Grievance Debate

EMPLOYMENT FIGURES

Mr MARSHALL (Norwood) (15:25): Today's question time clearly demonstrates to the house that this government has absolutely no idea or any plan whatsoever when it comes to sustainable, growing employment in South Australia. They demonstrated with their answers or lack of answers to every single solitary question that the Liberal opposition asked—

Mr BIGNELL: Point of order. The member was not here during question time, he got kicked out. He has been kicked out time and time again and the people in his electorate should expect that he is in here taking part in the discussions and listening.

The ACTING SPEAKER (Hon. M.J. Wright): No point of order.

Mr GARDNER: For frivolous points of order like that, he should be kicked out, Mr Deputy Speaker.

The ACTING SPEAKER (Hon. M.J. Wright): I have already ruled that there is no point of order. Member for Norwood.

Mr MARSHALL: It does not matter which statistics we look at, this government's performance in terms of jobs in South Australia is absolutely appalling. Last month alone, we lost 9,000 full-time equivalent jobs here in South Australia. Since June last year we have surrendered 30,000 full-time equivalent jobs here in South Australia. This government should hang its head in shame. So what does it do today, Mr Speaker? What does it do today when there are reasonable questions from Her Majesty's Loyal Opposition regarding this important point? What do they do? They become defensive.

They start saying that we are the victims here in South Australia of a global financial crisis. This is where they run. Every time there is a problem this is where they run. They want to become the victims. We have seen it with this Premier, we have seen it with the Treasurer, we have seen it with his front bench—they want to be the victims. They never actually want to get in the driving seat and come up with suggestions on how to improve our economy, how to improve our jobs performance in South Australia.

They say it is because of a global financial crisis. Well, let me tell you why it is that South Australia has the worst unemployment figures in the entire country. Why is that? Why are we doing so poorly relative to our interstate competitors? We are doing poorly because of the government settings that this Labor Party has put in place over the last 10 years.

It is a fact that we have the highest business taxes in the country. We have had the highest business taxes for three years in a row. That is what costs jobs. We have the highest utility prices. We have the highest electricity prices in the country. We have the highest water prices in the world. These are the things which cost jobs.

Let me tell you another thing: we have the worst WorkCover performance in the country. Our average rate in South Australia is over double the national average—over double. At the last state budget, when Victoria handed down its budget, it reduced its WorkCover levy to 1.28 per cent. Our rate is 2.75 per cent, plus the penalty regime. We are completely out of the box in terms of costs in South Australia because of the settings that this government has put in place over its time in power.

However, it does not just stop at the higher cost of WorkCover, the higher cost of electricity and water and business taxes; it is also regulation. This government has made an art form of putting further encumbrances on the business sector here in South Australia. It is completely out of control, and now they are trying to push through the Work Health and Safety Bill which will just add an incredible layer of bureaucracy onto every single small business.

The government loves to talk about the importance of the small business sector. I was at a function last week when minister Koutsantonis stood up and told everybody there that the small business sector was the backbone of the South Australian economy; 142,000 small businesses. What he failed to tell the people who were at that function is what his government had done to help this really important sector or, more importantly, what they had failed to do, what they had cut.

They have cut all of the funding to the business enterprise centres, they have cut the youth entrepreneurs scheme, they have cut the small business emergency helpline, they have got rid of small business month, they have got rid of the SMEDP program, they have got rid of funding for Innovate SA, and they have got rid of their only recent pledge to cut payroll tax for trainees and apprentices. This government has done nothing.

When you look at the Public Service—and that has been a topic of discussion today—the guts problem with this government is where they have got their public servants. You look at the Office of Small Business, Mr Acting Speaker; I will tell you how many of the 84,000 FTE public servants are in that engine room for South Australia: 8.2. Only 8.2 FTEs out of the 84,000 public servants in South Australia are dedicated to the engine room. That is where the government has got it wrong.

They do not understand that employment comes from having a prosperous, sustainable business community. They have got it completely wrong. They think it is about increasing numbers in the public sector. Well, it is not about that; it is about getting a focus back on creating wealth and creating employment in South Australia.