Health Industry Investment

The Hon. T.R. KENYON (Newland) (15:04): Sorry, sir, I was being distracted by the member for Reynell.

The SPEAKER: I call her to order—

The Hon. T.R. KENYON: Thank you, sir. She's been doing it all day actually.

The SPEAKER: —because I do welcome dibber-dobbing in the chamber.

The Hon. T.R. KENYON: Thank you, sir, very good. My question is to the Minister for Health. Can the minister update the house about recent events that have promoted Adelaide as a destination for investment and health industries?

The Hon. J.J. SNELLING (Playford—Minister for Health, Minister for the Arts, Minister for Health Industries) (15:04): I thank the member for Newland for his very important question. I know he is very interested and excited about what is happening in Adelaide BioMed City, as it has come to be known, and the enormous opportunities from this development.

Last Friday, I was able to talk with representatives from industry, education and research at the Adelaide BioMed City showcase event breakfast held to promote our health and biomedical precinct, which is positioning Adelaide as a destination of choice for life sciences investment. With the global economy and our local economy both changing rapidly, the South Australian government has an economic diversification strategy. Through it, we identify the innovative, high growth, knowledge-intensive industries of the future and help develop them in our state.

One of our highest priorities is health industries, which are defined by cutting-edge innovation and growing demand for access to health care. We have shown our dedication to health industries through the $3.6 billion investment in Adelaide BioMed City on Adelaide's Riverbank. It is one of the largest health and biomedical research precincts in the world. At its completion, it will cover the entire area from the new Royal Adelaide Hospital in the west to the Convention Centre in the east and will include SAHMRI and three universities.

It encompasses the entire pipeline from education to clinical research to patient therapy, translation and commercialisation. We are seeing more and more investment and strategic focus in the advancement of health research and practice. A lot of this is because of Adelaide BioMed City, which is elevating Adelaide to the exclusive club of cities that attract these investments. Since its formation, Health Industries South Australia has been using the precinct and our state's many unique and attractive features to target investment, continuing to build the pharmaceutical and life sciences sectors here in South Australia.

Health Industries is a single point of contact for health and life sciences companies investing in Adelaide. It has already attracted four companies, including a $21 million investment from Pfizer. These investments are creating high-value jobs and they are making an increasing contribution to the state's economy. Some of these companies have links to automotive and defence sectors and are using the well-developed skills and supply chains in those areas to excel in the manufacture of medical devices and technologies.

By providing direct access to high-level decision-makers and actively case managing investment propositions, the state government embraces the role it has to play in strengthening the bonds between industry, investors and research. Adelaide BioMed City is also a product of those partnerships between different levels of government, industry, education and the scientific research community. We have a health and biomedical cluster that will help to increase the quality of our scientific research and teaching, patient therapy, translation and commercialisation, and continue to drive investment in health industries.

I would like to congratulate the Adelaide Convention Bureau and SAHMRI on the work they did to promote our precinct by bringing together researchers and industry and education professionals, many of whom were from interstate or overseas.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: The member for Adelaide. I'm sorry, I'm distracted by the Leader of the Opposition.