Page 3231 - Week 11 - Wednesday, 21 September 1994
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MR LAMONT: I thank you for your supplementary question and the opportunity it affords me, Mr Cornwell, because, as you pointed out, the Guardians are a group of residents of the ABC flats area who not only have, in cooperation with the organised community structure within the ABC flats, taken it upon themselves to provide assistance and support to promote the feeling of safety within complexes of this size but have been extremely successful in doing so. Notwithstanding that evidence, Mr Cornwell, I still think they have been extremely successful in providing support and assistance, and your question gives me the opportunity to accord recognition to that. I will take the specific terms of your question on notice.
Produce Markets - Kingston
MR MOORE: Madam Speaker, my question is directed to Rosemary Follett as Chief Minister. I believe that the Rural Producers Cooperative in the ACT requested support from your Government for the use of the unused bus depot at Kingston for a cooperative rural producers market. Your response was to give no support to this endeavour. Given that every other capital city and many large towns in Australia have producers markets, can the Chief Minister give the Assembly her reasons for not supporting such an endeavour, which would not only benefit our local producers but also reduce the costs of fruit and veg, particularly in this drought?
MS FOLLETT: I thank Mr Moore for the question, Madam Speaker. Madam Speaker, I take it that Mr Moore is referring to an approach that was made some time ago?
Mr Moore: Yes.
MS FOLLETT: Yes, indeed. I know that there was an approach some little while ago, Madam Speaker - in fact, over a year ago - for the old bus depot to be turned into a rural produce market. This proposition was very carefully assessed by the Economic Development Division officers within my own department and the view was that it was not really an economically feasible proposition. Since that time, as members may be aware, there has been a further proposal for a market in the old ACTION bus depot, and that in fact has proceeded. I had the pleasure of opening that market a couple of weeks ago. It seems to me that it will be a very successful venture. The market itself accommodates a vast array of stalls. The produce on display and for sale appeared to be marked by the quality and the variety of offerings.
I am also aware that at that market in the ACTION bus depot there are some, what you could call, rural producers represented and, to the best of my knowledge, Mr Moore, they have taken that role quite happily and appear to be quite pleased to be taking part in a much broader market setting. So, I think the situation, as far as those rural producers who had the initial idea of setting up there are concerned - as far as I am aware - is that they have been satisfactorily accommodated. I can certainly say that I have not heard
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