Page 2210 - Week 06 - Thursday, 7 June 2018

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Appropriation Bill 2018-2019

[Cognate bill:

Appropriation (Office of the Legislative Assembly) Bill 2018-2019]

Debate resumed from 5 June 2018, on motion by Mr Barr:

That this bill be agreed to in principle.

MR COE (Yerrabi—Leader of the Opposition) (3.01): Canberra is a great city. The Canberra Liberals believe that the future of our city is bright. This is a city that we all love. This is a city that I am honoured to serve and it is a community that is strong.

Madam Speaker, I have said it before and I will say it again: nobody gets into politics to be in opposition. It is rubbish. It is like being in the cockpit of the plane, but you cannot touch the controls. We see the disappointment and lost opportunities of a government that has lost its way.

But from opposition there are limits to what we can do. We can raise issues, ask questions, expose scandals and present ideas. But we cannot enact them from this side of the chamber. At every stage we have fought for a better deal for taxpayers. We have fought for clarity in the planning system. We have fought for integrity in land deals, for empowerment in education, for lower taxes, for employment growth, for a focus on actual healthcare delivery, for genuine reconciliation, for suburban transport links and for community services providers.

From opposition, we have it tough but we have still got runs on the board. Nicole Lawder has continued the work of the late Steve Doszpot on dangerous dogs, while working collaboratively with Jeremy Hanson on the development of revenge porn legislation.

Andrew Wall has consistently advocated for small businesses and, in particular, for a better deal for procurement practices in government. Giulia Jones continues to advocate for the front line of our emergency services—the police, ambos, firefighters, SES and other personnel that put so much on the line for others. We should be returning that trust.

Twelve months ago, when the government was happy to see SHOUT go under, it was Elizabeth Lee who stood up and called this government to account. SHOUT now goes from strength to strength and Elizabeth has much to be proud of.

Elizabeth Kikkert has been instrumental in calling out this government’s mismanagement of Bimberi, and she is the champion of so many local issues. James Milligan has been working closely with members of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander community to address the significant hurdles they face and to ensure better outcomes for future generations.

The mismanagement of the health system has been exposed by Vicki Dune over the past year. We have seen Vicki consistently advocate for better and more effective


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