PUBLIC SECTOR DEFENCE RESERVES

The Hon. S.W. KEY (Ashford) (15:00): My question is directed to the minister responsible for the public sector. Minister, can you inform the house about what the government is doing with regard to public sector employees who also serve with the Defence Reserves?

The Hon. M.F. O'BRIEN (Napier—Minister for Finance, Minister for the Public Sector) (15:00): I thank the member for Ashford for the question and I acknowledge her strong support for the Defence Reserves. I am pleased to inform the house that, on Thursday, the South Australian government signed a memorandum of understanding with the commonwealth to codify support for public sector workers in the Defence Reserves who are called upon at short notice to serve the national interest.

I signed the MOU at Government House with Mr Jim Hallion, chief executive of the Department of the Premier and Cabinet. The commonwealth and the Australian Defence Force was represented by Major General Paul Brereton, head of the Reserves Employer Support Division, who is also a justice of the New South Wales Supreme Court.

The member for Bragg, who, with the member for Ashford, is a member of the Defence Reserves Support Council in South Australia, was also present. Both members have been strong advocates for the Defence Reserves in this place and in the community. I would also like to acknowledge the interest and support of His Excellency the Governor, who is Patron of the Defence Reserves and who hosted the function.

The chair of the Defence Reserves Support Council, Dr Pamela Schulz, raised some issues of concern with me earlier this year. In essence, some reserve personnel were experiencing difficulty in securing release from their public sector employment to undertake active duty. In one instance, there was a matter in relation to Afghanistan.

On making inquiries, it was revealed that the public sector guidelines in relation to this matter were potentially in conflict with the commonwealth's Defence Reserve Service (Protection) Act 2001. I asked the Commissioner for Public Sector Employment, Mr Warren McCann, to revise the guidelines to make it clear and unambiguous that public sector members of the Defence Reserves must be released from work as required by the Australian Defence Force.

Members will be interested to know that South Australia punches above our weight on a per capita basis in terms of health and medical staff who are active reservists. It is clearly in the national interest that we support these men and women. It is also important for our reputation as the defence state to be strong and visible supporters of the Army, Navy and Royal Australian Air Force.

The guidelines I referred to were updated and the MOU confirmed. Mr Hallion wrote to all agency chief executives on Thursday to inform them of the MOU and to remind them of their obligations. Members will be pleased to know that South Australia was the first state to enter an MOU with the commonwealth for the whole of the public sector.

Major General Brereton acknowledged this on Thursday when he spoke to ABC radio. The General indicated the Australian Defence Force will use the South Australian example to leverage similar support from other states. He said, and I quote:

...this is the way of the future and we will see more and more of this not just in the public sector but also in the private sector...in the not too distant future...that's a tremendous attitude for the Government to take.