EMPLOYMENT FIGURES

The SPEAKER: A separate question now.

Mr MARSHALL (Norwood—Leader of the Opposition) (15:20): Alright, here is a new question. If the Premier doesn't believe that 33,000 jobs have been lost since the May budget and he doesn't accept that 19,000 full-time jobs were lost last month, can he please specifically tell the house how many full-time jobs have been lost since the May budget and last month?

The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL (Cheltenham—Premier, Treasurer, Minister for State Development, Minister for the Public Sector, Minister for the Arts) (15:21): We are investing to grow employment and we are doing it in the face of massive changes that are occurring to our state economy. We fully accept that jobs are being lost at the same time that jobs are being created. It is a race against time in terms of the creation of jobs against those that we are losing. We accept there is change occurring in the economy and we cannot stay still.

The challenge is to move more quickly than the world around us is changing; that is the challenge. We cannot afford to have those opposite in charge of an economy, because they do not understand when it is in recession and when it is growing and do not understand the dampening effect on confidence they have with their ill advised remarks. They also do not understand that momentum needs to grow. We cannot afford to sit around and refer things to some of their business mates while they work out who should get what job. We are investing in the future of this state now. We have projects on the go. They should get in behind them and allow us to invest in our future.

Mrs REDMOND: Point of order, Mr Speaker.

The SPEAKER: The member for Heysen tries to get a hat trick of upheld points of order.

Mrs REDMOND: I do, on imputing improper motive to the opposition in his comment about getting businesses to select jobs and so on that he made just a moment ago.

The SPEAKER: Some merit but I am not going to uphold it.