STATE STRATEGIC PLAN

Dr McFETRIDGE (Morphett) (16:41): My question is to the Premier. Has the government's failure to achieve the targets set out in the State Strategic Plan for merchandise exports made it more difficult for sacked Mitsubishi workers to find similar employment in the south? The South Australian Strategic Plan target set by the government was to treble the value of South Australian export income to $25 billion by 2014. This target, by the Department of Trade and Economic Development's own admission (annual report, page 70), is not being met. The annual report states:

This target is not being met—the value of SA's overseas merchandise exports decreased by 2.5 per cent in the 12 months to June 2007. SA's merchandise exports were worth $8.8 billion in this period, the first time since the 12 months to May 2006 they have been less than $9 billion. To meet the $25 billion target, exports would have to grow at an annualised rate of 13.6 per cent.

The Hon. M.D. RANN (Ramsay—Premier, Minister for Economic Development, Minister for Social Inclusion, Minister for the Arts, Minister for Sustainability and Climate Change) (16:42): The honourable member would know that the South Australian Strategic Plan sets targets out to 2014, and we are measured by an independent group every two years in terms of our progress. To the best of my knowledge—apart from the area of education—the state government, through state government departments, does not manufacture merchandise for international export. One of the things that I pointed out—

Members interjecting:

The Hon. M.D. RANN: Oh, apparently we do. Okay. So, they want us to set up factories that are state run. Ernie Crimes would be delighted with what members opposite are clearly suggesting. What we have been doing, and one of the reasons why it was vitally important that we worked with the former Howard government in a bipartisan way to secure a commitment to produce the 380, was that it was about buying time for us. It was about buying time to make sure that we could work to diversify the local economy, which is why we introduced the PACE scheme—a recommendation from Robert Champion De Crespigny through the Economic Development Board—about putting money into getting mining exploration going in this state. And what has happened? A tenfold increase in mining exploration, even when our State Strategic Plan target was for a threefold increase—and people said that that was unachievable. We have gone from 36^th in the world in terms of mining prospectivity to fourth in the world out of 65 jurisdictions. We have a series of mines in a queue. At the same time, in terms of manufacturing, we went hell for leather to win defence projects for South Australia.

I am sure that members opposite would applaud the work done by His Excellency the Governor, Kevin Scarce, when he was leading the approach to win the air warfare destroyers project. Of course, we know that we were head-to-head with John Brumby from Victoria in doing that, and we know that the pundits around the country were predicting that Victoria would win. That is why we are trying very hard to diversify the economy, and that is why there are now 85,000 more people in work in South Australia than when the leader of the opposition was last in cabinet.