House of Assembly Fifty-First Parliament, Third Session (51-3) 51 3 Parliament of South Australia House of Assembly published Question Time Question Time Public Sector Employment PUBLIC SECTOR EMPLOYMENT Mr HAMILTON-SMITH House of Assembly Waite Leader of the Opposition PUBLIC SECTOR EMPLOYMENT Mr HAMILTON-SMITH (Waite—Leader of the Opposition) (14:15): Does the Premier stand by his public statements that there will be no public sector job cuts in response to a deterioration of the state's financial position? The Premier stated publicly on 6 November, 'There will be no consideration by cabinet of cutting back any jobs.' In the same week the Treasurer, whilst overseas, and the acting treasurer, here in Adelaide, were insisting that this option remained on the table. The Hon. M.D. RANN House of Assembly Ramsay Premier Minister for Economic Development Minister for Social Inclusion Minister for the Arts Minister for Sustainability and Climate Change PUBLIC SECTOR EMPLOYMENT 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) (14:15): We know what their plans are before the next election. By the way, on the next election, we have got some breaking news. The Leader of the Opposition apparently has been telling people that all the announcements he has made, all the promises he has made and all the commitments he has made do not amount to a fig because they are not really his election promises. They are promises, but they are promises that do not count. Members interjecting: The Speaker House of Assembly The SPEAKER: Order! The Hon. M.D. RANN House of Assembly The Hon. M.D. RANN: Apparently, they are non-core promises. The Speaker House of Assembly The SPEAKER: Order! The Premier must answer the substance of the question. The Hon. M.D. RANN House of Assembly The Hon. M.D. RANN: Can I just say that last week when we got the employment figures (and all the predictions, of course, around Australia and internationally are about the economic impact of the global financial meltdown; and no-one is immune from that), what happened in this state? Unemployment went down. We have 94,000 more people in jobs than we had when you were in government, and that is the difference. I will tell members what I said last week: the government had made no consideration (because that was what was put to me) about sacking people because we have been employing 900 extra doctors, 2,800 extra nurses and record numbers of police, because this party has always been about job creation where yours has been about job destruction.