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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 1997 Week 9 Hansard (2 September) . . Page.. 2746 ..

MRS CARNELL: I am very well aware of that. I think the issue of residential construction is a very real one. That is the reason that we put Kick Start in place. One of the things that Ms Reilly forgot to do - - -

Mr Stefaniak: She still cannot understand Kick Start, Kate. It is a real problem. She still has not grasped it after all these months.

MRS CARNELL: I know she still does not understand Kick Start. One of the things Ms Reilly forgot to do was to read the next line, the one that talks about non-residential construction. That is actually up. Guess why it is up. It is such things as the private hospital construction that have done that - another very bad idea, according to Mr Berry. It is very nasty to have all of these jobs in construction - some 120 jobs with regard to the construction of the private hospital and other non-residential sector construction. I think it is important, if Ms Reilly is interested in statistics, to look at the retail statistics. The trend retail statistics over the last five months in the ACT - - -

Mr Corbell: I raise a point of order, Mr Speaker, in relation to relevance. Ms Reilly asked nothing about the retail figures, only housing figures.

MRS CARNELL: No, I am sorry. She said, "You are interested in statistics, Chief Minister. Let us look at ABS statistics". I was just doing that.

MR SPEAKER: That is correct. There is no point of order.

MRS CARNELL: I think it is important to weigh various statistics against others - - -

Ms McRae: You are changing the subject. You cannot answer the question.

MRS CARNELL: Not at all, because it sends out - - -

MR SPEAKER: Just ignore the interjections, before I have to warn somebody else.

MRS CARNELL: It is very hard, Mr Speaker. I think everyone would notice that I do have a sore throat.

Ms McRae: Mr Speaker, on a point of order: If you did rule on relevance, then it would not be quite so enticing to interject. The question was quite specific. If the Chief Minister chooses to go off on some irrelevant path, I think that is incentive to riot on this side.

MR SPEAKER: In that case the Chief Minister can probably take the view that the question has been answered.

MRS CARNELL: Amongst other things, I was asked about statistics and particularly about ABS statistics. We agree totally that residential construction statistics are a very real problem. Rather than do nothing about it, as those opposite have done nothing about anything - in fact, I think Ms McRae said the other day that it was not the role of oppositions to be constructive - - -

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