ALISTAIR Coe says the Canberra Liberals will develop a genuine infrastructure plan for Canberra in consultation with professionals, industry and the community and enhance our engineering capability.
“Canberra has a proud heritage of first class engineering. However, in recent years, governments across Australia have suffered an in-house engineering ‘brain drain’,” Alistair said.
“The Canberra Liberals want to reverse this trend. Whilst there will always be a need for external contractors to help deliver projects, there is a need for internal capability to develop projects and manage contracts.
“Our commitment includes:
- The Canberra Liberals will develop an Infrastructure Plan for Canberra’s future growth. The document will include residential areas, transport connections, areas of densification and employment.
- To ensure that projects are of the highest quality and appropriately selected, a Liberal Government will establish an Engineers’ Panel. The panel will consist of engineers with different expertise and experiences who will be consulted on major projects and work with the Government in the development of the Infrastructure Plan.
- A Liberal Government will establish the position of Chief Engineer. Initially, the Chief Engineer will be the chair of the Engineers’ Panel. The Government will work with stakeholders to develop the role and determine the appropriate resourcing of the position.
- A Liberal Government will seek to employ more engineers so that engineering advice is available for all infrastructure projects from the earliest design stages. Employment and retention of engineers will be encouraged through career development programs as well as graduate opportunities.
“The Canberra Liberals are committed to driving engineering capability and excellence for the ACT,” Mr Coe concluded.
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