HOSPITAL PARKING

The Hon. I.F. EVANS (Davenport) (15:07): My question is to the Treasurer. Does the Treasurer stand by his public comments that he made on 24 April, after checking with his office, regarding the sale of hospital car parks, and I quote: 'I came back to the office, checked the records. It was something which was in the 2010-11 budget, but not something which was brought to me.' Does the Treasurer stand by that statement, given that Treasury signed off, in September 2011, a cabinet submission supporting the sale of the hospital car parks?

Three times on radio on 24 April the Treasurer denied that the government was selling the hospital car parks. After checking with his office, he advised that the car park sale had not been brought to his attention. However, his agency, Treasury, signed off on a cabinet submission supporting the sale in September 2011. Agency comments are normally brought to the attention of the agency minister as part of the cabinet process.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order! There was quite a considerable—

The Hon. P.F. CONLON: Point of order: a large part of that was argument.

The SPEAKER: —amount of comment in that. I am sorry, what was your point of order?

The Hon. P.F. CONLON: The last part of that question was argument: 'they are normally brought to'. That's just argument.

The SPEAKER: And there was comment. Asking a question is not an opportunity to make a statement. The honourable the Treasurer.

The Hon. J.J. SNELLING (Playford—Treasurer, Minister for Workers Rehabilitation, Minister for Defence Industries, Minister for Veterans' Affairs) (15:09): Certainly I stand by what I said last week. The cabinet submission—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. J.J. SNELLING: —that the member for Davenport is referring to—and if he can show it to me I can verify this—is a cabinet submission that was brought by the Minister for Health to deal with the installation of equipment to provide the equipment to the boom gates, signs and capital expenditure to enable the fees to cover car parks. It was not a submission to sell the car parks, it was a submission to expend the capital to enable the car park fees to be changed.

There was a reference in one paragraph in the cabinet submission to the possible future sale of the car parks—that is correct—but it was not a cabinet submission about selling the car parks. The situation remains the case that, as I said last week, it is something that has been dealt with at an officer level. The business case has not been brought to me and I have not taken anything to cabinet, nor has the Minister for Health, to sell the car parks.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order! Member for Ashford.