STATE ECONOMY

Mr MARSHALL (Norwood—Leader of the Opposition) (14:51): My question is again to the Premier. Why won't the Treasurer put a dollar figure on the total government financial liabilities, or in fact doesn't the Treasurer know that number?

The SPEAKER: The last part should be ignored.

Mr MARSHALL: I am happy to remove the last part, Mr Speaker.

The SPEAKER: The first part may be answered by the Premier and Treasurer.

The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL (Cheltenham—Premier, Treasurer, Minister for State Development, Minister for the Public Sector, Minister for the Arts) (14:51): I have already given the answer in the general government sector. It is in the order of $10 billion—yesterday I gave this answer—and in the broader state public sector it is a $14 billion proposition. One is about 10 per cent of gross state product and the other is about 12 per cent of gross state product. Both are, on historical terms, quite manageable and, on international terms, excellent. Both involve prudent borrowings to grow our infrastructure for our state.

The Hon. A. Koutsantonis interjecting:

The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL: This is so we do not have headlines—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Premier, would you be seated. I warn the Minister for Transport for the first time for making a display. He has only one more warning to go. The Premier.

The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL: What is at stake here are borrowings supporting infrastructure investment, which are preventing the sort of headlines we saw in The Age yesterday and which are putting that state at a standstill.