House of Assembly Fifty-Second Parliament, Second Session (52-2) 52 2 Parliament of South Australia House of Assembly published Question Time Employment Figures EMPLOYMENT FIGURES Mr MARSHALL House of Assembly Norwood Leader of the Opposition EMPLOYMENT FIGURES Mr MARSHALL (Norwood—Leader of the Opposition) (14:33): Does the minister have any explanation for why the trend unemployment rate has increased for the last 12 consecutive months here in South Australia? The Hon. G. PORTOLESI House of Assembly Hartley Minister for Employment, Higher Education and Skills Minister for Science and Information Economy EMPLOYMENT FIGURES The Hon. G. PORTOLESI (Hartley—Minister for Employment, Higher Education and Skills, Minister for Science and Information Economy) (14:34): I believe the Premier has addressed this question over and over again. However, the big difference between us and them is that we have a plan to build a stronger South Australia. It was only in September that we put out a jobs and skills strategy. It was only this government that improved our school retention rate from about 68 or 67 per cent to nearly 90 per cent. It has been this government that has invested overwhelmingly in Skills for All. As the Premier acknowledged, there are a number of global factors impacting here in South Australia, as they are impacting in every other state and around the world; that is obvious. However, we have a plan for the future: 113,000 jobs versus the 5,800 full-time jobs that they created. Members interjecting: The Speaker House of Assembly The SPEAKER: I call the members for Kavel and Adelaide to order, and I call upon the leader for another question.