YORKE PENINSULA FIELD DAYS

Mr GRIFFITHS (Goyder) (15:36): I would like to take a few minutes to talk about a wonderful event that occurs on Yorke Peninsula every two years—that is, the Yorke Peninsula Field Days which are held at Paskeville at the end of September. These are acknowledged as Australia's oldest field days; they were established 1894 and have been going strong ever since. They have been held at a lot of different sites across the Northern Yorke Peninsula area but in 1977 the community decided to find a permanent home for the field days. Since that time they have built an amazing amount of infrastructure—pavilions are in place, there are roads, power is supplied everywhere to all the stalls, there is a water supply, and there are abundant toilets so that no one ever gets caught short. The office is also a great facility, and I want to congratulate the then committee who, back then, showed the vision to build that permanent site.

With a history spanning more than 112 years the event is now a multimillion-dollar showcase for the latest agricultural inventions and technology, and brings thousands of people to the area—indeed, I believe the latest quote was that 50,000 people went to the Paskeville field days this year. The event also has around 750 exhibitors. I think there were a few more people at the event two years ago but with the drought and the difficulty it is causing for people, and the fact that there is perhaps a little bit less spending potential out there, some of the exhibitors decided to pull out. There was still a great range this year—we had some very big ones with a lot of large-scale machinery as well as small ones that were showcasing services they could provide—and all of them had a product or service to promote and sell, and they did a good job.

As I said, the ongoing dry conditions did affect exhibitor numbers a little but the attendance was still fantastic. I believe the fact that we can get 50,000 people, not only from the Yorke Peninsula region and the Mid North but from across the state, to come to the Northern Yorke Peninsula is wonderful; it shows that there truly is confidence in the agricultural industry and in regional communities generally.

Tuesday was a bit of a rough day, and I did not get the chance to get there; but temperatures were above average and there were hot gusty winds, so anyone who walked outside the pavilions would automatically get dust in their eyes. The rain came on Tuesday night, a bit of a front came through, and it created problems for some of the exhibits, but local SES branches that were acting as security overnight for 11 days (three days before and three days after as well as the event itself) managed to tie everything down. I believe there were about 27 marquees that needed a bit of work that night, but if the SES volunteers could not handle it local property owners came in (probably at around 2 a.m.) and worked through the night to make sure that the exhibits would still be open ready for when people came starting to come through the gate at 8.30 the next morning.

The field days were opened on the Wednesday by Mr John McGrath, who is the Deputy Chairman of beyondblue, a group we would all know about which is chaired by Jeff Kennett, a former Victorian premier. I think it was quite apt, with the drought and people starting to feel its effects and the fact that Mental Health Week was occurring a few weeks after the field days, to have somebody there talking about beyondblue and giving an account of his personal experience of losing his own son to suicide through mental health and depression issues.

The field days show a lot about the way of life and support that exists in regional communities. Events such as field days bring people together and, given the pressures that farmers face every day, it gives people an opportunity to talk to each other about what is going on in their lives. Even if you do not buy anything, you have a chance to walk around during the day and catch up with so many old friends; it is just a fantastic event. A lot of people go for all three days. It demonstrates that those of us who live in regional areas believe that we have a future. Some give up on us, but we choose to think we are strong, and the field days demonstrate that.

The committee members and volunteers do an amazing job. Mr Don Evans is the current president and he succeeds a lot of people who have made a tremendous effort and who have put in thousands of hours to get the field days event to the stage it is. In reality, it is a generation of volunteers; since 1894 (for 113 years) people have made it a reality, and I want to pay tribute to them. The event has won some great recognition in recent years. Recently it won the SA Great Regional Award for 2006 and, in 2005, it was the South Australian Community Event of the Year and The District Council of the Copper Coast Event of the Year.

As a candidate, two years ago I was there for three days, although I only managed to get there for one day this year. We had a listening post there and all the people who spoke to us expressed concerns about some things, predominantly water. I say a sincere thank you to the sponsors who support the event. The major sponsor is The Advertiser, which does a great job in promoting the event, and other sponsors include the National Bank, Bank SA, the YP Country Times (which is a great regional paper), the Stock Journal, Farmers Union and Elders.

It could not exist, though, without the wonderful support it gets from the people who live in the Northern Yorke Peninsula area who make their homes available to house everybody—

Mr Venning interjecting:

Mr GRIFFITHS: The member for Schubert was there. The member for Stuart went one day, as did the member for Hammond. They demonstrate that they believe in the YP field days, but it happens because people believe in it, and I congratulate all those involved.