Stamp Duty Reform

Mr MARSHALL (Dunstan—Leader of the Opposition) (14:24): My question is to the Premier. Given today's statistics showing South Australia has the highest unemployment rate in the nation, will the Premier now take urgent measures to halt the jobs crisis by accelerating tax cuts to stamp duty to encourage South Australian businesses and to employ more people?

The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL (Cheltenham—Premier) (14:25): This is accelerating the tax cuts that the opposition suggested would have no effect and would be of no benefit to the South Australian economy. We don't follow the chain of reasoning. The budget reply speech by the Leader of the Opposition is that our tax cuts will do nothing to assist the growth of the South Australian economy or create jobs, and now he suggests that we should accelerate those same cuts as a response to growing the economy. I think in the parlance of the political discourse that lacks coherence. That one idea does not—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: The Treasurer is warned, and the Minister for Health and the member for Taylor are called to order.

The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL: What we will be doing is to accelerate the 10 economic priorities which represent the economic plan for South Australia. Indeed, just this week, in pursuit of one of the critical economic priorities, which is the internationalisation of the South Australian economy, we saw the decision to reach an agreement to pursue a $4 billion iron ore mine, with the potential to create in the order of 2,500 jobs in construction, as part of the agreement that was reached just this week, with further updates on that agreement to occur later this year.

We also saw a new $70 million agricultural park investment agreement reached just this week. Another critical economic priority, of course, is the economic priority about making South Australia the best place to do business in the nation. An important piece of information we received from the business community about that is that—

Mr Pisoni interjecting:

The DEPUTY SPEAKER: The member for Unley is warned.

The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL: —we should align our time zone to the Eastern States. That has been a regular demand of the business community to create the most competitive business environment. We've done the heavy lifting on the taxation side. The Treasurer has introduced a nation-leading budget which has already introduced important tax reforms from the date of the budget, which has taken South Australia, on some scales, from the highest taxing state to the lowest taxing state in the nation.

Mr Marshall: The highest in the nation.

The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL: We've never accepted that characterisation, but on some methodology, the one that's preferred by the Leader of the Opposition, we have gone from the highest to the lowest in the nation. That gives us the capacity to tell a very persuasive story to businesses looking to set up business here in South Australia to create jobs here in South Australia. So we will be taking steps to accelerate the work that we're doing in relation to our 10 economic priorities. Rather than oppose our efforts to pursue those priorities, either come up with some of your own or get in behind ours.