance stretcher in the hospital emergency department because the hospital was unable to take the patient on board to care for her because it did not have a bed or the capacity to do so.
The ambulance officers also told me about another incident involving a developmentally disabled young woman who had a cardiac arrest in the bath. The officers told me that the crew with the skills best suited to treat the young woman were gridlocked at John Hunter Hospital because the hospital did not have the capacity to admit the patient they were treating. This House should debate this motion. The House should have the opportunity to hear the Minister's response in relation to that matter. What delay was occasioned by the ambulance crew being gridlocked? What was the outcome for the developmentally disabled patient who had a cardiac arrest in the bath? This House has the right to debate such motions and to hear from the Minister and the Government why ambulance officers, members of Health and Research Employees Association—the union that the Minister and other members of Cabinet are so fond of quoting—who have to deal with day-to-day issues, are proposing to take strike action on 25 March if there are further delays at John Hunter Hospital.
The ambulance officers say, "No more. We are going to drop our patients onto camp stretchers, which we will carry in the back of our ambulances. We are going to put the camp stretchers with the patients on them in the hospital and then we are going to respond to other urgent calls", so that no patients are denied the rapid response, so that no patients' lives are threatened, and so that no patient is prevented from receiving optimum treatment in hospital, where the appropriate equipment, properly trained and qualified people and the appropriate beds and monitoring machines are available to ensure that patients receive the best treatment. This week a patient had a heart attack while lying on an ambulance gurney in a hospital emergency department. A developmentally disabled young woman had an unfortunate experience when ambulance officers were unable to respond because the hospital was too busy. In the past year the Government has shut 63 beds at John Hunter Hospital. This causes access block, which means that emergency departments are gridlocked and cannot accept patients.
Question—That the motion for urgent consideration of the honourable member for South Coast be proceeded with—agreed to. 21 March 2002 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 997
AGRIBUSINESS ALTERNATIVES PROGRAM Urgent Motion Mr W. D. SMITH (South Coast) [4.00 p.m.]: I move:
That this House:
(1) recognises the growing importance of the agribusiness industries to rural and regional communities in New South Wales;
(2) notes that the State Government's Agribusiness Alternatives program is encouraging renewed growth and diversification from traditional agricultural markets; and
(3) calls on the Federal Government to follow the Carr Government's lead and provide immediate support for rural communities that are looking to refocus their resources into new and emerging industries. The Government has a commitment to developing new industries in rural and regional areas. We recognise that country New South Wales has many diverse regions, each with its own unique assets, from coastal communities with wonderful waterways to arid communities in western New South Wales. The Carr Government recognises how important it is to develop new industries and new ideas that are embryonic in country areas. One new industry is agribusiness. In country New South Wales we are fortunate to have a variety of climates and geographies that can produce everything from coffee to the world's best wines. No longer can rural people ride the sheep's back to prosperity. The family farm is quickly turning into a multifaceted business enterprise. In recognition of this, the Government is actively encouraging rural industries to grow and develop. Through the Department of State and Regional Development, the Government has 10 agribusiness development officers in New South Wales who focus on developing new agribusiness opportunities. Their expertise and the assistance they provide is invaluable. From July to December last year the Government's agribusiness managers assisted with the creation of more than 111 jobs and investment worth more than $11 million. I would like the Federal Government to point to a program that has been more successful. The short answer is that it does not have one successful program. Mr Fraser: Point of order: I refer you to page 53 of Decisions from the Chair. Page 372 of Erskine May's Parliamentary Practice states that a member is not permitted to read his speech. The honourable member for South Coast has read every word of his speech for the past two minutes. Mr SPEAKER: Order! The honourable member for South Coast is merely referring to copious notes. Mr W. D. SMITH: As I said, the Federal Government does not have a program that has been as successful as the State Government's Agribusiness Alternatives program. Members opposite have no policies. One thing I learnt quickly in this game is that one must be keep up to date with acronyms. One acronym that applies to members opposite is PFZ, which stands for policy-free zone. They do not have any policies to offer in relation to agribusiness, which is so important in this debate. They should take this matter seriously, instead of taking spurious points of order. Clearly, country New South Wales is not a priority to members opposite. They do not have any policies for industries in rural and regional New South Wales. Under the leadership of the dynamic duo, the Opposition has gone backwards. At least the former Leader of the National Party, the honourable member for Lachlan, had a passing interest in job creation and mentioned it occasionally. I say, "Bring back Ian Armstrong." These days the Leader of the National party is more concerned about hanging on to his position as leader than developing solid policies for people in country New South Wales. Mr Slack-Smith: Point of order: My point of order relates to relevance. The honourable member's comments have nothing to do with the debate, and I urge you to bring him back to the subject of the motion. Mr SPEAKER: Order! The remarks of the honourable member for South Coast are relevant to the motion he has moved. Mr W. D. SMITH: The only policy I have heard from the Leader of the National Party is to put a tunnel through the Blue Mountains. What a joke! As we speak Country Labor is working with the Government to develop new policy ideas on how to create new jobs and economic growth in country New South Wales. Not that our current policies are not working. On the contrary, one of the Government's successful rural initiatives is the Agribusiness Alternatives program, which was designed to strengthen the State's agricultural base through diversification and the development of alternative industry opportunities. That is what we are all about— strengthening the opportunities available for country people. As part of the program, the Government recently staged five agribusiness diversification workshops, which included presentations from experts on marketing, production, sourcing information and industry development. 998 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 21 March 2002
The first workshop, which was on the native flower industry, was held in Kempsey in the electorate of Oxley. It was very successful, attracting 58 participants, about half of whom were looking to invest in a new industry. Other workshops have been held in Port Macquarie, Taree and Coffs Harbour on industries such as aquaculture, greenhouse production and organics. The fifth workshop will be held in Nambucca Heads on 23 March, a couple of days hence, on the production of macadamia nuts. All the workshops held so far have received resounding reviews, with the participants impressed by the amount of practical information available. This is only one example of the practical solutions and assistance the Government is providing to country businesses. It is an enormous shame that country businesses do not receive the same support from the Federal Government. However, we should not be surprised by that.
The Federal Government's first action in office was to close the Department of Regional Development, which was responsible for attracting and creating jobs in the bush. What did John Howard do? He dismantled the one department that represented the interests of country people. What a disgrace! Did the National Party stand up for country people and demand that the department be reinstated? Obviously it did not, because it does not represent the interests of people in the bush. It did not even ask the Prime Minister politely not to close the department. What a shameful performance by National members! On the other hand, the Government has a long-term commitment to country jobs and creating new opportunities for country people. At present the Government's agribusiness development officers have more than 40 agribusiness projects under their management. For example, South Coast Holstein breeders have received assistance to develop and implement an export action plan. This plan will allow breeders to differentiate their cattle from those of their competitors, and to prioritise potential markets for their products.
A feasibility study into the production and processing of Chinese medicinal herbs in the Tumut region has been undertaken as part of the Agribusiness Alternatives program. The packaging and marketing of honey produced in the State's south-west has also been the subject of a recent study. The State Government has a strong commitment to developing these new and exciting industries for country New South Wales. As part of this commitment we recently conducted workshops on agritourism and developing a regional property stay network: Come to the country, experience life on a farm, participate in its activities, meet country people and experience their warmth and hospitality. These workshops, run by professionals in the industry and established farm stay owners, covered practical tropics such as how to get started, marketing, industry accreditation and insurance. The workshops were held in Bourke, Condobolin and Euston. As a result of attending these workshops, a significant number of participants have indicated serious interest in setting up farm stay properties.
The Department of State and Regional Development is working with Tourism New South Wales to conduct a series of regional tourism forums. Two of those forums have already been held in Broken Hill and Dubbo. The Government has also assisted the community of Lockhart to develop a brochure promoting the town as an agritourism centre. Country Labor will continue to work in partnership with the Government, local communities and industry to generate new jobs and economic opportunities in rural and regional New South Wales. I seek support for this urgent motion from members on both sides of the House.
Mr SLACK-SMITH (Barwon) [4.10 p.m.]: The only matter of substance referred to by the honourable member for South Coast was the 10 Agribusiness development officers who cover 6 per cent of the population of New South Wales. From the outset they have been very successful. They have our support; they do a magnificent job. Unfortunately, that is not enough. The honourable member for South Coast told us what a great job the Government has done. Who started Agsell? The honourable member for South Coast did not answer that question. It was, of course, the National Party. Who gutted the Department of Agriculture? It was the Australian Labor Party, of course, so let us be a little consistent. Agribusiness is very important in New South Wales. It does not only involve the 10 Agribusiness positions I referred to and the 111 jobs they helped to create. Agribusiness goes further than. Agribusiness is now supplied by country firms, banks, fertiliser and chemical companies, private consultants and many others. The honourable member for South Coast failed to mention, of course, that all that is private money. One should remember the Federal Government's contribution to agribusiness in Australia, particularly in New South Wales. The honourable member for South Coast did not even talk about the Advancing Australia farm innovation program for which $3.4 million is being provided for two years to get it up and running. More than 170 applications have been received for funding under the farm innovation program.
The honourable member also did not mention the ENS workshops or the environmental management systems that have also been totally funded by the Federal Government. The Opposition fully supports the first two paragraphs of the motion. The third paragraph calls on the Federal Government to follow the Carr Government's lead. That is absolute rubbish. After the deregulation of the dairy industry, guess who provided 21 March 2002 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 999 funding for retraining and to get people going again. It was not the Carr Government, it was the Federal Government. The honourable member for South Coast should be fair dinkum and give credit where it is due. I gave the honourable member credit for the 10 agribusiness officers. There are definitely not enough of them.
If the Government was fair dinkum it would provide at least 20 positions, because I know how much work they have done. I acknowledge the magnificent work done in Moree by the late Bill Barnes. Sadly, he passed away about one month ago. He has worked long and hard in his position, but he was totally overworked like they all are. Apart from following the Carr Government's lead—it should follow the Federal Government's lead—we support this motion. Agribusiness is very important in rural and regional New South Wales. There should be a lot more of it. Much of it is private money and that makes it look better than it is. The Government uses private money and then claims all the glory. So far as I am concerned, that is not on. It is a another case of too little, too late.
Pursuant to sessional orders business interrupted.
PRIVATE MEMBERS' STATEMENTS
______
SEAHAM PUBLIC SCHOOL SESQUICENTENARY
Mr PRICE (Maitland) [4.15 p.m.]: I want to talk about an important event in education. On Monday I represented the Minister for Education and Training and unveiled a commemorative plaque at the sesquicentenary of Seaham Public School. Not every school in New South Wales can boast a 150-year celebration of continuous public education, but Seaham Public School certainly can. It was a wonderful day. The students were enthusiastic and supportive. The items they performed were done with precision and skill. The school captains were exemplary and there was a happy group of parents and community supporters there to witness the occasion. A series of essays was compiled by Mrs Cynthia Hunter, who is one of the local historians in the Dungog shire. She takes particular care in the way she records past oral and written past history. Her final product was excellent, as are all of her other publications. She has been producing works on local history in the Dungog shire and the Maitland area for many years.
At the same time as the celebrations came an important announcement of the construction of a $1 million permanent school library and two permanent classrooms. I am advised that the tender has been let today to R.T. Parker Pty Ltd. a successful building company from Adamstown in the Hunter region. It could not have happened at a better time. Twenty years ago the school had population of 12 and was in danger of closing. These days the school population is well over 240 and rising. The department had foreseen the problem and its demographers have been active. The department, through the Government, has provided funding to expand the school to house the present school population and the anticipated future population.
Seaham is on a lovely part of the Williams River. It is a beautiful location and one of which the entire community is extremely proud. When the arrangements for the sesquicentenary celebrations were being considered, they hooked into the local Anglican Church and the School of Arts, both of which are celebrating 100 years in the Seaham area. It has been a heavy week for the school and for the general community, but it has certainly been an important milestone in the history of Seaham, which itself is part of the history of Port Stephens. Two of the local councillors attended the school ceremony and the mayor and Minister for Education and Training sent their best regards.
The conduct of children in small country schools always surprises me. They are always well disciplined, well mannered and attentive. The children of Seaham Public School sat under the covered outdoor learning area for probably one hour with almost no movement at all. They were responsive to their teachers' instructions. The parents were obviously delighted with the entire ceremony and the progress the school was making. From my point of view, it was an absolute pleasure to be part of the ceremony, to represent the Minister and to see where the Government's money is going in public education. I congratulate the school principal, Mr Palmer, and the organising committee on the celebrations. I look forward to having the opportunity later in the year to visit the school and watch the progress of the building program and, hopefully, participate in the opening by the first term in 2003.
Mr McMANUS (Heathcote—Parliamentary Secretary) [4.19 p.m.]: I endorse what the honourable member for Maitland has said. He outlined an innovative Government program. Obviously some schools in my 1000 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 21 March 2002 electorate are about the same age as Seaham Public School, but it is important to acknowledge the work of the honourable member for Maitland in his community. He attended the celebrations and acknowledged the work done by the Government for the community in providing things such as libraries and classrooms. It is an excellent indication of the way in which we are moving. I congratulate the honourable member for Maitland and the Minister for Education and Training on the work that is being done.
WAGGA WAGGA BASE HOSPITAL ANAESTHETISTS
Mr MAGUIRE (Wagga Wagga) [4.20 p.m.]: I raise a matter of extreme concern within the Wagga Wagga community relating to the Wagga Wagga Base Hospital. I am delighted that the Parliamentary Secretary for Health is present to listen to my concerns. It is not news to my community that the Wagga Wagga Base Hospital and the local community are in crisis regarding anaesthetists. Back in September I attended with the Minister for Health a crisis meeting in Temora to try to thrash out some of the issues that visiting medical officers, general practitioners, visiting medical specialists, anaesthetists et cetera have. It was agreed at the time that certain action would be taken to try to solve the problem.
The anaesthetists and doctors all agreed to go back to work and liaise with the Department of Health to try to resolve the many issues of concern. I have had correspondence since then and I have kept in touch with doctors, anaesthetists and the Department of Health, trying to do my bit as the local member to resolve this serious issue. At this moment Wagga Wagga Base Hospital has five anaesthetists on its duty roster; it needs at least 10 to 12. The crux of the problem, I understand, is the differential in the remuneration of city anaesthetists and rural anaesthetists. I understand that the Brennan report has been completed. I am unaware of the information that that report contains but I am sure the Minister would have a copy of it.
There needs to be dialogue, at the highest level, between Wagga Wagga medical practitioners and the Minister to resolve this problem, and resolve it quickly. The problem, which has been in the news and has been heavily covered in the media, is of grave concern to members of the Wagga Wagga and surrounding electorates. My telephones are running red hot with complaints from people who have been told that their operations will not be carried out. I get complaints from people who have been told that waiting lists are increasing, with one lady being told that in fact she will now have to wait not just a few months—because she has been very patient—but something like 33 months. That is causing great angst for those people.
I am also getting complaints in regard to the hospital. One lady, for instance, had two broken arms and a broken hip. She was kept in Wagga Wagga Base Hospital for a certain time, after which the family was asked whether they could take her home and care for her. The family had no hope of caring for the lady, who needed special services. The reason for the request from the hospital was that that there were no rehabilitation beds at the base hospital and the lady would have to be transferred to Temora, Narrandera or somewhere else for respite care. This situation at the Wagga Wagga Base Hospital cannot go on.
I have given just a couple of examples, as my time to prepare for the making of this statement was short. However, I can report that my office is being inundated with correspondence from doctors who are concerned that, unless the problem is resolved, the hospital will lose the valuable services of general practitioners and specialists. There are already signs of problems in attracting, and retaining, specialists and young doctors to the Riverina region because they cannot operate in the hospital. The anaesthetists are not available or will not sign the new contracts because of some disagreement about the terms and conditions that have been put forward.
I appeal to the Minister and to the Parliamentary Secretary to get involved in this issue at the highest level in order to resolve it. For the past three years I have stood in this place and defended and worked for the community. I have often asked for new capital works within the city of Wagga Wagga, including a new Wagga Wagga base hospital. That is important. But more important is the treatment of patients who have been waiting for long periods. They are becoming disappointed and are upset that their operations have been cancelled and that they are being sent all over the countryside—at heaven knows what cost. I appreciate that anaesthetists are being flown in to do locum work, et cetera, but there is an enormous cost attached to that. Perhaps that money would be better spent locally to get our anaesthetists back into the hospital and get the hospital functioning again.
Mr McMANUS (Heathcote—Parliamentary Secretary) [4.24 p.m.]: I have been in the electorate of the honourable member for Wagga Wagga on a number of occasions. I have toured the hospital with him, and at a health care level I have indicated my willingness to become involved in many of the issues that he raises in this 21 March 2002 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 1001
House. The honourable member knows full well, because we have had face-to-face discussions in the hallways of these parliamentary precincts, the issues that the Government has tried to resolve for him. On the issue of doctors in his electorate, I have been to the area on a number of occasions and spoken to doctors in an attempt to resolve their problems as they arise. I was not aware of the matter about which the honourable member expressed concern, but obviously the Minister is. I should say that the Minister is discharging other duties and was unable to be present in the Chamber to hear the presentation of the honourable member. However, I say to the honourable member now, as I have on a number of occasions, that I am determined to ensure that if doctors need to talk to departmental heads about their problems, I am prepared to go down there at short notice to discuss those issues.
Mr Maguire: There are 12 days before the contract runs out.
Mr McMANUS: In that case, I will treat the matter with urgency. I am sure by now the Minister will be aware of those concerns. The honourable member can be assured that I will put those matters to the Minister as a matter of urgency today.
TWEED HEADS DISTRICT HOSPITAL REDEVELOPMENT
Mr NEWELL (Tweed) [4.26 p.m.]: In contrast to the doom and gloom and the bleeding hearts from the other side, including the speech that we just heard from the honourable member for Wagga Wagga, let me tell the House a little bit about what the Carr Government is doing in health.
Mr Maguire: Point of order: I object strongly to the statements just made by the honourable member for Tweed. If he is implying that the statement I made is incorrect, I ask him to withdraw his statement.
Mr NEWELL: Sit down! That is no point of order.
Madam ACTING-SPEAKER (Ms Beamer): Order! The Chair will decide whether it is a point of order.
Mr Maguire: I ask the Chair to determine the point of order.
Madam ACTING-SPEAKER: Order! There is no point of order. Points of order relate to the standing orders. The member for Tweed did not imply that any statement made by the member for Wagga Wagga was incorrect; he spoke of the spirit in which the statements were made.
Mr NEWELL: On Friday 8 March I had the great pleasure—
Mr Maguire: Point of order: I ask that the honourable member be directed to withdraw his comments. Madam ACTING-SPEAKER: Which comments in particular? Mr Maguire: The comments casting aspersions on the people of my electorate. Mr NEWELL: I did not speak about the people of your electorate. I will continue with my speech, if you do not mind.
Madam ACTING-SPEAKER: Order! I listened attentively to what was said by the member for Tweed. He did not cast aspersions on the people of the Wagga Wagga electorate.
Mr NEWELL: On Friday 8 March I had great pleasure in welcoming the Premier, Bob Carr, and the Minister for Health, Craig Knowles, to the Tweed electorate to officiate at the opening of the stage three clinical services building at Tweed Heads. The Master of Ceremonies, Liz Rummery, Chairperson, Northern Rivers Area Health Service, welcomed a number of guests at the official opening. A traditional welcome by the Aboriginal Elders of the Bundjalung Nation was extended by Aunty Kathleen, and the Australian National Anthem was sung by Ms Julie Anthony, supported very capably by members of the Lindisfarne Anglican School Show Choir. I had great pleasure in inviting the Minister for Health to the rostrum, and I took the opportunity to pay tribute to the Tweed Hospital Pink Ladies for the great work that they do in raising funds for that hospital. The Premier opened this stage three redevelopment of the hospital, and in doing so brought to the stage to assist in unveiling the plaque nurse Heather Hancock, who had served on the hospital staff from the 1970s. 1002 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 21 March 2002
I inform the House by way of background information that the new clinical services building is an $18 million construction which is part of the stage three redevelopment of the Tweed Heads District Hospital. The cost of the stage three redevelopment of the hospital is $32.9 million. Work has been proceeding also on the overall Tweed Valley health services strategy, which has a total budget of $36.2 million. The strategy includes an upgrading of services at the Murwillumbah District Hospital, the Kingscliff Community Health Centre and the Cooloon Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Health Centre, which is located on the campus of the Tweed Heads District Hospital and was opened by the Minister for Health in February 2001. The accompanying recurrent funding of $8.3 million complements the stage three capital works development and will ensure that the standard of other medical services provided at the hospital will match that of the new facilities, thereby ensuring that the hospital will function efficiently. The amount of $8.3 million will be expended in a number of health service areas, including outpatients services. There is no doubt that the new clinical services building—which features a spacious day surgery, four new operating theatres, a new sterilising department and an additional 60 patient beds for maternity, medical, surgical, mental health and critical care patients—will lead to the provision of improved health services. Areas have been provided in the building for a pharmacy, neonatal nursery, kitchen, medical records section, stores, obstetrics section, cafeteria and chapel. Stage three will be completed in 2003, when existing features and the original ward block are renovated to accommodate administration, community health and an education centre. The car park and landscaping of the grounds will also be completed between now and 2003. In conclusion I make the observation that although various matters concerning the new hospital have been contentious, one matter that is certain is that the hospital complex has been built well and truly on time. Mr McMANUS (Heathcote—Parliamentary Secretary) [4.31 p.m.]: What an exciting time to be a member of the Carr Labor Government! Time after time the Minister for Health announces increased funding for new hospitals and for the redevelopment of existing hospitals. The new clinical services complex in the electorate of the honourable member for Tweed is part of the Department of Health's capital works program. Although I am contributing to this debate mainly because the honourable member for Tweed referred to health issues, I take this opportunity to thank the honourable member for work that he has done in recent times to draw to the attention of people who live in his electorate the debate that has taken place in this Chamber on the war graves of Australian service men and women in France. He informed the people of his electorate of the petition that has been presented to this Parliament seeking assistance in providing protection for the graves of the service men and women who were killed in World War I. I congratulate this great member of Parliament on pushing for improved health facilities for his electorate. He has obviously been successful. COFFS HARBOUR AND DISTRICT HOSPITAL PATIENTS TELEPHONE ACCESS Mr FRASER (Coffs Harbour) [4.32 p.m.]: I am pleased to note that the Parliamentary Secretary Assisting the Minister for Health is at the table because a problem has been brought to my attention by a number of my constituents, namely, the access to telephones by patients of the brand new Coffs Harbour and District Hospital. This is a very serious issue. Rhonda Crump's mother, Mrs Greenwood, was recently admitted to the Coffs Harbour hospital as a result of a collapsed lung. Mrs Greenwood moved to Coffs Harbour because it is a wonderful place in which to live, and because she believed that the medical services were up to standard. Unfortunately, the funding is not. Mrs Greenwood is 67 years of age, and prior to her recent admission to the hospital she had only ever been to hospital for the birth of each of her three children. Although she was admitted because of a collapsed lung, she eventually contracted a virus. Her daughter, Rhonda Crump, lives in Gosford but visited Coffs Harbour to see her mother. Mrs Greenwood is currently on stand-by and may have to be transferred to the John Hunter Hospital because her condition is so serious. Because Mrs Greenwood does not have family members living in Coffs Harbour she has become extremely distressed and it is natural that she should want to speak to her daughter. Mrs Greenwood and her daughter have been told by the nursing unit manager, Jean Rodwell, and Dr Beswick that the hospital does not provide telephones. They have also been told that the phone jacks do not work because they are the wrong size or wrong type, but I suggest to the Parliamentary Secretary that the primary cause of the problem is a lack of funding. The hospital does not have the staff it needs to answer the phones and transfer calls through to patients. I honestly believe that funding is the cause of the problem. Mrs Greenwood is becoming more and more distressed each day. Against hospital policy, because she is bedridden she has taken to using a friend's mobile phone under the bedcovers to call her daughter to advise her of her progress. A member of the nursing staff suggested that if Mrs Greenwood would like to go to the day room or the common room at an arranged time she could speak to her daughter. However, Mrs Greenwood is bedridden and is on a drip because of the infection. She also has a collapsed lung and is unable to make her way to the common room. 21 March 2002 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 1003
In summary, if the phone jacks are incorrect they should be changed immediately. As the Parliamentary Secretary knows, this is after all a brand new hospital. Alternatively, staff should be made available to the wards to assist patients to make and receive calls. This is a common problem, and the example I have given is just one of a number of problems that have been brought to my attention this week. In another example, a patient in a private ward at the hospital tried unsuccessfully to attract the attention of a nurse by repeatedly using the buzzer. She needed to use a bedpan but could not attract the attention of a nurse so, against hospital policy, she too used a mobile phone to her husband and he came to the hospital and organised a bedpan for her. These are classic illustrations of the result of staff shortages and financial resources at that hospital.
I have told both the Parliamentary Secretary and the Minister for Health that funds are not being allocated to the provision of services for patients in the hospital. I know that the nurses are stressed and I know that these cases are no reflection on the administration by the nurse unit manager, Jean Rodwell, and Dr Beswick. Rather, it is a reflection of the difficulty they have in executing their duties because of a lack of funds. The lack of funds has resulted in a diminution of services provided to patients. In Mrs Greenwood's case, her daughter lives 500 kilometres away and cannot pop in to see her mother. The only way they can communicate is by telephone and the only way that Rhonda Crump can keep her mother's spirits up is by telephone. It is the only way Mrs Greenwood can report her condition to her daughter. I ask the Parliamentary Secretary to inquire into this matter and have the anomalies rectified immediately.
Mr McMANUS (Heathcote—Parliamentary Secretary) [4.38 p.m.]: I am pleased to respond to the points made by the honourable member for Coffs Harbour. I am very much aware that a new hospital has been built at Coffs Harbour. I visited the site on a number of occasions during its construction. It is very disturbing to hear the allegations made by the honourable member and equally disturbing to hear that a patient is experiencing difficulties. I undertake to ensure that the issues raised by the honourable member will be investigated as a matter of urgency, together with the matters raised by the honourable member for Wagga Wagga.
OATLEY WEST PUBLIC SCHOOL ART AND CRAFT EXHIBITION
Mr GREENE (Georges River) [4.38 p.m.]: Last Friday evening I was privileged to attend the Oatley West Public School's annual art and craft exhibition. This event is now in its twenty-second year and is more than a school art and craft function; it is indeed more akin to a community event. I congratulate the school on putting together another outstanding function, which was attended by an enormous crowd on its opening night last Friday. My wife, Frances, and I enjoyed the hospitality of the school community and when I arrived it was particularly pleasing to see the long line of people waiting to enter the exhibition.
That says a great deal about the effective promotion of the event and the great enthusiasm that exists not only among the school community but in the Oatley West community as a whole. I congratulate the principal, Graham Bromfield, on his efforts to maintain a great community atmosphere and environment in the school. I also commend enthusiastic members of the parents and citizens association, particularly the art and craft committee, on the work that is being done to ensure that the function goes so well each year. This is an amazing fundraiser for the school. I thank those sponsors who so generously gave donations in support of that event.
Featured artists this year were Freda Surgenor and Rachel Carroll. It was impressive to see the great diversity of work on display at that art and craft show, which undoubtedly added another dimension to the evening. This year the art and craft show was opened by Penny Carl, who represented the Starlight Children's Foundation of Australia, an organisation that was founded in 1988 by John Newcombe. The Starlight Children's Foundation, which does a number of amazing things for children, has established Starlight Express rooms at major hospitals. I am sure that the Parliamentary Secretary for Health would be able to comment on that. The foundation also has Starlight Express outreach vans which travel throughout regional and country areas and bring joy to the lives of children in hospital.
There are now five Starlight Express rooms. That number includes rooms at the New Children's Hospital at Westmead and the Sydney Children's Hospital at Randwick. I believe a sixth is to built at John Hunter Hospital, Newcastle, this year. The Starlight Children's Foundation also grants wishes to children who are suffering serious illnesses. Each year approximately 400 wishes are granted. To date over 3,200 wishes have been granted, each costing approximately $4,000. The foundation has a number of major fundraisers, one of which is Star Day, which will be held on 10 May this year. The annual tennis dinner and tennis day at Homebush each November is a popular and successful event. This year that event will be held on Sunday 24 November. 1004 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 21 March 2002
I congratulate the Starlight Children's Foundation and the groups that support that organisation on their efforts in assisting needy children. I thank members of the Oatley West community for their generosity as 50 per cent of the profits that were made from the children's workshop at the Oatley West art and craft show last weekend will go to the Starlight Children's Foundation—a decision taken by the school student representative council. That says a lot for the Oatley west community. Not only does it think of what it can do to improve its environment; it is also looking at fundraising to assist children in need. I congratulate that body on its achievements and on the success of the twenty-second annual Oatley west art and craft show.
PITTWATER ELECTORATE ROAD SAFETY
Mr BROGDEN (Pittwater) [4.43 p.m.]: On 3 January this year there was an accident near the intersection of Pittwater and Mona Vale roads, which coincidentally happens to be right outside my electorate office. My office is located at one of the major intersections in the Pittwater electorate. Next door to my office is a surf shop, on the other side of my office is a pizza shop and just down the road is a 24-hour service station. That is one of the few areas at that end of town where people can buy soft drinks, refreshments and the like. Opposite my office—on the other side of Pittwater Road, Mona Vale, and next to Kitchener Park—is a skating ramp where a lot of local kids gather and have a bit of fun in the afternoon.
At 1.00 p.m. on 3 January this year—in the middle of the school holiday period—two boys were running across Pittwater Road to buy something at the service station to drink or eat. One of those boys was hit by a car. I am pleased to be able to say that he spent just a day or two in hospital and then went home to recover. However, that incident raised concern about the safety of that major intersection at Pittwater and Mona Vale roads. There is no crossing at that intersection. The Roads and Traffic Authority [RTA] advised me, through the then Parliamentary Secretary, the honourable member for Cabramatta, that it would have some difficulty putting in a crossing.
That intersection carries a heavy load of traffic so only a few options are open to the RTA. First, it could install, with some difficulty, a crossing with a phased light approach. Second, it could build, at considerable expense, an overpass which, in my view, would diminish the amenity of that community and the environment. Third—and this suggestion must be considered in juxtaposition with the other suggestions—the RTA could construct a barrier on the median strip to discourage people from running across the road. Effectively, there are two median strips across that large seven-lane road. That issue must be addressed.
After meeting with Mrs Taylor and two other interested and concerned mothers whose sons use that skating ramp I wrote to the Minister for Transport, and Minister for Roads and asked him to look at those three options—a phased light crossing, an overhead bridge or a barrier to manage pedestrian traffic. The Parliamentary Secretary wrote to me on 6 March. I was pretty concerned about that letter and about the fact that she did not deal with what I regard to be issues of concern. She said:
... the provision of an pedestrian fencing is not regarded as a practical solution due to the distance of the closest pedestrian facility at the junction of Pittwater Road and Barrenjoey Road ...
That intersection is a good 50 metres down the road. Children cross roads where they want to. We might ask them to go 50 metres down the road and then come back a good 70 metres if they want to go to the service station to get a drink, but we know that that will not happen. We must look at other options. I was concerned that the RTA, through the Parliamentary Secretary, did not acknowledge that there were any real safety concerns. From my observation and the observations of my staff, kids run back and forth across that stretch of road on many occasions. It is a dangerous road with a high volume of traffic.
Traffic flows through that intersection pretty steadily at speed. I again ask the Minister and the RTA to reconsider this issue to determine whether it can be resolved. I do not believe that that intersection warrants the construction of a foot bridge. The RTA must consider erecting a fence directly opposite my office and the skating ramp, where there are turning vehicles. It must erect a barrier at that point to stop kids from running across the road. It must consider installing phased lights or accidents will continue to occur at this dangerous site.
SCHOOL COMMUNITIES RECYCLING ALL PAPER LTD Ms MEGARRITY (Menai) [4.48 p.m.]: On Wednesday 27 March I will be pleased to welcome the Minister for the Environment to my electorate to officially open a remarkable new facility run by School Communities Recycling All Paper Ltd [SCRAP]. By way of background, SCRAP, which began in 1991, was 21 March 2002 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 1005 the initiative of three teachers who believed that schools could contribute to the sustainability of the planet by practising programs to reduce waste. In 2002 more than 2,500 schools and government and other bodies across New South Wales will participate in one or more of the SCRAP programs. Those programs include paper recycling, solid waste auditing, green waste reduction, green buys discount purchasing and the Sustainable Schools Program, among many other initiatives. Doctor David Suzuki, the internationally renowned environmentalist, was so impressed with the SCRAP programs that he agreed to become its international patron. In his words:
Initiatives like SCRAP are at the heart of the changes we have to make to come into balance with the earth.
SCRAP is a company limited by guarantee, that is, non-profit. It is governed by a volunteer board of directors who come from across the education sector. SCRAP has existed for 11 years, beginning as a grassroots community organisation with no funds and volunteer labour and growing to its present size employing eight full-time and five part-time staff. In its 11-year existence it has been responsible for the recycling of more than 41,000 tonnes of paper product, resulting in environmental savings of half a million trees, 125,000 cubic metres of landfill, 1,214,155 kilolitres of water, 95,513 barrels of oil and 1.3 million megawatts of energy—an impressive record by anyone's standards. During 2001 SCRAP built its own centre at Holsworthy High School in my electorate on land leased at a peppercorn rate from the Department of Education and Training. In keeping with the ethos of the organisation, the centre has been designed and built using ecologically sound principles in that all materials used are recycled or designed to promote sustainable practices for the ongoing operation of the centre. Features of the centre include a grid interactive solar panel system featured as part of the Sustainable Energy Development Authority Solar Month activities, which will eventually supply all power to the centre; rainwater collection tanks for water supply with a filtration system for drinking water; a mudbrick composting toilet which does not use water; native permaculture gardens; and a grey water system for the collection of the non-sewage waste water. At the launch of the centre around 100 students from various schools will be attending workshops, including creating a pond habitat for frogs, building a worm farm, constructing and setting up nesting boxes for local wildlife, and planting a garden using the principles of biodiversity. There will also be a reptile handling display and a graffiti wall will be created. Guests and students can take part in a discovery walk of the water and sewerage systems and see how solar power grids can operate computers. According to SCRAP secretary and co- founder Peter Carroll, as reported in today's Liverpool Champion:
Zero waste production is the ultimate and achievable goal of the SCRAP organisation's new premises and tours of the centre itself will be used as an educational tool. Other local media have decided that SCRAP puts a new spin on the three Rs. They say that SCRAP encourages students to recycle, reduce and reuse. Those lessons are being well and truly passed on in the home life of each student who participates in the program. In December last year I had the pleasure to represent the education Minister at the SCRAP Froggies awards. These are ecological awards for the schools participating in the SCRAP program. The ceremony was held at the Revesby Workers Club, with 500 people attending. It was heartening to see the involvement of private industry. Visy recycling was just one organisation represented. A number of students from across New South Wales and the Australian Capital Territory, from government and non-government schools, participated. SCRAP is to be congratulated. It has taken 11 years to get to the stage of having a permanent home. Indeed, that home is recycled in the true sense of the word: pretty much all the materials are made from recycled products. I am very pleased and honoured that SCRAP has set up in my electorate in the grounds of Holsworthy High School and I look forward to a long association with the organisation. [Time expired.] DISABLED YOUTH DRIVERS LICENCE FEES Ms HODGKINSON (Burrinjuck) [4.53 p.m.]: Much has been said about the recent increase in the Sydney Harbour Bridge toll and the new charges for the driver knowledge test and Road User Handbook introduced by the Minister for Transport, and Minister for Roads. This has had an impact on almost every young person aspiring to obtain a drivers licence—and what young person does not? Today I wish to speak about disability within my electorate of Burrinjuck. One of my staff members has an intellectually disabled teenage son. Although this young man's condition is such that he will never be able to obtain a licence, the thought of driving thrills and excites him. Obtaining a drivers licence is a rite of passage for our youth. In rural areas it is also much more: a licence is also a passport to independence. It confers freedom on the individual who does not have access to 1006 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 21 March 2002 public transport in rural areas. Young rural drivers, where before they were dependent on family or friends— mum and dad—for transport, are able to get a job. They can go to university, attend parties and sports events, go shopping, to video stores—the list goes on. A normal teenager, with diligence, study and practice, can usually expect to pass his or her driver knowledge test and driving test at the first go. To get an unrestricted licence— called a "black"—now will cost $265 if all tests are passed the first time. This includes $85 worth of new charges.
There are some, however, in the community who are not so fortunate. There are many disabled teenagers, kids with only a mild disability, who have been shown to be safe drivers. They have, after all, passed the same driving and knowledge tests required for drivers without a disability. These new charges, which the Minister himself has admitted are purely a revenue-raising exercise, seriously disadvantage young people with a disability. This is specially so in the case of those with an intellectual disability. Valmar Support Services is a community organisation in my electorate. It does a great job providing a range of services in Tumbarumba, Tumut and Gundagai shires. One of these programs is the Adult Training, Learning and Support [ATLAS] scheme, which is run by Mark Ransome.
The ATLAS program helps teenagers to prepare for life in the community after they have left school. Assisting these kids to obtain their licence, where this is an option, is a part of Mark's work. He has told me about the quest of three teenagers for a learner's permit. The first passed her driver knowledge test on the fourth attempt. Under the new fees schedule this would have cost $155 extra including the purchase of a handbook. This young lady was in receipt of a disability support pension, which provides an 18 to 20-year-old single person living at home with about $272 per fortnight. These extra costs would have swallowed more than 40 per cent of her fortnightly pension. She passed her licence test on the first go and recently obtained her green P- plates. She has now driven long distances safely and without incident throughout New South Wales. The increased confidence and self-esteem that she acquired with her driving licence now means that she is actively looking for work, wanting to get off the disability pension and get a career.
The second teenager took six attempts before passing the driver knowledge test. At an additional expenditure of $205 this would have swallowed almost 70 per cent of the fortnightly pension payment. The third youth has been described to me as a "skilled operator of a vast array of sophisticated turf management and general farm machinery". This lad has yet to pass his driver knowledge test after 14 attempts. So far these new charges have cost him $445, or more than 1½ times his fortnightly pension. Mark Ransome has told me that this lad is capable of being a safe driver but the added costs of repeatedly sitting the drivers knowledge test are now a significant inhibiting factor.
Valmar has three new ATLAS clients who started the program this year. When asked, they said that their highest priority is to get their drivers licence. Young people with a disability face a real struggle every day, despite the best efforts of parents, schools and support services. They are aware that they are different and have an added burden to carry. They are aware of the thoughtless and hurtful terms that are often directed at them by other young people. The maintenance of their sense of self-esteem is of vital importance to their future. A drivers licence is a key component in the quest for self-esteem. It is a pathway toward empowerment—even more so in rural areas which do not have access to a good public transport system. Mark concluded his letter to me by writing:
I urge you and others with a sense of fair play to enlighten the policy makers, explain how people with disabilities are being discriminated against and ask for appropriate exemptions for people with a disability especially in rural, remote NSW.
I ask the Parliamentary Secretary, who is at the table, why the Government introduced these charges, which are actively causing harm to young people with a disability in their quest for self-esteem. I am not asking for a lowering of road safety and testing standards; merely for a bit of compassion from this Government. I hope that the Parliamentary Secretary will take heed of my private member's statement this afternoon.
NRMA FINANCIAL REPORTING Mr E. T. PAGE (Coogee) [4.58 p.m.]: NRMA members, of which I am one, will not know until August or September what financial state their road service is in. This is because a board committee, but not the board itself, last year quietly decided to move away from half-yearly accounts and produce only one statement per year. This move was opposite to the practice of most Australian companies, which are moving towards more frequent financial disclosure—that is, quarterly reporting—with nearly every other public company reporting half yearly. The same board that presumably thought of this was the one that also decided to value investments on the balance sheet at cost rather than market value. 21 March 2002 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 1007
Under most circumstances market valuation is higher than cost, and gives a better financial result as the realised and unrealised profits are reflected in higher profit figures. But in the investment climate of the past year cost valuation is often higher. The investment markets have been volatile and many sections have been hard hit by high losses and slashed share prices—not good for the bottom line. So valuing a share portfolio at cost can hide these losses from prying eyes. For instance, NRMA's holding in smart card operator ERG has been valued at cost. The shares were bought when ERG was travelling well at over $2 a share. Today they are worth just over 23¢. That is a huge loss on that investment, but you will not see it in the NRMA accounts. It will not be there because those shares—and I believe that about $20 million worth were bought originally—are in the books at their cost price. How convenient! This means that the loss of some $17.7 million on this investment is kept hidden from members and not disclosed in the annual costs.
It is just as well that the investment level was not a lot higher. The NRMA could now be holding $200 million of ERG Ltd at cost in its books. What a horrible thought. I noticed that during the court case brought by Cubic Transportation Systems against the Government over the smart card ticketing tender, the court was informed of an understanding that the NRMA was to take the place of Motorola. If this had occurred the loss today would be $177 million. In the Ramsay report on the independence of Australian company auditors, the author stated that the concept of independence is fundamental to auditing, since the auditor's objective is to enhance, through the expression of an independent opinion, the reported financial information of an entity. The value of the independent audit lies both in the fact that the auditor is, and is seen to be, independent of the audited entity, and hence is able to carry out the audit free of any externally imposed constraints. In recent times there has been justified criticism of the failure of the auditors to responsibly report on accounts that they were paid to overview. In view of this and Professor Ramsay's statement, I would expect KPMG to highlight in its next audit report this misleading practice so that the membership will be aware of this substantial diminution of the asset backing of the organisation. It may well be that other shareholdings are vastly overvalued in the balance sheet. In fact, if KPMG does not raise this issue in its next audit report, I believe it will be a dereliction of duty and the firm will have joined what has become a long list of audit companies that have not delivered on their responsibilities. NRMA has also been tardy in producing the minutes from its last annual general meeting. Section 251 of the Corporations Act requires these minutes to be provided to the board and members within one month of the annual general meeting. I am told that in the past the annual general meeting minutes were produced speedily and were included in the papers for the next board meeting. So why the delay? NRMA members are entitled to a written record of that meeting, with all its delays, drama, debate, adjournments, shared chairmanship and other kerfuffle behind the scenes. The minutes were finally posted on the Internet last weekend—just 2½ months after the legal date of publication. It is confusing to note that the minutes were signed by the chairman on 20 February but the membership was still not informed for another month. So much for NRMA's much publicised seven-day charter, where it says it will answer members' questions within seven days. One cannot have much confidence in that charter's undertakings when it cannot get its minutes out within 3½ months. Members can only be confused by the illegality and incompetence underlying this behaviour. In view of these activities, which are apparently designed and effectively mislead and withhold information, and following previous scandalous behaviour, I call on the Australian Securities and Investments Commission to carry out a complete investigation into the management of the NRMA and instigate any necessary legal action. DEPARTMENT OF COMMUNITY SERVICES CRISIS ACCOMMODATION REFERRALS Mr RICHARDSON (The Hills) [5.03 p.m.]: I bring to the attention of the House difficulties experienced by North-West Disability Services [NWDS], a disabled people's organisation operating in the Hills District. NWDS runs a wide range of services, including a post-school options program, a respite program for carers, and Gemhill Cottage in Carrington Road, Castle Hill. The cottage is a five-bedroom respite care centre for people with an acquired brain injury. In early May 1999 Gemhill Cottage received an urgent request from the Department of Community Services [DOCS] to provide crisis accommodation for a Mr Mark Keevel from 10 May to 1 June, excepting one weekend when the cottage was full. Before coming to Gemhill, Mr Keevel had been a patient at Rozelle Psychiatric Hospital. He was also violent. DOCS said he had previously threatened violence but had not carried it out and that, provided he was managed properly, he was a pleasant and agreeable person. This turned out to be palpably false. During his first stint at Gemhill, Mr Keevel proved himself to be a nuisance. He was constantly wanting to wash the floor and flex his muscles. He flicked the glasses off another guest. For his second stay, 1008 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 21 March 2002
DOCS provided a 24-hour support worker. But that did not stop Mr Keevel on 25 May 1999 attacking a staff member, Mr Barry Roe, punching and kicking him, breaking his nose and fracturing his skull. NWDS chief executive officer, Mrs Deborah Mills, notified the service's workers' compensation insurer, Manufacturers Mutual Insurance, of the incident and MMI told her it would report it to WorkCover. Mr Roe forestalled them. The WorkCover Authority then charged NWDS with failing to notify it of the incident and with failing to ensure the health, safety and welfare of its employees.
The matter was heard in the Industrial Relations Court on 13 February 2002 before Chief Industrial Magistrate G. A. Miller. It emerged during the course of the hearing that Mr Keevel had led an itinerant lifestyle for several years, using a wide range of accommodation options and ultimately being banned from most of them. In February 1999 he was allegedly involved in an incident at a hostel in Parramatta in which he assaulted a resident with a knife. Following this incident he stayed, variously, at Cumberland Psychiatric Unit, Blacktown Psychiatric Unit, the Caritas Psychiatric Unit at St Vincent's Hospital and Rozelle Hospital.
Knowing this, DOCS should never have referred him to Gemhill Cottage. Gemhill is a respite care service for people with an acquired brain injury. It is not a boarding house or long care facility. It does not provide one-on-one support. Mr Keevel's history, as noted in Mr Miller's judgment, was well documented. Mr Miller said that the fact that Mr Keevel was referred to Gemhill Cottage "reflects the state of the mental health system in New South Wales". Surely that is an indictment of the Carr Government. NWDS was acquitted of the first charge, that of failing to notify WorkCover, and fined $7,500 under the second charge, that of failing to provide a safe workplace for its employees. I regard that as being self-defeating.
The $7,500 fine will simply mean that the organisation will have to further reduce services—not because of any fault on its part, but because of DOCS' lack of honesty in placing its client. DOCS was clearly desperate to find some sort of accommodation for Mr Keevel. On 4 May 1999 it had tried no fewer than 46 different accommodation options for him, with no success. That does not, however, excuse its failure to tell Gemhill Cottage the full history of Mr Keevel. NWDS does an outstanding job for disabled people in our community. It has an excellent occupational health and safety record—indeed, its occupational health and safety plan is used as a model by other similar organisations.
There is a wider issue here—that of the reporting of violent and assaultive behaviour by clients of DOCS and the Department of Ageing, Disability and Home Care [DADHC]. Often the police do not charge a person with a mental illness who assaults another person because they believe the matter will be thrown out by the courts. That means that the offender does not have a police record. Mrs Mills believes that new guidelines must be established for the reporting of assaults and violent behaviour. Those reports should be made available to the police, the Department of Ageing, Disability and Home Care and WorkCover.
A register should be kept through which services such as Gemhill Cottage are able to check on new referrals. This is really the only way in which situations such as the one that evolved in May 1999 can be avoided. As I said earlier, the register should be available to police, the DADHC and WorkCover, but obviously not to members of the general public, and it should be kept under strict privacy and security provisions. I ask the Minister for Community Services to examine this case and its wider ramifications. I also ask her department to meet the $7,500 fine. Otherwise, the only people who will suffer are NWDS clients. I am sure the Minister does not want to see that eventuate.
CESSNOCK ELECTORATE AGED CARE FACILITIES
Mr HICKEY (Cessnock) [5.08 p.m.]: I bring to the attention of the House the very important issue of aged care and its impact on the Cessnock electorate. The Allandale aged care facility at Cessnock is being sold by the Government to a not-for-profit organisation to divest the State from the debt thrust upon it by the Federal Government. The Federal Government provides $14 million per annum to run the establishment at Allandale, and the State contributes $4 million per annum. The true running cost of Allandale is in excess of $6.5 million per annum, incurred by this State. This money is being sucked out of the acute care system to prop up the Federal Government's responsibility of aged care. The Federal Minister for Aged Care is quick to divest himself from any responsibility, but the issue of funding lies clearly at the feet of the Federal Government.
I cannot support the sale of this important piece of aged care infrastructure. The residents at Allandale are all high-care and high-needs patients. The aged care facilities in the Hunter utilise Allandale for patients that no longer meet the criteria of the facilities in which they are housed. I also place on record that when the Minister for Health opened the wards in Allandale in 1999-2000 he stated that if the local community showed it 21 March 2002 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 1009 wanted ownership of Allandale to remain with a local provider, and the provider could demonstrate that it could manage the facility, he would do whatever he could to facilitate this outcome. The concerns I raise are many and varied. First, the issue of the preferred tenderer must be addressed. If the Little Company of Marie is the end owner of this facility, what benefits are there for the local community? If a local provider takes over the facility, any profits from running the facility will be placed back into the community. If a company in Canberra manages the facility the profits go back to Canberra and no benefit is derived by the local community. Jobs for the casual and permanent work force is also of concern. Whoever is the provider, there is a major concern with salaries, because of the changes from the State to the Federal award, with job location, with displaced workers in the hospital system and with superannuation. All these issues need to be addressed. The benefit from the State divesting itself of the aged care facility needs to be addressed. Where is the benefit to the local community? What facilities and services will be derived by the local community? One suggestion is to build a clinic at Cessnock hospital for doctors. This suggestion is not new; it has been bandied about since I was elected to Parliament. The communities of Cessnock and Kurri Kurri are up in arms about the availability of beds in the local hospital system. Cessnock hospital has reduced its bed numbers from 84 to 61. It has continually transferred patients from Cessnock to Maitland, which the local GPs have questioned. The local GPs are continually arguing that services at both Kurri Kurri and Cessnock have been downgraded. The Hunter Area Health Service continually states that there has been no downgrading of the system and everything is in place. If that is the case, why are children continually transferred to Maitland? Clearly, the method of hubs and spokes is having an effect on my community. There will be no benefit to local hospitals if the sale of Allandale is forced through. The ambulance service required because of the high level of transfers is not being staffed to a realistic level at either Cessnock or Kurri Kurri stations. Cessnock City Council has raised these issues with me and I have raised them with the Parliamentary Secretary Assisting the Minister for Health, and I am hopeful that all these concerns will be addressed in the immediate future. Although I have raised many concerns in relation to health generally, we must understand that the sale of Allandale is not an easy one and it is not one over which the Government has much control. However, if the facility is sold, the local provider should be the preferred purchaser. I reiterate that I do not support the sale of the aged care facility at Cessnock. I want the facility retained in government ownership to ensure that the residents will always get the best care. The Federal Government must take responsibility for the issues and the pressure currently being placed on aged care facilities. It should also acknowledge the pressure being placed on the New South Wales Government by the Commonwealth due to the changes to the aged care legislation in 1994. Federal members should place pressure on the Commonwealth Government to rectify the situation for the benefit of the local community and to allow the New South Wales Government to do the dignified thing— that is, retain the Allandale hospital complex in government ownership. Mr FACE (Charlestown—Minister for Gaming and Racing, and Minister Assisting the Premier on Hunter Development) [5.13 p.m.]: I understand why the honourable member for Cessnock has raised this matter in the House today. Allandale is a victim of the Federal Government's policies, as is the Dudley Aged Care Unit. The Federal Government has exercised it prerogative to pull out of aged care and place it in the domain of the States. However, it now expects the States to do certain things in relation to aged care. This has placed both Allandale and Dudley facilities in a dilemma. The Hunter Area Health Service has decided to rid itself of these properties for a financial gain. I will not go into the details relating to the Dudley facility. The local community is up in arms about the proposed sale of the Allandale facility. In a previous era Allandale would not have been constructed at its current location. Similar to a gaol, the facility was established to overcome the cavelling of miners back in the 1950s and 1960s, when Cessnock had a dilemma in terms of unemployed people. Nevertheless, the facility is still there. If an aged care provider can be found, that may solve the problem. A more sympathetic attitude to the situation must be adopted. Each time I visit the area aged care is the leading issue that is raised with me. There must be a better solution to the problem of aged care services than the proposal to sell Allandale. The Hunter Area Health Service seems to have introduced into its decisions a degree of business acumen that is not in the best interests of the local people. In relation to the Dudley Aged Care Unit, the Hunter Area Health Service seems hell-bent on getting rid of the plot of land by selling it to someone—an aged carer or otherwise—at the expense of a public facility. JERILDERIE MALTING BARLEY PROPOSAL Mr PICCOLI (Murrumbidgee) [5.15 p.m.]: I draw the attention of honourable members to a positive development in the electorate of Murrumbidgee. For several years a dedicated and motivated group of people in Jerilderie in south-western New South Wales have been promoting the idea of building a malting barley plant. 1010 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 21 March 2002
Anderson Consulting has just completed a feasibility study that has put a positive gloss on this potential development. Indeed, the results of that feasibility study were splashed across the front page of the Southern Riverina News yesterday under the headline "$30 million barley plant proposal". Such positive news is exciting for Jerilderie, which has a population of about only 2,000.
While the development is some way from being completed—the proponents of the project believe that the plant could be completed and operational by 2004—I compliment the hard-working people in the community who have been advocating this development for a long time. The company behind the proposal is Riverina Barley Pty Ltd, and I acknowledge Neil Norman in particular. I have had several dealings with Neil Norman, as has the former member for Murray, Jim Small, in an attempt to get the development started. I was pleased to read in the Southern Riverina News that the Minister for Regional Development supports the proposal. Of course, he would support such a positive proposal. We need people like Neil Norman to develop rural and regional areas in New South Wales to their fullest potential.
The honourable member for Mulgoa has made several visits to the region in her capacity as chairman of the Public Works Committee—I have the pleasure of being a member of that committee—and I know that she is interested in what is happening in regional New South Wales. It makes sense to have a malting barley plant in Jerilderie because a great deal of malting barley is grown in the surrounding areas. At present, barley is collected and transported to Melbourne, predominantly, and two other places in southern Victoria where the malting process is undertaken before it is exported. It makes sense in terms of transport costs to have a factory close to where the raw product is grown. The future of agriculture and the development of regional New South Wales is based on that premise.
We can grow good product efficiently and effectively, but jobs and future development will come from value adding. We need this type of factory in regional New South Wales to take advantage of the economies involved in value adding on site. I congratulate Jerilderie Shire Council on its proactive approach to this proposal. The council, which has a can-do attitude, is a leader in facilitating development in country New South Wales. I congratulate the Mayor of Jerilderie, Ian Sneddon, and the General Manager, Andrew Crakanthorp. Murray Shire Council is another example of a great council. Murray is one of the fastest growing shires in New South Wales. The council's positive approach is reflected in the development and the low unemployment rate in the shire.
The town of Hilston in Carrathool shire has seen an enormous amount of development partly because of the pro-active nature of the council, its people and businesspeople in the shire. Many Australian Labor Party members of this Parliament would know that Joe Burns, the Mayor of Leeton Shire Council, is a very strong supporter of the Australian Labor Party. I am sure that many honourable members would know him. I congratulate him and his council on their pro-active measures, which I hope will continue to be taken by councils. The barley plant at Jerilderie is great news for country New South Wales.
Mr STEWART (Bankstown—Parliamentary Secretary) [5.20 p.m.]: The honourable member for Murrumbidgee has brought great news to the House. The winning of the barley plant tender will bring plenty of jobs to Jerilderie when it is in operation. It demonstrates that the Jerilderie community is focused and wants to get the job done, like many communities throughout country and regional New South Wales. Once again, this is a shining example of the way that New South Wales, the engine room of Australia, is portraying itself to the rest of Australia. This work is currently being done in Victoria. It is true that people and businesses are being attracted to New South Wales because it provides the goods.
It was great to hear from the honourable member that the Minister for Regional Development has already recognised the importance of the barley plant proposal for this Government, and I am sure we will continue to support it. It is good to see the spirit of bipartisanship being demonstrated in the House. I also note the honourable member's support for Madam Deputy-Speaker, as chair of the public works committee, who has worked diligently throughout New South Wales to provide infrastructure and services to this great State. I applaud the honourable member's statements and look forward to this proposal coming to fruition.
CANCER COUNCIL RESEARCH AWARDS
Mr MILLS (Wallsend) [5.21 p.m.]: On Thursday 7 March I had the honour to represent the Speaker at the presentation of the Cancer Council research awards. Also present were the Hon. Dr Meredith Burgmann, President of the Legislative Council, representing the Premier; the honourable member for North Shore, representing the Leader of the Opposition; and Senator Stephen Hutchins. In addition to the people associated 21 March 2002 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 1011 with the Cancer Council, many cancer patients and their support groups, medical specialists, clinicians and researchers were present. Andrew Penman, the Chief Executive Officer of the Cancer Council of New South Wales, reported that this year, 10 new research projects worth $1.8 million were being funded. The total research funding for the current year is $5.1 million. This year the Cancer Council is celebrating 50 years of fighting cancer. It has made a big contribution to research into the causes and treatment of cancer. The intention of the Cancer Council is for New South Wales to be a seedbed for breakthroughs in cancer research. The Hon. Dr Meredith Burgmann reiterated the New South Wales Government's commitment to the Cancer Council of New South Wales and acknowledged that the quality of work of the Cancer Council makes the battle against cancer that much easier. It was good to learn about other projects undertaken by the Cancer Council. At my table was Ted Stare of the Cancer Council, who told me about a couple of interesting things happening in regional New South Wales. For example, the Cancer Council pays expenses for volunteer drivers the take cancer patients from the North Coast and Mid North Coast—Coffs Harbour, Kempsey, Taree, Port Macquarie—down to the oncology centre at the Newcastle Mater Hospital for treatment. In Wagga Wagga the Cancer Council works with the Cancer Patients Assistance Society. They have jointly constructed motel-style accommodation in which cancer patient can stay during their six weeks radiation therapy with the new accelerator and the new specialists who have gone to Wagga Wagga. I know that the honourable member for Wagga Wagga was leading a fund-raising effort and the former local member, Joe Schipp, was also involved in getting cancer treatment available in Wagga Wagga. I want to highlight the 10 important grants that were made. Dr Richard Lock of the Children's Cancer Institute of Australia, is doing research on molecular mechanisms of drug resistance in childhood acute lymphoblastic leukaemia. They have developed an experimental model to investigate specific genes that need to be targeted for the development of better drugs for treating childhood acute lymphoblastic leukaemia. Dr John Stevens of St Vincent's Hospital at Lismore—the recipient of one of two non-metropolitan grants—is undertaking a sentinel node versus axillary clearance trial. They had an opportunity to improve the outcomes of the many women who undergo breast surgery by reducing unnecessary tissue loss. Dr Stuart Tangye of the Centenary Institute of Cancer Medicine and Cell Biology is doing a project on lymphocyte activation and anti- tumour immunity mediated via SAP-associating surface receptors in health and disease. He is looking at inherited immunodeficiencies and is hoping to get treatments. The second grant to regional New South Wales went to Professor Leonie Ashman of the University of Newcastle for her work on the role of PETA-3/CD151 in epithelial cancer invasion and metastasis. The bottom line of this project is that when cancers metastasise or spread from the site of origin they are harder to treat. In that study Professor Ashman and her team at the University of Newcastle are studying the role of a specific protein in the growth and spread of skin and breast cancer cells. I was pleased to talk at some length with Professor Ashman, who has just come to Newcastle from Flinders University in South Australia. She is a well recognised researcher and has been lucky to get a good grant. Grants were also awarded to Dr Qihan Dong of the University of Sydney, Dr Beric Henderson of the Westmead Institute for Cancer Research, Associate Professor Rebecca Mason of the University of Sydney, Dr Carolyn Mountford of the Institute of Magnetic Resonance Research, Professor Martin Tattersall of the University of Sydney, and Associate Professor Judy Kirk of the Familial Cancer Service at Westmead Hospital. Professor Kirk's project is conducted by a national consortium for research into familial breast cancer, the surveillance of related matters that lead to breast cancer. I commend the Cancer Council for its excellent research work in New South Wales. Mr FACE (Charlestown—Minister for Gaming and Racing, and Minister Assisting the Premier on Hunter Development) [5.25 p.m.]: When I first became a member of Parliament the Cancer Council was in its infancy and there was not a lot of money for it. The Cancer Council has been transformed in the past 30-odd years. Cancer is the main killer of people today. The honourable member referred to the great efforts of Wagga Wagga. I know that Joe Schipp has spent most of his retirement working to assist cancer research. I was recently in Wagga Wagga, but he was so busy he did not have time to see me—and he is an old mate. Joe Schipp and the honourable member for Wagga Wagga have made a magnificent commitment. Wagga Wagga and Newcastle show what regional centres can do. They have done a lot of important work in recent times. Professor Leonie Ashman will conduct new research at the great medical faculty at the University of Newcastle. That medical faculty pioneered a new type of training of general practitioners. Its model has been adopted by most of the major universities in Australia. I compliment the honourable member for Wallsend, who, as a former board member of the Royal Newcastle Hospital, has taken a personal interest in all aspects of health, including an involvement in the caucus working committee. I commend him for raising this issue. [Time expired.] 1012 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 21 March 2002
SOUTHERN HIGHLANDS ELECTORATE POLICING Ms SEATON (Southern Highlands) [5.27 p.m.]: Yet again I raise the important issue in of police resources in the Southern Highlands electorate. I am pleased the Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Police is in the Chamber, because I will be referring to a letter that he wrote to me on 15 March this year in response to a number of questions I had put to the Minister. I would have to say that those answers are less than satisfactory. I will explain why. First of all, in early February I was given by senior local police officials information that the authorised strength of the Camden local area command was 121, the actual strength was 130, recent appointments included one inspector and five sergeants, and there were 13 long-term sick in the command. I was particularly puzzled then by this statement in the letter I received last week from the Parliamentary Secretary concerning staff numbers:
As at 1 January 2002, there were 126 sworn officers ... within the Camden Local Area Command... That is, in early February I was told the authorised strength was 121 and the actual strength was 130, yet last week I was told that before 4 February the figures were entirely different. The people of the Southern Highlands electorate and the electorate of my colleague the honourable member for Camden are sick to death of the Minister for Police making it up as he goes along. We want to know what the real position is. We want to know exactly what local police rosters say, and how many police are on duty at any one time. The former Minister and the current Minister have gone to great lengths to keep that information from us. Honourable members might be interested to know that the Ombudsman has taken up my reference to him as to why the Government will not release police roster information to me. This is old police roster information. I do not want to compromise current intelligence and ongoing operations; I simply want a snapshot of a police roster at a particular time. The Ombudsman is now investigating why the Minister and the commissioner will not release that information. The Parliamentary Secretary's letter goes on to give this response to my questions about police prisoner escorts:
The vast majority of prisoner escorts in the Command are now carried out by Corrective Services personnel. Police previously used in escorting prisoners have since been returned to operational policing. I would like statistical evidence to back up that statement. Three years ago we thought we had solved the police prisoner escort problem. Some 2,000 hours a year of the time of local police were being used with police basically acting as taxi drivers for prisoners, driving them to and from court, and driving them to and from prison. We were told that that problem would be fixed. That promise was made during the last election, and there was some short-term relief on that question. Since then we have slipped back into the bad old days. Whilst Corrective Services officers are taking prisoners from gaol to their first court appearance, any transport to a subsequent court appearance is back in the hands of our police. I have raised this matter again and again, but I have been given nothing but general platitudes. I want to know exactly how many hours were spent in the last quarter conducting police prisoner escorts, how many hours were spent in the preceding two quarters conducting police prisoner escorts, and exactly how many Corrective Service personnel are deployed in my area to do that job now. I am not satisfied, nor is anyone in my area, with a generalisation that the "vast majority" of those escorts are now being done by Corrective Services. I would also like to draw attention to an answer I got about police response times in respect of an incident in which a Goulburn gaol prisoner escaped and was seen in the Bundanoon area. I was told by the Parliamentary Secretary:
This incident occurred in early 2001. Police arrested the escapee without incident at Moss Vale. I would like to inform the Minister that this arrest was not "without incident", and that it was due to the courage of a Bundanoon shop proprietor that the escapee was apprehended. It is simply not satisfactory for the Parliamentary Secretary to give me glib, one-sentence answers to extremely important policing questions that are of great concern to constituents in the Southern Highlands. Mr GAUDRY (Newcastle—Parliamentary Secretary) [5.32 p.m.]: Those matters will be brought to the attention of the Minister. However, the honourable member should go to the police web site, which now has very accurate, up-to-date statistical information on police numbers in all local area commands. I am sure that will provide her with the information she seeks. However, the matters she has put before the House today will be brought to the attention of the police Minister. WORLDSKILLS AUSTRALIA COMPETITION Mr GAUDRY (Newcastle—Parliamentary Secretary) [5.33 p.m.]: I wish to congratulate the Hunter regional board and trustees of WorldSkills Australia, Hunter Region, for the conduct of the WorldSkills regional 21 March 2002 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 1013 competition on 19 and 20 March, in association with the Vocational Education and Training Schools WorldSkills competition final. WorldSkills International, formerly known as WorkSkills, is a non-profit foundation based in Zurich, Switzerland, which promotes worldwide excellence in vocational education, training and performance. This is a most important aspect of training. It gives our young people, whether in our schools or in the community, the opportunity of competition through a schools Internet challenge in a wide range of skills including cookery, horticulture, information technology, metals and engineering, autobody repair, automotive mechanics, bread baking, bricklaying, CAD mechanical, consumer electronics, mechatronics and a whole range of skill areas. Our young people have the opportunity to demonstrate their skills both through regional, national and international competition.
This is a most important area of endeavour. I congratulate Denis Nicholls, the regional chairman of WorldSkills, his executive and trustees firstly for conducting this regional competition but secondly for ensuring that Newcastle will be the first non-capital city in Australia to run the national competition. That will occur on 24 and 26 October this year. Earlier in February, at the annual general meeting, I had the opportunity to meet regional organisers. I listened as they outlined the program for this year, told of the involvement of the trade union movement, TAFE, schools, the business community, and industry in this competition, which can only augur well for the skills development of young people in our community. I understand there were more than 300 competitors at the regional competition and that a couple of thousand will compete at the national competition in October.
On 20 February I attended the launch of that competition by the Minister for Education and Training, the Hon. John Watkins. That was also an occasion on which to meet with Andrew Galvin and Trevor Wakeman, who were gold medal winners in the mechatronics category at the national competition. They went on to compete at the WorldSkills International competition in Seoul towards the end of 2001. They are just two examples of the fantastic outcomes of young people involving themselves in that competition. Mechatronics is quite a disciplined competition. Contestants have to use both electronic and mechanical information to solve a problem. Those two young men had engineering skills as well as skills in mechanical work. They showed the benefits of working in the WorldSkills competition arena.
I would like to say also how important the schools competition is. It gives us the capacity to link school and industry in both a practical sense, in the gaining of skills, and in using those skills in competition. Two years ago, the captain of the Waratah Technology High School in Newcastle, Ugo Parente, was the national champion in information technology in the WorldSkills competition, so its benefits are absolutely fantastic for our young people. The competition is great for bringing together the TAFE system, the schools system, the business community and a very competent regional WorldSkills board and trustees to produce an important regional competition. Moreover, in October this year, the national competition will take place. I commend all those groups for their efforts.
Mr FACE (Charlestown—Minister for Gaming and Racing, and Minister Assisting the Premier on Hunter Development) [5.38 p.m.]: I thank the honourable member for Newcastle for bringing this important matter before Parliament. In recent times the matter was also raised as a matter of public importance. I do not believe I can overemphasise the work that has been done at a local level and, more importantly, the work that has been done at a national level in the WorldSkills competition, which was originally known as the Skills Olympics. The work at the local level has been guided by Denis Nichols, who is a former secretary of the Trades Hall Council and a former tradesman. He also served on the Newcastle City Council. I have known him for the greater part of my life. Since Denis retired from his position on the Trades Hall Council, he has effectively devoted his whole life to WorldSkills, particularly the local competition.
For the first time, the national competition this year will take place outside a major city. I am proud of the fact that I played a part in having the national competition held in the Hunter region. I believe that the national competition in the Hunter will be the equal of anything that has been held in the past; it will certainly be the equal to the magnificent competition that was held in South Australia on the most recent occasion. The national competition will be presided over by Bob Puffett, a distinguished person who is a former deputy director-general of TAFE. But for both Bob and Denis the national competition may not have been held in New South Wales. Bob has another thing going for him, namely, he has a plumbing background. I first came into contact with Bob Puffett during the establishment of the Plumbing Licensing Board in which I played a major role, inside and outside of Parliament. I look forward to the WorldSkills competition being held in the Hunter region and all the benefits it will bring for young participants. 1014 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 21 March 2002
MACARTHUR TRAIL BIKE NOISE POLLUTION
Dr KERNOHAN (Camden) [5.40 p.m.]: I participate in this debate on behalf of the many residents of Macarthur who are virtually driven mad by the noise of trail bikes being ridden illegally on public reserves at all hours of the day and night. In particular, I refer to my constituents in Cameron Place, St Helens Park, near the lovely green bushland reserve, Mansfield Creek, and the residents of Lysander Avenue, Archibald Crescent and Theseus Circuit, Rosemeadow, whose homes border Noorumba Reserve. They complain of noise from 7.00 a.m. until late at night, particularly on weekends. The beautiful atmosphere of these areas is disturbed, and the safety of children playing or adults walking in these reserves is at risk. I wrote to the Campbelltown City Council, which has tried to implement preventive measures at Noorumba Reserve but to no avail. I have also written to the Campbelltown police about this matter.
It was gratifying to get a response dated 6 March from Gail Connolly, the council's director of planning and environment, stating that the council and the police were developing a strategy to attack the problem by using council and police resources. The monetary cost of such a strategy worries me with the overtime that is necessary for council employees and the pre-planned use of scarce police resources which could be needed for more serious offences at the particular time I have referred to. More importantly, the letter I received on 1 March from Superintendent A. Waters, the Acting Local Area Commander, concerned me. Superintendent Waters quoted the Macarthur highway patrol intelligence officer as commenting:
... that the public reserve does not fall within the definition of either "road" or "road related area" as defined in relevant traffic legislation. As a result, the activities of the motor bike riders do not constitute an offence under these statutes.
The officer also said:
As the main complaint arises from noise of offending vehicles, police do have power to act under the Protection of the Environment (House Control) Regulations.
I understand that the Macarthur highway patrol has just received two new trail bikes and there are four officers who are trained to use them. However, apparently they cannot issue on-the-spot tickets to offenders for either these offences or more serious offences. Prior to 29 June 1998 the police had power to stop and issue penalty notices to offenders who were riding trail bikes and driving motor vehicles on any land that was used by the public. The definition at that time of a public street, was:
Public street means any street, road, lane, thoroughfare, footpath, or place open to or used by the public, and includes any place at the time open to or used by the public on the payment of money or otherwise.
From 29 June 1998, as a result of changes in the traffic legislation brought into force by the Carr Government, the definition was changed. As a result the power to stop and issue infringement notices was altered. The new definition states:
Road means an area that is open to or used by the public and is developed for, or has as one of its main uses, the driving of motor vehicles.
Road related area means:
(a) an area that divides a road, or
(b) a footpath or nature strip adjacent to a road, or
(c) an area that is open to the public and is designated for use by cyclists or animals, or
(d) an area that is not a road and that is open to or used by the public for driving, riding or parking motor vehicles, or
(e) any other area that is open to or used by the public and that has been declared under Section 2A to be an area to which specify provisions of this Act or the Regulations apply.
The new definition now limits the area that was previously enforceable. In other words, not all places that were public streets are roads and road-related areas. An example is that the beach was not a public street, but now it is not a road-related area, nor is an oval, a council reserve or any national park. I understand that this anomaly was brought to the attention of Minister for Transport, and Minister for Roads at the time when the change was made. The Minister has the power to declare the omitted areas that are covered by the road rules or, alternatively, could change the definition of "road" or "road- related area" to include the formerly used phrase, "... any place at the time open to or used by the public for the payment of money or otherwise". The fact that 21 March 2002 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 1015 other States have changed the Australian Road Rules when they did not suit their particular situations has created a precedent. I believe it would be a good idea for a group representing the police, the Roads and Traffic Authority and councils to review the road rules with a view to untying the hands of police when dealing with offenders on public lands.
Mr MOSS (Canterbury—Parliamentary Secretary) [5.45 p.m.]: Although I partly agree with the honourable member for Camden that various bodies should get together for a review, what they should do when they get together is decide among themselves not to pass the buck. It is all very well for the honourable member for Camden to quote the law and tell us how the definition of "road" and "road-related area" under the current law precludes local government officials or the police from doing anything about hoons riding trail bikes in public parks. I point out to her that the issue of noise has always been a bone of contention between the police and councils; I know that from the days when I was involved in local government. Nobody wants to take responsibility but everybody wants to pass the buck.
I suggest that the honourable member for Camden has been hoodwinked by being told, "We cannot do anything about it because the law prevents us." If people are making a lot of noise, there is a law to stop them from doing so. If people are riding bikes in an unauthorised area, there is a law to stop them and I suggest it is up to the police and local government authorities to sort out their differences before they start blaming some interpretation of "road" in legislation. However, I will refer the comments made by the honourable member for Camden to the Minister for Transport, and Minister for Roads. If the legislation needs amendment, I am sure he will examine the matter closely.
EASTERN SUBURBS BUS SERVICE REVIEW
Ms MOORE (Bligh) [5.47 p.m.]: At a well-attended and vocal meeting last Thursday night in Redfern, residents sent the State Transit Authority and South Sydney City Council a strong message that they are totally opposed to proposals that will worsen pollution, noise, safety and congestion on Baptist Street, Redfern, and Crown Street, Surry Hills. As part of the eastern suburbs bus review, State Transit proposes to channel another 54 more buses a day onto Baptist Street and Crown Street. It has also been negotiating with council to construct a new road from the south, linking into the intersection of Bourke Street, Crescent Street and Phillip Street. The aim of last week's meeting was to enable the State Transit Authority and council to hear the community's concerns about this proposal. It is often too easy for Government authorities to make decisions without consideration of the long-term impacts on residents' amenity, safety and health.
The meeting resolved to oppose the channelling of buses onto Baptist and Crown streets and to call on the State Transit Authority to retain the existing arrangement of running southbound buses on Bourke Street and northbound buses on Baptist and Crown streets—an arrangement that has worked well for more than 20 years— to call on South Sydney City Council to abandon plans to open a new road from the former ACI site onto the Phillip, Crescent and Bourke streets intersection; and to call on the Minister for Transport and South Sydney City Council to urgently review traffic conditions in Redfern and take action to meet Eastern Distributor-related commitments regarding reduced through traffic, improved local accessibility and restored residential amenity.
Residents are alarmed that the South Sydney Council Planning and Development Committee last night referred the plan to the council without recommendation. They are also alarmed that the State Transit Authority has so far refused to respond, despite the strong and angry opposition expressed at last week's meeting, the views expressed at previous consultation meetings that I have organised—which State Transit Authority representatives have addressed—and the many submissions made by residents.
Baptist Street, Redfern, is a narrow, nineteenth century residential street and residents' homes are directly adjacent to the street. It cannot handle the proposed increased traffic load and it is not appropriate that it become a consolidated bus route. Residents do not believe that the limited benefit to be derived from consolidating buses on Baptist and Crown streets will outweigh the serious negative impacts. Residents support the arrangement used for more than 20 years, with northbound buses on Baptist and Crown streets and southbound buses on Bourke Street. In the case of the new road from the ACI site in Redfern, I believe that the continued development of this proposal, in the face of community opposition, amounts to the South Sydney council and State Transit Authority bureaucracies thumbing their noses at local residents. There has been consistent community opposition to this road whenever it has been proposed. It now appears that council officers have continued to advance this proposal without any reference to the community. This is a fraud on the residents, who participated in good faith in previous consultation processes. 1016 LEGISLATIVE ASSEMBLY 21 March 2002
While the State Transit Authority's plan is for bus-only access at this time, the road will create opportunities to resurrect the previous proposal—which the community opposed—for a full-time public road, connecting through the densely populated ACI site to a widened Lachlan Street, and channelling increasing traffic into Bourke and Baptist streets. Participants at the meeting opposed the proposal for the following reasons. Buses will create significant noise in a narrow nineteenth century streets. There will be serious traffic congestion and delays at the corner of Baptist and Cleveland streets. Conditions for pedestrians and vehicles at the corner of Baptist and Phillip streets will be unsafe. The intersection of Phillip, Crescent and Bourke streets is already extremely dangerous and will worsen with the addition of a new bus roadway. Increased traffic and bus volumes—a result of the Green Square redevelopment that brings an additional 20,000 to 30,000 people into the area—are not being planned for properly. Claims that a new bus roadway will remain bus only are not credible, given the history of schemes to create a new road at this corner without public consultation. During the Eastern Distributor Local Area Improvement program consultations, residents were promised that Baptist Street would return to a quiet two-way local street, but it continues to be treated as a major traffic and transport thoroughfare. The meeting raised serious concerns about pedestrian safety and just two days ago an elderly residents was hit by a car while crossing Baptist Street near Cleveland Street. I am extremely disturbed that the State Transit Authority has shown no willingness to abandon this proposal, despite consistent and strong opposition during the public consultation process. It seems that the State Transit Authority has not listened to the concerns of the local community and intends to impose a "one size fits all" solution, rather than adopting an appropriate locally based strategy. I call on the Minister for Transport, and Minister for Roads to respond to serious local concerns and to act in the interests of this inner-city community. Mr MOSS (Canterbury—Parliamentary Secretary) [5.52 p.m.]: I do not know whether Baptist Street is narrow, but it is certainly busy. It is regarded as a major artery—even if it should not be—because vehicles use it to travel from Waterloo to the top end of Crown Street. Ms Moore: It was proposed that it become a local road again after the opening of the Eastern Distributor. It is quite narrow. Mr MOSS: State Transit Authority [STA] buses tend to run along major arteries. Ms Moore: In one direction—they run in the other direction along Bourke Street. Mr MOSS: Baptist Street is a one-way street. Ms Moore: No, it is two-way now. And so is Bourke Street. Mr MOSS: I am sure the Minister for Transport, and Minister for Roads will examine closely the concerns of the honourable member for Bligh. This is the first I have heard about community concerns, and they should also be considered. It appears from the honourable member's comments that South Sydney council and the STA are adamant about continuing to run buses both north and south, although they ran only north in the past. I am sure the Minister will consider the issue with a view to attempting to appease all parties. I will take up the matter on the honourable member's behalf. Private members' statements noted. BILL RETURNED The following bill was returned from the Legislative Council without amendment: Bail Amendment (Confiscation of Passports) Bill WAGGA WAGGA BASE HOSPITAL ANAESTHETISTS Personal Explanation Mr MAGUIRE, by leave: Earlier this afternoon aspersions were cast on the people of my electorate to the effect that I was whingeing, carping and so on when I spoke about the crisis at Wagga Wagga Base Hospital. I referred particularly to the lack of anaesthetists. The details that I related to the House earlier represented a true and correct record of the crisis facing the Greater Murray Area Health Service and Wagga Wagga Base Hospital. The system is paralysed: we are lacking anaesthetists, operations are being cancelled, and waiting lists are growing. I consider the remarks made this afternoon to be offensive to me, to the people of my electorate, and to the concerns that I raised in this House on their behalf. Mr Deputy-Speaker, I thank you for making time available tonight for this personal explanation. The House adjourned at 5.55 p.m. ______