EDUCATION DEPARTMENT REDUNDANCIES

Mr PISONI (Unley) (14:54): My question is to the Minister for Education. Does the minister support forced redundancies for staff in his department after the next election?

The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL (Cheltenham—Minister for Education, Minister for Early Childhood Development, Minister for Science and Information Economy) (14:54): The honourable members opposite know that a budget has just been handed down, and there have been a number of declarations made in that budget, including a very important commitment that there will be no forced redundancies between now and the end of the term of this government. I remember when we—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order! I can't hear the minister.

The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL: I remember when I had carriage of the Public Sector Act there was a lot of squawking from those opposite wanting to make changes to the act. In the course of that debate they appeared to try to create friends, if you like, with the PSA. They were offering themselves as the new friends of the PSA. I remember saying at the time, 'Be very careful of your new friends, because they are unlikely to be with you in the long run.'

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL: The real question on this is what is the attitude of—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL: What is the attitude of those opposite to circumstances where an employee has been offered alternative duties—

Mr WILLIAMS: Point of order, Madam Speaker.

The SPEAKER: Order! Point of order.

Mr WILLIAMS: Question time is about the opposition asking the minister questions. It is not about the minister asking the opposition questions.

The SPEAKER: Order! Sit down. The minister can answer the question any way he chooses, and I do not think he is asking the opposition questions, he is developing an argument, I think.

The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL: Precisely, Madam Speaker. For those opposite—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

Mr WILLIAMS: Point of order, Madam Speaker.

The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL: For those opposite, it is a device called the rhetorical question, but just sit down and listen to it.

Mr WILLIAMS: Point of order, Madam Speaker.

The SPEAKER: Order! Point of order, member for MacKillop.

Mr WILLIAMS: I agree with you, Madam Speaker, he is developing an argument; that is called debate.

The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL: No, it's not; it's supplying information. This is an important point because, when an employee becomes displaced as a consequence of a decision within a state government agency, we have an obligation—and, indeed, it is our intention—to try to find them alternative duties. That is obviously the first way in which we deal with it. Another option is that, because we have a turnover, I think, of something in the order of 7,000 people per annum in the public sector, other jobs are available for people to be placed in.

This savings task that has been identified by the government is a relatively modest one in the context of a turnover of 7,000 people per annum. But for those employees who, after considering all the options of vacancies, after considering the alternative duties and the opportunity maybe even to retrain and find some alternative careers—and with all of those options and if they perhaps are not participating or cooperating in the placement in other areas, are those opposite seriously saying that they support people sitting around in some transit lounge somewhere in government receiving an ongoing salary? Is that the proposition that those opposite are seeking to develop?

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL: I think we are entitled to know what their position is in relation to that question.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!