Liberal Senator Gary Humphries has called on the Federal and ACT Governments to clean up our national capital before the visits of Presidents Obama and Yudhoyono.

“The NCA had its maintenance budget halved from $12 million to $6 million which has led to the rapid deterioration of some areas of our capital, particularly in the Parliamentary Triangle,” Senator Humphries said today.

“I think that both Presidents Obama and Yudhoyono will not see a vibrant Canberra of which all Australians can be proud but a tatty town with long grass, weeds and graffiti all over the place.

“There are weeds growing on Commonwealth Avenue Bridge, long grass sprouting along the edges of most major roads and dead trees within sight of Parliament House.

“It’s not exactly an image that we’d all be proud to project to the rest of the world, yet Federal Labor and Jon Stanhope clearly think it’s acceptable.

“Yet again, I call on the Federal Government, in the strongest terms, to reinstate the funding to the NCA and for Jon Stanhope to start fighting for our community,” Senator Humphries concluded.