SOUTH AUSTRALIAN ECONOMY

Mr PISONI (Unley) (15:08): My question is to the Minister for Employment, Higher Education and Skills. Was Westpac Chief Economist, Bill Evans, right when he told a business breakfast in Adelaide last Friday that jobs growth in South Australia is the weakest in 20 years, and does the minister agree that you don't need to be Einstein to realise that South Australia's economy is in decline?

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order! That question was very provocative. The minister can answer it, but if you ask a provocative question you will probably get a provocative answer. I will listen very carefully.

The Hon. T.R. KENYON (Newland—Minister for Employment, Higher Education and Skills, Minister for Science and Information Economy, Minister for Recreation and Sport) (15:09): It is no secret that the economy in this state is not moving as strongly as it did before the GFC. That is happening right around the country and it is happening right around the world, but the economy in South Australia is still very strong. The employment rate in the state at 5.2 per cent is good. Obviously we would like full-time employment to be higher than that, but it is not. We have to find a way of working towards that, which we will do, and an important part of that is the Skills for All program, skilling people up for the new economy that I have talked about in this house before.

There is a lot to like about the economy, and there is a lot to like about the prospects for the economy in South Australia. Of course, there is always Olympic Dam, which looms on the horizon in the next few months. That in itself is a significant project: over $20 billion worth of investment in the state, thousands upon thousands of jobs—6,000 workers at the peak of construction and a doubling of the operational workforce to about 8,000. That is significant in itself and it is just one project.

We have the hospital starting up, the Oval starting to kick in, mining exploration levels are significantly high and are, in fact, increasing. There is a lot to like about the economy, there is a lot to be said for it, and I am quite confident that this state faces an optimistic future.