Page 565 - Week 02 - Thursday, 9 March 2006
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there and suck in those fumes. They would prefer to take the extra 10 minutes to use the off-road parkland cycleways. Have a look around on weekends. A lot of people do use those off-road cycle pathways—more so, I think, than people using on-road cycle paths—yet these recreational paths are riddled with tree roots breaking through, worn-out surfaces and large cracks, despite their being a key part of our infrastructure.
We have talked about the grassed areas a number of times. The major focus of this matter of public importance today is infrastructure, but a grassed area is infrastructure in a sense. The post-spring rain deep grass growth along the western edge presents two problems: a bushfire threat and a beautification problem. Between 4 and 24 January a lot of photographs were taken along the western edge which just prove that the area has been badly neglected. We cannot blame the government for spring rain which caused a lot of grass to grow, but we can expect the government to have reserve funding somewhere for such emergencies. Despite what the minister says, that voluminous grass growth has presented a major problem. The minister has said that he never received any correspondence about that. He has, and I have a copy of a letter sent to him about the grass growth. The writer says:
Good morning, sir. I am writing to bring to your attention a significant and ever-growing fire hazard in the Tuggeranong area. The hill bordering Louisa Lawson Crescent in Gilmore and Isabella Drive is increasingly overgrown with tall grass.
I can table that letter if you do not believe me, minister. That is just one letter that I have permission to table, if I have to. There are many, many more. All in all, with the graffiti, the long grass, the infrastructure, the roads, the Pialligo mess, we have a problem. The government has failed to maintain its infrastructure.
MR HARGREAVES (Brindabella—Minister for Disability, Housing and Community Services, Minister for Urban Services and Minister for Police and Emergency Services) (3.48): To address the last issue, I mentioned in the chamber earlier this week that I had received some correspondence about long grass. I also indicated that I had received seven letters, although there might have been eight. Three of those were from members of the community and the rest were from either Mr Mulcahy or Mr Pratt. That was it; that was the sum total. Mr Pratt tries to use one letter as a straw man, but bad luck.
I congratulate Mr Pratt because in my eight years in this Assembly he is, by a long shot, the best performer at talking down this town that I have seen. It does not matter what part of his shadow portfolio he is talking about; he continues to say there is something wrong with this town. I do not know why I am surprised; I should not be. I do not think they can be talking too much together because nowhere in that diatribe was there any attempt—apart from throwaway lines about the arboretum and the busway, which we have heard until we are sick of it—to say what priorities he would give to the changes. Take the roads, for example. On which roads would he not proceed to do the other works? Where has he suggested any responsible management process to address some of these problems? There has been nothing. There is only one. I am sure Mr Mulcahy’s greying hair will turn absolutely white by the end of the day when he adds up the extent to which Mr Pratt would put his hand in his pocket.
Mr Pratt: Why didn’t you bank the money in the good times?
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