Gary Nairn (Eden-Monaro, Liberal Party, Special Minister of State) Share this | Hansard source

Like 2.7 per cent in Ipswich, as the member for Blair says. I know that in my electorate of Eden-Monaro it has gone from up near eight per cent in 1996, down to well below five per cent—it is about 2½ per cent in Queanbeyan, for instance—and a lot of that is to do with the Job Network. It is the strong economy, but it is also the Job Network.

When I was elected to parliament in 1996, there was a CES office in Queanbeyan, a CES office in Batemans Bay and a CES office in Bega, and a part-time visiting service to Cooma, where people from Canberra went down on a Wednesday afternoon—and often they did not even make it on a Wednesday afternoon. That was how they serviced Eden-Monaro with respect to unemployment. Now we have Job Network providers not only in those towns but also in Moruya, Narooma, Merimbula, Pambula, Eden, Jindabyne—it just goes on—and that has had a great impact. That is not directly relevant to this legislation, but given that the member for Wills raised that matter I thought I might just add that response.

This is a housekeeping piece of legislation. It does provide a number of amendments to update, clarify, align and integrate financial management provisions with a number of accounts, plus a number of other minor amendments as well. I commend the bill to the House.

Question agreed to.

Bill read a second time.

Message from the Governor-General recommending appropriation announced.

Ordered that the bill be reported to the House without amendment.

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