Page 4126 - Week 13 - Wednesday, 26 November 2014
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . . Video
This is the project which the government wants to squander hundreds of millions of dollars, billions of dollars, on—to change the commuting habits of 750 people in a city of 385,000. It is no wonder that David Hughes gave that summary.
For months the government pointed to the full business case as being the concluding piece in an open-and-shut case. Well, once again, the government have overpromised and underdelivered. They talked down the price, and it came up higher than expected. They talked up the BCR, and it came in at half. They talked up patronage, and it is comparable to the buses. They talked up travel time, and it is slower than the Red Rapid.
I am sure that the government is going to compound the folly—or should I say fantasy—and go from the absurd to the ridiculous by flippantly announcing an ACT-wide light rail network in a desperate attempt to change the politics of this situation. However, to be honest, with this government there is no guessing as to whether they will do this or announce another unsubstantiated billion-dollar project which was decided flippantly by a few MLAs.
In the interests of all taxpayers and all Canberrans, the opposition will continue to do all that we can to oppose this project. The genesis of this project is a political deal done by Mr Rattenbury and Ms Gallagher. That is why we are seeing the biggest capital works project ever in the ACT with a business case which simply does not support it—a business case which is fraught with risk and unsubstantiated claims and shows that, at best, we are going to get our money back in a roundabout way. However, what is more likely, if you look at the transport benefits alone, is that we will spend a billion dollars and we will get $400 million or $500 million back. That does not even include the finance costs.
This is a real worry for the people of Canberra. It is a worry for the opposition, and we will continue to do all we can to oppose this project. I urge members to support the motion.
MR CORBELL (Molonglo—Attorney-General, Minister for Police and Emergency Services, Minister for the Environment and Minister for Capital Metro) (6.08): I move:
Omit all words after “That this Assembly”, substitute: “notes that:
(1) the full business case for Capital Metro was released on 31 October 2014, along with calls for expressions of interest to build and operate the light rail system;
(2) the business case was produced using analysis performed by internationally renowned economic advisers EY, which delivered prudent and conservative economic analysis of the project;
(3) the business case was developed using best practice, robust methodologies from technical, financial, community and social sectors;
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . . Video