Question Time

GM HOLDEN

Mr MARSHALL (Norwood—Leader of the Opposition) (14:22): My question is to the Premier. How can the public trust this Premier, given that, since he announced Holden's future was secure last year, Holden has announced cuts of 25 per cent to its workforce, there is no minimum jobs guarantee and Holden workers are now being asked to vote on wage reductions in order to keep their jobs?

The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL (Cheltenham—Premier, Treasurer, Minister for State Development, Minister for the Public Sector, Minister for the Arts) (14:23): I thank the honourable member for his question. They can trust a government that is prepared to stand up and fight for the jobs of Holden's workers. I can recall, actually, when I travelled to Detroit because of the threat of the closure of Holdens—I can recall at the time, even before the wheels touched down in Adelaide, I had the Liberal Party saying that the trip was something that should not have been engaged in by the government, that it was something that we should not have been doing, seeking to fight for Holden's workers' jobs by going to Detroit and promoting those arrangements. I was criticised by those opposite for being alarmist about the possibility of Holden's closing.

We undertook the study, which indicated that up to 16,000 jobs would be affected across South Australia should Holden's close, and that was why we entered into discussions for a coinvestment arrangement for the future of Holden's. We reached an agreement with Holden, together with the commonwealth government, to provide $275 million of investment to ensure that $1 billion worth of coinvestment was unlocked by Holden.

Now, it is true that changes have been made by Holden since that time that have meant that we have to return to the negotiating table, but at the forefront of our mind every step of the way will be fighting for jobs for those Holden's workers. It is not just for those workers, but we know that this is such a central part of our manufacturing base, and it affects so many other jobs in the rest of the economy. One thing that Holden have told us is that the barrier to us reaching a final agreement—we have been told this very clearly by Holden—is that they cannot reach a concluded agreement with the South Australian government until they know the complexion of the federal government post the federal election and the policies of any new federal government. What we do know is that the present circumstances are that the federal Coalition wants to take $500 million out of the ATS scheme, which is an underpinning scheme that supports Holden's investment. We also know that that same scheme—

Members interjecting:

The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL: Well, you asked for this, so you have to listen to the answer; that is how it works. The ATS scheme is a $1.5 billion scheme. During the course of that scheme they have also said that they will review its operations by sending it to who?—the Productivity Commission. I think we know what the fate of the subsidy might be if it gets sent to the Productivity Commission. Holden workers are, of course, alarmed, and Holden is alarmed at the prospect of the federal Coalition taking $500 million out of a scheme which underpins the conditions for investment for Holden. So, they have told us they will not be reaching any concluded view with us until they sit down with the federal government, whatever the complexion of that is post 14 September.

The other element that has been raised is this question of the wages and conditions of the workers. On that matter, we believe that is a matter for Holden to discuss with their workforce, as represented by their union, and that they should have those negotiations. It is not unknown for employers to advance propositions about changing workplace practices and conditions. They should have those discussions. They should occur in the framework of the Fair Work Australia Act, and we would expect that Holden's would conduct themselves in that fashion. They can trust us because we are fighting for Holden's. Can I say this: at the next federal election the answer is pretty clear: a vote for the Liberal Party is a vote to shut Holden's.

Mr MARSHALL: Supplementary.

The SPEAKER: Before we go to a supplementary, leader, I call to order the members for Heysen, Bragg, Morialta, Waite and West Torrens for interjecting repeatedly. I call to order the member for Chaffey for interjecting, and I remind the member for Bragg that the interjection 'Tell the truth' is always out of order. A supplementary.