BUSINESS CONFIDENCE

The Hon. I.F. EVANS (Davenport) (16:13): My question is again to the Treasurer. Why, after 10 years of Labor, does the latest Sensis Business Index indicate that South Australia has the worst business confidence in the nation?

The Hon. J.J. SNELLING (Playford—Treasurer, Minister for Employment, Training and Further Education, Minister for Workers Rehabilitation) (16:14): I don't know if they're going to take up all ten questions of question time prefaced by 'Why, after 10 years of Labor, has something...' Essentially, you always know when an opposition is in trouble because they find it a bit hard to think of questions, and so they will ask the same ten questions one after the other with just a slight tinkering change so as to give the illusion that somehow the question is different.

An honourable member interjecting:

The Hon. J.J. SNELLING: Indeed.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

Mr Pisoni interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Member for Unley, order!

The Hon. J.J. SNELLING: The simple fact is that, as I have said before, not only South Australia but Australia and indeed the world are going through difficult economic times. We have—

Members interjecting:

The Hon. J.J. SNELLING: The member for Bragg says 'Rubbish.' I don't know where the member for Bragg has been—

Ms Chapman interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. J.J. SNELLING: Maybe the member for Bragg has spent the last two years camped out in some remote location on Kangaroo Island.

Mr WILLIAMS: I rise on a point of order. The minister has been asked a series of questions trying to ascertain why South Australia is performing so badly and all he is talking about is the member for Bragg and other members of the opposition.

The SPEAKER: Thank you. I presume your point of order is standing order 98?

Mr WILLIAMS: That is exactly right, Madam Speaker.

The SPEAKER: Minister, I would refer you back to the question and please don't give us your opinion on members of the opposition.

The Hon. J.J. SNELLING: Of course I will, Madam Speaker. I am just somewhat surprised that it would be news to the member for Bragg that there are difficult economic circumstances in the world.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. J.J. SNELLING: It seems somewhat of a surprise to me that she might think that to be news. Nonetheless, it is the case that we are going through difficult economic circumstances. So, if members opposite want to pick and trawl through the data, of course they will find downturn. The government has made absolutely no secret of the fact that we have been going through some of the most difficult economic times for a very long time indeed, and you are going to find on all the indicators that the economy has softened.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: I warn the member for Bragg!

The Hon. J.J. SNELLING: But, as I have said, enormous opportunities are before us in the resources sector, high end manufacturing and the defence sector, all fantastic initiatives of this government which show that when it came in it had the foresight to diversify our economic base, to make us far more resilient—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order! The member for Davenport, you are warned!

The Hon. J.J. SNELLING: —to make us, as a state, far more resilient to the ups and downs of economic fortune. They are measures of which we have an incredible amount to be proud of.

Mr WILLIAMS: I rise on a point of order. I want to help the Treasurer, I know he is fairly young, but Roxby Downs has been operating since 1982.

The SPEAKER: There is no point of order. Minister, could you complete your answer.

The Hon. J.J. SNELLING: There are enormous opportunities before us, and enormous opportunities of which this government is incredibly proud, and we shall weather the economic storm that we are currently going through and do very well out of it indeed.