Ms LAWRIE - 2005-05-04
How will the substantial increase to operational funding for the Parks and Wildlife Service in Budget 2005 protect the Territory’s unique wildlife and continue to enhance our great lifestyle?
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I thank the member for Karama for her question. In Budget 2005-06, there has been an increase of $1.2m to the base operational funding of the Parks service, going from $9m to $10.2m per annum, and that recurrent funding is ongoing. It might not seem very much, but it does represent a 13% increase in operational funding to our Parks service.
It will improve the capacity of the service to perform core park management functions to deliver weed, fire, feral animal, and visitor programs. The increase in funding means that the Parks and Wildlife Service will be able to allocate resources to progress the development of high visitation areas within our major Territory parks, reducing the pressure on existing infrastructure. It will mean more plant and equipment, walking tracks, signs and fences across the regions. Basically, the service will be able to deliver its land management programs on a wider scale.
I am very proud to be Minister for the Parks and Wildlife Service. Whenever I meet the officers, I commend them for the great work they do, often in very lonely circumstances. They are very committed people. It came to my notice that they have been doing it tough for a long time in terms of their base operational funding, so I went in hard and managed to get some extra funding for them. I am sure it will be greatly appreciated because they are looking after a major Territory asset: our parks.
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I thank the member for Karama for her question. In Budget 2005-06, there has been an increase of $1.2m to the base operational funding of the Parks service, going from $9m to $10.2m per annum, and that recurrent funding is ongoing. It might not seem very much, but it does represent a 13% increase in operational funding to our Parks service.
It will improve the capacity of the service to perform core park management functions to deliver weed, fire, feral animal, and visitor programs. The increase in funding means that the Parks and Wildlife Service will be able to allocate resources to progress the development of high visitation areas within our major Territory parks, reducing the pressure on existing infrastructure. It will mean more plant and equipment, walking tracks, signs and fences across the regions. Basically, the service will be able to deliver its land management programs on a wider scale.
I am very proud to be Minister for the Parks and Wildlife Service. Whenever I meet the officers, I commend them for the great work they do, often in very lonely circumstances. They are very committed people. It came to my notice that they have been doing it tough for a long time in terms of their base operational funding, so I went in hard and managed to get some extra funding for them. I am sure it will be greatly appreciated because they are looking after a major Territory asset: our parks.
Last updated: 09 Aug 2016