Barbie Won't Get The Chop

Sydney Morning Herald

Thursday January 7, 1993

By BERNARD LAGAN

CANBERRA: The nation's most expensive barbeque will be ready for firing next month after its embarrassed owner, the Federal Government, decided yesterday it was too late to stop its building.

The Minister for Justice, Senator Tate, conceded yesterday that work on a$160,000 barbeque area for the use of 1,400 public servants in the Attorney-General's Department in Canberra was too far advanced to halt. But he said he remained unconvinced of the need for it.

Senator Tate had called for a report on the construction of the barbeque -which includes a covered pergola, park benches, trees and a paved promenade -after learning of the project through the media on Tuesday.

He said he would have preferred that the department had spent the money on legal aid.

A report from the department to Senator Tate yesterday argued that the barbeque area was needed because there were no places for staff to sit, eat their lunch and relax. The department also claimed the lack of an area for gatherings of "a social nature" was likely to have a poor effect on staff morale.

The report to Senator Tate also cited Commonwealth outdoor environment guidelines for staff amenities. The guidelines say a change of environment"during off-duty periods is desirable in any work situation".

The department said the project's high cost was partly caused by the need to hire a crane to lift bricks and other building materials into the inner courtyard of the AttorneyGeneral's Department.

After examining the report, Senator Tate said he remained unconvinced of the reasons offered by the department for the new barbeque.

But because more than $120,000 had been spent or was owing on the project, which had been 85 per cent completed, it could not be stopped.

The department agreed yesterday to give media organisations copies of plans for the project but steadfastly refused to allow access to photographers or television crews.

The department argued that the public could not properly judge the merits of the project by viewing pictures of it in an incomplete state.