State Economic Growth 
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| Tuesday, 26 June 2007 | ||||||
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Mr MIKE BAIRD (Manly) [3.40 p.m.]: I address this motion from the premise of why I joined this Parliament. I sought election to provide input into policy and solutions that will have a big impact in our communities. I cannot believe that we are debating a self-promoting government motion when we are aware of an issue of State and national significance of the highest order. Members have heard that the Government sat on the "Breaking the Silence" report. That report sat on the Minister's desk for 12 months! I urge the Government to address key issues, and there is no more important issue than kids. Mr Barry Collier: Point of order: The importance of the motion has already been debated. I ask the member for Manly to recall the constant repetition of Standing Order 129, which refers to relevance. His contribution is not relevant to the debate on the economic performance of the Government. The DEPUTY-SPEAKER: Order! The member for Manly should keep his remarks relevant to the focus of the debate. Mr MIKE BAIRD: I cannot believe that members of this Government are happy to pat themselves on the back, knowing that that report has been with the Government for more than 12 months and it has done nothing about it. If we have to talk about economic circumstances I could bore members till they are blue in the face on how I believe this State Government could do a better job. If Government members want to talk about what is important to the people of New South Wales today, they should debate how the budget allocates funds to problem areas. I ask the member for Miranda to tell me, in his response, how much the Government allocated in its budget to address the issue I have raised. As I understand it, in a Cabinet meeting the Treasurer relayed the message, "If you want to do this, you find the efficiencies in your own department." I cannot believe that members are expected to talk about efficiency gains when we are aware that children are being abused. If there is a greater need for money than to address the needs of kids, I do not know what it is. I am in a state of incredulous disappointment, given that earlier we heard a Minister say that issues such as this should be above politics. I agree: it should be. Are members in a position to happily debate the Government's own motion about the wonderful things it has done for the State when every Aboriginal community is crying out for and demanding attention and resources? This motion is a pat on the back for the Government, which has allocated not one cent to address that problem. The Government does not regard the issue of abused children as serious. I am sure that, as facts come to the fore, Government members would be disappointed to be part of a government that has not allocated one doctor to addressing the problem. Instead, the Government told its departments to go ahead and find some efficiency gains—efficiency gains to deal with the abuse of children! I cannot think of anything more appalling. Today I am the most deeply disappointed I have been since I became a member of this House. Over the past 12 years the Government has received unbudgeted revenue in excess of a billion dollars a year; almost $15 billion has been received in unbudgeted revenue. What has the Government done with that revenue? Today we have heard about a problem that does not require anywhere near that amount of money to address it and yet the New South Wales Government has the hide to attack the Prime Minister for being proactive on this issue of national importance. Every member of this House must be weeping about the stories associated with the "Breaking the Silence" report. There is no greater financial priority than addressing that problem, and doing so right now. Instead of debating the problem, the Minister explained the Government's actions, used lots of words, and held up glossy reports. The Government, instead of detailing what it is doing, is patting itself on the back. That shows me what is wrong with this Government. It has not only lost touch with its economic credentials and promoted itself as the wonderment of the modern world in economic management, it has also lost touch with the very communities that it is supposed to represent. I encourage every Government member to go out and doorknock, as soon as possible, and ask each community whether it believes the Government should prioritise the issue of child abuse, which has gone unchecked for so long; and whether we should condemn the Prime Minister for taking action, for showing the initiative, for saying that enough is enough, and that it is time to fix this problem. We know that the New South Wales Government has sat on a report that clearly details what needs to be done. What is the solution? Is it to talk about efficiency gains? I may have a banking background, but efficiency gains do not come into the equation when it comes to the abuse of children. There is no more despicable offence, and nothing could have greater priority. If the Government wants further taxes, what has it done about that wonderment of infrastructure management, the Cross City Tunnel? As a concession, $98 million was paid up-front, but where have those funds been spent? The Coalition has a few solutions, a few priorities, for the Government. That $98 million should be spent right now in addressing the problem of child abuse. What about the Lane Cove Tunnel? We wait with glee for that project to reach fruition, with the funnelling of Epping Road and the chaos that will cause. However, the Government has not allocated a single cent to the "Breaking the Silence" report, although it paid $25 million in a cynical exercise to be re-elected. The Government said, "We do not want Epping Road closed down to one lane before the election. People will be upset with us and it will create an issue." So it negotiated a $25 million pay-off fee. I cannot think of anything more appalling. The Government is aware of the needs of Aboriginal children as a result of the "Breaking the Silence" report. It was happy to spend $25 million just to get re-elected. The Government must be accountable for the funds it allocates and it must have some values. This Government is not prepared to prioritise the issue of abused children in Aboriginal communities. It no longer has a heart and it no longer has any basis on which to congratulate itself. I am sure that privately every Government member is ashamed of its inaction. The Government now has an opportunity to redeem itself. If it said today, "We were wrong. It is time that we worked on this issue and allocated some funds to address this problem", every member of this House would applaud it. Instead, today we are debating a motion that refers to the wonderful job that this Government is doing. If this issue is unresolved the Government cannot say it has done a wonderful job. I am appalled that we are debating this nonsense motion of self-congratulation when this important issue remains unresolved. Kids in these communities are being abused but the Government has not allocated any funding to resolve the problem. It has not asked departments to find some efficiency gains. This motion is akin to putting air conditioners in offices. If departments wanted to put air conditioners in their offices they would have to find some efficiency gains. [ Time expired.] Add to:          Write Comment
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