Mr MILLS - 2005-11-30
Prior to the election you promised to seal the Mereenie Loop Road, construct the Desert Knowledge Project, build a high school in Palmerston, and a number of other things. The Desert Knowledge Project has been shelved; the Mereenie has stalled; and you will not be building the high school in Palmerston in the immediate future. Please convince us that the holding back of these projects has nothing to do with the problem with cash in the Territory economy through your administration.
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I thank the member for Blain for his question. We certainly dealt, in part, with the Palmerston School this morning. I explained how we had made a commitment well in advanced of any commitment, or even any thought at that time when we made that commitment, that we would commission a major review of secondary education. We did not, of course, know at that time that that review would come back with such a strong focus on middle schools approach. Nor did we know that the community was so strongly concerned about middle schools years they identified as those Years 7, 8 and 9, and nor could we know that the consultative process has allowed us to discover that the school community and parents are very strongly engaged and supportive around a middle schools approach.
Having done all of that work, been given a direction forward supported by the community, it did not seem to make sense then to go on with the commitment to a high school which was not going to fit very well with a middle school’s approach, with the structural changes that are going to be required in order to get a proper middle schooling process in place which is so strongly supported by the community.
Nonetheless, having made the decision that we would not proceed with the new secondary school in Palmerston, we committed immediately to the expenditure of that $10m which was against that proposed school on the capital works. We committed every cent of that to Palmerston schools. Okay, they are not getting the high school which had been a commitment, but they are getting $10m worth of necessary expenditure, I would have thought, right across Palmerston schools - $2m that we have already talked about committed to Woodroffe and Durack. That leaves $8m, and discussion with the school communities in and around Palmerston will take place to ensure that the very necessary infrastructure spend is spent where it is most needed and where it will drive the dollar for value in educational outcomes.
There is no loss of commitment for the Desert People’s Centre. I think it stands at $27m or $28m ...
Members interjecting.
Mr STIRLING: $32.5m I think was the last …
Dr Toyne: No, $30m.
Members interjecting.
Mr STIRLING: We will stop at $30m. I accept $30m; the bid is closed. The commitment is there to spend that $30m. There has been some back to stakeholders and further work and refinements in and around design but that commitment is there and that project will go ahead. Government is a strong believer in the value of the Desert People’s Centre going forward.
The work continues to roll out on the Mereenie Loop Road. My colleague would be able to give a more complete answer in and around that. I understand it has a $10m commitment against it for this next financial year.
None of these projects, with the exception of the Palmerston school, are off. They are all continuing, albeit with some delays and some design changes around the fringes.
ANSWER
Madam Speaker, I thank the member for Blain for his question. We certainly dealt, in part, with the Palmerston School this morning. I explained how we had made a commitment well in advanced of any commitment, or even any thought at that time when we made that commitment, that we would commission a major review of secondary education. We did not, of course, know at that time that that review would come back with such a strong focus on middle schools approach. Nor did we know that the community was so strongly concerned about middle schools years they identified as those Years 7, 8 and 9, and nor could we know that the consultative process has allowed us to discover that the school community and parents are very strongly engaged and supportive around a middle schools approach.
Having done all of that work, been given a direction forward supported by the community, it did not seem to make sense then to go on with the commitment to a high school which was not going to fit very well with a middle school’s approach, with the structural changes that are going to be required in order to get a proper middle schooling process in place which is so strongly supported by the community.
Nonetheless, having made the decision that we would not proceed with the new secondary school in Palmerston, we committed immediately to the expenditure of that $10m which was against that proposed school on the capital works. We committed every cent of that to Palmerston schools. Okay, they are not getting the high school which had been a commitment, but they are getting $10m worth of necessary expenditure, I would have thought, right across Palmerston schools - $2m that we have already talked about committed to Woodroffe and Durack. That leaves $8m, and discussion with the school communities in and around Palmerston will take place to ensure that the very necessary infrastructure spend is spent where it is most needed and where it will drive the dollar for value in educational outcomes.
There is no loss of commitment for the Desert People’s Centre. I think it stands at $27m or $28m ...
Members interjecting.
Mr STIRLING: $32.5m I think was the last …
Dr Toyne: No, $30m.
Members interjecting.
Mr STIRLING: We will stop at $30m. I accept $30m; the bid is closed. The commitment is there to spend that $30m. There has been some back to stakeholders and further work and refinements in and around design but that commitment is there and that project will go ahead. Government is a strong believer in the value of the Desert People’s Centre going forward.
The work continues to roll out on the Mereenie Loop Road. My colleague would be able to give a more complete answer in and around that. I understand it has a $10m commitment against it for this next financial year.
None of these projects, with the exception of the Palmerston school, are off. They are all continuing, albeit with some delays and some design changes around the fringes.
Last updated: 09 Aug 2016