House of Assembly Fifty-Third Parliament, First Session (53-1) 53 1 Parliament of South Australia House of Assembly published Question Time Water Industry Reform Water Industry Reform Mr MARSHALL House of Assembly Dunstan Leader of the Opposition Water Industry Reform Mr MARSHALL (Dunstan—Leader of the Opposition) (14:15): Has the government or Treasury undertaken any modelling in relation to the impact of a third-party access regime on SA Water's dividend? The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS House of Assembly West Torrens Minister for Finance Minister for State Development Minister for Mineral Resources and Energy Minister for Small Business Water Industry Reform The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS (West Torrens—Treasurer, Minister for Finance, Minister for State Development, Minister for Mineral Resources and Energy, Minister for Small Business) (14:15): Lots of things can impact the dividend that SA Water pays. As I was articulating to the house yesterday, in the final year of the last Liberal government, they took $170 million in today's money out of SA Water compared to $26 million that Labor has taken out— Mr Pisoni interjecting: The Speaker House of Assembly The SPEAKER: The member for Unley is called to order. The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS House of Assembly The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS: —this year. If the modelling has been done, Treasury do modelling on all types of scenarios that involve utilities and assets that we own. Mr Gardner House of Assembly Mr Gardner: Lots of secret plans. The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS House of Assembly The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS: The Opposition Whip says they have secret plans. Mr Gardner House of Assembly Mr Gardner: That's not what I said. The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS House of Assembly The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS: You said 'secret plans'. It seems to me, if you want to talk about secret plans, I think the Treasurer— Ms CHAPMAN House of Assembly Ms CHAPMAN: Point of order. The Speaker House of Assembly The SPEAKER: Yes, point of order. Ms CHAPMAN House of Assembly Ms CHAPMAN: In one breath, the Treasurer is indicating that he will get an answer, and then the rest of it's just waffle. So, we either have an answer or not—clearly not. The Speaker House of Assembly The SPEAKER: That the answer is waffle is not a point of order. Ms CHAPMAN House of Assembly Ms CHAPMAN: Well, it's not relevant. It's not relevant to the question—anywhere near it. The Speaker House of Assembly The SPEAKER: That is a disorderly point of order. Treasurer. Mr Goldsworthy House of Assembly Mr Goldsworthy: It's not germane. The Speaker House of Assembly The SPEAKER: Yes, the member for Kavel is correct. Treasurer. The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS House of Assembly The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS: A little bit of auditioning going on. Members interjecting: The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS House of Assembly The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS: Don't worry, it won't hurt a bit. Members interjecting: The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS House of Assembly The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS: It won't hurt. Mr Marshall interjecting: The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS House of Assembly The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS: It will be painless. You will go to sleep and just wake up and it will be a different job; you'll be fine. The Speaker House of Assembly The SPEAKER: The Treasurer— The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS House of Assembly The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS: Yes, Mr Speaker? The Speaker House of Assembly The SPEAKER: —is called to order. The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS House of Assembly The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS: Yes, sir; I apologise. Treasury do modelling on many scenarios. As I have said to the house on many occasions, it is only proper that Treasury offer the very best advice they can to the government of the day but, again, policy is decided by elected representatives and elected governments, not by unelected officials. We are the ones who decide policy. We are the ones who decide whether utilities are held in public or private hands. Mr Knoll interjecting: The Speaker House of Assembly The SPEAKER: The member for Schubert is called to order. The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS House of Assembly The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS: Judge us on what we do. Don't judge us on what the bureaucracy investigates.