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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 1997 Week 13 Hansard (2 December) . . Page.. 4276 ..

MRS CARNELL (continuing):

With regard to bankruptcies, Mr Speaker, I have explained to those opposite. If those opposite understood the figures they would realise that the bankruptcy figures for the ACT do not apply just to the ACT. ACT bankruptcies are the bankruptcies for the whole region. They just happen to be registered in the ACT. The only way that those opposite could get accurate figures would be by going down to the Australian Securities Commission, or wherever, and ascertaining the addresses of the people concerned. The last time we did that, especially with regard to business bankruptcies, it showed that the level of bankruptcies over the 12-month period that we looked at was more or less the same. Nobody doubts that it is tough for small business. It is always tough for business. What business needs is a government that gets rid of red tape. Just this week we announced the BLIS scheme, the business licence information service scheme. Mr Speaker, when you look at what small business and business think of government in the ACT, I have to tell those opposite that they are not choosing them.

MR OSBORNE: My question is to the Minister for Education and Training, Mr Stefaniak. Minister, I see from your department's annual report that it spent a total of just over $6.9m providing ministerial and government advice in 1996-97. I also note that this figure was 16.8 per cent over the budget target. The same report, Minister, shows that the average cost of providing services to you that year was $1,072. This was nearly 90 per cent over the budget target. I probably know the answer to this, Minister, but how do you explain these figures and the fact that ministerial support was so badly over budget?

MR STEFANIAK: It is a big area, Mr Osborne, and a lot of work has to occur there. I think if you look at some of the other figures you will find that that average cost is not necessarily dissimilar to some other areas, but it certainly is one of the biggest departments. It includes a large number of things in terms of support and other services to people in the department, not just service, strictly speaking, to me. A lot of effort goes into that, Mr Osborne, and it is not necessarily dissimilar to other large departments.

MR OSBORNE: What do you do with the advice, Minister? Do you read it? Anyway, my supplementary question is - - -

Mr Whitecross: Ask him about "Chicken Little". He can handle that.

MR SPEAKER: Mr Whitecross, be very careful.

MR OSBORNE: The department does not have a lot of clay to work with, Mr Speaker. Minister, will you review the cost of providing ministerial advice and explore the possibility of spending some of the money on teaching students?

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