❓ A parliamentary question regarding delays to the infill sewerage program in Spearwood, impacting residents with failing septic systems. The Premier defends the delays citing financial constraints inherited from the previous government and prioritisation of water security.
AnsweredQoN 179Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
INFILL SEWERAGE PROGRAM - SPEARWOOD
I refer to the government’s drastic cuts to the infill sewerage program and to the parlous state of many septic tank and leach drains in the Spearwood area of the Premier’s electorate. Drains are collapsing and residents have to regularly pump the output onto their gardens. (1) Is it a fact that under the previous government’s infill sewerage program, the affected properties would have been connected to deep sewerage in 2003-04, whilst under this government that is not due to occur until 2013? (2) Has the Premier visited his constituents to see the existing problems many face; and, if not, why not, and when will he? (3) Will the Premier now act to ensure that the infill sewerage scheme is extended to this area within the next year? (4) Why did no government member bother to attend a public meeting on this issue last week? Mr A.J. CARPENTER
I refer to the government’s drastic cuts to the infill sewerage program and to the parlous state of many septic tank and leach drains in the Spearwood area of the Premier’s electorate. Drains are collapsing and residents have to regularly pump the output onto their gardens. (1) Is it a fact that under the previous government’s infill sewerage program, the affected properties would have been connected to deep sewerage in 2003-04, whilst under this government that is not due to occur until 2013? (2) Has the Premier visited his constituents to see the existing problems many face; and, if not, why not, and when will he? (3) Will the Premier now act to ensure that the infill sewerage scheme is extended to this area within the next year? (4) Why did no government member bother to attend a public meeting on this issue last week? Mr A.J. CARPENTER
AnswerView source ↗
I thank the member for some notice of this question and for his interest in my electorate. (1)-(4) As I understand it, I have a meeting this Friday with a representative group from the area. Mr J.H.D. Day : Have you visited them to see their problems? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : No; I have not visited their homes. Mr J.H.D. Day : It is time you did. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I thank the member for the advice. I will take it on board and I will meet with the people this week. I have a history of involvement with this issue in my electorate, which the member probably does not know about. My involvement began with Hilton and moved through to some of the other suburbs. I have been paying attention to the people in my electorate. That is why they re-elected me with such a good majority. How did the member go? Mr J.H.D. Day : I was re-elected with an increased majority. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only just, as I recall. The member was unendorsed by his own party! I thank the member for his advice. Mr J.H.D. Day : The conditions there are disgusting. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Yes. I understand that. I have had similar circumstances arise in other parts of my electorate. I understand the distress. This is the issue: when we came into government - I was not the Premier or Treasurer - we were faced with an interesting scenario. The previous government was outspending its capacity hand over fist. We had a massive financial problem on our hands - Mr C.J. Barnett : Absolute rubbish. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The member for Cottesloe knows it is true. Unfortunately, the member was central to it because there was no discipline whatsoever in the financial management of the government of the day. The coalition government had operational deficits in five of its eight years in government. When we came into government, we had to make some very difficult decisions about our spending priorities. Those decisions were quite difficult because we wanted to deliver the commitments that we made in our election campaign. That was our discipline. Everybody in the chamber and everybody else in the state knows that the previous government ran a hopelessly mismanaged financial balance sheet. Mr P.D. Omodei interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : It is true, and the Leader of the Opposition knows it. Yes, we had to reprioritise. In relation to the broader issue raised by the member for Darling Range, we also had to deal with the issue that confronted the state’s water resource industry. The state’s water supply was not being managed at all, and we were staring down the barrel of running out of water. There was no management of the demand side of the industry, and the supply side was left alone with the hope and expectation that it would start running again. We had to consider all the available options. We had to determine how to improve the water supply for Western Australia and where to find the money to improve that water supply, and that is what we did. Everybody knows we spent several hundreds of millions of dollars developing a desalination plant. In relation to the particular group of people referred to by the member for Darling Range, as the Minister for Water Resources explained last Friday, we are now looking at the priority list of the program as it rolls out to see whether the dates mentioned by the member for Darling Range should be left as they are or whether we should reattend the rollout and consider whether critical health issues mean that some of those works should be brought forward. We are looking at that. Of course, we do not want people to be placed in unhealthy circumstances. As the Minister for Water Resources has already explained publicly, we are reassessing that program now. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! I call to order the members for Roe, Moore, Dawesville and Riverton.
(1) Is it a fact that under the previous government’s infill sewerage program, the affected properties would have been connected to deep sewerage in 2003-04, whilst under this government that is not due to occur until 2013? (2) Has the Premier visited his constituents to see the existing problems many face; and, if not, why not, and when will he? (3) Will the Premier now act to ensure that the infill sewerage scheme is extended to this area within the next year? (4) Why did no government member bother to attend a public meeting on this issue last week? Mr A.J. CARPENTER replied: I thank the member for some notice of this question and for his interest in my electorate. (1)-(4) As I understand it, I have a meeting this Friday with a representative group from the area. Mr J.H.D. Day : Have you visited them to see their problems? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : No; I have not visited their homes. Mr J.H.D. Day : It is time you did. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I thank the member for the advice. I will take it on board and I will meet with the people this week. I have a history of involvement with this issue in my electorate, which the member probably does not know about. My involvement began with Hilton and moved through to some of the other suburbs. I have been paying attention to the people in my electorate. That is why they re-elected me with such a good majority. How did the member go? Mr J.H.D. Day : I was re-elected with an increased majority. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only just, as I recall. The member was unendorsed by his own party! I thank the member for his advice. Mr J.H.D. Day : The conditions there are disgusting. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Yes. I understand that. I have had similar circumstances arise in other parts of my electorate. I understand the distress. This is the issue: when we came into government - I was not the Premier or Treasurer - we were faced with an interesting scenario. The previous government was outspending its capacity hand over fist. We had a massive financial problem on our hands - Mr C.J. Barnett : Absolute rubbish. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The member for Cottesloe knows it is true. Unfortunately, the member was central to it because there was no discipline whatsoever in the financial management of the government of the day. The coalition government had operational deficits in five of its eight years in government. When we came into government, we had to make some very difficult decisions about our spending priorities. Those decisions were quite difficult because we wanted to deliver the commitments that we made in our election campaign. That was our discipline. Everybody in the chamber and everybody else in the state knows that the previous government ran a hopelessly mismanaged financial balance sheet. Mr P.D. Omodei interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : It is true, and the Leader of the Opposition knows it. Yes, we had to reprioritise. In relation to the broader issue raised by the member for Darling Range, we also had to deal with the issue that confronted the state’s water resource industry. The state’s water supply was not being managed at all, and we were staring down the barrel of running out of water. There was no management of the demand side of the industry, and the supply side was left alone with the hope and expectation that it would start running again. We had to consider all the available options. We had to determine how to improve the water supply for Western Australia and where to find the money to improve that water supply, and that is what we did. Everybody knows we spent several hundreds of millions of dollars developing a desalination plant. In relation to the particular group of people referred to by the member for Darling Range, as the Minister for Water Resources explained last Friday, we are now looking at the priority list of the program as it rolls out to see whether the dates mentioned by the member for Darling Range should be left as they are or whether we should reattend the rollout and consider whether critical health issues mean that some of those works should be brought forward. We are looking at that. Of course, we do not want people to be placed in unhealthy circumstances. As the Minister for Water Resources has already explained publicly, we are reassessing that program now. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! I call to order the members for Roe, Moore, Dawesville and Riverton.
(2) Has the Premier visited his constituents to see the existing problems many face; and, if not, why not, and when will he? (3) Will the Premier now act to ensure that the infill sewerage scheme is extended to this area within the next year? (4) Why did no government member bother to attend a public meeting on this issue last week? Mr A.J. CARPENTER replied: I thank the member for some notice of this question and for his interest in my electorate. (1)-(4) As I understand it, I have a meeting this Friday with a representative group from the area. Mr J.H.D. Day : Have you visited them to see their problems? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : No; I have not visited their homes. Mr J.H.D. Day : It is time you did. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I thank the member for the advice. I will take it on board and I will meet with the people this week. I have a history of involvement with this issue in my electorate, which the member probably does not know about. My involvement began with Hilton and moved through to some of the other suburbs. I have been paying attention to the people in my electorate. That is why they re-elected me with such a good majority. How did the member go? Mr J.H.D. Day : I was re-elected with an increased majority. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only just, as I recall. The member was unendorsed by his own party! I thank the member for his advice. Mr J.H.D. Day : The conditions there are disgusting. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Yes. I understand that. I have had similar circumstances arise in other parts of my electorate. I understand the distress. This is the issue: when we came into government - I was not the Premier or Treasurer - we were faced with an interesting scenario. The previous government was outspending its capacity hand over fist. We had a massive financial problem on our hands - Mr C.J. Barnett : Absolute rubbish. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The member for Cottesloe knows it is true. Unfortunately, the member was central to it because there was no discipline whatsoever in the financial management of the government of the day. The coalition government had operational deficits in five of its eight years in government. When we came into government, we had to make some very difficult decisions about our spending priorities. Those decisions were quite difficult because we wanted to deliver the commitments that we made in our election campaign. That was our discipline. Everybody in the chamber and everybody else in the state knows that the previous government ran a hopelessly mismanaged financial balance sheet. Mr P.D. Omodei interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : It is true, and the Leader of the Opposition knows it. Yes, we had to reprioritise. In relation to the broader issue raised by the member for Darling Range, we also had to deal with the issue that confronted the state’s water resource industry. The state’s water supply was not being managed at all, and we were staring down the barrel of running out of water. There was no management of the demand side of the industry, and the supply side was left alone with the hope and expectation that it would start running again. We had to consider all the available options. We had to determine how to improve the water supply for Western Australia and where to find the money to improve that water supply, and that is what we did. Everybody knows we spent several hundreds of millions of dollars developing a desalination plant. In relation to the particular group of people referred to by the member for Darling Range, as the Minister for Water Resources explained last Friday, we are now looking at the priority list of the program as it rolls out to see whether the dates mentioned by the member for Darling Range should be left as they are or whether we should reattend the rollout and consider whether critical health issues mean that some of those works should be brought forward. We are looking at that. Of course, we do not want people to be placed in unhealthy circumstances. As the Minister for Water Resources has already explained publicly, we are reassessing that program now. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! I call to order the members for Roe, Moore, Dawesville and Riverton.
(3) Will the Premier now act to ensure that the infill sewerage scheme is extended to this area within the next year? (4) Why did no government member bother to attend a public meeting on this issue last week? Mr A.J. CARPENTER replied: I thank the member for some notice of this question and for his interest in my electorate. (1)-(4) As I understand it, I have a meeting this Friday with a representative group from the area. Mr J.H.D. Day : Have you visited them to see their problems? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : No; I have not visited their homes. Mr J.H.D. Day : It is time you did. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I thank the member for the advice. I will take it on board and I will meet with the people this week. I have a history of involvement with this issue in my electorate, which the member probably does not know about. My involvement began with Hilton and moved through to some of the other suburbs. I have been paying attention to the people in my electorate. That is why they re-elected me with such a good majority. How did the member go? Mr J.H.D. Day : I was re-elected with an increased majority. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only just, as I recall. The member was unendorsed by his own party! I thank the member for his advice. Mr J.H.D. Day : The conditions there are disgusting. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Yes. I understand that. I have had similar circumstances arise in other parts of my electorate. I understand the distress. This is the issue: when we came into government - I was not the Premier or Treasurer - we were faced with an interesting scenario. The previous government was outspending its capacity hand over fist. We had a massive financial problem on our hands - Mr C.J. Barnett : Absolute rubbish. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The member for Cottesloe knows it is true. Unfortunately, the member was central to it because there was no discipline whatsoever in the financial management of the government of the day. The coalition government had operational deficits in five of its eight years in government. When we came into government, we had to make some very difficult decisions about our spending priorities. Those decisions were quite difficult because we wanted to deliver the commitments that we made in our election campaign. That was our discipline. Everybody in the chamber and everybody else in the state knows that the previous government ran a hopelessly mismanaged financial balance sheet. Mr P.D. Omodei interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : It is true, and the Leader of the Opposition knows it. Yes, we had to reprioritise. In relation to the broader issue raised by the member for Darling Range, we also had to deal with the issue that confronted the state’s water resource industry. The state’s water supply was not being managed at all, and we were staring down the barrel of running out of water. There was no management of the demand side of the industry, and the supply side was left alone with the hope and expectation that it would start running again. We had to consider all the available options. We had to determine how to improve the water supply for Western Australia and where to find the money to improve that water supply, and that is what we did. Everybody knows we spent several hundreds of millions of dollars developing a desalination plant. In relation to the particular group of people referred to by the member for Darling Range, as the Minister for Water Resources explained last Friday, we are now looking at the priority list of the program as it rolls out to see whether the dates mentioned by the member for Darling Range should be left as they are or whether we should reattend the rollout and consider whether critical health issues mean that some of those works should be brought forward. We are looking at that. Of course, we do not want people to be placed in unhealthy circumstances. As the Minister for Water Resources has already explained publicly, we are reassessing that program now. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! I call to order the members for Roe, Moore, Dawesville and Riverton.
(4) Why did no government member bother to attend a public meeting on this issue last week? Mr A.J. CARPENTER replied: I thank the member for some notice of this question and for his interest in my electorate. (1)-(4) As I understand it, I have a meeting this Friday with a representative group from the area. Mr J.H.D. Day : Have you visited them to see their problems? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : No; I have not visited their homes. Mr J.H.D. Day : It is time you did. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I thank the member for the advice. I will take it on board and I will meet with the people this week. I have a history of involvement with this issue in my electorate, which the member probably does not know about. My involvement began with Hilton and moved through to some of the other suburbs. I have been paying attention to the people in my electorate. That is why they re-elected me with such a good majority. How did the member go? Mr J.H.D. Day : I was re-elected with an increased majority. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only just, as I recall. The member was unendorsed by his own party! I thank the member for his advice. Mr J.H.D. Day : The conditions there are disgusting. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Yes. I understand that. I have had similar circumstances arise in other parts of my electorate. I understand the distress. This is the issue: when we came into government - I was not the Premier or Treasurer - we were faced with an interesting scenario. The previous government was outspending its capacity hand over fist. We had a massive financial problem on our hands - Mr C.J. Barnett : Absolute rubbish. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The member for Cottesloe knows it is true. Unfortunately, the member was central to it because there was no discipline whatsoever in the financial management of the government of the day. The coalition government had operational deficits in five of its eight years in government. When we came into government, we had to make some very difficult decisions about our spending priorities. Those decisions were quite difficult because we wanted to deliver the commitments that we made in our election campaign. That was our discipline. Everybody in the chamber and everybody else in the state knows that the previous government ran a hopelessly mismanaged financial balance sheet. Mr P.D. Omodei interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : It is true, and the Leader of the Opposition knows it. Yes, we had to reprioritise. In relation to the broader issue raised by the member for Darling Range, we also had to deal with the issue that confronted the state’s water resource industry. The state’s water supply was not being managed at all, and we were staring down the barrel of running out of water. There was no management of the demand side of the industry, and the supply side was left alone with the hope and expectation that it would start running again. We had to consider all the available options. We had to determine how to improve the water supply for Western Australia and where to find the money to improve that water supply, and that is what we did. Everybody knows we spent several hundreds of millions of dollars developing a desalination plant. In relation to the particular group of people referred to by the member for Darling Range, as the Minister for Water Resources explained last Friday, we are now looking at the priority list of the program as it rolls out to see whether the dates mentioned by the member for Darling Range should be left as they are or whether we should reattend the rollout and consider whether critical health issues mean that some of those works should be brought forward. We are looking at that. Of course, we do not want people to be placed in unhealthy circumstances. As the Minister for Water Resources has already explained publicly, we are reassessing that program now. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! I call to order the members for Roe, Moore, Dawesville and Riverton.
Mr A.J. CARPENTER replied: I thank the member for some notice of this question and for his interest in my electorate. (1)-(4) As I understand it, I have a meeting this Friday with a representative group from the area. Mr J.H.D. Day : Have you visited them to see their problems? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : No; I have not visited their homes. Mr J.H.D. Day : It is time you did. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I thank the member for the advice. I will take it on board and I will meet with the people this week. I have a history of involvement with this issue in my electorate, which the member probably does not know about. My involvement began with Hilton and moved through to some of the other suburbs. I have been paying attention to the people in my electorate. That is why they re-elected me with such a good majority. How did the member go? Mr J.H.D. Day : I was re-elected with an increased majority. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only just, as I recall. The member was unendorsed by his own party! I thank the member for his advice. Mr J.H.D. Day : The conditions there are disgusting. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Yes. I understand that. I have had similar circumstances arise in other parts of my electorate. I understand the distress. This is the issue: when we came into government - I was not the Premier or Treasurer - we were faced with an interesting scenario. The previous government was outspending its capacity hand over fist. We had a massive financial problem on our hands - Mr C.J. Barnett : Absolute rubbish. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The member for Cottesloe knows it is true. Unfortunately, the member was central to it because there was no discipline whatsoever in the financial management of the government of the day. The coalition government had operational deficits in five of its eight years in government. When we came into government, we had to make some very difficult decisions about our spending priorities. Those decisions were quite difficult because we wanted to deliver the commitments that we made in our election campaign. That was our discipline. Everybody in the chamber and everybody else in the state knows that the previous government ran a hopelessly mismanaged financial balance sheet. Mr P.D. Omodei interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : It is true, and the Leader of the Opposition knows it. Yes, we had to reprioritise. In relation to the broader issue raised by the member for Darling Range, we also had to deal with the issue that confronted the state’s water resource industry. The state’s water supply was not being managed at all, and we were staring down the barrel of running out of water. There was no management of the demand side of the industry, and the supply side was left alone with the hope and expectation that it would start running again. We had to consider all the available options. We had to determine how to improve the water supply for Western Australia and where to find the money to improve that water supply, and that is what we did. Everybody knows we spent several hundreds of millions of dollars developing a desalination plant. In relation to the particular group of people referred to by the member for Darling Range, as the Minister for Water Resources explained last Friday, we are now looking at the priority list of the program as it rolls out to see whether the dates mentioned by the member for Darling Range should be left as they are or whether we should reattend the rollout and consider whether critical health issues mean that some of those works should be brought forward. We are looking at that. Of course, we do not want people to be placed in unhealthy circumstances. As the Minister for Water Resources has already explained publicly, we are reassessing that program now. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! I call to order the members for Roe, Moore, Dawesville and Riverton.
I thank the member for some notice of this question and for his interest in my electorate. (1)-(4) As I understand it, I have a meeting this Friday with a representative group from the area. Mr J.H.D. Day : Have you visited them to see their problems? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : No; I have not visited their homes. Mr J.H.D. Day : It is time you did. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I thank the member for the advice. I will take it on board and I will meet with the people this week. I have a history of involvement with this issue in my electorate, which the member probably does not know about. My involvement began with Hilton and moved through to some of the other suburbs. I have been paying attention to the people in my electorate. That is why they re-elected me with such a good majority. How did the member go? Mr J.H.D. Day : I was re-elected with an increased majority. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only just, as I recall. The member was unendorsed by his own party! I thank the member for his advice. Mr J.H.D. Day : The conditions there are disgusting. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Yes. I understand that. I have had similar circumstances arise in other parts of my electorate. I understand the distress. This is the issue: when we came into government - I was not the Premier or Treasurer - we were faced with an interesting scenario. The previous government was outspending its capacity hand over fist. We had a massive financial problem on our hands - Mr C.J. Barnett : Absolute rubbish. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The member for Cottesloe knows it is true. Unfortunately, the member was central to it because there was no discipline whatsoever in the financial management of the government of the day. The coalition government had operational deficits in five of its eight years in government. When we came into government, we had to make some very difficult decisions about our spending priorities. Those decisions were quite difficult because we wanted to deliver the commitments that we made in our election campaign. That was our discipline. Everybody in the chamber and everybody else in the state knows that the previous government ran a hopelessly mismanaged financial balance sheet. Mr P.D. Omodei interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : It is true, and the Leader of the Opposition knows it. Yes, we had to reprioritise. In relation to the broader issue raised by the member for Darling Range, we also had to deal with the issue that confronted the state’s water resource industry. The state’s water supply was not being managed at all, and we were staring down the barrel of running out of water. There was no management of the demand side of the industry, and the supply side was left alone with the hope and expectation that it would start running again. We had to consider all the available options. We had to determine how to improve the water supply for Western Australia and where to find the money to improve that water supply, and that is what we did. Everybody knows we spent several hundreds of millions of dollars developing a desalination plant. In relation to the particular group of people referred to by the member for Darling Range, as the Minister for Water Resources explained last Friday, we are now looking at the priority list of the program as it rolls out to see whether the dates mentioned by the member for Darling Range should be left as they are or whether we should reattend the rollout and consider whether critical health issues mean that some of those works should be brought forward. We are looking at that. Of course, we do not want people to be placed in unhealthy circumstances. As the Minister for Water Resources has already explained publicly, we are reassessing that program now. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! I call to order the members for Roe, Moore, Dawesville and Riverton.
(1)-(4) As I understand it, I have a meeting this Friday with a representative group from the area. Mr J.H.D. Day : Have you visited them to see their problems? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : No; I have not visited their homes. Mr J.H.D. Day : It is time you did. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I thank the member for the advice. I will take it on board and I will meet with the people this week. I have a history of involvement with this issue in my electorate, which the member probably does not know about. My involvement began with Hilton and moved through to some of the other suburbs. I have been paying attention to the people in my electorate. That is why they re-elected me with such a good majority. How did the member go? Mr J.H.D. Day : I was re-elected with an increased majority. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only just, as I recall. The member was unendorsed by his own party! I thank the member for his advice. Mr J.H.D. Day : The conditions there are disgusting. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Yes. I understand that. I have had similar circumstances arise in other parts of my electorate. I understand the distress. This is the issue: when we came into government - I was not the Premier or Treasurer - we were faced with an interesting scenario. The previous government was outspending its capacity hand over fist. We had a massive financial problem on our hands - Mr C.J. Barnett : Absolute rubbish. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The member for Cottesloe knows it is true. Unfortunately, the member was central to it because there was no discipline whatsoever in the financial management of the government of the day. The coalition government had operational deficits in five of its eight years in government. When we came into government, we had to make some very difficult decisions about our spending priorities. Those decisions were quite difficult because we wanted to deliver the commitments that we made in our election campaign. That was our discipline. Everybody in the chamber and everybody else in the state knows that the previous government ran a hopelessly mismanaged financial balance sheet. Mr P.D. Omodei interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : It is true, and the Leader of the Opposition knows it. Yes, we had to reprioritise. In relation to the broader issue raised by the member for Darling Range, we also had to deal with the issue that confronted the state’s water resource industry. The state’s water supply was not being managed at all, and we were staring down the barrel of running out of water. There was no management of the demand side of the industry, and the supply side was left alone with the hope and expectation that it would start running again. We had to consider all the available options. We had to determine how to improve the water supply for Western Australia and where to find the money to improve that water supply, and that is what we did. Everybody knows we spent several hundreds of millions of dollars developing a desalination plant. In relation to the particular group of people referred to by the member for Darling Range, as the Minister for Water Resources explained last Friday, we are now looking at the priority list of the program as it rolls out to see whether the dates mentioned by the member for Darling Range should be left as they are or whether we should reattend the rollout and consider whether critical health issues mean that some of those works should be brought forward. We are looking at that. Of course, we do not want people to be placed in unhealthy circumstances. As the Minister for Water Resources has already explained publicly, we are reassessing that program now. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! I call to order the members for Roe, Moore, Dawesville and Riverton.
Mr J.H.D. Day : Have you visited them to see their problems? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : No; I have not visited their homes. Mr J.H.D. Day : It is time you did. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I thank the member for the advice. I will take it on board and I will meet with the people this week. I have a history of involvement with this issue in my electorate, which the member probably does not know about. My involvement began with Hilton and moved through to some of the other suburbs. I have been paying attention to the people in my electorate. That is why they re-elected me with such a good majority. How did the member go? Mr J.H.D. Day : I was re-elected with an increased majority. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only just, as I recall. The member was unendorsed by his own party! I thank the member for his advice. Mr J.H.D. Day : The conditions there are disgusting. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Yes. I understand that. I have had similar circumstances arise in other parts of my electorate. I understand the distress. This is the issue: when we came into government - I was not the Premier or Treasurer - we were faced with an interesting scenario. The previous government was outspending its capacity hand over fist. We had a massive financial problem on our hands - Mr C.J. Barnett : Absolute rubbish. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The member for Cottesloe knows it is true. Unfortunately, the member was central to it because there was no discipline whatsoever in the financial management of the government of the day. The coalition government had operational deficits in five of its eight years in government. When we came into government, we had to make some very difficult decisions about our spending priorities. Those decisions were quite difficult because we wanted to deliver the commitments that we made in our election campaign. That was our discipline. Everybody in the chamber and everybody else in the state knows that the previous government ran a hopelessly mismanaged financial balance sheet. Mr P.D. Omodei interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : It is true, and the Leader of the Opposition knows it. Yes, we had to reprioritise. In relation to the broader issue raised by the member for Darling Range, we also had to deal with the issue that confronted the state’s water resource industry. The state’s water supply was not being managed at all, and we were staring down the barrel of running out of water. There was no management of the demand side of the industry, and the supply side was left alone with the hope and expectation that it would start running again. We had to consider all the available options. We had to determine how to improve the water supply for Western Australia and where to find the money to improve that water supply, and that is what we did. Everybody knows we spent several hundreds of millions of dollars developing a desalination plant. In relation to the particular group of people referred to by the member for Darling Range, as the Minister for Water Resources explained last Friday, we are now looking at the priority list of the program as it rolls out to see whether the dates mentioned by the member for Darling Range should be left as they are or whether we should reattend the rollout and consider whether critical health issues mean that some of those works should be brought forward. We are looking at that. Of course, we do not want people to be placed in unhealthy circumstances. As the Minister for Water Resources has already explained publicly, we are reassessing that program now. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! I call to order the members for Roe, Moore, Dawesville and Riverton.
Mr A.J. CARPENTER : No; I have not visited their homes. Mr J.H.D. Day : It is time you did. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I thank the member for the advice. I will take it on board and I will meet with the people this week. I have a history of involvement with this issue in my electorate, which the member probably does not know about. My involvement began with Hilton and moved through to some of the other suburbs. I have been paying attention to the people in my electorate. That is why they re-elected me with such a good majority. How did the member go? Mr J.H.D. Day : I was re-elected with an increased majority. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only just, as I recall. The member was unendorsed by his own party! I thank the member for his advice. Mr J.H.D. Day : The conditions there are disgusting. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Yes. I understand that. I have had similar circumstances arise in other parts of my electorate. I understand the distress. This is the issue: when we came into government - I was not the Premier or Treasurer - we were faced with an interesting scenario. The previous government was outspending its capacity hand over fist. We had a massive financial problem on our hands - Mr C.J. Barnett : Absolute rubbish. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The member for Cottesloe knows it is true. Unfortunately, the member was central to it because there was no discipline whatsoever in the financial management of the government of the day. The coalition government had operational deficits in five of its eight years in government. When we came into government, we had to make some very difficult decisions about our spending priorities. Those decisions were quite difficult because we wanted to deliver the commitments that we made in our election campaign. That was our discipline. Everybody in the chamber and everybody else in the state knows that the previous government ran a hopelessly mismanaged financial balance sheet. Mr P.D. Omodei interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : It is true, and the Leader of the Opposition knows it. Yes, we had to reprioritise. In relation to the broader issue raised by the member for Darling Range, we also had to deal with the issue that confronted the state’s water resource industry. The state’s water supply was not being managed at all, and we were staring down the barrel of running out of water. There was no management of the demand side of the industry, and the supply side was left alone with the hope and expectation that it would start running again. We had to consider all the available options. We had to determine how to improve the water supply for Western Australia and where to find the money to improve that water supply, and that is what we did. Everybody knows we spent several hundreds of millions of dollars developing a desalination plant. In relation to the particular group of people referred to by the member for Darling Range, as the Minister for Water Resources explained last Friday, we are now looking at the priority list of the program as it rolls out to see whether the dates mentioned by the member for Darling Range should be left as they are or whether we should reattend the rollout and consider whether critical health issues mean that some of those works should be brought forward. We are looking at that. Of course, we do not want people to be placed in unhealthy circumstances. As the Minister for Water Resources has already explained publicly, we are reassessing that program now. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! I call to order the members for Roe, Moore, Dawesville and Riverton.
Mr J.H.D. Day : It is time you did. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I thank the member for the advice. I will take it on board and I will meet with the people this week. I have a history of involvement with this issue in my electorate, which the member probably does not know about. My involvement began with Hilton and moved through to some of the other suburbs. I have been paying attention to the people in my electorate. That is why they re-elected me with such a good majority. How did the member go? Mr J.H.D. Day : I was re-elected with an increased majority. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only just, as I recall. The member was unendorsed by his own party! I thank the member for his advice. Mr J.H.D. Day : The conditions there are disgusting. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Yes. I understand that. I have had similar circumstances arise in other parts of my electorate. I understand the distress. This is the issue: when we came into government - I was not the Premier or Treasurer - we were faced with an interesting scenario. The previous government was outspending its capacity hand over fist. We had a massive financial problem on our hands - Mr C.J. Barnett : Absolute rubbish. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The member for Cottesloe knows it is true. Unfortunately, the member was central to it because there was no discipline whatsoever in the financial management of the government of the day. The coalition government had operational deficits in five of its eight years in government. When we came into government, we had to make some very difficult decisions about our spending priorities. Those decisions were quite difficult because we wanted to deliver the commitments that we made in our election campaign. That was our discipline. Everybody in the chamber and everybody else in the state knows that the previous government ran a hopelessly mismanaged financial balance sheet. Mr P.D. Omodei interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : It is true, and the Leader of the Opposition knows it. Yes, we had to reprioritise. In relation to the broader issue raised by the member for Darling Range, we also had to deal with the issue that confronted the state’s water resource industry. The state’s water supply was not being managed at all, and we were staring down the barrel of running out of water. There was no management of the demand side of the industry, and the supply side was left alone with the hope and expectation that it would start running again. We had to consider all the available options. We had to determine how to improve the water supply for Western Australia and where to find the money to improve that water supply, and that is what we did. Everybody knows we spent several hundreds of millions of dollars developing a desalination plant. In relation to the particular group of people referred to by the member for Darling Range, as the Minister for Water Resources explained last Friday, we are now looking at the priority list of the program as it rolls out to see whether the dates mentioned by the member for Darling Range should be left as they are or whether we should reattend the rollout and consider whether critical health issues mean that some of those works should be brought forward. We are looking at that. Of course, we do not want people to be placed in unhealthy circumstances. As the Minister for Water Resources has already explained publicly, we are reassessing that program now. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! I call to order the members for Roe, Moore, Dawesville and Riverton.
Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I thank the member for the advice. I will take it on board and I will meet with the people this week. I have a history of involvement with this issue in my electorate, which the member probably does not know about. My involvement began with Hilton and moved through to some of the other suburbs. I have been paying attention to the people in my electorate. That is why they re-elected me with such a good majority. How did the member go? Mr J.H.D. Day : I was re-elected with an increased majority. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only just, as I recall. The member was unendorsed by his own party! I thank the member for his advice. Mr J.H.D. Day : The conditions there are disgusting. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Yes. I understand that. I have had similar circumstances arise in other parts of my electorate. I understand the distress. This is the issue: when we came into government - I was not the Premier or Treasurer - we were faced with an interesting scenario. The previous government was outspending its capacity hand over fist. We had a massive financial problem on our hands - Mr C.J. Barnett : Absolute rubbish. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The member for Cottesloe knows it is true. Unfortunately, the member was central to it because there was no discipline whatsoever in the financial management of the government of the day. The coalition government had operational deficits in five of its eight years in government. When we came into government, we had to make some very difficult decisions about our spending priorities. Those decisions were quite difficult because we wanted to deliver the commitments that we made in our election campaign. That was our discipline. Everybody in the chamber and everybody else in the state knows that the previous government ran a hopelessly mismanaged financial balance sheet. Mr P.D. Omodei interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : It is true, and the Leader of the Opposition knows it. Yes, we had to reprioritise. In relation to the broader issue raised by the member for Darling Range, we also had to deal with the issue that confronted the state’s water resource industry. The state’s water supply was not being managed at all, and we were staring down the barrel of running out of water. There was no management of the demand side of the industry, and the supply side was left alone with the hope and expectation that it would start running again. We had to consider all the available options. We had to determine how to improve the water supply for Western Australia and where to find the money to improve that water supply, and that is what we did. Everybody knows we spent several hundreds of millions of dollars developing a desalination plant. In relation to the particular group of people referred to by the member for Darling Range, as the Minister for Water Resources explained last Friday, we are now looking at the priority list of the program as it rolls out to see whether the dates mentioned by the member for Darling Range should be left as they are or whether we should reattend the rollout and consider whether critical health issues mean that some of those works should be brought forward. We are looking at that. Of course, we do not want people to be placed in unhealthy circumstances. As the Minister for Water Resources has already explained publicly, we are reassessing that program now. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! I call to order the members for Roe, Moore, Dawesville and Riverton.
Mr J.H.D. Day : I was re-elected with an increased majority. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only just, as I recall. The member was unendorsed by his own party! I thank the member for his advice. Mr J.H.D. Day : The conditions there are disgusting. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Yes. I understand that. I have had similar circumstances arise in other parts of my electorate. I understand the distress. This is the issue: when we came into government - I was not the Premier or Treasurer - we were faced with an interesting scenario. The previous government was outspending its capacity hand over fist. We had a massive financial problem on our hands - Mr C.J. Barnett : Absolute rubbish. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The member for Cottesloe knows it is true. Unfortunately, the member was central to it because there was no discipline whatsoever in the financial management of the government of the day. The coalition government had operational deficits in five of its eight years in government. When we came into government, we had to make some very difficult decisions about our spending priorities. Those decisions were quite difficult because we wanted to deliver the commitments that we made in our election campaign. That was our discipline. Everybody in the chamber and everybody else in the state knows that the previous government ran a hopelessly mismanaged financial balance sheet. Mr P.D. Omodei interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : It is true, and the Leader of the Opposition knows it. Yes, we had to reprioritise. In relation to the broader issue raised by the member for Darling Range, we also had to deal with the issue that confronted the state’s water resource industry. The state’s water supply was not being managed at all, and we were staring down the barrel of running out of water. There was no management of the demand side of the industry, and the supply side was left alone with the hope and expectation that it would start running again. We had to consider all the available options. We had to determine how to improve the water supply for Western Australia and where to find the money to improve that water supply, and that is what we did. Everybody knows we spent several hundreds of millions of dollars developing a desalination plant. In relation to the particular group of people referred to by the member for Darling Range, as the Minister for Water Resources explained last Friday, we are now looking at the priority list of the program as it rolls out to see whether the dates mentioned by the member for Darling Range should be left as they are or whether we should reattend the rollout and consider whether critical health issues mean that some of those works should be brought forward. We are looking at that. Of course, we do not want people to be placed in unhealthy circumstances. As the Minister for Water Resources has already explained publicly, we are reassessing that program now. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! I call to order the members for Roe, Moore, Dawesville and Riverton.
Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only just, as I recall. The member was unendorsed by his own party! I thank the member for his advice. Mr J.H.D. Day : The conditions there are disgusting. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Yes. I understand that. I have had similar circumstances arise in other parts of my electorate. I understand the distress. This is the issue: when we came into government - I was not the Premier or Treasurer - we were faced with an interesting scenario. The previous government was outspending its capacity hand over fist. We had a massive financial problem on our hands - Mr C.J. Barnett : Absolute rubbish. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The member for Cottesloe knows it is true. Unfortunately, the member was central to it because there was no discipline whatsoever in the financial management of the government of the day. The coalition government had operational deficits in five of its eight years in government. When we came into government, we had to make some very difficult decisions about our spending priorities. Those decisions were quite difficult because we wanted to deliver the commitments that we made in our election campaign. That was our discipline. Everybody in the chamber and everybody else in the state knows that the previous government ran a hopelessly mismanaged financial balance sheet. Mr P.D. Omodei interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : It is true, and the Leader of the Opposition knows it. Yes, we had to reprioritise. In relation to the broader issue raised by the member for Darling Range, we also had to deal with the issue that confronted the state’s water resource industry. The state’s water supply was not being managed at all, and we were staring down the barrel of running out of water. There was no management of the demand side of the industry, and the supply side was left alone with the hope and expectation that it would start running again. We had to consider all the available options. We had to determine how to improve the water supply for Western Australia and where to find the money to improve that water supply, and that is what we did. Everybody knows we spent several hundreds of millions of dollars developing a desalination plant. In relation to the particular group of people referred to by the member for Darling Range, as the Minister for Water Resources explained last Friday, we are now looking at the priority list of the program as it rolls out to see whether the dates mentioned by the member for Darling Range should be left as they are or whether we should reattend the rollout and consider whether critical health issues mean that some of those works should be brought forward. We are looking at that. Of course, we do not want people to be placed in unhealthy circumstances. As the Minister for Water Resources has already explained publicly, we are reassessing that program now. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! I call to order the members for Roe, Moore, Dawesville and Riverton.
Mr J.H.D. Day : The conditions there are disgusting. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Yes. I understand that. I have had similar circumstances arise in other parts of my electorate. I understand the distress. This is the issue: when we came into government - I was not the Premier or Treasurer - we were faced with an interesting scenario. The previous government was outspending its capacity hand over fist. We had a massive financial problem on our hands - Mr C.J. Barnett : Absolute rubbish. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The member for Cottesloe knows it is true. Unfortunately, the member was central to it because there was no discipline whatsoever in the financial management of the government of the day. The coalition government had operational deficits in five of its eight years in government. When we came into government, we had to make some very difficult decisions about our spending priorities. Those decisions were quite difficult because we wanted to deliver the commitments that we made in our election campaign. That was our discipline. Everybody in the chamber and everybody else in the state knows that the previous government ran a hopelessly mismanaged financial balance sheet. Mr P.D. Omodei interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : It is true, and the Leader of the Opposition knows it. Yes, we had to reprioritise. In relation to the broader issue raised by the member for Darling Range, we also had to deal with the issue that confronted the state’s water resource industry. The state’s water supply was not being managed at all, and we were staring down the barrel of running out of water. There was no management of the demand side of the industry, and the supply side was left alone with the hope and expectation that it would start running again. We had to consider all the available options. We had to determine how to improve the water supply for Western Australia and where to find the money to improve that water supply, and that is what we did. Everybody knows we spent several hundreds of millions of dollars developing a desalination plant. In relation to the particular group of people referred to by the member for Darling Range, as the Minister for Water Resources explained last Friday, we are now looking at the priority list of the program as it rolls out to see whether the dates mentioned by the member for Darling Range should be left as they are or whether we should reattend the rollout and consider whether critical health issues mean that some of those works should be brought forward. We are looking at that. Of course, we do not want people to be placed in unhealthy circumstances. As the Minister for Water Resources has already explained publicly, we are reassessing that program now. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! I call to order the members for Roe, Moore, Dawesville and Riverton.
Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Yes. I understand that. I have had similar circumstances arise in other parts of my electorate. I understand the distress. This is the issue: when we came into government - I was not the Premier or Treasurer - we were faced with an interesting scenario. The previous government was outspending its capacity hand over fist. We had a massive financial problem on our hands - Mr C.J. Barnett : Absolute rubbish. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The member for Cottesloe knows it is true. Unfortunately, the member was central to it because there was no discipline whatsoever in the financial management of the government of the day. The coalition government had operational deficits in five of its eight years in government. When we came into government, we had to make some very difficult decisions about our spending priorities. Those decisions were quite difficult because we wanted to deliver the commitments that we made in our election campaign. That was our discipline. Everybody in the chamber and everybody else in the state knows that the previous government ran a hopelessly mismanaged financial balance sheet. Mr P.D. Omodei interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : It is true, and the Leader of the Opposition knows it. Yes, we had to reprioritise. In relation to the broader issue raised by the member for Darling Range, we also had to deal with the issue that confronted the state’s water resource industry. The state’s water supply was not being managed at all, and we were staring down the barrel of running out of water. There was no management of the demand side of the industry, and the supply side was left alone with the hope and expectation that it would start running again. We had to consider all the available options. We had to determine how to improve the water supply for Western Australia and where to find the money to improve that water supply, and that is what we did. Everybody knows we spent several hundreds of millions of dollars developing a desalination plant. In relation to the particular group of people referred to by the member for Darling Range, as the Minister for Water Resources explained last Friday, we are now looking at the priority list of the program as it rolls out to see whether the dates mentioned by the member for Darling Range should be left as they are or whether we should reattend the rollout and consider whether critical health issues mean that some of those works should be brought forward. We are looking at that. Of course, we do not want people to be placed in unhealthy circumstances. As the Minister for Water Resources has already explained publicly, we are reassessing that program now. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! I call to order the members for Roe, Moore, Dawesville and Riverton.
Mr C.J. Barnett : Absolute rubbish. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The member for Cottesloe knows it is true. Unfortunately, the member was central to it because there was no discipline whatsoever in the financial management of the government of the day. The coalition government had operational deficits in five of its eight years in government. When we came into government, we had to make some very difficult decisions about our spending priorities. Those decisions were quite difficult because we wanted to deliver the commitments that we made in our election campaign. That was our discipline. Everybody in the chamber and everybody else in the state knows that the previous government ran a hopelessly mismanaged financial balance sheet. Mr P.D. Omodei interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : It is true, and the Leader of the Opposition knows it. Yes, we had to reprioritise. In relation to the broader issue raised by the member for Darling Range, we also had to deal with the issue that confronted the state’s water resource industry. The state’s water supply was not being managed at all, and we were staring down the barrel of running out of water. There was no management of the demand side of the industry, and the supply side was left alone with the hope and expectation that it would start running again. We had to consider all the available options. We had to determine how to improve the water supply for Western Australia and where to find the money to improve that water supply, and that is what we did. Everybody knows we spent several hundreds of millions of dollars developing a desalination plant. In relation to the particular group of people referred to by the member for Darling Range, as the Minister for Water Resources explained last Friday, we are now looking at the priority list of the program as it rolls out to see whether the dates mentioned by the member for Darling Range should be left as they are or whether we should reattend the rollout and consider whether critical health issues mean that some of those works should be brought forward. We are looking at that. Of course, we do not want people to be placed in unhealthy circumstances. As the Minister for Water Resources has already explained publicly, we are reassessing that program now. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! I call to order the members for Roe, Moore, Dawesville and Riverton.
Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The member for Cottesloe knows it is true. Unfortunately, the member was central to it because there was no discipline whatsoever in the financial management of the government of the day. The coalition government had operational deficits in five of its eight years in government. When we came into government, we had to make some very difficult decisions about our spending priorities. Those decisions were quite difficult because we wanted to deliver the commitments that we made in our election campaign. That was our discipline. Everybody in the chamber and everybody else in the state knows that the previous government ran a hopelessly mismanaged financial balance sheet. Mr P.D. Omodei interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : It is true, and the Leader of the Opposition knows it. Yes, we had to reprioritise. In relation to the broader issue raised by the member for Darling Range, we also had to deal with the issue that confronted the state’s water resource industry. The state’s water supply was not being managed at all, and we were staring down the barrel of running out of water. There was no management of the demand side of the industry, and the supply side was left alone with the hope and expectation that it would start running again. We had to consider all the available options. We had to determine how to improve the water supply for Western Australia and where to find the money to improve that water supply, and that is what we did. Everybody knows we spent several hundreds of millions of dollars developing a desalination plant. In relation to the particular group of people referred to by the member for Darling Range, as the Minister for Water Resources explained last Friday, we are now looking at the priority list of the program as it rolls out to see whether the dates mentioned by the member for Darling Range should be left as they are or whether we should reattend the rollout and consider whether critical health issues mean that some of those works should be brought forward. We are looking at that. Of course, we do not want people to be placed in unhealthy circumstances. As the Minister for Water Resources has already explained publicly, we are reassessing that program now. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! I call to order the members for Roe, Moore, Dawesville and Riverton.
Mr P.D. Omodei interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : It is true, and the Leader of the Opposition knows it. Yes, we had to reprioritise. In relation to the broader issue raised by the member for Darling Range, we also had to deal with the issue that confronted the state’s water resource industry. The state’s water supply was not being managed at all, and we were staring down the barrel of running out of water. There was no management of the demand side of the industry, and the supply side was left alone with the hope and expectation that it would start running again. We had to consider all the available options. We had to determine how to improve the water supply for Western Australia and where to find the money to improve that water supply, and that is what we did. Everybody knows we spent several hundreds of millions of dollars developing a desalination plant. In relation to the particular group of people referred to by the member for Darling Range, as the Minister for Water Resources explained last Friday, we are now looking at the priority list of the program as it rolls out to see whether the dates mentioned by the member for Darling Range should be left as they are or whether we should reattend the rollout and consider whether critical health issues mean that some of those works should be brought forward. We are looking at that. Of course, we do not want people to be placed in unhealthy circumstances. As the Minister for Water Resources has already explained publicly, we are reassessing that program now. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! I call to order the members for Roe, Moore, Dawesville and Riverton.
Mr A.J. CARPENTER : It is true, and the Leader of the Opposition knows it. Yes, we had to reprioritise. In relation to the broader issue raised by the member for Darling Range, we also had to deal with the issue that confronted the state’s water resource industry. The state’s water supply was not being managed at all, and we were staring down the barrel of running out of water. There was no management of the demand side of the industry, and the supply side was left alone with the hope and expectation that it would start running again. We had to consider all the available options. We had to determine how to improve the water supply for Western Australia and where to find the money to improve that water supply, and that is what we did. Everybody knows we spent several hundreds of millions of dollars developing a desalination plant. In relation to the particular group of people referred to by the member for Darling Range, as the Minister for Water Resources explained last Friday, we are now looking at the priority list of the program as it rolls out to see whether the dates mentioned by the member for Darling Range should be left as they are or whether we should reattend the rollout and consider whether critical health issues mean that some of those works should be brought forward. We are looking at that. Of course, we do not want people to be placed in unhealthy circumstances. As the Minister for Water Resources has already explained publicly, we are reassessing that program now. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! I call to order the members for Roe, Moore, Dawesville and Riverton.
In relation to the particular group of people referred to by the member for Darling Range, as the Minister for Water Resources explained last Friday, we are now looking at the priority list of the program as it rolls out to see whether the dates mentioned by the member for Darling Range should be left as they are or whether we should reattend the rollout and consider whether critical health issues mean that some of those works should be brought forward. We are looking at that. Of course, we do not want people to be placed in unhealthy circumstances. As the Minister for Water Resources has already explained publicly, we are reassessing that program now. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! I call to order the members for Roe, Moore, Dawesville and Riverton.
Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! I call to order the members for Roe, Moore, Dawesville and Riverton.
The SPEAKER : Order, members! I call to order the members for Roe, Moore, Dawesville and Riverton.
(1) Is it a fact that under the previous government’s infill sewerage program, the affected properties would have been connected to deep sewerage in 2003-04, whilst under this government that is not due to occur until 2013? (2) Has the Premier visited his constituents to see the existing problems many face; and, if not, why not, and when will he? (3) Will the Premier now act to ensure that the infill sewerage scheme is extended to this area within the next year? (4) Why did no government member bother to attend a public meeting on this issue last week? Mr A.J. CARPENTER replied: I thank the member for some notice of this question and for his interest in my electorate. (1)-(4) As I understand it, I have a meeting this Friday with a representative group from the area. Mr J.H.D. Day : Have you visited them to see their problems? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : No; I have not visited their homes. Mr J.H.D. Day : It is time you did. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I thank the member for the advice. I will take it on board and I will meet with the people this week. I have a history of involvement with this issue in my electorate, which the member probably does not know about. My involvement began with Hilton and moved through to some of the other suburbs. I have been paying attention to the people in my electorate. That is why they re-elected me with such a good majority. How did the member go? Mr J.H.D. Day : I was re-elected with an increased majority. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only just, as I recall. The member was unendorsed by his own party! I thank the member for his advice. Mr J.H.D. Day : The conditions there are disgusting. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Yes. I understand that. I have had similar circumstances arise in other parts of my electorate. I understand the distress. This is the issue: when we came into government - I was not the Premier or Treasurer - we were faced with an interesting scenario. The previous government was outspending its capacity hand over fist. We had a massive financial problem on our hands - Mr C.J. Barnett : Absolute rubbish. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The member for Cottesloe knows it is true. Unfortunately, the member was central to it because there was no discipline whatsoever in the financial management of the government of the day. The coalition government had operational deficits in five of its eight years in government. When we came into government, we had to make some very difficult decisions about our spending priorities. Those decisions were quite difficult because we wanted to deliver the commitments that we made in our election campaign. That was our discipline. Everybody in the chamber and everybody else in the state knows that the previous government ran a hopelessly mismanaged financial balance sheet. Mr P.D. Omodei interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : It is true, and the Leader of the Opposition knows it. Yes, we had to reprioritise. In relation to the broader issue raised by the member for Darling Range, we also had to deal with the issue that confronted the state’s water resource industry. The state’s water supply was not being managed at all, and we were staring down the barrel of running out of water. There was no management of the demand side of the industry, and the supply side was left alone with the hope and expectation that it would start running again. We had to consider all the available options. We had to determine how to improve the water supply for Western Australia and where to find the money to improve that water supply, and that is what we did. Everybody knows we spent several hundreds of millions of dollars developing a desalination plant. In relation to the particular group of people referred to by the member for Darling Range, as the Minister for Water Resources explained last Friday, we are now looking at the priority list of the program as it rolls out to see whether the dates mentioned by the member for Darling Range should be left as they are or whether we should reattend the rollout and consider whether critical health issues mean that some of those works should be brought forward. We are looking at that. Of course, we do not want people to be placed in unhealthy circumstances. As the Minister for Water Resources has already explained publicly, we are reassessing that program now. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! I call to order the members for Roe, Moore, Dawesville and Riverton.
(2) Has the Premier visited his constituents to see the existing problems many face; and, if not, why not, and when will he? (3) Will the Premier now act to ensure that the infill sewerage scheme is extended to this area within the next year? (4) Why did no government member bother to attend a public meeting on this issue last week? Mr A.J. CARPENTER replied: I thank the member for some notice of this question and for his interest in my electorate. (1)-(4) As I understand it, I have a meeting this Friday with a representative group from the area. Mr J.H.D. Day : Have you visited them to see their problems? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : No; I have not visited their homes. Mr J.H.D. Day : It is time you did. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I thank the member for the advice. I will take it on board and I will meet with the people this week. I have a history of involvement with this issue in my electorate, which the member probably does not know about. My involvement began with Hilton and moved through to some of the other suburbs. I have been paying attention to the people in my electorate. That is why they re-elected me with such a good majority. How did the member go? Mr J.H.D. Day : I was re-elected with an increased majority. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only just, as I recall. The member was unendorsed by his own party! I thank the member for his advice. Mr J.H.D. Day : The conditions there are disgusting. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Yes. I understand that. I have had similar circumstances arise in other parts of my electorate. I understand the distress. This is the issue: when we came into government - I was not the Premier or Treasurer - we were faced with an interesting scenario. The previous government was outspending its capacity hand over fist. We had a massive financial problem on our hands - Mr C.J. Barnett : Absolute rubbish. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The member for Cottesloe knows it is true. Unfortunately, the member was central to it because there was no discipline whatsoever in the financial management of the government of the day. The coalition government had operational deficits in five of its eight years in government. When we came into government, we had to make some very difficult decisions about our spending priorities. Those decisions were quite difficult because we wanted to deliver the commitments that we made in our election campaign. That was our discipline. Everybody in the chamber and everybody else in the state knows that the previous government ran a hopelessly mismanaged financial balance sheet. Mr P.D. Omodei interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : It is true, and the Leader of the Opposition knows it. Yes, we had to reprioritise. In relation to the broader issue raised by the member for Darling Range, we also had to deal with the issue that confronted the state’s water resource industry. The state’s water supply was not being managed at all, and we were staring down the barrel of running out of water. There was no management of the demand side of the industry, and the supply side was left alone with the hope and expectation that it would start running again. We had to consider all the available options. We had to determine how to improve the water supply for Western Australia and where to find the money to improve that water supply, and that is what we did. Everybody knows we spent several hundreds of millions of dollars developing a desalination plant. In relation to the particular group of people referred to by the member for Darling Range, as the Minister for Water Resources explained last Friday, we are now looking at the priority list of the program as it rolls out to see whether the dates mentioned by the member for Darling Range should be left as they are or whether we should reattend the rollout and consider whether critical health issues mean that some of those works should be brought forward. We are looking at that. Of course, we do not want people to be placed in unhealthy circumstances. As the Minister for Water Resources has already explained publicly, we are reassessing that program now. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! I call to order the members for Roe, Moore, Dawesville and Riverton.
(3) Will the Premier now act to ensure that the infill sewerage scheme is extended to this area within the next year? (4) Why did no government member bother to attend a public meeting on this issue last week? Mr A.J. CARPENTER replied: I thank the member for some notice of this question and for his interest in my electorate. (1)-(4) As I understand it, I have a meeting this Friday with a representative group from the area. Mr J.H.D. Day : Have you visited them to see their problems? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : No; I have not visited their homes. Mr J.H.D. Day : It is time you did. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I thank the member for the advice. I will take it on board and I will meet with the people this week. I have a history of involvement with this issue in my electorate, which the member probably does not know about. My involvement began with Hilton and moved through to some of the other suburbs. I have been paying attention to the people in my electorate. That is why they re-elected me with such a good majority. How did the member go? Mr J.H.D. Day : I was re-elected with an increased majority. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only just, as I recall. The member was unendorsed by his own party! I thank the member for his advice. Mr J.H.D. Day : The conditions there are disgusting. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Yes. I understand that. I have had similar circumstances arise in other parts of my electorate. I understand the distress. This is the issue: when we came into government - I was not the Premier or Treasurer - we were faced with an interesting scenario. The previous government was outspending its capacity hand over fist. We had a massive financial problem on our hands - Mr C.J. Barnett : Absolute rubbish. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The member for Cottesloe knows it is true. Unfortunately, the member was central to it because there was no discipline whatsoever in the financial management of the government of the day. The coalition government had operational deficits in five of its eight years in government. When we came into government, we had to make some very difficult decisions about our spending priorities. Those decisions were quite difficult because we wanted to deliver the commitments that we made in our election campaign. That was our discipline. Everybody in the chamber and everybody else in the state knows that the previous government ran a hopelessly mismanaged financial balance sheet. Mr P.D. Omodei interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : It is true, and the Leader of the Opposition knows it. Yes, we had to reprioritise. In relation to the broader issue raised by the member for Darling Range, we also had to deal with the issue that confronted the state’s water resource industry. The state’s water supply was not being managed at all, and we were staring down the barrel of running out of water. There was no management of the demand side of the industry, and the supply side was left alone with the hope and expectation that it would start running again. We had to consider all the available options. We had to determine how to improve the water supply for Western Australia and where to find the money to improve that water supply, and that is what we did. Everybody knows we spent several hundreds of millions of dollars developing a desalination plant. In relation to the particular group of people referred to by the member for Darling Range, as the Minister for Water Resources explained last Friday, we are now looking at the priority list of the program as it rolls out to see whether the dates mentioned by the member for Darling Range should be left as they are or whether we should reattend the rollout and consider whether critical health issues mean that some of those works should be brought forward. We are looking at that. Of course, we do not want people to be placed in unhealthy circumstances. As the Minister for Water Resources has already explained publicly, we are reassessing that program now. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! I call to order the members for Roe, Moore, Dawesville and Riverton.
(4) Why did no government member bother to attend a public meeting on this issue last week? Mr A.J. CARPENTER replied: I thank the member for some notice of this question and for his interest in my electorate. (1)-(4) As I understand it, I have a meeting this Friday with a representative group from the area. Mr J.H.D. Day : Have you visited them to see their problems? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : No; I have not visited their homes. Mr J.H.D. Day : It is time you did. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I thank the member for the advice. I will take it on board and I will meet with the people this week. I have a history of involvement with this issue in my electorate, which the member probably does not know about. My involvement began with Hilton and moved through to some of the other suburbs. I have been paying attention to the people in my electorate. That is why they re-elected me with such a good majority. How did the member go? Mr J.H.D. Day : I was re-elected with an increased majority. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only just, as I recall. The member was unendorsed by his own party! I thank the member for his advice. Mr J.H.D. Day : The conditions there are disgusting. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Yes. I understand that. I have had similar circumstances arise in other parts of my electorate. I understand the distress. This is the issue: when we came into government - I was not the Premier or Treasurer - we were faced with an interesting scenario. The previous government was outspending its capacity hand over fist. We had a massive financial problem on our hands - Mr C.J. Barnett : Absolute rubbish. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The member for Cottesloe knows it is true. Unfortunately, the member was central to it because there was no discipline whatsoever in the financial management of the government of the day. The coalition government had operational deficits in five of its eight years in government. When we came into government, we had to make some very difficult decisions about our spending priorities. Those decisions were quite difficult because we wanted to deliver the commitments that we made in our election campaign. That was our discipline. Everybody in the chamber and everybody else in the state knows that the previous government ran a hopelessly mismanaged financial balance sheet. Mr P.D. Omodei interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : It is true, and the Leader of the Opposition knows it. Yes, we had to reprioritise. In relation to the broader issue raised by the member for Darling Range, we also had to deal with the issue that confronted the state’s water resource industry. The state’s water supply was not being managed at all, and we were staring down the barrel of running out of water. There was no management of the demand side of the industry, and the supply side was left alone with the hope and expectation that it would start running again. We had to consider all the available options. We had to determine how to improve the water supply for Western Australia and where to find the money to improve that water supply, and that is what we did. Everybody knows we spent several hundreds of millions of dollars developing a desalination plant. In relation to the particular group of people referred to by the member for Darling Range, as the Minister for Water Resources explained last Friday, we are now looking at the priority list of the program as it rolls out to see whether the dates mentioned by the member for Darling Range should be left as they are or whether we should reattend the rollout and consider whether critical health issues mean that some of those works should be brought forward. We are looking at that. Of course, we do not want people to be placed in unhealthy circumstances. As the Minister for Water Resources has already explained publicly, we are reassessing that program now. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! I call to order the members for Roe, Moore, Dawesville and Riverton.
Mr A.J. CARPENTER replied: I thank the member for some notice of this question and for his interest in my electorate. (1)-(4) As I understand it, I have a meeting this Friday with a representative group from the area. Mr J.H.D. Day : Have you visited them to see their problems? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : No; I have not visited their homes. Mr J.H.D. Day : It is time you did. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I thank the member for the advice. I will take it on board and I will meet with the people this week. I have a history of involvement with this issue in my electorate, which the member probably does not know about. My involvement began with Hilton and moved through to some of the other suburbs. I have been paying attention to the people in my electorate. That is why they re-elected me with such a good majority. How did the member go? Mr J.H.D. Day : I was re-elected with an increased majority. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only just, as I recall. The member was unendorsed by his own party! I thank the member for his advice. Mr J.H.D. Day : The conditions there are disgusting. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Yes. I understand that. I have had similar circumstances arise in other parts of my electorate. I understand the distress. This is the issue: when we came into government - I was not the Premier or Treasurer - we were faced with an interesting scenario. The previous government was outspending its capacity hand over fist. We had a massive financial problem on our hands - Mr C.J. Barnett : Absolute rubbish. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The member for Cottesloe knows it is true. Unfortunately, the member was central to it because there was no discipline whatsoever in the financial management of the government of the day. The coalition government had operational deficits in five of its eight years in government. When we came into government, we had to make some very difficult decisions about our spending priorities. Those decisions were quite difficult because we wanted to deliver the commitments that we made in our election campaign. That was our discipline. Everybody in the chamber and everybody else in the state knows that the previous government ran a hopelessly mismanaged financial balance sheet. Mr P.D. Omodei interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : It is true, and the Leader of the Opposition knows it. Yes, we had to reprioritise. In relation to the broader issue raised by the member for Darling Range, we also had to deal with the issue that confronted the state’s water resource industry. The state’s water supply was not being managed at all, and we were staring down the barrel of running out of water. There was no management of the demand side of the industry, and the supply side was left alone with the hope and expectation that it would start running again. We had to consider all the available options. We had to determine how to improve the water supply for Western Australia and where to find the money to improve that water supply, and that is what we did. Everybody knows we spent several hundreds of millions of dollars developing a desalination plant. In relation to the particular group of people referred to by the member for Darling Range, as the Minister for Water Resources explained last Friday, we are now looking at the priority list of the program as it rolls out to see whether the dates mentioned by the member for Darling Range should be left as they are or whether we should reattend the rollout and consider whether critical health issues mean that some of those works should be brought forward. We are looking at that. Of course, we do not want people to be placed in unhealthy circumstances. As the Minister for Water Resources has already explained publicly, we are reassessing that program now. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! I call to order the members for Roe, Moore, Dawesville and Riverton.
I thank the member for some notice of this question and for his interest in my electorate. (1)-(4) As I understand it, I have a meeting this Friday with a representative group from the area. Mr J.H.D. Day : Have you visited them to see their problems? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : No; I have not visited their homes. Mr J.H.D. Day : It is time you did. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I thank the member for the advice. I will take it on board and I will meet with the people this week. I have a history of involvement with this issue in my electorate, which the member probably does not know about. My involvement began with Hilton and moved through to some of the other suburbs. I have been paying attention to the people in my electorate. That is why they re-elected me with such a good majority. How did the member go? Mr J.H.D. Day : I was re-elected with an increased majority. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only just, as I recall. The member was unendorsed by his own party! I thank the member for his advice. Mr J.H.D. Day : The conditions there are disgusting. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Yes. I understand that. I have had similar circumstances arise in other parts of my electorate. I understand the distress. This is the issue: when we came into government - I was not the Premier or Treasurer - we were faced with an interesting scenario. The previous government was outspending its capacity hand over fist. We had a massive financial problem on our hands - Mr C.J. Barnett : Absolute rubbish. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The member for Cottesloe knows it is true. Unfortunately, the member was central to it because there was no discipline whatsoever in the financial management of the government of the day. The coalition government had operational deficits in five of its eight years in government. When we came into government, we had to make some very difficult decisions about our spending priorities. Those decisions were quite difficult because we wanted to deliver the commitments that we made in our election campaign. That was our discipline. Everybody in the chamber and everybody else in the state knows that the previous government ran a hopelessly mismanaged financial balance sheet. Mr P.D. Omodei interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : It is true, and the Leader of the Opposition knows it. Yes, we had to reprioritise. In relation to the broader issue raised by the member for Darling Range, we also had to deal with the issue that confronted the state’s water resource industry. The state’s water supply was not being managed at all, and we were staring down the barrel of running out of water. There was no management of the demand side of the industry, and the supply side was left alone with the hope and expectation that it would start running again. We had to consider all the available options. We had to determine how to improve the water supply for Western Australia and where to find the money to improve that water supply, and that is what we did. Everybody knows we spent several hundreds of millions of dollars developing a desalination plant. In relation to the particular group of people referred to by the member for Darling Range, as the Minister for Water Resources explained last Friday, we are now looking at the priority list of the program as it rolls out to see whether the dates mentioned by the member for Darling Range should be left as they are or whether we should reattend the rollout and consider whether critical health issues mean that some of those works should be brought forward. We are looking at that. Of course, we do not want people to be placed in unhealthy circumstances. As the Minister for Water Resources has already explained publicly, we are reassessing that program now. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! I call to order the members for Roe, Moore, Dawesville and Riverton.
(1)-(4) As I understand it, I have a meeting this Friday with a representative group from the area. Mr J.H.D. Day : Have you visited them to see their problems? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : No; I have not visited their homes. Mr J.H.D. Day : It is time you did. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I thank the member for the advice. I will take it on board and I will meet with the people this week. I have a history of involvement with this issue in my electorate, which the member probably does not know about. My involvement began with Hilton and moved through to some of the other suburbs. I have been paying attention to the people in my electorate. That is why they re-elected me with such a good majority. How did the member go? Mr J.H.D. Day : I was re-elected with an increased majority. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only just, as I recall. The member was unendorsed by his own party! I thank the member for his advice. Mr J.H.D. Day : The conditions there are disgusting. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Yes. I understand that. I have had similar circumstances arise in other parts of my electorate. I understand the distress. This is the issue: when we came into government - I was not the Premier or Treasurer - we were faced with an interesting scenario. The previous government was outspending its capacity hand over fist. We had a massive financial problem on our hands - Mr C.J. Barnett : Absolute rubbish. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The member for Cottesloe knows it is true. Unfortunately, the member was central to it because there was no discipline whatsoever in the financial management of the government of the day. The coalition government had operational deficits in five of its eight years in government. When we came into government, we had to make some very difficult decisions about our spending priorities. Those decisions were quite difficult because we wanted to deliver the commitments that we made in our election campaign. That was our discipline. Everybody in the chamber and everybody else in the state knows that the previous government ran a hopelessly mismanaged financial balance sheet. Mr P.D. Omodei interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : It is true, and the Leader of the Opposition knows it. Yes, we had to reprioritise. In relation to the broader issue raised by the member for Darling Range, we also had to deal with the issue that confronted the state’s water resource industry. The state’s water supply was not being managed at all, and we were staring down the barrel of running out of water. There was no management of the demand side of the industry, and the supply side was left alone with the hope and expectation that it would start running again. We had to consider all the available options. We had to determine how to improve the water supply for Western Australia and where to find the money to improve that water supply, and that is what we did. Everybody knows we spent several hundreds of millions of dollars developing a desalination plant. In relation to the particular group of people referred to by the member for Darling Range, as the Minister for Water Resources explained last Friday, we are now looking at the priority list of the program as it rolls out to see whether the dates mentioned by the member for Darling Range should be left as they are or whether we should reattend the rollout and consider whether critical health issues mean that some of those works should be brought forward. We are looking at that. Of course, we do not want people to be placed in unhealthy circumstances. As the Minister for Water Resources has already explained publicly, we are reassessing that program now. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! I call to order the members for Roe, Moore, Dawesville and Riverton.
Mr J.H.D. Day : Have you visited them to see their problems? Mr A.J. CARPENTER : No; I have not visited their homes. Mr J.H.D. Day : It is time you did. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I thank the member for the advice. I will take it on board and I will meet with the people this week. I have a history of involvement with this issue in my electorate, which the member probably does not know about. My involvement began with Hilton and moved through to some of the other suburbs. I have been paying attention to the people in my electorate. That is why they re-elected me with such a good majority. How did the member go? Mr J.H.D. Day : I was re-elected with an increased majority. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only just, as I recall. The member was unendorsed by his own party! I thank the member for his advice. Mr J.H.D. Day : The conditions there are disgusting. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Yes. I understand that. I have had similar circumstances arise in other parts of my electorate. I understand the distress. This is the issue: when we came into government - I was not the Premier or Treasurer - we were faced with an interesting scenario. The previous government was outspending its capacity hand over fist. We had a massive financial problem on our hands - Mr C.J. Barnett : Absolute rubbish. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The member for Cottesloe knows it is true. Unfortunately, the member was central to it because there was no discipline whatsoever in the financial management of the government of the day. The coalition government had operational deficits in five of its eight years in government. When we came into government, we had to make some very difficult decisions about our spending priorities. Those decisions were quite difficult because we wanted to deliver the commitments that we made in our election campaign. That was our discipline. Everybody in the chamber and everybody else in the state knows that the previous government ran a hopelessly mismanaged financial balance sheet. Mr P.D. Omodei interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : It is true, and the Leader of the Opposition knows it. Yes, we had to reprioritise. In relation to the broader issue raised by the member for Darling Range, we also had to deal with the issue that confronted the state’s water resource industry. The state’s water supply was not being managed at all, and we were staring down the barrel of running out of water. There was no management of the demand side of the industry, and the supply side was left alone with the hope and expectation that it would start running again. We had to consider all the available options. We had to determine how to improve the water supply for Western Australia and where to find the money to improve that water supply, and that is what we did. Everybody knows we spent several hundreds of millions of dollars developing a desalination plant. In relation to the particular group of people referred to by the member for Darling Range, as the Minister for Water Resources explained last Friday, we are now looking at the priority list of the program as it rolls out to see whether the dates mentioned by the member for Darling Range should be left as they are or whether we should reattend the rollout and consider whether critical health issues mean that some of those works should be brought forward. We are looking at that. Of course, we do not want people to be placed in unhealthy circumstances. As the Minister for Water Resources has already explained publicly, we are reassessing that program now. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! I call to order the members for Roe, Moore, Dawesville and Riverton.
Mr A.J. CARPENTER : No; I have not visited their homes. Mr J.H.D. Day : It is time you did. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I thank the member for the advice. I will take it on board and I will meet with the people this week. I have a history of involvement with this issue in my electorate, which the member probably does not know about. My involvement began with Hilton and moved through to some of the other suburbs. I have been paying attention to the people in my electorate. That is why they re-elected me with such a good majority. How did the member go? Mr J.H.D. Day : I was re-elected with an increased majority. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only just, as I recall. The member was unendorsed by his own party! I thank the member for his advice. Mr J.H.D. Day : The conditions there are disgusting. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Yes. I understand that. I have had similar circumstances arise in other parts of my electorate. I understand the distress. This is the issue: when we came into government - I was not the Premier or Treasurer - we were faced with an interesting scenario. The previous government was outspending its capacity hand over fist. We had a massive financial problem on our hands - Mr C.J. Barnett : Absolute rubbish. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The member for Cottesloe knows it is true. Unfortunately, the member was central to it because there was no discipline whatsoever in the financial management of the government of the day. The coalition government had operational deficits in five of its eight years in government. When we came into government, we had to make some very difficult decisions about our spending priorities. Those decisions were quite difficult because we wanted to deliver the commitments that we made in our election campaign. That was our discipline. Everybody in the chamber and everybody else in the state knows that the previous government ran a hopelessly mismanaged financial balance sheet. Mr P.D. Omodei interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : It is true, and the Leader of the Opposition knows it. Yes, we had to reprioritise. In relation to the broader issue raised by the member for Darling Range, we also had to deal with the issue that confronted the state’s water resource industry. The state’s water supply was not being managed at all, and we were staring down the barrel of running out of water. There was no management of the demand side of the industry, and the supply side was left alone with the hope and expectation that it would start running again. We had to consider all the available options. We had to determine how to improve the water supply for Western Australia and where to find the money to improve that water supply, and that is what we did. Everybody knows we spent several hundreds of millions of dollars developing a desalination plant. In relation to the particular group of people referred to by the member for Darling Range, as the Minister for Water Resources explained last Friday, we are now looking at the priority list of the program as it rolls out to see whether the dates mentioned by the member for Darling Range should be left as they are or whether we should reattend the rollout and consider whether critical health issues mean that some of those works should be brought forward. We are looking at that. Of course, we do not want people to be placed in unhealthy circumstances. As the Minister for Water Resources has already explained publicly, we are reassessing that program now. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! I call to order the members for Roe, Moore, Dawesville and Riverton.
Mr J.H.D. Day : It is time you did. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I thank the member for the advice. I will take it on board and I will meet with the people this week. I have a history of involvement with this issue in my electorate, which the member probably does not know about. My involvement began with Hilton and moved through to some of the other suburbs. I have been paying attention to the people in my electorate. That is why they re-elected me with such a good majority. How did the member go? Mr J.H.D. Day : I was re-elected with an increased majority. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only just, as I recall. The member was unendorsed by his own party! I thank the member for his advice. Mr J.H.D. Day : The conditions there are disgusting. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Yes. I understand that. I have had similar circumstances arise in other parts of my electorate. I understand the distress. This is the issue: when we came into government - I was not the Premier or Treasurer - we were faced with an interesting scenario. The previous government was outspending its capacity hand over fist. We had a massive financial problem on our hands - Mr C.J. Barnett : Absolute rubbish. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The member for Cottesloe knows it is true. Unfortunately, the member was central to it because there was no discipline whatsoever in the financial management of the government of the day. The coalition government had operational deficits in five of its eight years in government. When we came into government, we had to make some very difficult decisions about our spending priorities. Those decisions were quite difficult because we wanted to deliver the commitments that we made in our election campaign. That was our discipline. Everybody in the chamber and everybody else in the state knows that the previous government ran a hopelessly mismanaged financial balance sheet. Mr P.D. Omodei interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : It is true, and the Leader of the Opposition knows it. Yes, we had to reprioritise. In relation to the broader issue raised by the member for Darling Range, we also had to deal with the issue that confronted the state’s water resource industry. The state’s water supply was not being managed at all, and we were staring down the barrel of running out of water. There was no management of the demand side of the industry, and the supply side was left alone with the hope and expectation that it would start running again. We had to consider all the available options. We had to determine how to improve the water supply for Western Australia and where to find the money to improve that water supply, and that is what we did. Everybody knows we spent several hundreds of millions of dollars developing a desalination plant. In relation to the particular group of people referred to by the member for Darling Range, as the Minister for Water Resources explained last Friday, we are now looking at the priority list of the program as it rolls out to see whether the dates mentioned by the member for Darling Range should be left as they are or whether we should reattend the rollout and consider whether critical health issues mean that some of those works should be brought forward. We are looking at that. Of course, we do not want people to be placed in unhealthy circumstances. As the Minister for Water Resources has already explained publicly, we are reassessing that program now. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! I call to order the members for Roe, Moore, Dawesville and Riverton.
Mr A.J. CARPENTER : I thank the member for the advice. I will take it on board and I will meet with the people this week. I have a history of involvement with this issue in my electorate, which the member probably does not know about. My involvement began with Hilton and moved through to some of the other suburbs. I have been paying attention to the people in my electorate. That is why they re-elected me with such a good majority. How did the member go? Mr J.H.D. Day : I was re-elected with an increased majority. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only just, as I recall. The member was unendorsed by his own party! I thank the member for his advice. Mr J.H.D. Day : The conditions there are disgusting. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Yes. I understand that. I have had similar circumstances arise in other parts of my electorate. I understand the distress. This is the issue: when we came into government - I was not the Premier or Treasurer - we were faced with an interesting scenario. The previous government was outspending its capacity hand over fist. We had a massive financial problem on our hands - Mr C.J. Barnett : Absolute rubbish. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The member for Cottesloe knows it is true. Unfortunately, the member was central to it because there was no discipline whatsoever in the financial management of the government of the day. The coalition government had operational deficits in five of its eight years in government. When we came into government, we had to make some very difficult decisions about our spending priorities. Those decisions were quite difficult because we wanted to deliver the commitments that we made in our election campaign. That was our discipline. Everybody in the chamber and everybody else in the state knows that the previous government ran a hopelessly mismanaged financial balance sheet. Mr P.D. Omodei interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : It is true, and the Leader of the Opposition knows it. Yes, we had to reprioritise. In relation to the broader issue raised by the member for Darling Range, we also had to deal with the issue that confronted the state’s water resource industry. The state’s water supply was not being managed at all, and we were staring down the barrel of running out of water. There was no management of the demand side of the industry, and the supply side was left alone with the hope and expectation that it would start running again. We had to consider all the available options. We had to determine how to improve the water supply for Western Australia and where to find the money to improve that water supply, and that is what we did. Everybody knows we spent several hundreds of millions of dollars developing a desalination plant. In relation to the particular group of people referred to by the member for Darling Range, as the Minister for Water Resources explained last Friday, we are now looking at the priority list of the program as it rolls out to see whether the dates mentioned by the member for Darling Range should be left as they are or whether we should reattend the rollout and consider whether critical health issues mean that some of those works should be brought forward. We are looking at that. Of course, we do not want people to be placed in unhealthy circumstances. As the Minister for Water Resources has already explained publicly, we are reassessing that program now. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! I call to order the members for Roe, Moore, Dawesville and Riverton.
Mr J.H.D. Day : I was re-elected with an increased majority. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only just, as I recall. The member was unendorsed by his own party! I thank the member for his advice. Mr J.H.D. Day : The conditions there are disgusting. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Yes. I understand that. I have had similar circumstances arise in other parts of my electorate. I understand the distress. This is the issue: when we came into government - I was not the Premier or Treasurer - we were faced with an interesting scenario. The previous government was outspending its capacity hand over fist. We had a massive financial problem on our hands - Mr C.J. Barnett : Absolute rubbish. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The member for Cottesloe knows it is true. Unfortunately, the member was central to it because there was no discipline whatsoever in the financial management of the government of the day. The coalition government had operational deficits in five of its eight years in government. When we came into government, we had to make some very difficult decisions about our spending priorities. Those decisions were quite difficult because we wanted to deliver the commitments that we made in our election campaign. That was our discipline. Everybody in the chamber and everybody else in the state knows that the previous government ran a hopelessly mismanaged financial balance sheet. Mr P.D. Omodei interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : It is true, and the Leader of the Opposition knows it. Yes, we had to reprioritise. In relation to the broader issue raised by the member for Darling Range, we also had to deal with the issue that confronted the state’s water resource industry. The state’s water supply was not being managed at all, and we were staring down the barrel of running out of water. There was no management of the demand side of the industry, and the supply side was left alone with the hope and expectation that it would start running again. We had to consider all the available options. We had to determine how to improve the water supply for Western Australia and where to find the money to improve that water supply, and that is what we did. Everybody knows we spent several hundreds of millions of dollars developing a desalination plant. In relation to the particular group of people referred to by the member for Darling Range, as the Minister for Water Resources explained last Friday, we are now looking at the priority list of the program as it rolls out to see whether the dates mentioned by the member for Darling Range should be left as they are or whether we should reattend the rollout and consider whether critical health issues mean that some of those works should be brought forward. We are looking at that. Of course, we do not want people to be placed in unhealthy circumstances. As the Minister for Water Resources has already explained publicly, we are reassessing that program now. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! I call to order the members for Roe, Moore, Dawesville and Riverton.
Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Only just, as I recall. The member was unendorsed by his own party! I thank the member for his advice. Mr J.H.D. Day : The conditions there are disgusting. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Yes. I understand that. I have had similar circumstances arise in other parts of my electorate. I understand the distress. This is the issue: when we came into government - I was not the Premier or Treasurer - we were faced with an interesting scenario. The previous government was outspending its capacity hand over fist. We had a massive financial problem on our hands - Mr C.J. Barnett : Absolute rubbish. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The member for Cottesloe knows it is true. Unfortunately, the member was central to it because there was no discipline whatsoever in the financial management of the government of the day. The coalition government had operational deficits in five of its eight years in government. When we came into government, we had to make some very difficult decisions about our spending priorities. Those decisions were quite difficult because we wanted to deliver the commitments that we made in our election campaign. That was our discipline. Everybody in the chamber and everybody else in the state knows that the previous government ran a hopelessly mismanaged financial balance sheet. Mr P.D. Omodei interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : It is true, and the Leader of the Opposition knows it. Yes, we had to reprioritise. In relation to the broader issue raised by the member for Darling Range, we also had to deal with the issue that confronted the state’s water resource industry. The state’s water supply was not being managed at all, and we were staring down the barrel of running out of water. There was no management of the demand side of the industry, and the supply side was left alone with the hope and expectation that it would start running again. We had to consider all the available options. We had to determine how to improve the water supply for Western Australia and where to find the money to improve that water supply, and that is what we did. Everybody knows we spent several hundreds of millions of dollars developing a desalination plant. In relation to the particular group of people referred to by the member for Darling Range, as the Minister for Water Resources explained last Friday, we are now looking at the priority list of the program as it rolls out to see whether the dates mentioned by the member for Darling Range should be left as they are or whether we should reattend the rollout and consider whether critical health issues mean that some of those works should be brought forward. We are looking at that. Of course, we do not want people to be placed in unhealthy circumstances. As the Minister for Water Resources has already explained publicly, we are reassessing that program now. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! I call to order the members for Roe, Moore, Dawesville and Riverton.
Mr J.H.D. Day : The conditions there are disgusting. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Yes. I understand that. I have had similar circumstances arise in other parts of my electorate. I understand the distress. This is the issue: when we came into government - I was not the Premier or Treasurer - we were faced with an interesting scenario. The previous government was outspending its capacity hand over fist. We had a massive financial problem on our hands - Mr C.J. Barnett : Absolute rubbish. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The member for Cottesloe knows it is true. Unfortunately, the member was central to it because there was no discipline whatsoever in the financial management of the government of the day. The coalition government had operational deficits in five of its eight years in government. When we came into government, we had to make some very difficult decisions about our spending priorities. Those decisions were quite difficult because we wanted to deliver the commitments that we made in our election campaign. That was our discipline. Everybody in the chamber and everybody else in the state knows that the previous government ran a hopelessly mismanaged financial balance sheet. Mr P.D. Omodei interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : It is true, and the Leader of the Opposition knows it. Yes, we had to reprioritise. In relation to the broader issue raised by the member for Darling Range, we also had to deal with the issue that confronted the state’s water resource industry. The state’s water supply was not being managed at all, and we were staring down the barrel of running out of water. There was no management of the demand side of the industry, and the supply side was left alone with the hope and expectation that it would start running again. We had to consider all the available options. We had to determine how to improve the water supply for Western Australia and where to find the money to improve that water supply, and that is what we did. Everybody knows we spent several hundreds of millions of dollars developing a desalination plant. In relation to the particular group of people referred to by the member for Darling Range, as the Minister for Water Resources explained last Friday, we are now looking at the priority list of the program as it rolls out to see whether the dates mentioned by the member for Darling Range should be left as they are or whether we should reattend the rollout and consider whether critical health issues mean that some of those works should be brought forward. We are looking at that. Of course, we do not want people to be placed in unhealthy circumstances. As the Minister for Water Resources has already explained publicly, we are reassessing that program now. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! I call to order the members for Roe, Moore, Dawesville and Riverton.
Mr A.J. CARPENTER : Yes. I understand that. I have had similar circumstances arise in other parts of my electorate. I understand the distress. This is the issue: when we came into government - I was not the Premier or Treasurer - we were faced with an interesting scenario. The previous government was outspending its capacity hand over fist. We had a massive financial problem on our hands - Mr C.J. Barnett : Absolute rubbish. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The member for Cottesloe knows it is true. Unfortunately, the member was central to it because there was no discipline whatsoever in the financial management of the government of the day. The coalition government had operational deficits in five of its eight years in government. When we came into government, we had to make some very difficult decisions about our spending priorities. Those decisions were quite difficult because we wanted to deliver the commitments that we made in our election campaign. That was our discipline. Everybody in the chamber and everybody else in the state knows that the previous government ran a hopelessly mismanaged financial balance sheet. Mr P.D. Omodei interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : It is true, and the Leader of the Opposition knows it. Yes, we had to reprioritise. In relation to the broader issue raised by the member for Darling Range, we also had to deal with the issue that confronted the state’s water resource industry. The state’s water supply was not being managed at all, and we were staring down the barrel of running out of water. There was no management of the demand side of the industry, and the supply side was left alone with the hope and expectation that it would start running again. We had to consider all the available options. We had to determine how to improve the water supply for Western Australia and where to find the money to improve that water supply, and that is what we did. Everybody knows we spent several hundreds of millions of dollars developing a desalination plant. In relation to the particular group of people referred to by the member for Darling Range, as the Minister for Water Resources explained last Friday, we are now looking at the priority list of the program as it rolls out to see whether the dates mentioned by the member for Darling Range should be left as they are or whether we should reattend the rollout and consider whether critical health issues mean that some of those works should be brought forward. We are looking at that. Of course, we do not want people to be placed in unhealthy circumstances. As the Minister for Water Resources has already explained publicly, we are reassessing that program now. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! I call to order the members for Roe, Moore, Dawesville and Riverton.
Mr C.J. Barnett : Absolute rubbish. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The member for Cottesloe knows it is true. Unfortunately, the member was central to it because there was no discipline whatsoever in the financial management of the government of the day. The coalition government had operational deficits in five of its eight years in government. When we came into government, we had to make some very difficult decisions about our spending priorities. Those decisions were quite difficult because we wanted to deliver the commitments that we made in our election campaign. That was our discipline. Everybody in the chamber and everybody else in the state knows that the previous government ran a hopelessly mismanaged financial balance sheet. Mr P.D. Omodei interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : It is true, and the Leader of the Opposition knows it. Yes, we had to reprioritise. In relation to the broader issue raised by the member for Darling Range, we also had to deal with the issue that confronted the state’s water resource industry. The state’s water supply was not being managed at all, and we were staring down the barrel of running out of water. There was no management of the demand side of the industry, and the supply side was left alone with the hope and expectation that it would start running again. We had to consider all the available options. We had to determine how to improve the water supply for Western Australia and where to find the money to improve that water supply, and that is what we did. Everybody knows we spent several hundreds of millions of dollars developing a desalination plant. In relation to the particular group of people referred to by the member for Darling Range, as the Minister for Water Resources explained last Friday, we are now looking at the priority list of the program as it rolls out to see whether the dates mentioned by the member for Darling Range should be left as they are or whether we should reattend the rollout and consider whether critical health issues mean that some of those works should be brought forward. We are looking at that. Of course, we do not want people to be placed in unhealthy circumstances. As the Minister for Water Resources has already explained publicly, we are reassessing that program now. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! I call to order the members for Roe, Moore, Dawesville and Riverton.
Mr A.J. CARPENTER : The member for Cottesloe knows it is true. Unfortunately, the member was central to it because there was no discipline whatsoever in the financial management of the government of the day. The coalition government had operational deficits in five of its eight years in government. When we came into government, we had to make some very difficult decisions about our spending priorities. Those decisions were quite difficult because we wanted to deliver the commitments that we made in our election campaign. That was our discipline. Everybody in the chamber and everybody else in the state knows that the previous government ran a hopelessly mismanaged financial balance sheet. Mr P.D. Omodei interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : It is true, and the Leader of the Opposition knows it. Yes, we had to reprioritise. In relation to the broader issue raised by the member for Darling Range, we also had to deal with the issue that confronted the state’s water resource industry. The state’s water supply was not being managed at all, and we were staring down the barrel of running out of water. There was no management of the demand side of the industry, and the supply side was left alone with the hope and expectation that it would start running again. We had to consider all the available options. We had to determine how to improve the water supply for Western Australia and where to find the money to improve that water supply, and that is what we did. Everybody knows we spent several hundreds of millions of dollars developing a desalination plant. In relation to the particular group of people referred to by the member for Darling Range, as the Minister for Water Resources explained last Friday, we are now looking at the priority list of the program as it rolls out to see whether the dates mentioned by the member for Darling Range should be left as they are or whether we should reattend the rollout and consider whether critical health issues mean that some of those works should be brought forward. We are looking at that. Of course, we do not want people to be placed in unhealthy circumstances. As the Minister for Water Resources has already explained publicly, we are reassessing that program now. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! I call to order the members for Roe, Moore, Dawesville and Riverton.
Mr P.D. Omodei interjected. Mr A.J. CARPENTER : It is true, and the Leader of the Opposition knows it. Yes, we had to reprioritise. In relation to the broader issue raised by the member for Darling Range, we also had to deal with the issue that confronted the state’s water resource industry. The state’s water supply was not being managed at all, and we were staring down the barrel of running out of water. There was no management of the demand side of the industry, and the supply side was left alone with the hope and expectation that it would start running again. We had to consider all the available options. We had to determine how to improve the water supply for Western Australia and where to find the money to improve that water supply, and that is what we did. Everybody knows we spent several hundreds of millions of dollars developing a desalination plant. In relation to the particular group of people referred to by the member for Darling Range, as the Minister for Water Resources explained last Friday, we are now looking at the priority list of the program as it rolls out to see whether the dates mentioned by the member for Darling Range should be left as they are or whether we should reattend the rollout and consider whether critical health issues mean that some of those works should be brought forward. We are looking at that. Of course, we do not want people to be placed in unhealthy circumstances. As the Minister for Water Resources has already explained publicly, we are reassessing that program now. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! I call to order the members for Roe, Moore, Dawesville and Riverton.
Mr A.J. CARPENTER : It is true, and the Leader of the Opposition knows it. Yes, we had to reprioritise. In relation to the broader issue raised by the member for Darling Range, we also had to deal with the issue that confronted the state’s water resource industry. The state’s water supply was not being managed at all, and we were staring down the barrel of running out of water. There was no management of the demand side of the industry, and the supply side was left alone with the hope and expectation that it would start running again. We had to consider all the available options. We had to determine how to improve the water supply for Western Australia and where to find the money to improve that water supply, and that is what we did. Everybody knows we spent several hundreds of millions of dollars developing a desalination plant. In relation to the particular group of people referred to by the member for Darling Range, as the Minister for Water Resources explained last Friday, we are now looking at the priority list of the program as it rolls out to see whether the dates mentioned by the member for Darling Range should be left as they are or whether we should reattend the rollout and consider whether critical health issues mean that some of those works should be brought forward. We are looking at that. Of course, we do not want people to be placed in unhealthy circumstances. As the Minister for Water Resources has already explained publicly, we are reassessing that program now. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! I call to order the members for Roe, Moore, Dawesville and Riverton.
In relation to the particular group of people referred to by the member for Darling Range, as the Minister for Water Resources explained last Friday, we are now looking at the priority list of the program as it rolls out to see whether the dates mentioned by the member for Darling Range should be left as they are or whether we should reattend the rollout and consider whether critical health issues mean that some of those works should be brought forward. We are looking at that. Of course, we do not want people to be placed in unhealthy circumstances. As the Minister for Water Resources has already explained publicly, we are reassessing that program now. Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! I call to order the members for Roe, Moore, Dawesville and Riverton.
Several members interjected. The SPEAKER : Order, members! I call to order the members for Roe, Moore, Dawesville and Riverton.
The SPEAKER : Order, members! I call to order the members for Roe, Moore, Dawesville and Riverton.
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