House of Assembly Fifty-Second Parliament, First Session (52-1) 52 1 Parliament of South Australia House of Assembly published Question Time Government Advertising GOVERNMENT ADVERTISING Ms FOX House of Assembly Bright GOVERNMENT ADVERTISING Ms FOX (Bright) (14:07): Can the Premier tell the house the progress of his decision to cut government spending on advertising? 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 GOVERNMENT ADVERTISING 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) (14:07): I thank the honourable member for her interest. Mr Pisoni interjecting: The Speaker House of Assembly The SPEAKER: Order, the member for Unley! The Hon. M.D. RANN House of Assembly The Hon. M.D. RANN: We will talk about outrageous in a minute. One of the first acts I undertook as the Premier after being sworn in at Government House for this third term was to sign an order to cut government spending on advertising. It was clear to the government during the election campaign that taxpayers and, indeed, the media wanted to see far less money being spent on advertising. We have listened, and we are acting. I wanted it cut by millions of dollars but, of course, I did not intend to affect all of our essential advertising campaigns for issues such as road safety and bushfire warnings or even the recruitment of police and nurses, for example, because they will be calling for cuts to advertising— Mr Williams interjecting: The Speaker House of Assembly The SPEAKER: Order, deputy leader! The Hon. M.D. RANN House of Assembly The Hon. M.D. RANN: —but if you cut individual areas they will be opposing us, because that is what this opposition is about. It is about attacking everything, including our state. A suspension of government advertising was implemented, and new guidelines were developed by the Premier's Communications Advisory Group. All government advertising across the board was placed under review. Central to the formulation of new guidelines was: where and what do we spend our advertising dollars on, and what do we get out of them? It was about determining whether the advertising was absolutely necessary. So, the communications advisory group had the task of determining where we could cut non-essential advertising and where we could cut back on what was deemed necessary but overdone. New guidelines for advertising were then issued to all ministers, chief executives and officers engaged in advertising for their departments. I am pleased to inform the house today that, in the 12 weeks from the suspension to the end of the financial year, the cost of government advertising was cut by 15 per cent compared to the same period last year. Within this figure there has been a 30 per cent cut in the cost of functional advertising, that is, recruitment, tender and notices, and a 10 per cent cut in the cost of government information campaigns. There we go: within this figure there has been a 30 per cent cut in the cost of functional advertising (that is, recruitment, tender and notices) and a 10 per cent cut in the cost of government information campaigns. I am informed that this equates to a saving of $1.6 million in the past 12 weeks alone. If this figure is annualised and if the cuts remain in place over the next year, this will, I am advised, equate to a saving of $6.4 million compared to the previous year. So if that 12 weeks, to make this clear to the opposition, was turned into an annual figure, we are looking at a cut of $6.4 million to government advertising. This is good progress in a relatively short time, and I will keep the house updated on how we are continuing to ensure that government advertising remains essential and is focused on delivering a clear outcome. I am pleased that, with the support of the media, with the support of the community and with the support of the opposition, we have made substantial cuts to government advertising, with more to come.