Page 2453 - Week 06 - Thursday, 23 June 2011
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . . Video
disappointing. I am referring both to the government’s failure to provide explanatory material justifying incursions on rights when they present bills to this place and to the responses that they have made to concerns raised by the scrutiny of bills committee. I make the point that there are of course internationally recognised human rights that are not included in our act and the government should be willing to engage on these issues when they are raised by the scrutiny committee.
Another area where the Greens would like to take the opportunity to raise some issues is in regard to the sustainability agenda, which it seems to be struggling to deliver in a timely fashion. The Greens recognise the complexity of the task and the resources available, and obviously we do not want to put unreasonable demands on our public servants, but we are frustrated at the snail’s pace that these vital strategies are being delivered at.
We have an energy policy that was promised last term. We are still waiting on it; we will be lucky to see it this term. We have a waste policy that is out of date, and a review of the most significant piece of biodiversity protection legislation that has been on the cards for literally years and that may be completed before the next election. Of course, that then becomes the problem. These pieces of work are being developed in the lead-up to an election and that inevitably politicises their delivery. Yet this should be core government policy that is carried through by successive governments over a long period of time. Planning for a sustainable city is a long-term agenda and we do not want it to chop and change every time we head into an election.
I think what this sad and sorry tale of failure to deliver on all sustainability policies in a timely manner really reflects is a lack of commitment to funding these areas properly. Funding and resourcing of sustainability issues is crucial. We cannot just say we are going to implement policies without ensuring that the parts of the public service responsible for delivering options and ideas for the government are properly resourced; we cannot say we are going to implement all-of-government sustainability and triple-bottom-line reporting without making sure that someone with the skills and expertise is employed to make that happen; and we cannot implement carbon budgets and efficiency outcomes across departments without making sure someone in each department has carriage for it.
And it is not just about resourcing; it is about the leadership that tells each and every person inside the public service that these issues are of great importance to the government—that the government are not just paying lip-service to sustainability and that they really believe in it. They are going to have to believe in it as we have an ambitious 40 per cent greenhouse emissions target that is going to require a massive across-government commitment, a commitment which unfortunately is not immediately apparent.
The Greens are disappointed with the lack of leadership shown by the ACT government on a number of issues. For instance, instead of leading the way and showing best practice our government not infrequently defers to weaker national processes, COAG processes, which are often inadequate, delayed or not forthcoming at all. Instead of leading the nation and banning battery cage farming, for example, the government simply said they would not take action. Instead they would wait for a
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . . Video