EXTRACT FROM

PARLIAMENTARY DEBATES

HANSARD

 

Ms SHING Eastern Victoria

 

CONSTITUENCY QUESTIONS

Eastern Victoria Region

 

Wednesday, 21 February 2018

 

Eastern Victoria Region

Ms SHING (Eastern Victoria) (13:00:09) — It is good to be back. My question is for the Minister for Roads and Road Safety, and I ask him about the work in relation to the introduction of flexible wire safety barriers throughout Gippsland and along major roads not just as far as Central Gippsland through to the Latrobe Valley but down into South Gippsland. The question that I have for the minister is: to what extent has the introduction of flexible wire barriers assisted in the reduction in the number of head‑on collisions, the number of crashes, the number of serious injuries and the number of fatalities since they have been progressively rolled out throughout the Latrobe Valley and South Gippsland?

The PRESIDENT — I will let it stand today, but again it really is calling for speculation. How can a minister say how many lives have been saved? How would we know that?

Ms Shing — On a point of order if I may, President, evidence was given at the Public Accounts and Estimates Committee about other parts of the state and a reduction in collisions, particularly in the Hume area, of 58 per cent since the introduction of flexible wire rope barriers. VicRoads does in fact have this information and data, and I would be grateful if that information were provided for South Gippsland and the Latrobe Valley.

Mr Dalidakis — On the point of order, President, in early January I actually spent time as the acting Minister for Roads and Road Safety, and information was provided to me by VicRoads about incidents that they had recorded where there were no fatalities, and that information will be available from VicRoads to provide.

The PRESIDENT — My problem is that, yes, I accept that, but that is retrospective information. To actually then try and apply that into the future is speculation. That is my problem, because it is asking for a minister to anticipate how many lives might be saved or how many collisions might be avoided because of this work. Some forecasters might make such predictions, but in terms of a question to a minister, it is speculation and I think that is outside a genuine capacity for a minister to answer.

Ms Shing — On a point of clarification, President, in my question I was asking about the reduction in the number of head‑on collisions and serious collisions in areas where wire rope barriers had been installed, and that is in fact available data based on what VicRoads collates.

The PRESIDENT — Yes, that is okay, but again you are asking for data that is applying in other areas which are not within your constituency, therefore it is not a constituency question in that regard. Tell me you are not asking for a future prediction in your constituency question.

Ms Shing — I am not asking for a prediction; I am asking for the areas of South Gippsland and the Latrobe Valley where wire rope barriers have been installed to be assessed by reference to the number of serious head‑on collisions, fatalities and serious injuries in those areas as compared with the period when they did not have wire rope safety barriers. That information is available to VicRoads, as Minister Dalidakis has indicated.

The PRESIDENT — I will let it stand today, but I tell you what —

An honourable member — It’s a long bow.

The PRESIDENT — It is a long bow.