Page 1753 - Week 05 - Wednesday, 5 May 2010
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the development rights. I understand that, but I do not think governments can ignore it. I do not think we are elected to this place to ignore advice that says, “You have not been collecting as much revenue as you should under these arrangements.” That is obviously the attitude the Liberal opposition would take. It is obviously a very lazy view from the opposition, and it is an opposition that obviously never intends to be in government.
Mr Hanson: You call us lazy when you’re heading off on a holiday.
MS GALLAGHER: Mr Hanson, I do not apologise for having a holiday, my friend. And you can go as hard as you like on that. I have been pretty clear about my intention to have a holiday, and you can go as hard as you like on that. You can go as hard as you like, mate; it does not matter to me. I do not think the community worries about it either. I think they acknowledge the fact that people are entitled to a holiday, not that this relates to the question at all.
Family and youth services
MS HUNTER: My question is to the Minister for Children and Young People. Minister, the responses to the family services program and youth services program discussion paper closed on 5 March 2010. As I understand it, the FSP and YSP providers’ contracts will be rolled over while the process continues. Can you advise what interim contractual arrangements will be put in place?
MS BURCH: Thank you, Ms Hunter, for the question. Yes, we are reconfiguring the youth and family services funding streams, and existing providers have had their contracts extended. So the contracts that currently exist and the services they are providing will be extended under contract extensions until our review of the feedback and comeback from the community sector on that realignment is completed and we are able to go back to the community about what the new program and alignment look like. So the existing contracts will be extended until we finish this process.
MR SPEAKER: Ms Hunter, a supplementary?
MS HUNTER: Thank you. Given that workers in these programs are not sure if they will have ongoing employment, minister, how will you alleviate the strain and uncertainty this review is placing on the sector and their ability to plan and deliver services into the future, including how long that rollover will go for?
MS BURCH: I recognise that changes to contracts do create stress and strain and some level of angst around community providers. I have worked in the community sector long enough to understand that funding cycles do have that impact. The realignment of youth and family services is also part of a broader purchasing framework that we are progressing. One of the key aims of the new purchasing framework, once we get our organisations through a prequalification period, is that we will be able to afford longer term contracts—so funding cycles of up to 10 years, conditional on deliverables and milestones being reached. I understand and recognise that this transitional period is difficult, but I think that once we come out of that the community sector will indeed be more stable. We will have prequalifications. We will
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