Page 2185 - Week 08 - Tuesday, 28 August 2007
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ACTTAB estimates that, over the course of any week, a week’s betting involves around $3.2 million of turnover for the ACTTAB. A proportion of that, of course, is paid directly to the clubs as dividends and, similarly, a proportion of that is paid to the government as dividends. So there are significant budgetary impacts and impacts for the economy.
There are—and I do acknowledge this—at this stage costs that it would not be possible for us to compute but we can imagine the costs that owners, trainers, breeders and all those that rely on the industry are suffering as a result of a lack of work and of the stand-down. We are hopeful that racing will commence in southern Australia this Saturday. That will, of course, at least allow ACTTAB to generate some turnover or revenue.
We remain hopeful that with racing recommencing in southern Australia—at this stage, hopefully Victoria, Tasmania, South Australia and Western Australia—at least the ACTTAB, all of the agents and all of the staff that work with and rely on the TAB will have some relief. At this stage the government is not in a position to predict when the stand-down, particularly for the ACT, New South Wales and Queensland, will end. It is quite likely that there will be continuing economic impacts for some little time yet.
Schools—closures
MR PRATT: My question is directed to the Minister for Territory and Municipal Services. Minister, in June you announced a two-stage consultation process on the future use of school sites, with a decision being made in early 2008. Minister, recently on Chief Minister Talkback a question was raised about tactical response teams training at one of the closed schools, Flynn Primary School. Generally, this type of training is undertaken in buildings slated for demolition. Minister, was it proposed that the Flynn Primary School building be used for tactical response training? If so, when and why?
MR HARGREAVES: Some time ago, I had a visit in my office by two people who represented the Flynn community. They talked to me about what sorts of proposals they could put forth in the consultation process around the possible or impending closure of the Flynn school. Between us, we developed about seven different proposals that could be put forward. They went back to their community and developed a series of proposals, and they went into the mix. This is quite separate from the challenge that we are now having around the closure of the school at all.
We told the Flynn community, “The government has no preconceptions at all about what will happen to these buildings but please tell us what you think.” If there is a common sense of purpose around the Flynn community which is consistent with the use of those buildings, certainly it will be given proper and due consideration. It will be considered in two contexts in the consultation process that I announced. The first will be a regional one, with all the Belconnen schools that are affected being discussed with the Belconnen community, possibly under the auspices of the Belconnen Community Council, under the chairmanship of Stephen Bounds. The
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