Steel Industry

Mr MARSHALL (Dunstan—Leader of the Opposition) (14:41): My question is to the Treasurer. Was the Treasurer aware that foreign made structural steel was being used in the new Royal Adelaide Hospital project when he criticised the New South Wales government for using foreign steel in a rail project, and will he now conduct a full audit of the use of foreign made structural steel being used in government projects across South Australia?

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS (West Torrens—Treasurer, Minister for Finance, Minister for State Development, Minister for Mineral Resources and Energy) (14:41): I will answer the last bit first: no, we won't, because it won't serve any purpose. Two, as I said earlier, structural steel out of Whyalla has been integral in almost all of our infrastructure projects. It depends on a number of aspects: one, the availability of that stock and; two, the particular type of structural steel that is manufactured in Australia.

Where we could, and before Arrium was in the predicament it is in today, we were purchasing South Australian steel and Australian steel, overwhelmingly, and investing it in infrastructure that our opponents called a false economy spend. Whether it was the Adelaide Oval, the footbridge, the NRAH, all of these infrastructure programs we have rolled out that members opposite have opposed, and now they are telling us we should have done this and that with that type of procurement.

Since Arrium has faced the problems that they are facing now with the unprecedented level of the dumping of inferior cheap steel on our shores, the South Australian government reacted. We reacted quite quickly and we did it in concert with Arrium. We came up with a policy that, one, wasn't protectionist but, at the same time, gave Arrium every opportunity to succeed.

I think every steelmaker in this country is not looking for a protectionist regime; what they are looking for is a level and fair playing field. What they are looking for is that, when the private sector is using steel on their projects and they are saying that it meets the Australian standard, when a lot of Australian steelmakers know that the cheap, inferior steel being dumped—

Mr Marshall interjecting:

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS: I said no. I answered that first. You should have paid attention.

Mr Marshall interjecting:

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS: No audit. I think our procurement policy has been very well received, not only by the commonwealth government and Chris Pyne, who thinks it is an excellent policy, but of course by the federal opposition. It is becoming a bipartisan approach to Australian steelmaking. There is only one group of people left who have not adopted it, and that is members opposite, who have come up with no procurement policy, no steel policy, no intervention policy for Whyalla, nothing. Indeed, yesterday, they were asking questions about the Minister for Regional Development and his visit to Whyalla, while the current shadow minister for regional development didn't even bother going with the opposition leader and the Minister for Mineral Resources and Energy. I have to say, Mr Speaker—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: The member for Chaffey is warned for the second and final time. The member for Stuart is called to order, and the Treasurer is called to order for debating the answer. Is the Treasurer finished?

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS: No, sir.

Mr VAN HOLST PELLEKAAN: Mr Speaker, point of order: I ask that the Treasurer withdraw his comment. The shadow minister for regional development was in Whyalla with the Leader of the Opposition and the shadow minister for employment.

The SPEAKER: The member for Stuart will leave under the sessional order for an entirely bogus point of order, and he will leave for 45 minutes.

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS: In defence of the member for Stuart, I think I may have miscategorised, and I do apologise and withdraw, sir.

Mr GARDNER: Point of order.

The SPEAKER: Point of order, member for Morialta.

Mr GARDNER: Under standing order 127, a member may not make personal reflections on any other member. The Treasurer did, and he has signalled that he is going to actually withdraw that. The tradition of the house is the member so reflected upon must ask for that reflection to be withdrawn immediately, which is what the member for Stuart did, and I seek your ruling.

The SPEAKER: The member for Stuart presented it as a point of order, which it wasn't. The member for Stuart may seek leave to make a personal explanation.

Mr GARDNER: Sir, your previous rulings, and previous speakers, have relied upon standing order 127, the understanding that the objection must be raised at the time that it is heard, and then the Speaker usually asks the member whether he will withdraw what is said. If the Speaker has not heard the comment in question, he will ask the member who has made the comment whether that is true. In this case, the Treasurer seems quite clear that he was going to withdraw it, and I seek that you reflect upon your decision and on previous rulings.

The SPEAKER: Alright, I think that is a fair point, and I withdraw the removal of the member for Stuart under the sessional order. My point was it was not a point of order; the appropriate course is to seek leave to make a personal explanation. But I agree with the member for Morialta: it seems disproportionate to apply the sessional order for that reason. The Treasurer.

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS: So, Mr Speaker, we have got a procurement policy in place that will maximise as much—

Ms CHAPMAN: Point of order, Mr Speaker: given your now ruling, would you call upon the Treasurer to respond?

Members interjecting:

Mr Gardner: He suggested that he was about to; he didn't.

The SPEAKER: Does the Treasurer wish to—

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS: I already have, sir.

The SPEAKER: You already have, okay.

Ms Chapman: On the record.

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS: I did on the record. You weren't paying attention, you were busy plotting.

Members interjecting:

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS: Mr Speaker, the state government is now—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: The Treasurer's time has expired. The member for Napier.