Page 4896 - Week 13 - Thursday, 2 November 2017
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Our standard here should not have the same threshold as the standard to lock someone away for a significant period of time. We must hold a higher standard for our leaders. The community rightly expects higher standards. (Time expired.)
MR GENTLEMAN (Brindabella—Minister for Police and Emergency Services, Minister for the Environment and Heritage, Minister for Planning and Land Management and Minister for Urban Renewal) (11.30): The only lack of confidence I have is in Alistair Coe. Will he be able to keep his leadership after this embarrassing stunt? Don’t worry: we do not want him to go; we want him to stay there. I would be very happy with that. He is doing a fantastic job for the Labor Party. I would like him to stay there right through to 2020, maybe even 2024.
I speak a little bit about contrast. On the one hand, we have the Chief Minister’s strong record of working for and delivering for Canberrans. In contrast, there is an opposition leader and his relentless cavalcade of negativity and mediocrity. Let me say again very clearly: the only lack of confidence I have is in the Canberra Liberals and the opposition leader.
I urge Canberrans to continue reflecting on the Liberal negativity, as indeed they have done for the past five elections in a row. The motion we are debating this morning is nothing more than grandstanding from the opposition, who clearly favour stunts like this instead of genuine policy debate.
In contrast, the leadership and record of Chief Minister Andrew Barr, whose government I am incredibly proud to serve in, is evidenced for all to see. Right now there is a confidence and optimism in Canberra that is palpable. To see this, you need only look at the growth and creativity being unleashed. We have become a city that is being talked up around the country and the world. We have a Chief Minister who is leading the charge in taking Canberra to the rest of the country and the world.
What is more, our schools, hospitals and emergency services are world class. We are the world’s most liveable city with a natural environment that is second to none. Civic, Tuggeranong, Gungahlin and Belconnen are booming, Woden stands at the brink of transformation with light rail stage 2, and our other suburbs retain their garden character that we all love.
Our businesses and universities are growing, innovating and creating jobs. We are leading the country in tax reform and reforms like 100 per cent renewable energy. This is due in no small part to the unstinting passionate and effective leadership and advocacy for Canberra by our Chief Minister, Andrew Barr. Labor’s approach and record have been endorsed by Canberrans in the past five elections. In contrast, the Canberra Liberals have remained resolute in their inability or unwillingness to put forward a comprehensive and achievable agenda. That can hardly have escaped their attention, given they are sitting on the opposition benches.
In my long experience and many and varied careers, I can think of few, if any, more effective leaders than Chief Minister Andrew Barr. What we are seeing from him as Chief Minister is a prime example of leadership in action, articulating a clear and
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