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Mark Parton putting the finishing touches on his Budget in Reply: He\u2019s determined his party will be in government come 2028. Photo: Mark Parton.<\/p>\n
City graffiti blitz teams, 50-cent public transport fares and putting discipline \u201cback at the centre\u201d of the Territory\u2019s budgets.<\/p>\n
These are the goals outlined by Opposition Leader Mark Parton in his reply speech to the 2026-27 ACT Budget.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy aspiration is simple: to restore Canberra to its rightful place as the pride of the nation,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s common for budget replies to take aim at a government\u2019s apparent failings, and Mr Parton was no exception.<\/p>\n
He pointed to the ACT\u2019s worsening bottom line<\/a> with total borrowings reaching $23.7 billion by 2029-30.<\/p>\n Saul Eslake\u2019s fiscal sustainability report provided plenty of ammunition, previously slamming the government for spending more money than it was making<\/a>.<\/p>\n The government has announced measures to raise additional revenue and has pushed back the timelines of some infrastructure projects<\/a> to reduce expenditure.<\/p>\n But Mr Parton said it wasn\u2019t enough.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re in a massive red hole \u2026 this budget does not show us the way out,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u201cMr Barr inherited clean books, they\u2019re not clean now \u2026 Labor got us here, with some help from the Greens.<\/p>\n \u201cWe should never forgive them, and we should not trust them to get us out.\u201d<\/p>\n But what would the Canberra Liberals do differently?<\/p>\n Mr Parton\u2019s speech didn\u2019t reveal every policy or solution, but it did include some substantial measures.<\/p>\n First, the Opposition will move to legislate a Charter of Budget Responsibility for the ACT.<\/p>\n Mr Parton said it would mandate budget honesty, year-to-year comparability, program-level transparency and appropriation (ie, rollover) integrity into law.<\/p>\n He said this would create requirements to disclose unfunded commitments, make public money traceable across programs, projects and budget measures, and require the papers to show when services are being funded by \u201ctemporary\u201d money.<\/p>\n \u201cIt is about making sure every dollar raised from Canberrans is treated with care,\u201d Mr Parton said.<\/p>\n \u201cAnd it is about putting discipline back at the centre of the ACT Budget.\u201d<\/p>\n City safety has appeared as a key issue that the Canberra Liberals want to address.<\/p>\n Whether crime is actually increasing or it\u2019s just a public perception, Mr Parton said Canberrans were constantly telling him they did not feel safe.<\/p>\n In response, he\u2019s promised that if his party forms government, it would re-criminalise methamphetamine, introduce a \u2018Safer Summer\u2019 knife-wanding pilot<\/a> for 2028-29, and deploy graffiti blitz cleanup teams, starting in Civic.<\/p>\n \u201cCanberrans should be able to walk through Civic without feeling intimidated, unsafe or unwelcome,\u201d Mr Parton said.<\/p>\n \u201cUnder a Parton Liberal Government, we will restore pride, order and confidence in our city.\u201d<\/p>\n Health and public transport were also highlighted in Mr Parton\u2019s speech.<\/p>\n The party has already appointed shadow ministers for men\u2019s and women\u2019s health.<\/p>\n Mr Parton also promised he\u2019d introduce a Suicide Prevention Bill<\/a> before the end of the year.<\/p>\n His government would also expand Canberra\u2019s endometriosis and pelvic pain treatment services at Canberra Hospital.<\/p>\n \u201cEndometriosis and chronic pelvic pain are real, serious and life-altering conditions,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n \u201cOur health system should treat them with the seriousness they deserve.\u201d<\/p>\n As for public transport, Mr Parton committed to delivering 50-cent bus and light rail fares across the entire network.<\/p>\n Missing from the speech was a slamming of light rail.<\/p>\n The party\u2019s 2024 transport policy<\/a> flagged the scrapping of stage 2B of the light rail extension, but its language has shifted in recent months<\/a>. Region understands the party hasn\u2019t finalised its public transport policy position yet.<\/p>\n So how would the Opposition implement all its plans and its other yet-to-be-announced policies?<\/p>\n Mr Parton said the government\u2019s policy machine was \u201c100 times bigger than ours\u201d, and so the public would have to wait a bit longer for a detailed policy suite.<\/p>\n But he said they would be released before the 2028 election.<\/p>\n \u201cWe\u2019re mindful of the fact that it took Labor 25 years to get us in this mess. It\u2019s going to take more than four years to get us out,\u201d Mr Parton said.<\/p>\n But options on the table include a re-examination of travel, consultants, contractors, communications and other discretionary spending.<\/p>\n The Opposition has plans to save 10 and 25 per cent in these spaces.<\/p>\n Mr Parton pointed to the Queensland Government\u2019s millions in savings in infrastructure and procurement when it stripped back a framework similar to the ACT\u2019s Secure Local Jobs Code, and so that would be looked at as well.<\/p>\n \u201cThere will be more to come,\u201d he promised.<\/p>\n Mr Parton acknowledged that, for too long, the Canberra Liberals had failed to convince Canberrans that it was ready to govern.<\/p>\n He promised his party was ready.<\/p>\n \u201cThe choice is clear: more of the same from a tired Labor Government, or a sensible Liberal change, renewed hope and a stronger Canberra.\u201d<\/p>\n