Regional Summit

The Hon. S.W. KEY (Ashford) (14:40): My question is directed to the Minister for Higher Education and Skills. Minister, can you inform the house about your recent attendance at the 2016 Regional Summit?

The Hon. S.E. CLOSE (Port Adelaide—Minister for Education and Child Development, Minister for Higher Education and Skills) (14:41): I thank the member for her question. I was delighted to attend the Regional Summit, held in Mount Gambier last Friday, alongside the Minister for Agriculture, Food and Fisheries, the Minister for Manufacturing and Innovation, who is in the other place, of course, and most particularly the Minister for Regional Development, who was the inspiration for having the summit happen at all and happen so well.

It was sponsored by the three universities that we have in South Australia—three excellent world-class universities—and they each provided a presenter for the day. While they were of course very interesting and very useful, what was particularly heartening to me was to listen to the presentations made by small business people from regional South Australia talking to other people from regional South Australia about the challenges, the opportunities and the highs and lows of creating not only wealth and income for themselves but employment for others.

It was in fact, in some ways, a tour of some of my favourite products. I enjoyed very much hearing from the people who make these extraordinarily high-quality South Australian products. For example, Kangaroo Island Spirits run by Jon and Sarah Lark produces incredibly high quality liqueurs, gins and spirits.

Mr Pengilly: Rocket fuel.

The Hon. S.E. CLOSE: Much nicer than rocket fuel—I am sorry to hear the local member imply that. They are extraordinarily high quality, winning international medals and international competitions and started just by a couple who felt that they had the enterprise and the capacity to do that. They are now employing others and becoming larger and larger. Hood's Earth Produce is a company that sells free-range eggs. It is a brilliant company, finding a niche that is an increasingly large niche.

McLaren Vale Wines is another good one to hear from, as is Fleurieu Milk. It is a particularly useful time for us to hear from a small milk producer able to create a niche market. There was even a man called Ben Hood, who has written a series of books about George the farmer, which are about trying to get young kids to understand where their produce comes from and also to be interested themselves in engaging in primary production.

This Regional Summit had the academic settings for innovation, for collaboration, but it also had some down-to-earth real-life stories. It was, as I say, supported by the universities, organised by Brand SA, and several ministers attended in order to give it support, as did members of local government. It was the sort of thing that we ought to see in regions. It is the sort of thing that regions have come to expect—that people from Adelaide and across South Australia will be supportive of each other. It is through that kind of collaboration and through that pulling together that we will make it through these difficult times and continue to grow and prosper.