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Legislative Assembly for the ACT: 1997 Week 14 Hansard (11 December) . . Page.. 4942 ..

MS HORODNY: My question is directed to the Chief Minister. You will recall that in September this Assembly passed my private members Bill to amend the Animal Welfare Act and the Food Act to phase out the production and sale in the ACT of eggs laid by hens kept in battery cages. One of the amendments to my Bill that was also passed was that the phase-out of the keeping of battery hens in the ACT would not commence until an exemption had been obtained under the Commonwealth Mutual Recognition Act for the banning in the ACT of sales of eggs produced by battery hens whether in the ACT or interstate. Chief Minister, could you tell us what action you have taken to get the agreement of the Commonwealth, State and Territory governments to an exemption under the Mutual Recognition Act?

MRS CARNELL: Mr Speaker, I understand that it will be discussed at a meeting next week in New Zealand.

MS HORODNY: I have a supplementary question. What action has been taken by the Government to implement the section of the Food (Amendment) Act requiring that eggs cannot be sold unless packaged with a label indicating the conditions under which the hens that produced the eggs are kept?

MRS CARNELL: I will have to take that question on notice, but I am happy to get the information back to Ms Horodny as quickly as possible.

MS REILLY: My question is to the Chief Minister in her capacity as Minister for Community Care. Chief Minister, yesterday, in response to a question on problems relating to the support hours for people with disabilities living in the COOOL houses at Macquarie, you made comments along the following lines: That the model that we end up with is something that respects their rights to live as independently as possible; that it ensures that they have access to the sorts of services that they need to maintain that independence; and that you believed everyone in those houses was happy with their arrangements. Minister, are you aware that, in the many meetings between the Department of Health and Community Care and the potential COOOL houses residents, people were assured that they would have control over their support hours. The residents have written to the Department of Health and Community Care to have this confirmed and the department has confirmed this in letters to the residents. The department, in October, was so concerned about the issues relating to the number of services offered but not delivered that they employed a consultant to resolve them. The consultant reported in early November proposing that the department should immediately negotiate with the residents to resolve the issues relating to the undertakings that were given to enable them to live independently. It is now five months since these people moved into the COOOL houses in Macquarie. You have a consultant's report that dodged resolving the issue and said you should negotiate, but the residents are no closer to having control over their support hours. These people are not happy with the current arrangements.

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