House of Assembly Fifty-First Parliament, Third Session (51-3) 51 3 Parliament of South Australia House of Assembly published Question Time Grant Approvals GRANT APPROVALS The Hon. I.F. EVANS House of Assembly Davenport GRANT APPROVALS The Hon. I.F. EVANS (Davenport) (14:11): My question is again to the Minister for Recreation, Sport and Racing. Why did the minister not answer the question asked on notice on 30 October 2007 that read, in part: When considering grant applications or requests for money from corporations, groups, clubs or individuals from within the minister's electorate or groups, clubs or corporations that the minister or minister's family members are members, ambassadors or patrons of, does the minister approve their grant applications or requests for money or does the minister request another minister to approve these? The Hon. M.J. WRIGHT House of Assembly Lee Minister for Police Minister for Emergency Services Minister for Recreation GRANT APPROVALS The Hon. M.J. WRIGHT (Lee—Minister for Police, Minister for Emergency Services, Minister for Recreation, Sport and Racing) (14:12): I thought that, in part, if not largely, I have already answered that. Certainly, with regard to Active Club I have another minister who considers the recommendations that are made to me about Active Club. An honourable member interjecting: The Hon. M.J. WRIGHT House of Assembly The Hon. M.J. WRIGHT: I will come to it if you shut up and listen. I have consistently, as I said earlier, taken any recommendation that is made to me for the electorate of Lee to another minister for that minister to look at the advice that is provided by the Office for Recreation and Sport. As the honourable member should be aware, being a former minister in this portfolio area, the Office for Recreation and Sport has a number of grants. Active Club is the one which we know most about in here, because it is money that is going to clubs in our electorate. There is also the Community Recreation and Sport Facilities Fund; that one goes out to a whole range of organisations in metropolitan and country areas. We also have the STEP funding that largely goes to peak bodies, and we also have IRIS. For each of those programs there is a very transparent process that is already in place by the Office for Recreation and Sport. It has committees in place. As I recall, there might be some crossover, some people might be on the same committee, but they have different committees for those different grant fundings. Having said that, because of importance and sensitivity (and I would expected the former minister may have done the same himself), whenever recommendations have come to me with regard to Active Club I have ensured that another minister consider those recommendations and sign off on those grants that have been recommended by a committee from the Office for Recreation and Sport for Active Club grants.