Page 3967 - Week 13 - Wednesday, 5 December 2007
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Mr Pratt: October.
MR HARGREAVES: October; I do not mind. Mr Pratt has a memory of something that he did not attend. So I will concur with that!
Mr Pratt: I was there the day after.
MR SPEAKER: I warn you, Mr Pratt.
MR HARGREAVES: Given the extent to which Mr Pratt has levelled criticism at me for my stewardship of this portfolio, I need to correct something that he said on this very subject of Tharwa bridge this morning on radio. The Chief Minister has already exposed Mr Pratt for saying that there is no need for wide consultation as Tharwans and the people of Tuggeranong Valley “in their thousands have signed petitions calling for the restoration of the old bridge”.
In fact, four petitions were put forward in this place by Mr Pratt—one had 1,900 signatures on it. But that referred to the installation of a low-level crossing; it did not talk at all about the restoration or even a new bridge. Later on he tabled another one with 611 signatures. What did he talk about? He talked about the installation of a temporary low-level crossing. Then again—425 residents—he talked about commonwealth government assistance which did not exist for a temporary low-level crossing.
Later on Mr Pratt said that 264 residents wanted the government to erect a temporary low-level crossing, and then to expedite the replacement or refurbishment of the Tharwa bridge. There was no indication of their intentions, their desires, their wishes about the restoration of the bridge, as indicated by Mr—
Mr Stanhope: It was porky, was it?
MR SPEAKER: I warn you Chief Minister. I am serious about this. I will continue with the rest of question time without interjections.
MR HARGREAVES: Mr Pratt has told the community on radio this morning that people in their thousands signed petitions calling for the restoration of the old bridge. They did nothing of the sort. Those figures I have quoted come from the Hansard.
MR SPEAKER: A supplementary question, Mr Pratt?
MR PRATT: Minister, given this record of consistent failure as a minister, will you resign?
MR HARGREAVES: Mr Pratt says we have got some problem with drains. I will tell you what I do not do: I do not get a bucket of cleaning agent and go and attack public art. That is what I do not do.
MR SPEAKER: Come to the subject matter of the question.
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