Page 370 - Week 02 - Tuesday, 12 February 2013

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MADAM SPEAKER: The member’s time has expired. Mr Corbell, on two or three occasions your time has expired in answering questions and you have persisted in speaking over me. It is disrespectful.

Mr Corbell: Madam Speaker, no disrespect is meant, but I am simply finishing my sentence. I am doing no more than that.

MADAM SPEAKER: The rules are that when your time has expired, whether you have finished or not, you sit down. A supplementary question, Mr Hanson.

MR HANSON: Thank you, Madam Speaker. Attorney-General, has there previously been a decrease in demand for parking when prices have increased or are you simply gouging Canberrans with this price increase?

MR CORBELL: I draw Mr Hanson’s attention to the assessment of parking supply and availability at various points and at various locations around the city. He would see, if he looked at those figures, that in fact we do continue to provide a quite reasonable level of supply that does outmatch demand at various times of the day at various locations in the city centre and, indeed, across the city as a whole and at other town centres and group centres, for example. Part utilisation is highest in centres such as Woden. It is lower in the city centre. It is lower in places like Tuggeranong and Belconnen.

So it depends on the time of day and it depends on the location. This is not about gouging anyone. We are not gouging anyone. What we are doing, as a government, is matching demand—

Mr Coe: On a point of order, on relevance. The supplementary question was about whether the minister had seen a decrease in demand when past increases had come into effect. It was not about supply, as he spoke about.

MADAM SPEAKER: I did actually note that down. That was correct, Mr Corbell, about what the question was. Could I ask you to be concise and directly relevant in answering the question.

MR CORBELL: Madam Speaker, I was. I was asked whether or not the government was gouging, and I was directly answering that question when you took the point of order. But, Madam Speaker, I take your ruling.

In relation to the issue of decreases in demand, yes, increases in prices do lead to decreases in demand. It has varied from location to location, and it will vary dependent on the time of day.

Canberra—centenary

MS PORTER: My question is to the Chief Minister. Chief Minister, in your role as the minister responsible for the centenary and for the National Arboretum, can you inform the Assembly of centenary celebrations to date and how these have been attended?


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