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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 1997 Week 14 Hansard (11 December) . . Page.. 4934 ..


MR SPEAKER: There is no need to shout, Mr Whitecross.

MR WHITECROSS: You are just attuned to Mr Humphries's very softly spoken words. Minister, if you consult the electoral regulation - it was not signed by you because you were out of the country at the time but it was, I believe, signed by Mrs Carnell and Mr Stefaniak - you will see that it makes reference to signatures. How can you say that Mr Stefaniak's signing a message in this document does not breach the electoral regulation when it includes his signature?

MR HUMPHRIES: Mr Speaker, the regulation that we signed touched on the use of photographs. It is photographs which are not to be used as from 1 December. I do not believe it makes reference to signatures, although I will not be dogmatic on that score. I believe it was a reference to photographs, Mr Speaker, and I believe we have complied with that.

Social Plan

MS McRAE: Mr Speaker, my question is to the Minister for Land and Planning. I am sorry, Mr Humphries. There have been a number of concerns raised about the absolute necessity for a social plan for the ACT. Probably the Chief Minister could answer this. Although the Chief Minister does not see the need for a social plan, one of the agencies for which you have responsibility, the ACT Planning Authority, as it was then called, started a process for the development of a social plan. Consultants, S & S Consultants and Focus Pty Ltd, were engaged to undertake this work. Various work was done, including regional meetings in the ACT and the surrounding areas. A first-phase report was published last year, in May 1996, to define the scope of the regional social plan. Minister, where is the final social plan for the ACT?

MR HUMPHRIES: Mr Speaker, I believe that earlier work on the social plan was part of the strategic plan presented in this Assembly earlier this year, which you will remember. However, to be sure, I will take the question on notice and advise Ms McRae as soon as I can.

MS McRAE: I have a supplementary question. Please do not answer this, but take it on notice. Could you add the cost of that work as well?

MR HUMPHRIES: Yes.

Injecting Rooms

MR MOORE: Mr Speaker, my question is to the Chief Minister in her capacity as Minister for Health. Chief Minister, are you aware that in the Parliament of Victoria a joint investigatory committee, the Drugs and Crime Prevention Committee, has brought down an interim report? That interim report, amongst other things, dealt with the issue of safe houses which, it indicated, are referred to sometimes "as `safety clinics', `injecting rooms' and (inappropriately) as `shooting galleries' ". I will read a couple of paragraphs to clarify my question. They said this:


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