Page 1665 - Week 05 - Wednesday, 1 April 2009
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If Mr Coe had been paying attention to the statement I made to the Assembly in the last sitting, he would also be aware that the advertising of that website information was just one of the commitments the government gave to the Assembly in the last sitting. The government will be meeting all of those commitments in full. Yes, the government will be undertaking that mail-out.
Mr Coe: When, Simon? When?
MR CORBELL: The answer as to when is: as soon as possible.
MR SPEAKER: Mr Coe, a supplementary question?
MR COE: Attorney, why would an officer in the Office of Regulatory Services, when contacted by a unit title owner earlier this week, advise that the government had no intention of publishing or distributing any information booklet and that all the necessary information could be found on the website?
MR CORBELL: I regret if that is the case, and I will make inquiries to that effect and ensure that all officers are aware of the government’s position on this matter.
Roads—safety
MS PORTER: Mr Speaker, my question, through you, is to the Chief Minister. Minister, with four road deaths this year, the most recent being just this past weekend where two Canberrans were killed and two other people were critically injured in a car accident, what can the government do to help change cultural attitudes in the community about safe driving practices to decrease the risk of road fatalities?
MR STANHOPE: I thank Ms Porter for the question. As Ms Porter has stated, and as I am sure members are aware, the recent road tragedy over the weekend resulted in the loss of the lives of two young Canberrans, with two other young Canberrans critically injured. Mr Speaker, it is not only the lives of those injured in the accidents which will be changed forever as a result of the tragedy; the families and friends of those injured in the accidents will also be affected for the rest of their lives.
I will not comment, of course, on the particular circumstances of any of the four road deaths that have now been suffered in the ACT in the last six weeks. But we all know from painful experience that the two most common factors leading to road accidents and road deaths are speed and alcohol. Yet the general community perception appears to be that it is still okay to speed.
Following the motion on road safety and the proposal to consult on whether the ACT should introduce 40-kilometre-per-hour speed limits around shopping centres, there was a talkback segment on ABC 666, where an expert on road safety, Stuart Newstead from Monash University’s accident research centre was interviewed. The interview was about whether or not 40-kilometre-per-hour speed zones actually do work. It was a very intelligent discussion with an expert in road safety talking on the ABC about things that we can do as communities to make our roads and our communities safer.
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