Tamar River Siltation – strangely it turned into a debate with the Greens!
Mr FERGUSON (Bass) – Prior to the March election the Labor Party promised to provide $6.5 million in funding to deal with what is now a massive silt build-up at Home Reach and in the yacht basin in the Tamar estuary. By June of this year this promise had entirely disappeared.
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Budget Estimates: Education wrap-up
Mr FERGUSON – I will be leading the response from the Liberals with regard to Minister Thorp’s Estimates. I would like to say I found the Estimates process at times frustrating and at others rewarding. I want to thank the minister for a robust discussion, her general willingness to be helpful with the answers and for also providing her answers to questions on notice. I understand that there are still a couple more outstanding and I look forward to getting those. I would like to say that, frankly, were it not for a robust discussion and our line of questioning, certainly on my part, there can be no doubt that the quality and quantity of information that was received probably would not have been put on the record. That is why I must say I really did find the Estimates process a valuable exercise.
read moreOur LGH, Our AFL and Our health
It was the season for arguing differing opinions over the last five weeks – a long parliamentary session by any standard. Clearly the Lab-Grn Government has been rattled at having been found out for breaking numerous local and statewide election promises…. In the parliament, I took the opportunity to take aim at Labor and Green Ministers who have failed to keep their promises on a range of issues. Here is my contribution with regard to health, our hospital and our footy:
read moreBudget Estimates: Labor con-job on our LGH
During my election campaign, I promised to stand up for our hospital. So, last week in Budget Estimates hearings, I took the opportunity to call in on Committee A and substituted myself in – so I could put some important questions to the health minister regarding our LGH. She wasn’t very impressed that I did so, and made a performance of herself in answering… even trivialising the matter with disparaging comments that the questions were only about getting ‘some media’! I was underwhelmed.
read moreBudget Estimates: Education Hansard
This uncorrected proof Hansard of our 4 hour exchange is punctuated with numerous examples of Labor failure in education – and their continuing view that education is the plaything of experiment-loving politicians…
read morePremier concedes need for changes in NBN rollout
After attempting to avoid scrutiny during the Innovation, Science and Technology hearings this morning, the Premier has finally given in to Liberal demands to reconsider aspects of the NBN rollout.
After a long series of questions that highlighted the inadequacy of getting less than 50% of homes and businesses connected to the fibre rollout, Mr Bartlett conceded that there had not been any consideration given to changing the rollout from an “opt-in” to the more comprehensive “opt-out” model.
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