Page 2405 - Week 11 - Thursday, 2 November 1989
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anxious to assist any organisation that is involved in bringing together a gathering such as this in Canberra. At this stage I can only assure the Assembly that the organisation will get the full cooperation of the tourist development corporation. I am not quite sure what steps have been taken so far, but I can assure you I will give a full report.
Multifunction Polis Concept
MR KAINE: I address a question to the Minister for Industry, Employment and Education. It flows from a statement made in the publication recently put out on the multifunction polis, called the ACT Vision. I hope that vision did not come from the use of some kind of hallucinogenic material, Mr Speaker. At page 19 of that report it is stated that a recent study commissioned by the ACT Government, so far unpublished, has examined the potential for commercialising research conducted in the ACT.
Minister, could you tell me why that report has been unpublished. Since you say "so far unpublished" I assume that you intend to publish it. When is that likely to occur so that we can all have the benefit of this research?
MR WHALAN: I do thank the Leader of the Opposition for that question, Mr Speaker. The fact is that, in such a highly professional government office as the citizens of the ACT are fortunate to have in the Office of Industry and Development, it is a regular feature of its operations that it seeks advice from skilled consultants and outside organisations. As part of that process we add very substantially and very efficiently and effectively to the total volume of knowledge that is available to the Government.
I think that the Leader of the Opposition would agree that it is probably far better in a relatively small government, such as we have here, to have the regular use of outside consultancies than to try to establish in-house a full range of capacities which might be underutilised. It is so that there will be many reports to the Government and the public service in the course of the preparation of policy positions, some of which may never see the light of day. There is no reason why they should. I am sure that in Mr Kaine's very extensive period of service in the Australian public service he has been party to many such reports, commissioned by government of outside consultants, which are never to be published or made available.
There will be many of those. In relation to the particular report which has been referred to, if it is indicated that it is of value to release that report at some time in the future, that course will be taken.
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