ACT Government arts "consultation" under way

frontrow, because there are a lot of people in the community who have a lot more knowledge about these issues than the pollies and pubes do.

In the case of the arts, there is in fact an “industry”, many of the participants who receive little or no pay as such, who are integral to maintaining the arts in the Territory.

To ignore these people when public policy is being developed would be a travesty. Almost every government (with the exception of Stanhope, clearly) acknowldeges the value of community input into decision-making processes.

This “consultation” thing comes up in so many posts. Why is everyone so excited about consultation?

What difference does it make whether they ask us what we think or not before doing whatever they wanted to do anyway?

Thanks Trev – I have had my say via the survey form. Let’s tell them what we think!

If anyone’s interested, I went along to the forum this afternoon, and have given a little account of it in my blog: http://www.foyertalk.blogspot.com/

After the last election, when Stanhope could conceivably have lost governmnet, he did a pathetic “mea culpa” about the quality of his consultation, particularly over matters like school closures. He promised to do a lot better.

If the consultation over matters like this one for the Arts, or the sale of Calvary to LCM, is any indication then it is just business as usual for the Stanhope government.

He knows the electorate has a very short memory, so perhaps he hopes all this will go away before the next election.

Stanhope gets slimier by the day.

“But the plans were on display…”
“On display? I eventually had to go down to the cellar to find them.”
“That’s the display department.”
“With a flashlight.”
“Ah, well, the lights had probably gone.”
“So had the stairs.”
“But look, you found the notice, didn’t you?”
“Yes,” said Arthur. “yes I did. It was on display in the bottom of a locked filing cabinet stuck in a disused lavatory with a sign on the door saying ‘Beware of the Leopard.'”

Hitchhikers Guide. Champagne entertainment and an apt quote

Now that I’ve recovered from my ‘it’s funny because it’s true’ laughing fit over Thumper’s response, I have realised that there’s also a survey! I suspect that Our Great Lord and Master Stanhope has invited his close personal friends to complete this survey, which is why it’s hidden away in a small corner of the web and isn’t being promoted.

The survey can be found at:
https://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=SOx6HIKF5xguGXrD0hiYBA_3d_3d%22%3EClick

The same consultations will also be held at Tuggeranong Arts Centre (later in the afternoon) and Belconnen Arts Centre (next week)

You’re right that they are keeping it relatively quiet. I stumbled across the info on the ArtsACT website a couple of weeks ago: http://www.arts.act.gov.au/pages/page152.asp