Alannah Mactiernan (Perth, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

That is certainly not the advice that we are getting. No doubt the member for Grayndler will be able to clarify that point. I think the rationale is that this is now a very significant program. This is no longer simply an incidental program; it has been developed to a point where it now represents very significant expenditure. Given its importance and what it has been able to deliver, we would like to see this particular program entrenched. We believe that there is a very strong argument for entrenching it in the legislation to ensure that it receives continuous funding at whatever level. The government may, from time to time, determine to fund it, but we do not believe it is a program that should be accorded a lesser status. As we are amending the legislation now, this seems to be an ideal time to update the legislation to include this program, which has now been in operation for a number of years.

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