Estimates Vote

Department for Communities and Social Inclusion, $1,157,391,000

Administered Items for the Department for Communities and Social Inclusion, $196,289,000

Minister:

Hon. Z.L. Bettison, Minister for Communities and Social Inclusion, Minister for Social Housing, Minister for the Status of Women, Minister for Ageing, Minister for Multicultural Affairs, Minister for Youth, Minister for Volunteers.

Departmental Advisers:

Mr T. Harrison, Chief Executive, Department for Communities and Social Inclusion.

Ms L. Boswell, Deputy Chief Executive, Department for Communities and Social Inclusion.

Ms A. Chooi, Director, Strategic Finance, Financial and Business Services, Department for Communities and Social Inclusion.

Ms N. Rogers, Director, Office of the Chief Executive, Department for Communities and Social Inclusion.

Mr S. Bucsai, Manager, Strategic Coordination, Office of the Chief Executive, Department for Communities and Social Inclusion.

Mr P. Bull, Executive Director, Corporate Services, Department for Communities and Social Inclusion.

Ms S. Wallace, Executive Director, Community Services, Department for Communities and Social Inclusion.

Mr N. Ashley, Executive Director, NDIS Reform, Department for Communities and Social Inclusion.

Ms L. Young, Executive Director, Disability and Domiciliary Care Services, Department for Communities and Social Inclusion.

Ms S. Barr, Director, Youth Justice, Department for Communities and Social Inclusion.

Ms K. Tattersall, Director, Screening and Procurement, Financial and Business Services, Department for Communities and Social Inclusion.

The CHAIR: Good morning and welcome to Estimates Committee B. Welcome, minister. This is a relatively informal procedure and there is no need to stand to ask or answer questions. I understand there is an agreed timetable. Are we sticking with the agreed timetable as far as everyone is aware? So, we are starting with Department for Communities and Social Inclusion this morning and going into Housing SA and taking a break at 10.30am.

If the minister undertakes to supply information at a later date, it must be submitted to the committee secretary by no later than Friday 27 October. A response is to be published during the 14 November sitting week. I propose to allow both the minister and the lead speaker for the opposition a 10-minute statement, if they wish. There will be a flexible approach to giving the call for answering questions based on about three questions per member, alternating each side, but as I said, it will be a pretty informal procedure.

Supplementary questions will be an exception rather than the rule. Questions must be based on lines of expenditure in the budget papers and must be identifiable or referenced. There is no formal facility for the tabling of documents before the committee; however, documents can be supplied to the chair for distribution to the committee. The incorporation of material into Hansard is permitted on the same basis as applies in the house, that is, that it is purely statistical and limited to one page in length.

All questions are to be directed to the minister not to the advisers, but of course the minister may refer questions to advisers if she wishes. During the committee examinations, television cameras will be permitted to film from both the northern and southern galleries. I declare the proposed payments open and I refer members to the Agency Statements, Volume 1. Minister, do you have an opening statement?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: Yes. Before I start, let me introduce the people next to me. To my left, Tony Harrison, Chief Executive, Department for Communities and Social Inclusion, and Angela Chooi, Director, Strategic Finance, Financial and Business Services. To my right, Lois Bowell, Deputy Chief Executive.

At the beginning of this session I would like to introduce the others in the room as well. Behind me, to my right, Nancy Rogers, Director, Office of the Chief Executive, and Simon Bucsai, Manager, Strategic Coordination, Office of the Chief Executive. In the third row we have the executive directors with regard to the department. To my right, Peter Bull, Executive Director, and to the left Sue Wallace, Executive Director, Community Services. Then, Nick Ashley, Executive Director, NDIS Reform, and Lynn Young, Executive Director, Disability and Domiciliary Care Services. In the last row is Sue Barr, Director, Youth Justice, and Kelly Tattersall, Director, Screening and Procurement, Financial and Business Services. I have an opening statement.

The CHAIR: Thank you, minister. Just to clarify, before your opening statement, during the first 45 minutes until 9.45am, you will be appearing as the Minister for Communities and Social Inclusion rather than your many other hats.

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: Thank you. Through the Communities and Social Inclusion portfolio, the government continues to demonstrate its commitment to supporting people and communities who are facing challenges, creating opportunities to participate in a fair and just society and delivering services that improve people's lives. I would like to take this opportunity to highlight some of the achievements in this area during 2016-17.

An increasing number of programs and initiatives target regions experiencing entrenched disadvantage, building local partnerships across community, business, government and non-government industry, using local knowledge and data to identify community aspirations, strengths and challenges. This innovative and integrated work continued to expand and progress in 2016-17, including in Peterborough, Ceduna, Whyalla and the northern and southern Adelaide regions. I would also like to note our support for Good Shepherd finance to launch a microenterprise initiative in northern Adelaide to provide no or low interest loans to support local business ventures.

Addressing the challenges experienced by our most vulnerable groups requires government to make coordinated decisions around the legislative policy and systems changes that will make the most impact. The Making an Impact initiative, launched in 2016-17, is an example of this, bringing together many partners to develop an integrated response to reduce the over-representation of Aboriginal young people in the youth justice system.

Also in the youth justice area, on 1 December 2016, the Youth Justice Administration Act 2016 commenced. This important new legislation embeds a service model based on rehabilitation, it promotes the needs and rights of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander young people in the justice system and provides a clear legislative mandate for youth justice's responsibilities. The act supports a safe environment for residents and staff of the Adelaide Youth Training Centre, not only through specific provisions for the management of training centres but also through the introduction of the independent Training Centre Visitor.

Domiciliary care has undertaken significant service redesign to align its service delivery to the requirements of the Commonwealth Home Support Program. During 2016-17, the government announced its decision to transfer domiciliary care to a non-government service provider by June 2018. We are committed to ensuring both clients and staff are provided with comprehensive, timely information and other supports to assist them in this transition process.

To enhance the protection of vulnerable people, continuous monitoring of screening clearances commenced on 1 July 2017, meaning real-time information from the South Australia Police, the courts, Department for Child Protection and the Department for Communities and Social Inclusion, which may affect an individual's clearance status, is made available to the DCSI screening unit. Screening clearances can be reviewed and revoked based on this information. This replaces the previous process where new information was only captured and reviewed every three years.

The new GlassesSA program commenced in October 2016, replacing the outdated South Australian spectacle scheme. GlassesSA provides glasses at low cost to financially disadvantaged South Australians. Seventy optometrists around South Australia are already participating.

The government's commitment to the welfare of vulnerable South Australians was strengthened with the announcement that from 1 July 2017 utility related concessions will be indexed annually by the consumer price index, resulting in total increased annual concession payments of up to $54 for eligible households by 2019-20. Indexation applies to the energy, cost of living, water, sewerage and medical heating and cooling concessions. In the last year, approximately $170 million in concessions and rebates were distributed to assist vulnerable people and low-income people, benefiting more than 200,000 South Australian households.

The administration of concessions continues to undergo improvements. The project to automate and improve processes relating to the cost of living and various utility concessions is progressing well. A new consolidated household concession application process will be available to customers later in 2017.

The important partnership between government and non-government organisations in the community services sector achieved significant results in 2016-17 through the development of the South Australian Not-For-Profit Funding Rules and Guidelines. These will ensure that funding to not-for-profit organisations is managed consistently across government.

This reform was co-designed with the not-for-profit sector and will simplify processes, reduce red tape and support a partnership approach that acknowledges and builds our shared investment in improving outcomes for communities. These are but a few of the many achievements during 2016-17, and I look forward to having the opportunity to provide further information throughout this hearing.

The CHAIR: Thank you, minister. Member for Hartley, do you have an opening statement?

Mr TARZIA: No, I do not.

The CHAIR: No? Proceed with the questions.

Mr TARZIA: My first question relates to Budget Paper 4, Volume 1, Sub-program 1.1: Community Connections and Support, pages 106 to 107. My questions relate to the energy concessions program. The minister would be aware that a number of people who have been receiving energy concessions have stopped receiving them and have been advised that they have to reapply and may need to wait for some time for their concession to be reinstated. Why is it that some pensioners, who have been receiving their concession for several years, are receiving letters advising that they are no longer eligible? How many households are no longer receiving concessions and/or having to reapply?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: Thank you very much for your interest in this area. One of the key issues here has been the action taken by AGL that has created difficulties and concerns for South Australians. Can I express my disappointment in the process that they have taken. We have been going through a review of validation and reconciliations. As you might recall, the Auditor-General recommended that we continue this process. What that means is that the name on a bill must be exactly the same as on a Centrelink application. So, the energy concession comes from the fact that someone is a low-income earner, and the vast majority of those people, of course, are customers of Centrelink.

What our reconciliation requires is that that name must match the exact name that is on the Centrelink details as they appear on the bill. When we have worked with various retailers about this—we have worked with them about how we can have a very smooth process about making sure this clarification is there—AGL unfortunately made the decision that they would write to 5,000 of their people where there was not an exact match. We are working with the people to make sure we have a 100 per cent match, and we will make sure that will occur as quickly and as efficiently as possible.

Mr TARZIA: How many do not match?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: My understanding is there were 5,000 letters that they issued.

Mr TARZIA: Five thousand. As I understand it, though, it is DCSI's role to determine eligibility, not the retailer's.

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: That is correct. It is not that people are not eligible. What we are looking for here is validation and a reconciliation that exactly matches with that held by Centrelink.

Mr TARZIA: How much did DCSI owe in concession payments to electricity retailers, say at 30 June or 1 July 2017?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: We have a very detailed relationship with the different retail providers. In fact, we have recently gone through a process with them where they gave out concessions that they had not validated and they needed to pay money back to us. As far as that amount goes, let me give you some clarity. In regard to that overcharging by the retailers, that has now all been repaid. The final repayment was made on 31 August 2016.

Mr TARZIA: Regarding the potential backlog of applicants for DCSI, how many applications does DCSI have that are still to be processed?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: Obviously, we are processing concession applications every single day and, as you heard in my opening statement, we are trying to simplify that so that you only make one application across the range of concessions.

Mr TARZIA: Is there a backlog, and how large would that backlog be with those issues?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: I do not think there is a backlog per se; we are constantly doing it. I will try to get a number for you. As I said, we are constantly processing those. Of course, if you have an increase in the amount of concession applications it may take longer, but obviously we work to do them as efficiently as possible.

Mr TARZIA: What is the average time it takes for applications to be processed by DCSI?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: My understanding is that the general average processing is about eight weeks. Obviously, with the simplification of one application, we would expect that to come down very quickly.

Mr TARZIA: Are you saying that you cannot give me the current number of concessions that are outstanding?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: You are asking about the actual amount of applications?

Mr TARZIA: Yes, and the amount.

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: I do not have that figure.

Mr TARZIA: How many staff are allocated to the processing of applications, and approximately how long do they spend on each application?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: I am informed that about 37 FTEs are working on that processing. We do not have a specific average time that it takes to process them; obviously it depends on the complexity of the application and whether that application has been filled out with all the details on it.

Mr TARZIA: Do you have the total number of customers in receipt of an energy concession as at today?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: Approximately 180,000, but I will just see if we have a more definite figure for you. In 2016-17, 180,657 people received the energy concession. You can compare that to, say, water, where homeowner occupiers were 142,596 and tenants were 30,469. Sewerage concession holders were 128,605. As you know, we have also introduced our cost of living concession and about 180,108 people in total received that last financial year. Of course, we also have a few other concessions, such as medical heating and cooling as well as the emergency services levy (fixed property) concession for 134,848.

Mr TARZIA: Have you ever found you have made payments to deceased people?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: Energy concessions are made to retailers, and that is taken off the bill.

Mr TARZIA: What was the total number of customers in receipt of an energy concession in 2011?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: We will have to take that on notice.

The CHAIR: You do not even have to take that on notice; the question is completely out of order. Carry on.

Mr TARZIA: Not really.

The CHAIR: No, it is.

Mr TARZIA: It is comparing to the past—

The CHAIR: No; it is out of order to ask about numbers in 2011. Carry on.

Mr TARZIA: Thank you. If the minister could take that on notice that would be great. Moving on to the—

The CHAIR: No, let me clarify that—

Mr GARDNER: She has taken it on notice.

The CHAIR: She said that, and if the minister is happy to she can give that information to us, but she does not have to.

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: I withdraw taking it on notice.

Mr TARZIA: Moving on to the Community Infrastructure Investment Fund costings, Budget Paper 5, page 19, paragraph 3. What are the guidelines for this fund?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: As you know, this is a new fund that has been in the budget for 2017-18, and I am very pleased that this fund will be there. It is actually being held centrally by the Department of Treasury and Finance, so I do not believe it is actually in these budget papers. It is not reflected in the budget line here. However, let me talk to you about this new grant. It will contribute to the improvement of infrastructure to support multicultural and community organisations.

As you may have heard me speak of before, we have done quite a bit of work to review Grants SA. It was launched in April 2016. What we wanted to do was make things far more easily accessible. As you know, in Grants SA there are minor rounds that close at the end of every month, so there are 12 rounds of those. There are medium rounds four times a year and then there are major rounds twice a year. Every time they have had those rounds, we have had people and applications that are eligible but we have not had enough money in each round. In fact, I think you have spoken to me previously about this for some of your constituents—

Mr TARZIA: Several times.

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: —so I know that there is a greater need out there. We have also run some rounds with the Multicultural Infrastructure Grants program where more people applied and were eligible than were funded, so we have this grant and we would expect that that would look at the oversubscription that has happened over the past 12 months.

Mr TARZIA: Has any money been allocated from this fund to date?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: I would have to take that on notice. I do not believe I have given that authority at this point.

Mr TARZIA: Had any commitments been made to any of these clubs before the budget was released?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: No, this is a new grant, but as I said, we will be reflecting on the fact that there was quite a substantial oversubscription not only in Grants SA but also in the multicultural infrastructure funds. I can look at the other members of the committee who are very interested in this area and have been approached by different groups who have expressed their interest in upgrading their community facilities. It may be kitchens or a disabled toilet.

In fact, with the ageing population we have in our multicultural communities, lifts have often been raised. Lifts are very expensive, so obviously in all of these situations most of the communities that are interested in receiving this grant have fundraised and put money aside. What we would see in these grants is the ability to support them to finalise those projects, but of course people would have had to apply for these grants for that time.

Mr TARZIA: I look forward to applying for those grants for communities in my electorate, minister.

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: I welcome those applications, as I do for any committee members. For those of us who dedicate our time with our multicultural communities, we know that these are growing communities. We have about 200 communities in South Australia. We have those who have been here for many generations and those who are newly arriving and establishing. I had a delightful night with the member for Colton for the Romanian Consulate that recently opened in South Australia. While they do not have a building and they are a smaller group, there are quite diverse groups in South Australia who choose to stay here, raise their families and invest as well.

Mr TARZIA: Moving on to Budget Paper 4, Volume 1, page 105, paragraph 1. Does the Northern Connections program still exist?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: Yes.

Mr TARZIA: It does? If so, can you advise what funding is included for Northern Connections in each year of the forward estimates?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: I will get that detail for you. In the 2017-18 budget, it is $554,000. The role of Northern Connections is to improve our social and economic outcomes in northern Adelaide by identifying issues of regional significance and addressing these, including improved connections across the region, reducing duplication of effort, leading collaborations and partnerships, developing and trialling new approaches, and advocacy for the regions.

They have played a key role in the Thriving Communities component of the Northern Economic Plan, which, as you know, is a collaboration between local, state and federal governments, and also the university, business and community sectors in the region. The priorities through this plan have been to promote social inclusion, economic development, education, training and work-first development, as well as resilience and wellbeing.

Northern Connections leads this partnership between three Northern Economic Plan councils and Housing SA to do a particular project on street beautification initiatives across the region. The first is the City of Salisbury where they will be looking at social procurement in street upgrades and, where possible, including former automotive workers who are at the heart of the initiative.

Another thing Northern Connections does, along with Southern Connections and the Department of State Development, is to contribute $20,000 towards the disability Impact Accelerator program. It is a 100-day program that assists teens from eight disability service providers to create new social ventures or enterprises and diversify their revenue streams as they transition to the National Disability Insurance Scheme.

One of the most exciting things that they do, in a very practical partnership with the City of Salisbury, City of Playford and Rotary Club, is to establish the Wheels in Motion program. We know that not having a driver's licence is often a barrier to employment opportunities and so they work on subsidised, supervised driving lessons. Around 200 young people a year access that program. Northern Connections recently provided $15,000 towards the purchase of two new vehicles for the program to allow for its expansion to include a specialised multicultural women's driving program.

We know they have also worked with the Automotive Transformation Taskforce and local service providers to give 198 automotive workers and their family members assistance through the Beyond Auto service. It is a one-stop shop which connects them with relevant support and outreach programs. Northern Connections has also developed a Beyond Auto employment mentoring program pilot, which resulted in four of the five automotive workers with complex cases to establish new employment or learning opportunities.

Mr TARZIA: Budget Paper 4, Volume 1, Sub-program 1.1: Community Connections and Support, page 106, in relation to employment-related screening. Can the minister provide an update for 2016-17 on the number of applications received and applications approved for five types of screening checks undertaken by DCSI? They are:

child-related employment screening;

disability services employment screening;

vulnerable person-related employment screening;

aged-care sector employment screening; and

general employment probity screening.

Can you further break this down into student, volunteer and employment applications, please?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: Let me talk about the applications that were received for the type of employment screening: 66.67 per cent relate to child related, and that is 94,547; 8,793 for disability services; 16,021 for vulnerable person related; 18,049 for the aged-care sector; and general employment probity, 4,563. So, for the types of applications received for type of employment screening it is 141,793.

I think you also asked a question about volunteers and student applications. I can break that down for 2016 for volunteers on the applications approved. Child related for volunteers was 21,549; for disability services, 1,331; vulnerable person related, 1,377; aged-care sector, 1,926; and general employment probity, 471. The total for volunteers was 26,654. For students in 2016-17: child related, 12,554; disability services, 3,570; vulnerable person related, 8,620; aged-care sector, 8,756; and general employment probity, 838; for a total of 34,338.

Mr TARZIA: How much was collected in these fees for 2016-17?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: We have an estimated result for 2016 for income in regard to screening: $6,690,000.

Mr TARZIA: What is the longest period of time that it has taken for a screening to be approved for each of the five types that I mentioned?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: The vast majority of screening is completed within 30 business days, and I think we are running at about 96 per cent for those business days—96.1 per cent for those 30 business days—and in fact about 92 per cent for 20 days, that is, business days. So, we have very much increased the efficiency for that. As far as the longest, I would have to take that on notice, but for the vast majority we have really increased the way we ask the questions at the beginning. Of course, you can apply online now. We make sure that people are applying with the correct details from the very beginning.

Mr TARZIA: We are talking months, then, for the longest.

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: I would have to take that on notice. Obviously, you are talking about very detailed information.

Mr TARZIA: Six months? Nine months?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: I will take that on notice.

Mr TARZIA: No-one knows?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: I will take that on notice.

The CHAIR: She is taking it on notice, Vince. It is your time!

Mr GARDNER: Fifty-eight advisers and no answer!

Mr TARZIA: I just find it amazing that such a simple question cannot be answered.

The CHAIR: This is your time, the member for Hartley.

Mr TARZIA: What did the Treasurer's NGO indexation announcement really mean? I am looking at Budget Paper 4, Volume 1, page 105, Program 1: Thriving Communities, Program summary—expenses, income and FTEs, budget line 'Grants and subsidies'. The 2017-18 budget amount is less than both the 2016-17 budget amount and the 2016-17 actual amount. Following the release of the budget, the Treasurer told a SACOSS event that grants for all NGOs would receive indexation of 2 per cent in 2017-18 and 2018-19 and 2.5 per cent in 2019-20 and 2020-21. My question is: to which grant agreements does this indexation apply?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: It is interesting that you say, 'What does this indexation mean?' I guess for me the most important thing about indexation is the commitment that we have given to NGOs. Subsequent to this indexation, we made the announcement about having consistent indexation coming forward. What that means, along with our commitments of three plus three ongoing, and in fact three plus three plus three for our peak bodies, is it enables them to plan. So, while you are asking to me what it means money wise, there is actually a wider significance to this commitment.

In 2016-17, the NGO indexation rate for grants and brokerage was 1.7 per cent, and in 2017-18 the standard indexation rate applying to grants to NGOs will be 2 per cent. While I am disappointed to say that I do not have a full extensive list of all the NGO grants we provided at DCSI (as you can imagine, that would be an extensive list), I am advised that the vast majority do receive that standard indexation rate, except there are a small number of exceptions to the default indexation rate, including those negotiated as part of the competitive tender process, and services affected by the transition to new aged-care arrangements and the NDIS.

Mr TARZIA: What is the cost of this measure in the current year and each year of the forward estimates?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: It will be 1.7 per cent for 2016-17. You are asking me for a definitive monetary value for that indexation?

Mr TARZIA: Yes.

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: I will see what we have.

Mr TARZIA: I cannot see that it was included as a budget measure specifically.

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: These budget papers, obviously, are from the Treasurer, so I would encourage you to raise that if you want more specifics.

Mr TARZIA: Okay. Will the indexation apply to multi-year function agreements already in place?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: That is my understanding. However, we do have some agreements that have state and commonwealth combined funding, and therefore that does not automatically happen with those agreements.

Mr TARZIA: Moving on to domiciliary care, Budget Paper 5, page 21, and also listed in Budget Paper 4, Volume 1 as Program 2: Community Care Services. This is one of several state-run services to be transferred to NGO providers in the lead-up to transition to the NDIS. Amongst other things, some commentary says that the funding includes the provision of case management support to staff materially affected by the reform. My question is: what is the split in funding between the various parts of the package?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: When you ask for the package, you are saying in regard to what is raised here in the budget paper?

Mr TARZIA: Yes.

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: Obviously, it is detailed quite extensively about what that money will be spent on here, but I do not actually have the split of the specifics for each of those programs, so I will have to take that on notice.

Mr TARZIA: Getting back to Budget Paper 4, Volume 1, Community Connections and Support, pages 106 and 107: how much does DCSI owe to energy retailers in energy concessions?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: How much do we owe? You did actually ask me that in the opening questions.

Mr TARZIA: Just to clarify.

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: My answer would not have changed in the last 20 minutes.

Mr TARZIA: I just thought in case there was a different answer.

The CHAIR: You want an update, then? Is that right; is it the same question?

Mr TARZIA: Yes. Moving back to domiciliary care, Budget Paper 4, Volume 1. How much is allocated for existing domiciliary care staff entitlements?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: We will have to take that on notice. We obviously do have that figure, but we do not have it with us today.

Mr TARZIA: Why do staff who, I would say, are likely to be in high demand due to the NDIS coming into full operation need to be case managed?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: Obviously, that would probably be a better question for the Minister for Disabilities. While I am the Minister for Communities and Social Inclusion and have responsibility for the domiciliary care staff, I think your question mostly refers to those working for Disability SA now.

Mr TARZIA: How much is being allocated to assist domiciliary care clients' transition?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: Sorry?

Mr TARZIA: I will repeat: how much is being allocated to assist domiciliary care clients' transition?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: Sorry, are you talking about domiciliary care clients and their transition?

Mr TARZIA: Yes.

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: The most important thing to me, and I guess the government of South Australia, is the continuity of care during this transition when it happens. What we want it to do is appear seamless to those clients. When the provider is selected—and that process is happening as we speak, and going through—we will work with them about how that transition will happen. I think at this point it would not be wise for me to give you a figure of how that would be. The most important thing is about the clients and the continuity of care.

Mr TARZIA: Moving on to Sub-program 1.2: Community Services, pages 107 to 109. There is a reference on page 107 to DCSI's focus on northern and southern Adelaide. A simple question: how much funding is allocated to each office, how many FTEs are there, and who is the most senior officer?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: I have just given you that answer for Northern Connections. I will get you a similar response. I will get you those FTEs. For Southern Connections, it is $278,000 for 2017-18. Let's talk about Southern Connections and what they are doing. Their role is to trial innovative means of tackling social and economic issues of regional significance in southern Adelaide, improving the connections across the region, identifying and reducing duplication of effort, leading collaborations and partnerships, developing and trialling new approaches, and advocacy for the region.

Obviously, a key part of it is to convene, facilitate and resource initiatives with local government, with communities and with the NGO sector and business. One of the key things that they have been doing is regarding social planning activities across the four southern Adelaide councils: Marion, Mitcham, Holdfast Bay and Onkaparinga. It has played a key role in linking southern Adelaide's social infrastructure to the Southern Adelaide Economic Development Board.

They have been at the forefront of brokering opportunities for economic participation for key disadvantaged groups, including long-term unemployed people. This has been achieved through a place-based approach, linking Housing SA tenants to local employer-specific training opportunities. Southern Connections has also been involved in the development of the disability Impact Accelerator program in which 10 organisations are undertaking a transformational co-design process to take advantage of the new opportunities presented by the NDIS.

Southern Connections also continues to lead innovation and youth entrepreneurial activities, including assisting the Happy Valley community to create the Happy Valley Innovation Precinct (HIP HUB) with the goal of fostering youth entrepreneurialism. HIP HUB is driven by business, industry and social stakeholders, who are committed to improve community business and youth outcomes.

Southern Connections has also been a key stakeholder in the Be a Job Maker youth entrepreneurial program through 2016-17, with 14 participants in southern Adelaide successfully completing the program. That is something that I introduced as Minister for Youth and I am very proud of that program. There are two FTEs in Southern Connections and four FTEs in Northern Connections. The most senior person in the south is Chris Karvountzis, who is a deputy director, and Paul Tsoundarou in the north, who is a deputy director.

Mr TARZIA: As a final question, Budget Paper 4, Volume 1, pages 106 and 107, Community Connections and Support, how much money is spent on staff in administering the energy concessions?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: I think I said to you before that there were 38 FTEs, if that is the correct term. It is not just the energy concessions, there are all the other concessions that we do: cost of living concession, water, sewerage, medical heating and cooling. I think if you are asking me to actually break down the costs just for that—

Mr TARZIA: A dollar value.

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: 38 FTEs?

Mr TARZIA: Yes.

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: We would have to take that on notice. We have call centres, there are 28 phone lines and there are people there. Obviously, there is the administration, there is a reconciliation group.

Mr TARZIA: Can you take the dollar value on notice?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: If you want me to carve out that, I will have to come back and take it on notice.

The CHAIR: Thank you, minister. I will ask you to bring forward any advisers you want for Social Housing and we will move to Social Housing.

Membership:

Ms Sanderson substituted for Mr Gardner.

Departmental Advisers:

Mr T. Harrison, Chief Executive, Department for Communities and Social Inclusion.

Ms L. Boswell, Deputy Chief Executive, Department for Communities and Social Inclusion.

Ms A. Chooi, Director, Strategic Finance, Financial and Business Services, Department for Communities and Social Inclusion.

Ms N. Rogers, Director, Office of the Chief Executive, Department for Communities and Social Inclusion.

Mr M. Schutz, Senior Governance Officer, Office of the Chief Executive, Department for Communities and Social Inclusion.

Mr P. Fagan-Schmidt, Executive Director, Housing SA.

Mr G. Slack, Director, Strategy and Reporting, Housing SA.

Ms R. Hulm, Group Director, Finance and Corporate Services, Renewal SA.

The CHAIR: Minister, would you like to introduce any new advisers, and do you have an opening statement?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: From my previous time, I am joined by, to my left, Tony Harrison, Chief Executive, and Angela Chooi, Director, Strategic Finance, Financial and Business Services. To my right is Phil Fagen-Schmidt, Executive Director, Housing SA.

I would like to make an opening statement. The Social Housing portfolio plays a critical role in providing vital services to many South Australians, including some of our vulnerable citizens. I would like to put on the record that, during 2016-17, around 90,000 services were provided by Housing SA. This includes tenancy and property management services for approximately 38,000 tenancies, including 2,000 new allocations. This also encompasses support for around 22,000 people who were supported by our specialist homelessness sector, and over 30,000 who were assisted through the Private Rental Assistance Program.

We have also been working hard towards lowering outstanding customer debt and are making considerable progress in this regard, with total debt trending down. I am very pleased that South Australia was successful in its national advocacy to have the national partnership agreement on homelessness extended for the 2017-18 financial year. The state government has provided a contribution of $9.05 million to match the commonwealth government's offer.

In previous years, the commonwealth did not provide a contribution to cover indexation and equal remuneration order wage increases. For this reason, in 2016-17, South Australia not only matched the commonwealth's National Partnership Agreement on Homelessness funding offer of $8.87 million but provided an additional $730,000 for indexation and ERO. I am very pleased that for this extension the commonwealth has provided supplementation, meaning the state government's contribution is slightly less than the previous year.

Can I express my disappointment when the commonwealth did not provide indexation and ERO. This had been a significant achievement for NGO workers. I was deeply disappointed that they did not match it. We did have to come to the party in 2016-17, and I am very pleased that they have acknowledged that this was unacceptable and going forward have included this. In 2017-18, total funding in South Australia specialist homelessness services will actually increase by $2.5 million, up from $62.3 million in 2016-17 to $64.8 million.

In May, the commonwealth announced that the National Affordable Housing Agreement and the National Partnership Agreement on Homelessness will be combined into a single national housing and homelessness agreement, totalling approximately $1.5 billion per annum to take effect from 2018-19. This funding certainty will stabilise the delivery of important services that assist so many South Australians and sustain many jobs. I look forward to working with my colleagues nationally and across the South Australian government to achieve the best deal for our state under the new arrangements.

We have also been working hard to deliver better value and safer emergency accommodation to people in housing crisis. Following a tender process, new arrangements commenced on 1 July 2017 with a panel of organisations providing services across South Australia. This is a more cost-effective approach to these important crisis services.

I would also like to note the introduction of Code Red and Code Blue during 2016-17, which are providing better support to people sleeping rough during times of extreme weather. After considerable work by Housing SA with our many partners, these arrangements are now in place in regional areas as well as Adelaide.

In March 2017, I announced that the state government is accelerating $3.4 million worth of Housing SA projects in Whyalla to boost the local economy and create new jobs. This program is increasing local jobs, both skilled and unskilled, and providing training opportunities and apprenticeships. It is also delivering improvements to the quality and amenity of public housing stock in Whyalla.

During the year, we made significant headway on improving housing for Aboriginal people in remote areas under the National Partnership on Remote Housing. Capital works have commenced on 17 new dwellings and 26 refurbishments, which will be completed by 30 June 2018.

As well, we have recently announced a new facility, Ninti Ngura, to be built in Adelaide and provide accommodation for young Aboriginal people from remote areas who are undertaking tertiary study or vocational training. This will draw on $5.7 million of capital funding under the employment and education housing stream of the National Partnership on Remote Housing.

In 2017, the Housing Improvement Act 2016 and regulations came into effect. This landmark legislation provides measures to ensure housing is safe and suitable for human habitation.

Finally, I would like also to note the significant effort of Housing SA staff providing emergency relief and recovery services in 2016-17, in particular following the extreme weather events in September and October last year and in response to Tropical Cyclone Debbie in March 2017. Following a request from the Queensland government, 34 Housing SA staff were deployed to assist the Queensland response. I want to particularly acknowledge the staff who willingly agreed to travel to Queensland to help out.

I have only touched on some of the many achievements and significant work that has gone on in the social housing portfolio in 2016-17. Our successful year has been built on strong collaboration and innovative work with many partners. I look forward to continuing this work in 2017-18 for the betterment of the people in South Australia.

The CHAIR: Thank you. Member for Adelaide, do you have an opening statement?

Ms SANDERSON: No, I do not.

The CHAIR: Straight to questions.

Ms SANDERSON: My first question refers to Budget Paper 5, page 21, the National Partnership Agreement on Homelessness. Minister, in your opening statement you mentioned that the reason for the 2016-17 figure being higher for state government was that you were covering the lack of indexation by the federal government. That would certainly account for why that would drop in the 2017-18 year; however, it dropped below the 2015-16 year, so the amount that you are contributing for 2017-18 is less than it was in 2015-16. So, there is less money going into the portfolio.

The CHAIR: Is that a statement or a question?

Ms SANDERSON: That is a question.

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: As I made very clear, we did not have indexation and ERO in 2016-17. Generally, this is a fifty-fifty partnership and our contribution would exactly match what the commonwealth puts in, but that year we had to put in additional funding. With regard to 2015-16, I will endeavour to get that clarification, but we contribute more than $60 million, as I said in the opening statement, to homelessness. NPA is a significant part of that, and I have been campaigning very strongly since 2014 to have security around this National Partnership Agreement on Homelessness. It actually only forms part of what we do. It is about a third of the funding that is there.

Ms SANDERSON: Thank you, minister. Therefore, the total spend for 2016-17 was $18.47 million and for 2017-18 it will only be $18.1 million. So, what programs will be cut?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: There is no cut.

Ms SANDERSON: There is in the total. If you have a look on page 21, there was a $18.47 million total for 2016-17 and now it is $18.1 million, so it is $370,000 less.

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: It is a matched fund, so we match whatever the commonwealth puts up. I can guarantee the commitment that we still contribute $64 million per year. The National Partnership Agreement on Homelessness is one aspect of that. Sorry, but when I look at the budget line you are talking about on page 21, I see that we have operating revenue and operating expenses. What are you talking about?

Ms SANDERSON: There is a National Partnership Agreement on Homelessness table that has the total for 2016-17 as 8.87 for the commonwealth, 9.6 for the state—

The CHAIR: Sorry, member for Adelaide, where is this table?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: It talks about 18.1 million.

The CHAIR: I cannot see the table you are talking about here.

Ms SANDERSON: I am waiting for the page; it is in last year's budget paper. This is not my portfolio anymore, as the minister is aware.

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: So, we are referencing this budget?

Ms SANDERSON: Yes, however, obviously, this budget refers back to the previous budget. There is $370,000 missing that was spent last year in the NPA—

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: Which we spent on indexation and ERO.

Ms SANDERSON: There is still a difference. I can see your indexation went up from 9.24 to 9.6; however, the overall of both is still $370,000 less than it was last year. So, something is missing; something is not being funded this year that was funded last year.

The CHAIR: That is the assumption you are making.

Ms SANDERSON: Well, it has to be.

The CHAIR: That is assuming the figure you are giving us is correct. I do not have that figure in front of me.

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: I think we are going to have to agree to disagree.

Ms SANDERSON: Okay.

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: The key thing is that there has not been a decrease in homelessness funding. In fact, we continue to support it, and you have heard me speak many times in the house, as have my colleagues, about our commitment here, whether it be our innovation around the social impact bonds, around homelessness or our interactive Inner City Street Crew. We have given additional money to go out there and talk to individuals.

I know you are talking about specific figures and you are trying to match the budget paper from last year to this year, but I can only say to you that the commitment this government has to those people—our most vulnerable, sleepers out there who need our help, who come in and who are in overcrowded situations—is that we are there to support them. I would say that we are actively leading through Australia to be at the forefront of how we can support people when they are most vulnerable. We have a very, very active inner city homelessness response here; I think it is about 16 different organisations that we fund in the inner city, not to mention all those throughout South Australia.

Ms SANDERSON: The minister would probably acknowledge the work I also did in lobbying the federal government for that very important money, because the Liberal Party also acknowledges that that is very important money. That is why the drop is of concern to me. We will leave it—

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: There is no drop.

Ms SANDERSON: My second question is on Budget Paper 4, Volume 1, Program 3: Social Housing, page 119, Activity indicators. The estimated result for the 2016-17 year is 38,710 and the 2017-18 projection is 34,050, a difference of 4,660. Given that 4,000 properties are being transferred to community housing providers, does that mean that 660 properties will be sold in this following year?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: Sales processes are actually something that Renewal SA takes charge of, so it is best that you speak to minister Mullighan.

Ms SANDERSON: Would that not be against the principles in the NAHA? We are meant to be building up stocks, not selling them.

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: We are about to go into some negotiations with the federal government. I am not sure that they share your view about social housing stocks. Of course, they have an interest in having more affordable housing—we are all on board about that—but I am not sure that is their view. In South Australia we have the highest percentage of social housing in the nation. We run at about 6 per cent and the other states are at about 4 per cent, so we have history here. While we are undergoing some changes with some of them transitioning to community housing, we are above the curve. Whether it is about the 15 per cent that we have in affordable houses in any new development or the fact that we have a land supply for the next 15 years, South Australia is well ahead of the curve on these things.

However, if we are being full and frank here I would not think that during these bilateral discussions the focus will be on having more public housing, but if that is what we want to talk about with the Treasurer—because it will be between the federal Treasurer and our Treasurer, these bilateral negotiations—we will go there. I look forward to seeing what might be your proposal going forward. We have about 40,000 houses at the moment, and it will be interesting to see whether you want to increase that to 50,000 houses. Perhaps today would be a good day for you to talk to me about that.

Ms SANDERSON: My next question is: how many properties does the Housing Trust own as at 30 June 2017?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: We have responsibility, as at 31 May of the 2016-17 year, for 39,359.

Ms SANDERSON: This next question is a bit more complicated. I am wondering what are the totals on the waiting list and then the breakdown by category—categories 1, 2, 3, low demand, pending—and the total that were housed in each of those categories. Also, the totals for the under 25s on the waiting list and the under 25s that were housed.

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: The number of households on the register, which is what we call it now—because when someone puts in an application it means that is a live application for both public housing and community housing, so people have to put in only one application now, which is a really important change we now have—is 21,275 as at 31 May. The number of new allocations, and once again this is obviously one month off a full year, is 1,911. Of those, 1,678 are category 1. The percentage of category 1 and 2 allocations as a proportion of all allocations is 94.7 per cent.

Of course, we cannot talk about this housing register without recognising that there are a number of customers assisted under the private rental assistance program, and 28,820 households are assisted through that program. We also have people who are supported by our private rental liaison officers and 529 customers were housed through that. One of the things you asked about is allocations. Once again, these figures are as at 31 May of the 2016-17 year: category 1 was 1,678; category 2, 131; category 3, 99; low demand, two; and there was one other. The total is 1,911. Once again, that is one month shy of the full financial year.

As always, you are interested in those who are under 25. I am looking at the number of applications where the applicant is under 25. On the housing register by category, once again, this is 2016-17, as at 31 May: category 1, 618; category 2, 274; and category 3, 1,745. The total is 2,663, so we would expect that to be about the same as last year but with one month to go.

Ms SANDERSON: From those figures, if I have them down correctly, there has actually been an increase in the total number of people on the waiting list. Last year, I had 21,079 as at 20 May 2016. That was from an FOI. Then there were 21,275 this year. Can you explain, minister, what policies you are going to put in place to make sure that that is going down rather than up?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: There has been a slight increase; there is no doubt at all. I think that is while we are going through a process. We were building a lot of new things. Renewing Our Streets and Suburbs is a process where we have had to do a lot of reallocations within that. Those new houses that are built are going to be far more efficient and their maintenance obviously is going to be less. The vast majority of people on the housing register are single-headed households, which is what is reflected in our households as well. That has been a change over probably the last 10 to 20 years of who we are placing as well.

We know there has been a slight increase, so we continue to work on it. My understanding, when I have interrogated that data, and obviously it is something I spend a lot of time on, is that about 80 per cent of the people on the waiting list do have some form of support from Housing SA—whether it is the private rental assistance program or help with a bond and some money in advance there, that is highly likely. They have gained some support or they might have had some support from the private rental liaison officer. It is not as though you go on the housing register and you do not have any other engagement with us. That does continue.

Ms SANDERSON: Minister, you gave the figure of 39,350 homes as at 31 May this year. Could you break those into vacant, occupied and tenanted. Then there is also the untenanted, which should add to that figure.

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: The total number of properties is 39,359. The number of tenantable stock is 39,133. So, 2 per cent of our stock (822) would be going through that vacancy clean, to go through again. I think that we have responsibility for only 596, so 1.5 per cent of that is ours.

Probably the best thing for me to talk to you about is that we obviously look at the vacancy rates in the private sector to measure ourselves, and that is about 3 per cent. So, we consider that, as at 31 May, only 1.5 per cent of our SA Housing Trust properties managed by Housing SA were vacant. Usually what is happening in that situation, is that the property is undergoing minor maintenance prior to re-letting or is in the process of being offered to a household or is awaiting the new tenants moving in.

We have done quite a bit of work in regard to reducing the time for vacancy cleans and vacancy maintenance. In fact, I think it was our vacancy team that won an award from the Australasian Housing Institute. Our vacancy maintenance crew developed an app to make sure—because you are consolidating quite a few trades at one point to come to a house, and so they have cut that down and we won an Australian award, so we are very pleased about that.

There might also be a time delay in Housing SA putting in place support services for new tenants or the property is located in an area of low demand, such as smaller regional areas. We also have some properties listed as untenable and that includes properties undergoing major maintenance or under assessment for alternative use, including redevelopment or sale. As I said before, those questions should be directed to Renewal SA whose responsibility it is through minister Mullighan.

Ms SANDERSON: By calculation from your figures, if there are 39,359 total properties and 39,133 are tenantable, the balance of 226 are untenantable.

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: Without agreeing to your exact figures, your summation—

Ms SANDERSON: That is the basis for—

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: —is correct but they would usually then be the responsibility of Renewal SA because that would be a significant—

Ms SANDERSON: It is a considerable drop from last year, so I am just wanting the figure, that is all.

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: Obviously, we have become better with this renewing our streets and suburbs process. We are working together more collaboratively to try to reduce the amount of time and make those decisions about those houses very quickly, because what I want to do is rehouse people as soon as possible.

Ms SANDERSON: By calculation, then, I also have 38,311 that were occupied. Is there a figure that verifies that?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: The figure that I would use is the total number of occupied properties that Housing SA has responsibility for and, as at 31 May, it is 38,537.

Ms SANDERSON: What is the impact of the state's liabilities on the transfer of the 4,000 properties to the community sector?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: You will need to direct that question to minister Mullighan.

Ms SANDERSON: Thank you. Budget Paper 4, Volume 1, Program 3: Social Housing, page 118, Targets 2017-18:

Work with other jurisdictions on the implementation of a new long-term national funding agreement…

Can the minister provide details about what is anticipated? What will you be advocating?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: Obviously, as I said before, three times I have spent time with the federal minister for housing to talk about what we are going to do going forward with this. I am very pleased that we now have this ongoing agreement, the NAHA-ha as it is referred to. Each state and territory will have a bilateral conversation and that conversation will happen through the federal Treasurer and the state and territory treasurers.

One of the focuses will be not just on public housing; you may recall that earlier this year we had significant focus on young people and young families being able to buy housing. While a lot of the conversation was around Sydney and Melbourne, there is no doubt that we have had increased prices in Adelaide as well. While my focus is about social housing and housing people through public housing and community housing and supporting them through the bonds and rent in advance, this NAHA-ha will have a much more holistic view than what the federal government wants.

I encourage you, although you are no longer the shadow, to work with our federal colleagues, because we are doing things very well in South Australia in the fact that our Premier, when he was minister for housing, introduced those larger land developments, the '15 per cent must be affordable' housing. If you look around the state, whether it is Bowden or Lightsview or out at West Lakes, and I think, the member for Hartley, out in your area, in Magill, there is a lot more diversity of housing that is now available.

That has been one of the challenges in the past. There were a lot of three-bedroom houses and perhaps a few small units. Now we have more townhouses and things like that. So, while my interest will be about social housing, and it will be about the support for public housing and how we go into the future, I actually think the debate and the conversation will be much wider.

One of the challenges I have, and whoever is the Minister for Social Housing has, is the disparity between private rental tenants, who can get the commonwealth rental assistance, and public housing tenants, who do not. If you are a public housing tenant, obviously we have a system where we look at how much you earn, and the rent is tied to that—it is 25 per cent of your income. If you are in the private sector, however, you also get this additional supplement from the federal government. So, there is disparity within our system between public housing tenants and those people in the private rental sector.

One of my challenges will be to get rid of that disparity and make sure that public housing tenants can also get commonwealth rental assistance. Now, I will be frank with everyone: it has been on the board for about a decade—that this conversation has been happening. I do not think it will happen with this, but I will certainly be raising it with them.

One of the bigger challenges, of course, across the board, is that we now have more single-headed households throughout Australia. The cost for running a household is more significant if you have just one person paying the bills. I am interested in what this conversation will be about, because predominantly the conversation in the wider media was about housing in Melbourne and Sydney and about those first homebuyers getting into their home. While that is important to me, what is most challenging for us here is the sustainability, ongoing, for those most vulnerable in the housing market.

I applaud their commitment. I thank them for their commitment. It has been a bipartisan commitment, but we need to see what that bilateral agreement will say. You know what my area of interest is, but they will have their own views about where they want that agreement to be. But it is ongoing, and I welcome that.

Ms SANDERSON: Can the minister provide data on the number of rental properties and other financial assistance to people in the private rental market and how this compares to other financial years, both number and value?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: I think you are talking about the private rental assistance, which I think I have already detailed.

Ms SANDERSON: You did, but I could not write it down quickly enough. That was in an opening statement.

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: I think you want a comparison for other years; is that right?

Ms SANDERSON: Yes, please.

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: Just to remind ourselves, PRAP, as we call it, provides financial assistance for bond, rent in advance or rent in arrears, as well as the provision of information and advocacy services. It enables people to access or maintain private rental accommodation. Financial assistance into emergency accommodation may be provided to people in crisis, such as those fleeing domestic violence or experiencing homelessness.

From 1 July 2016 to 31 May 2017, there were more than 28,800 people assisted through the PRAP. In October of 2016, Housing SA implemented PR Connect, which enables people to apply online for private rental assistance. The first phase included a staff portal for assessments, automated identification verification and targeted communications to customers via SMS and email. Since this implementation, over 29,000 applications for private rental assistance have been submitted online.

One area that is very closely linked with this, of course, is bond claims. We know that often people do not feel that they can challenge the claim made by landlords or agents against their bond. What we have done to do this, particularly where we have provided guarantee of a bond, is that Housing SA will do an investigation on behalf of the tenant to verify the legitimacy of the landlord's claim. This involves reviewing and verifying bond refund forms, invoices and contact with customers, landlords and agents.

Where their bond claims are found to be legitimate, Housing SA will raise a debt against the customer. However, where there is insufficient evidence for a claim, Housing SA will dispute the claim through the South Australian Civil and Administrative Tribunal. This helps ensure the integrity of the bonds claim process and protection for those low to medium-income private renters.

We have worked closely with Consumer and Business Services to improve the processing and validations of these bonds. A new online system, called the new silent tenant system, requires the provision of evidence in support of a bond claim at the end of a tenancy where the tenant has not consented to the release of bond or bond guarantee. This provides greater protection for tenants who are renting privately.

Most importantly, the new process eliminates duplications for landlords and agents, they only have to submit evidence once, and it reduces the administration costs for the agencies. The total active bonds were $56,159 as at 31 May. I think when you are looking, again just to 31 May, we assessed 39,033 people for PRAP, and the number of people approved was 37,252.

Ms SANDERSON: What was the value of claims paid by the Housing Trust under the bond guarantee scheme for the 2016-17 year?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: As at 31 May, there were 8,825 claims, for full or partial, to the value of $7.6 million. Of course, the value of successful bond claims disputed was $1.1 million, and that is quite significant because this is a saving for those people. They are usually what we call non-tenants, because if not they would have had a debt with Housing SA. This new thing where we query the bond claim has been very important, not just for those people who are vulnerable in the private rental system but also it has reduced the increase in our debt that we have here, and that has been a significant focus for me.

Ms SANDERSON: From the $7.6 million, would the $1.6 million have been on top of that, and how much was actually recovered from tenants?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: So, you are talking about debt recovery?

Ms SANDERSON: From the bond, from the PRAP.

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: I will get those figures. Obviously, the vast majority of our tenants do not have any debt. I look at the committee members who have constituents who are members of public housing, and the vast majority of public housing tenants do absolutely the right thing—they pay their rent on time, they pay their bills, they are great neighbours, but there are people who accrue debts.

At 31 May, 81.7 per cent of Housing SA tenants do not have a debt. I cannot emphasise that strongly enough—81.7 per cent. So, we are talking about a minority. Of those who do have a debt, over 58 per cent owe less than $1,000. What we might have seen is something unexpected, paying back a water bill or something like that, or some unfair wear and tear, the replacement of a door, that they are paying back. So, 79.7 per cent of customers, both tenants and non-tenants, with a debt are on an arrangement to repay, and that is significant. That means that they have acknowledged that they have a debt and they are paying it back.

One of the things particularly about the debt is to make sure that people have an agreement with us to pay it back, so we will do that. I think you were asking something specific?

Ms SANDERSON: Were any of the costs associated with paying out the claims recovered from the tenants? Regarding the bond guarantee, I believe you were saying that $7.6 million was paid out. How much of that was recovered from the actual tenants?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: Obviously, our aim is to recover all of that money. As I said, the vast majority of people have a repayment plan to do so. I think you are asking about debts for non-tenants.

Ms SANDERSON: Also the PRAP people who are not your tenants.

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: No, that is who we call non-tenants.

Ms SANDERSON: Yes, the non-tenants. Private rental have a bond—say it is a $500 bond. At the end of that, when they move out, I am wondering how much money you have spent paying those out and how much you have recovered from the tenants.

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: I will endeavour to get that figure for you. If you have another question, we will try to get you that figure.

Ms SANDERSON: This is regarding rooming houses, so this is on page 118. Does the government have any plans to address the recommendations in the report, given there was a major report released into rooming houses by Shelter SA in March this year?

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: I know that you are not the shadow minister anymore, but the current shadow did attend a round table that we had, where Shelter SA made a presentation about their rooming house report and raised some of the issues that are in there. I addressed those things that we could work with them on immediately, and there were some other more challenging areas that were probably unsustainable for us to go ahead and do.

Shelter SA published that report in May 2017. The report recommended in broad terms: improved regulation, better use of government data and better access to information for consumers and providers, and more support for rooming house residents. At that round table I chaired on 3 July, we had 22 attendees, including SACOSS, the Principal Community Visitor, SACAT, the Mental Health Coalition, the Public Advocate, Renewal SA, local government and members of parliament. Kelly Vincent also attended.

To go on from that round table, a private rental task force has been established, and that will examine issues that affect people on the margins of the rental market. That private rental task force first met on 30 June and includes Housing SA, Disability SA, Consumer and Business Services, SACAT, the Department for Correctional Services, mental health services, SA Mental Health Commission and the Public Advocate.

Obviously, we already support people who are in rooming houses, usually with financial assistance through bonds and rent in advance, and we will continue to work with it. In 2014, there were significant amendments made to the Residential Tenancies Act 1995 to include rooming house agreements under the jurisdiction of SACAT, and of course we had the introduction in April 2017 of the new Housing Improvement Act that came into force. That has new penalties for landlords who provide substandard homes, powers of entry for authorised officers and powers of review for SACAT, so all parties have affordable and timely access to appeals.

I will continue this work with the private rental task force. While rooming houses are an important part, I am actually interested in looking at people in more vulnerable accommodation situations. People have raised the issue of share housing and things like that. I am interested in looking at different states. We know that Victoria has an accommodation act that covers a lot of this area. While legislation is quite important, I think it is really about the system and how it works.

I thank Shelter SA for raising their issues about the rooming house report. We had a very good round table, and the private rental task force will continue this work, which may potentially include some new legislation but really will look across the board throughout government at how we can support those more vulnerable people who are living in a long-term type of housing accommodation. My grandmother ran a boarding house post World War II, and we still have about 1,000 rooming places around South Australia. I am interested in how we could respond to that sector, but understand there was significant work in 2014.

Ms SANDERSON: Lucky last question?

The CHAIR: If it is very quick.

Ms SANDERSON: It is a very quick one—

The CHAIR: And if the answer is very quick.

Ms SANDERSON: —in reference to the costing of the Code Red and Code Blues for this financial year.

The Hon. Z.L. BETTISON: $100,000.

The CHAIR: With that, by agreement I declare the examination of the proposed payments adjourned to later today.

Sitting suspended from 10:30 to 10:46.