Page 2727 - Week 07 - Wednesday, 6 June 2012

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that the Gonski review particularly focused on an equitable outcome and transparent outcome for disability funding and said that this is something that should be delivered in the future through commonwealth government legislation. The actual funding will be delivered according to a formula which has already been put together and previously utilised by the directorate.

MR SESELJA: Supplementary.

MR SPEAKER: Yes, Mr Seselja.

MR SESELJA: Minister, how will students with disabilities in non-government schools be supported once the funds in 2012-13 are expended?

DR BOURKE: I thank the member for his question. That will be a matter for the next budget.

MR SPEAKER: Yes, Ms Hunter.

MS HUNTER: Minister, will the SCAN assessment process be used to help allocate these funds?

DR BOURKE: I thank the member for her question. Yes.

Budget—employment

MS PORTER: My question is to the Chief Minister. Minister, can you indicate how the government is supporting our economy and jobs through investing in high quality services?

MS GALLAGHER: I thank Ms Porter for the question. Yesterday’s budget is a responsible budget and it is a measured budget. It supports the economy and it supports jobs. It invests in high quality services and it invests in infrastructure. It targets assistance to our most vulnerable and it undertakes much-need structural tax reform. It is a good budget, a good Labor budget from a good Labor government.

At this time of challenge it is important to invest in services that help us meet the challenges we confront as a community. By investing in services we keep up our activity levels, we keep up our business confidence levels and we keep the city out of a recession. Keeping up activity keeps people in jobs. By keeping people in jobs we keep food on the tables and we keep money circulating through local business. All this helps protect the wages earned by Canberra workers which, on average, are 15 per cent higher than in the rest of the country.

Under our plan we have a return to surplus that is measured and responsible. We have also taken a decision to carry out once-in-a-generation tax reform. Many families end up with more money in their pockets and all Canberra households end up with better services, better infrastructure and better cities.

Mr Smyth: It is kind of embarrassing, really.


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