Page 2918 - Week 13 - Thursday, 23 November 1989
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MR SPEAKER: What is the point of order, Mr Collaery? Please proceed to answer the question, Minister.
MR WHALAN: Mr Speaker, I will resume the answer which I have been prevailed upon to give, and I will give that in full detail. A draft budget statement was presented to the Assembly on 25 July of this year which detailed proposals in relation to the ACT budget generally. As part of that, there were specific references to the education part of the budget. In that education part of the budget there were proposed budget savings.
The circumstance which caused the Government to arrive at that position was a general situation in which we had seen the Commonwealth contribution to the States and territories reduced by 4.4 per cent; we were in a situation in which the Commonwealth Government reneged on its previous arrangements to maintain the real level of expenditure in the ACT for a period of three years; and, finally, a requirement on the part of the Commonwealth that we deal with the overexpenditure identified by the Commonwealth Grants Commission.
So, in the context of all of those preconditions, it was necessary to engage in some expenditure savings in the budget. After those expenditure savings were stated on 25 July, there followed a process of consultation through the main consultative group which was convened by the Chief Minister. In addition to that, there was a detailed and lengthy consultation with a specially convened schools consultative group, which contained representatives of the ACT Teachers Federation, the Public Sector Union, the ACT Council of Parents and Citizens, the Canberra Pre-School Society and students from the government school system.
In addition to that group, as the responsible Minister, I participated in considerable direct discussions separately with the principals of colleges, the principals of high schools, the principals of primary schools and representatives of principals of the preschools.
MR SPEAKER: Order! Minister, I believe you are sort of skirting the questions asked.
Mr Kaine: He's squirming around the answer.
MR SPEAKER: No; skirting the questions posed. Please get closer to the question on the money.
MR WHALAN: Mr Speaker, with respect, the Opposition has complained on occasions that my answers have been too brief and have not been complete and comprehensive. I intend to give the Opposition a complete and comprehensive answer to its question.
Mr Kaine: As long as you answer the question, I do not mind, but you have not yet.
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