Local Investment

Mr ODENWALDER (Little Para) (14:17): My question is to the Deputy Premier and the Minister for Planning. Minister, how has the government encouraged investment in the City of Adelaide?

The Hon. J.R. RAU (Enfield—Deputy Premier, Attorney-General, Minister for Justice Reform, Minister for Planning, Minister for Industrial Relations, Minister for Child Protection Reform, Minister for the Public Sector, Minister for Consumer and Business Services, Minister for the City of Adelaide) (14:18): Am I called?

The SPEAKER: We look forward to another drear answer.

The Hon. J.R. RAU: Thank you, Mr Speaker, and can I thank the honourable member for his question. The City of Adelaide is one of this government's success stories. In fact, so much so—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: The Deputy Premier's provocative silence is leading to disorder.

The Hon. J.R. RAU: It appears to be, yes. In any event, so much so, indeed, that the Prime Minister, no less a person than the present Prime Minister, in his recent visit to Adelaide, recognised Adelaide's success when he said, and I quote:

South Australia already has enormous competitive advantages, including world-class universities, a substantial industry base…an abundance of mineral and energy resources, rich agricultural lands and some of the finest food and wine in the world…

And significantly—

Members interjecting:

The Hon. J.R. RAU: And this is the bit I think they don't want to hear because it comes from the Prime Minister. He goes on to say, and this is a direct quote:

…a capital city bursting with vibrancy and relative to many other Australian cities, more affordable housing.

Of course, good planning has an important role to play in unlocking these opportunities and shaping how Adelaide grows, but when good planning comes together with a range of strategic initiatives, that's when real change happens. That's when it really happens.

This city is one of the best examples of how policy, legislation, public investment and place-making have worked together to see significant improvement. Key levers that have been pulled together to unlock the city have included, in no particular order because they are all good: rezoning of the City of Adelaide to provide new investment opportunities—

The SPEAKER: I presume we have moved on from the prime ministerial quote?

The Hon. J.R. RAU: Yes, we have moved on from the Prime Minister, although these are things he wanted to say had he been given long enough. In fact, let's just treat it as if he's saying this. Rezoning of the City of Adelaide—self-praise is no recommendation after all—to provide new investment opportunities, and we are seeing that mushrooming around us all over the city; the introduction of the small venue licence, which, as you would recall, met with some opposition at the time, in April 2013, which has seen 68 new businesses opening, equating to over $65 million in capital investment and over 800 new jobs; encouraging private and public sector investment in the Riverbank Precinct, such as the new Royal Adelaide Hospital, the Adelaide Oval, the Convention Centre, the SAHMRI Institute, the forthcoming development here on the plaza, and so on. The list goes on.

The policies were supported by the introduction of a pre-lodgement and design review process for development in the city for any project valued at over $10 million to be assessed by the Development Assessment Commission. This process is a true collaboration to achieve the best planning and design outcomes for projects in the city and to provide progressive certainty to proponents. Design panels are a critical part of the process and are led by the Government Architect, but, alas, I may not be able to speak much more about them until next time.

The SPEAKER: No, you won't, that's right. Your time has expired. I call to order the members for Stuart, Unley, Adelaide and Newland.

The Hon. T.R. Kenyon: Thank you, sir.

The SPEAKER: It's my pleasure. I warn the member for Adelaide for the first time and I warn for the second and final time the members for Schubert, Morialta, Adelaide, the deputy leader and the member for Hammond.