Berry Moves To Establish End Of Year Holiday For 1999

Wayne Berry - Opposition Spokesperson on Industrial Relations

Media Statement - 20 October 1999

Labor Industrial Relations spokesperson Wayne Berry today introduced a bill to grant a half-day holiday on New Year's Eve for this year. The bill follows similar moves by NSW Attorney General Jeff Shaw QC.

"New Year's Eve 1999 is a special event and everyone should be free to celebrate it - after all it's a once a millennium event," Mr Berry said.

"I congratulate NSW Attorney General, Jeff Shaw QC, and I am seeking to make the ACT consistent with NSW by making a holiday in the ACT from noon on Friday 31st December 1999.

"The ACT Government relies on consistency with NSW whenever it's bad news for ACT taxpayers. This is an opportunity for the Assembly to endorse a move to consistency which gives a positive result for ACT residents.

"The Carnell Government has recognised the importance of this New Year's Eve by allocating $500,000 to celebrate it. I want to make sure that workers get the time to prepare for the celebrations. It will also ease the transport pressures for those celebrating New Year's Eve away from Canberra and help planning for those with Y2K compliance responsibilities.

"Under the Holidays Act it is open for the Carnell Government to declare a special holiday, but their recurrent industrial theme has been to take benefits away from workers. It is therefore necessary to legislate for this outcome.

"I believe that all in the community will welcome and support this bill," Mr Berry concluded.