Page 3416 - Week 09 - Wednesday, 22 August 2018
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . . Video
government, we also have a responsibility to take very seriously the impact of any reforms so that they do not present an unfair or unjustified disadvantage or discriminatory effect for any part of our community.
It is important to review licensing conditions from time to time, to ensure that our road safety regulations are up to date and to hear from the community about their views. That is why I support the idea of consulting on our P-plate licensing scheme, particularly with the group most affected, in this case young people.
I have been pleased for the your P-plates discussion paper to go out to canvass views from the community and seek their feedback. I want to say from the outset that I support feedback from the community being properly considered so that a package of reforms can be brought forward for consideration by government. But we have not reached that stage yet, which is why I think it is reasonable to give Minister Rattenbury time to review that feedback so that he can bring forward a package of proposed P-plate licensing reforms to be considered on its merits through the rigour of normal government decision making processes.
When considering road safety measures, including reforms to P-plate licensing to improve safety, this needs to be balanced with the right of responsible young drivers to freely move around our city. I have taken the opportunity early to flag concerns with certain restrictions to P-plate licensing so that they can be considered as part of the government’s decision-making process. I know that a number of my Labor colleagues have done the same today and at other times.
My concern really is about the proposal for curfews for P-plate drivers between the hours of 12 am and 5 am. I think that curfews will have an adverse effect on young people’s day-to-day lives. This is a reasonable concern to have. We live in a human rights jurisdiction here in the ACT, and regulations which could potentially have an impact on freedom of movement throughout our city is something that does need to be considered very carefully. I believe strongly that a curfew would impact on the right of young people to move freely around our city.
It is a well-known fact that young people go out at night. We should not be stopping them from doing so. The reality is that there are not many alternative modes of transport for young people to move around our city late at night. Public transport is either infrequent or non-existent during these hours. I note that even the London underground, until Labour Mayor Sadiq Khan took office and introduced 24-hour lines, shut down during the early hours of the morning, in a city as large as London. In our city of Canberra, I cannot see 24-hour buses or light rail running regularly during those periods in the near future to provide a safe alternative for young people moving around our city, so driving is often the safest mode of transport for young people on their Ps to move around our city at night.
During the consultation on the discussion paper, I heard from many young people who wrote to me and posted on Facebook to tell me their views about the proposals as well as participating in the government’s consultation. I have been encouraging them to do that as well. I can confidently say that after hearing from many young Canberrans, there is significant concern about proposed P-plate curfews.
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . . Video