Mrs HICKEY - 1997-04-29
Yesterday, Territorians were greeted with a headline that the Country Liberal Party intended to increase police numbers by 100 in the budget. I remind the Deputy Chief Minister that, when Territory Labor announced in its law and order policy that it would employ 100 additional police, it was bagged by the Country Liberal Party. The Chief Minister described this policy component as `knee-jerk'. The member for Sanderson bagged us, and the Attorney-General quoted from some academic and said our argument was `intellectually
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bankrupt'. At what point did the Deputy Chief Minister and the government decide that Territory Labor was right? What other Labor policies does the Country Liberal Party intend to hijack between now and the next election?
ANSWER
Mr Speaker, the one area where the Leader of the Opposition has absolute safety is in relation to the government pinching Labor policies. There is nothing that ...
Mr Ah Kit interjecting.
Mr REED: The member for Arnhem laughs. No one will steal the member for Arnhem's ideas because he is in the singular position of never having had one.
Members opposite may rest easy. We are not concerned about their policies. What the member for Barkly should have said was that the information that the opposition has provided in the past in relation to police resources has been factually bankrupt. I can demonstrate the response of the government over previous budgets, notwithstanding that the opposition has tried to paint the picture quite differently. However, the budget papers and the record clearly demonstrate the facts. For the financial year 1994-95, the Police, Fire and Emergency Services budget was $77.493m. This year, 1996-97, it is $93m. That has been the government response in the provision of additional financial resources. That response has reflected community needs.
The Leader of the Opposition was on the radio this morning, asking: `Why are they doing this now, at budget time?' For heaven's sake, when else would we do it? She does not even remember her own comment. She is pulling a funny face. She does not even remember what she has said, and what has been broadcast as a voice-over from her own media statements. There is a very obvious reason why we would do this at budget time. That is when the government sets the path for the coming financial year, when it sets its priorities and allocates funding for activities to be maintained or, in areas where it is needed, increased in response to community needs and demands. That is a very sound and logical process to pursue at budget time. When else would anyone do it?
I am not giving any validity to the report in the paper yesterday. I have confirmed, as has the Chief Minister, that there will be additional resources for Police, Fire and Emergency Services in the budget, but members opposite will have to await the bringing down of the budget at 11 am tomorrow to learn the details of that.
As for our stealing their ideas, members may rest easy because we are not interested in them. We have seen where their policies have taken them in the past. They have not advanced them a great deal. In relation to police numbers, the difference between our policy and theirs is that ours is costed. Territorians will not be handed a pig in a poke. Members opposite are telling the people that they will come up with some fictitious number. They will not say precisely how many police or what additional resources are involved. Most importantly, they have given no indication at all as to what the policy will cost. I dare say they do not know. If they did, they would have told Territorians the cost of providing the additional resources that
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they have indicated. The budget is an appropriate vehicle to consider these matters and full details will be provided tomorrow morning at 11 o'clock.
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bankrupt'. At what point did the Deputy Chief Minister and the government decide that Territory Labor was right? What other Labor policies does the Country Liberal Party intend to hijack between now and the next election?
ANSWER
Mr Speaker, the one area where the Leader of the Opposition has absolute safety is in relation to the government pinching Labor policies. There is nothing that ...
Mr Ah Kit interjecting.
Mr REED: The member for Arnhem laughs. No one will steal the member for Arnhem's ideas because he is in the singular position of never having had one.
Members opposite may rest easy. We are not concerned about their policies. What the member for Barkly should have said was that the information that the opposition has provided in the past in relation to police resources has been factually bankrupt. I can demonstrate the response of the government over previous budgets, notwithstanding that the opposition has tried to paint the picture quite differently. However, the budget papers and the record clearly demonstrate the facts. For the financial year 1994-95, the Police, Fire and Emergency Services budget was $77.493m. This year, 1996-97, it is $93m. That has been the government response in the provision of additional financial resources. That response has reflected community needs.
The Leader of the Opposition was on the radio this morning, asking: `Why are they doing this now, at budget time?' For heaven's sake, when else would we do it? She does not even remember her own comment. She is pulling a funny face. She does not even remember what she has said, and what has been broadcast as a voice-over from her own media statements. There is a very obvious reason why we would do this at budget time. That is when the government sets the path for the coming financial year, when it sets its priorities and allocates funding for activities to be maintained or, in areas where it is needed, increased in response to community needs and demands. That is a very sound and logical process to pursue at budget time. When else would anyone do it?
I am not giving any validity to the report in the paper yesterday. I have confirmed, as has the Chief Minister, that there will be additional resources for Police, Fire and Emergency Services in the budget, but members opposite will have to await the bringing down of the budget at 11 am tomorrow to learn the details of that.
As for our stealing their ideas, members may rest easy because we are not interested in them. We have seen where their policies have taken them in the past. They have not advanced them a great deal. In relation to police numbers, the difference between our policy and theirs is that ours is costed. Territorians will not be handed a pig in a poke. Members opposite are telling the people that they will come up with some fictitious number. They will not say precisely how many police or what additional resources are involved. Most importantly, they have given no indication at all as to what the policy will cost. I dare say they do not know. If they did, they would have told Territorians the cost of providing the additional resources that
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they have indicated. The budget is an appropriate vehicle to consider these matters and full details will be provided tomorrow morning at 11 o'clock.
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Last updated: 09 Aug 2016