Page 1576 - Week 05 - Thursday, 2 June 2022

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MR GENTLEMAN: Minister Vassarotti has the portfolio for this particular subject. I have the planning portfolio. I am in control of the planning portfolio, which includes development applications. But in this case, if you were removing combustible cladding you would not need a development application.

Fadden Hills Pond—play space upgrade

MS LAWDER: My question is to the minister for city services. Minister, after copious amounts of correspondence from me to you, and also a community petition, about the tower in the playground at Fadden Pond, I note that the tower has been removed this week. When can residents expect a replacement for the tower to be available for community use?

MR STEEL: The ACT government has outlined the playgrounds that we intend to upgrade throughout this term. We are in the process of consulting with communities in each of those locations around what they would like to see as part of those upgrades; and, of course, we also consulted on a new play space strategy, which has been finalised and released to the community, and which will inform future play space upgrades going forward. At this stage there are no plans to provide further upgrades at Fadden.

MS LAWDER: Minister, to be quite clear, are you saying that the tower has been removed but at this point there is no replacement equipment planned for that playground?

MR STEEL: As Ms Lawder is aware, the tower has not been in use for some time, having been blocked off for safety reasons. But there is existing equipment in that park. It may be that further improvements are identified in the future, but the ACT government has outlined which playgrounds will be upgraded over this term, and they are the ones that we brought to the election, based on an evidence base around community input—the play spaces forum that we undertook was part of a deliberative democracy process with the community. Of course, there are ongoing condition audits of our existing play spaces.

MR PARTON: Minister, why aren’t you listening to the residents and installing a new piece of equipment for the Fadden community, as they have requested?

MR STEEL: We have listened, by removing that particular item in the play space, which is still broadly functional.

Cultural Facilities Corporation—superannuation payments

MR CAIN: My question is to the Minister for the Arts. Minister, an article in the ABC was released today, stating that the ACT government has admitted to underpaying superannuation for the past 13 years to 663 current and former staff members of the Cultural Facilities Corporation, for which you are the responsible minister. The Cultural Facilities Corporation was made aware of this error in 2020. Minister, why has it taken two years for this issue to be addressed by the ACT government?


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