Ministerial Statement

Governor, Appointment

The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL (Cheltenham—Premier) (14:06): I seek leave to make a ministerial statement.

Leave granted.

The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL: It gives me great pleasure to inform this house that on 26 June I announced that Her Majesty the Queen had approved the appointment of Mr Hieu Van Le as the next Governor of South Australia. Mr Le will succeed His Excellency Rear Admiral Kevin Scarce on 2 September.

Mr Le has a story of great significance to South Australia from arriving as a boat person in 1977, advancing his education, establishing a family, and rising through the ranks of business and community leadership to become the Lieutenant-Governor of South Australia.

Now the next chapter in Mr Le's long journey will be written when he is sworn in as Governor of South Australia. This is a fantastic step in recognising and celebrating our multicultural society as well as encouraging people of all backgrounds to aspire to roles of leadership in our community. Mr Le has already demonstrated an outstanding level of service to the community and I have no doubt that he will continue to serve in this role with great distinction, as he has done in the role of Lieutenant-Governor since 2007.

I can also inform the house that Professor Brenda Wilson, Chief Executive of the Cancer Council of South Australia, will be appointed as Lieutenant-Governor of South Australia, succeeding Mr Le. Professor Brenda Wilson has made it her life's work to serve the health sector, supporting the health and wellbeing of thousands of South Australians. She has risen through the ranks to serve as the Chief Executive of the Cancer Council of South Australia for the last 10 years, where she will continue her passionate advocacy for cancer awareness and research.

While there will be more official opportunities to do so, I would also like to pay special tribute to His Excellency Rear Admiral Kevin Scarce, as well has his wife, Liz Scarce, who have been outstanding advocates for South Australia in their roles. I know many South Australians appreciate the contribution he has made as patron of more than 200 charities and organisations across the state.

His Excellency has been tireless in his efforts to support the economic and social wellbeing of South Australians with a particular focus on the wellbeing of young people and the Aboriginal community. His leadership in the defence industry and continued focus on South Australia's economic future has also been of great value.

On behalf of all South Australians, I offer my sincere gratitude to both His Excellency and Mrs Scarce and look forward to paying them both further tributes in the coming weeks.

Mr MARSHALL (Dunstan—Leader of the Opposition) (14:08): Upon indulgence, sir, I would like to also offer my congratulations to His Excellency Hieu Van Le, the Lieutenant-Governor of South Australia on the recent announcement that he will be installed as the Governor of South Australia following the retirement of His Excellency Kevin Scarce.

The Lieutenant-Governor has served for seven years and we, on this side of the house, commend him for his outstanding service to the people of South Australia and, in particular, his very keen interest in multicultural activities here in South Australia. We are absolutely sure that he will do an outstanding job in this most important role for South Australia and we wish him all the very best.

We also wish Professor Brenda Wilson all the very best in her new role as the Lieutenant-Governor of South Australia, and we join with the Premier in offering our congratulations to the retiring Governor of South Australia, Kevin Scarce and his wife Liz Scarce who have done an outstanding job representing and serving the people of South Australia over the past seven years.