Page78 - Week 01 - Wednesday, 2 December 2020
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MR CAIN: Minister, will you guarantee that every worker who loses their job or is made redundant will be retrained and given another job in Canberra?
MR RATTENBURY: I do not agree with the premise of the question, which implies somehow that the government is going to see people lose their jobs. We want to work with the clubs to make sure that they have a sustainable future. There certainly will potentially need to be retraining, just as there needs to be with the fossil fuel sector as we move away from Australia’s historical reliance on fossil fuel to a clean energy future. Workers will need to think about a different role and there will need be to training opportunities for them. As we seek to help clubs diversify from their over-reliance on poker machines, there will need to be different roles for staff in our clubs.
Municipal services—playgrounds
MR PETTERSSON: My question is to the Minister for Transport and City Services. Minister, how has the ACT government been investing in playgrounds for Canberra families throughout this year?
MR STEEL: I thank Mr Pettersson for his question. Of course, his electorate of Yerrabi has been a beneficiary, as some of Canberra’s playgrounds have been renewed or built this year, including at Yerrabi Pond District Park, with a new nature play space opening there. I refer also to the Kambah District Park, in your electorate, Madam Speaker.
Last week I had the pleasure of opening five new playgrounds in other suburbs around Canberra, in the suburbs of Torrens, Waramanga, Higgins, Narrabundah and Richardson. These new playgrounds are the result of work that the ACT government has been doing to invest in our younger citizens. We know how important access to adequate play spaces is, and the natural environment, for children’s development, particularly in the development of their physical health and wellbeing, and social skills. These new spaces will provide a range of experiences for not only our younger citizens but also our slightly older children.
This is the result of community consultation. I would like to acknowledge in the Assembly the work of two amazing community members in particular—Natalia Nikolic, who was involved in the Torrens playground advocacy and design, and Elizabeth Hoyt of Waramanga, who members would be familiar with. Currently, she lives overseas and has not been able to see this new playground opened, but she is excited, with those communities, to be able to make sure that we provide fantastic play spaces for young children around Canberra.
MR PETTERSSON: Minister, how do infrastructure projects like this help with the territory’s recovery from the impacts of COVID-19?
MR STEEL: I thank Mr Pettersson for his question. During the pandemic, the ACT government has brought forward a range of screwdriver-ready infrastructure projects to provide work for Canberra constructions firms. That has seen the refresh of over
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