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

Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 1997 Week 3 Hansard (8 April) . . Page.. 717 ..

MRS CARNELL (continuing):

Mr Speaker, very interestingly, I will quote another comment from Rosemary Follett. Remember, Mr Speaker, that in opposition we raised a couple of issues, such as SPPs not being available at the time of budgets being brought down. Rosemary Follett went on to respond to the argument that we brought forward at that stage. We said, "Hey, what about SPPs? What about not knowing what the Federal budget is going to bring?". Rosemary Follett said this:

... I think all ACT budgets to date have been framed without the detailed knowledge of the specific purpose payments from the Commonwealth ...

Again, that is straight Rosemary Follett. She continued:

In fact, over the years the variation in those specific purpose payments has been so small as to not warrant waiting for the detail before framing the budget.

She went on to say:

A further matter, Mr Speaker, is that when you have early budgets you frame them and present them without having the final year outcome figures on your previous budget.

Mr Speaker, again, that is an argument or a concern that we raised. She then went on to run a very sensible argument as to why that was not the case. What happened as a result of that debate, Mr Speaker? We supported the previous Government, Rosemary Follett's Government, in bringing down an earlier budget. I will go on to quote Ms Follett. Ms Follett, talking at that stage, said:

Madam Speaker, the earlier presentation of the 1994-95 budget received bipartisan support from this Assembly. Bringing forward the budget placed pressure on all areas of the Government, and I appreciate the cooperation of the Estimates Committee in meeting the changed timeframe. The early budget allows the Territory to benefit from greater certainty and gives program managers earlier notice of policy changes to enable effective and timely implementation. Importantly, it gives community groups an early indication of the Government's funding intentions. The business sector will also benefit from the early indication of budget policies.

Again, that is a straight indication of what the view of those opposite was in government. Mr Speaker, the last early budget we had was in June, and it was actually passed in August. So, although the budget was brought down early, it was not actually passed before the end of the financial year, which I think, as Ms Follett has very appropriately put down there, is what was always aimed for. As she rightly said on those two occasions, what she was attempting to do was to bring down a budget that could be passed so as to ensure that the Public Service, the business community and the community sector

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