Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . .

Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 1995 Week 9 Hansard (23 November) . . Page.. 2398 ..

MS TUCKER (continuing):

and a start would be a commitment by the Government to act on the Estimates Committee recommendation which calls for social and environmental objectives and outcomes to be identified on a program-by-program basis. The Commissioner for the Environment has come up with similar recommendations.

Not only has Mrs Carnell failed to integrate her bottom lines into a comprehensive social, economic and environmental strategy, but many of the assumptions upon which Mrs Carnell has predicated her budget outcomes are rather dubious; for example, a funded wages outcome of 1.3 per cent each year over three years, which must be potentially unachievable, given that it means real wage reductions, and there will continue to be industrial action in response to this. Any further wages outcomes will be based on productivity improvements, and again I challenge the Government to demonstrate that their economic models are up to the task of determining the complicated task of measuring productivity in many service delivery areas.

How do you measure productivity in a library or a school or for a nurse? Throughput certainly is not necessarily the best measure in many cases. During the Estimates Committee hearings on industrial relations it was acknowledged that there is no simple answer to how you measure productivity. It is an enormous question. Not to mention all the other economic indicators which may or may not hold true, it would have been much more credible if Mrs Carnell had acknowledged that predictions are just that. Therefore the bottom lines, particularly in the outyears, can never be fixed in concrete.

Mr Speaker, this is a very disappointing budget and the process has been disappointing. The outlook it provides for the ACT in terms of a secure social and environmental future is very disappointing. It is not a budget that is about common good, creativity and vision as we head into the next century. It is about balance sheets, outputs and operational efficiencies, and the wellbeing of our community relies on more than this alone.

Mr Berry: Mr Speaker, I seek leave to move a motion in relation to a meal break.

Mr Moore: Mr Speaker, I believe I was on my feet before Mr Berry.

Mr Berry: I seek leave to move a motion in relation to a meal break.

Mr Moore: Whom are you going to call?

MR SPEAKER: I am going to call Mr Berry. It will be quickly out of the way. You seek leave to move a motion relating to a meal break, Mr Berry.

Leave granted.

MR BERRY (5.42): I move:

That the sitting be suspended between 6.00 and 7.00 pm.

I do this for a couple of reasons. The first one is that we have all been sitting here for some time. There is a bit of self-interest here, but - - -

Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . .