Page 1332 - Week 04 - Thursday, 8 May 2014

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So right across the city, from Tuggeranong in the south, through Woden, Weston Creek, the city, the inner south, the inner north, Dickson, for example, Gungahlin, west Belconnen—right across the city, government investment in infrastructure is providing opportunities for co-investment.

Mr Coe: Pialligo

MR BARR: Indeed, the master planning work that is occurring in Pialligo and Hall certainly allow for investment.

Mr Coe: Tharwa and Uriarra.

MR BARR: And indeed, in Tharwa and in Uriarra, yes, as well—right across the city and in the rural villages as well, Mr Coe.

City to the lake will certainly involve a similar process, and there is no shortage of interest from the private sector in partnering with government around the investment opportunities—and not just in group and town centres but right down to the local level in terms of investment in infrastructure upgrades of our local shopping centres, our local community centres. There has been significant work undertaken in recent times, and more to come.

The government’s support for private sector investment, particularly investment facilitation through Invest Canberra, is helping businesses in the territory to grow. Our work to accelerate innovation in the territory and our close relationship with the tertiary education sector have certainly contributed tens if not hundreds of millions of dollars in construction activity as our universities build the facilities and infrastructure to carry out their important work.

As just a few examples to highlight that, there is the partnership with the ANU that has led to the transformation and regeneration of City West as a vibrant tertiary education precinct, the development of ANU’s Advanced Instrumentation and Technology Centre at Mount Stromlo as part of a world-class space and spatial precinct, working with the CSIRO to establish the high-resolution plant phenomics centre at Black Mountain, supporting the CSIRO and the ANU to accelerate the formation of the global sciences innovation precinct at Black Mountain, working closely with the University of Canberra in the establishment of its sports commons and a new public hospital. There are some other high-profile examples of private sector infrastructure development, obviously headlined by the $500 million project at the airport and of course today’s announcement from IKEA of their investment in Canberra.

But there are also a range of smaller businesses who are out there every day investing in new infrastructure and creating jobs in the community, and this is evidenced by the fact that over the last decade nearly 36,000 new jobs have been added to the ACT economy, 10 new jobs created every day for 10 years. It is an amazing record of growth for the ACT economy. And we will continue to invest in infrastructure and continue to support the creation of jobs in the territory.


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