Page 3628 - Week 10 - Tuesday, 25 August 2009
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for joining me with this one. We get a lot of value out of it, walking and talking with people and these things. I considered it a consultation process. The Muslim Advisory Council is such a process.
I have been bagged out for the Tharwa bridge. What you do not know about it, because these guys—sorry about this—were not here at the time, was that I went down to Tharwa and in the hall I spoke with 100 people on both occasions, told them the technical details about what was going on and asked them their advice. For example, I asked them whether they wanted a set of traffic lights at both ends. They said no. So I wiped them. I also went down to have an informal meeting with them and two meetings with the rural leaseholders. The way they tell the story, I have done nothing.
On the taxi system, I convened a working group with TAMS and the Disability Advisory Council and completely revised the wheelchair accessible cabs. And I convened a roundtable with stakeholders to discuss a general taxi service which ended up with a whole stack more taxis on the road. As to the airport road congestion, I got a roundtable about that and we ended up with extra money to do that. Of course there are a whole series of other bits and pieces.
When I added up just the major ones, and not counting all the little ones which might be a bit iffy to count, there are 50 major consultation processes over 60 months in office, just under one month. I contrast that with Mr Smyth’s consultation process. He did not consult anybody—he was a minister then—about the Hall-Kinlyside debacle, about the feel the power campaign, about “What colour grass would you like at Bruce stadium? Would you like green? That’s a good colour. We have got leftovers from World War I, haven’t we?” Did we talk about the consultation on the sale or the borrowing of the money? Did we get that? No, we did not. No, we did not get that.
In fact, I tried to find something Mr Smyth actually did consult the community on over his 3½ years as minister but I could not find anything. Maybe he would like to come in and tell us about what he has done. Or he can keep his criticisms about consultation processes to himself.
If I get criticised for making a decision, I remind members that a bloke who never made a mistake never made anything. And I will continue to do that, mostly with the advice of people, as we go down the track. But if time is imperative I do not mind making a decision and taking the consequences of it. But do not you guys across there talk to me about a lack of consultation, because I have done far more of it in my time here than you have done in a lifetime.
Hartley Lifecare
MR RATTENBURY (Molonglo) (5.20): On Saturday night I had the great honour to be invited to participate in the Hartley Lifecare annual celebrity debate. The Legislative Assembly has a proud tradition here. Ms Gallagher was a participant last year and was on the winning team and the trophy stayed in the Assembly for the last 12 months. I took the trophy back on Saturday night but I had the good fortune to again be on the winning team. So the trophy will be spending another 12 months at the Legislative Assembly.
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