Taxi Levy

Mr WHETSTONE (Chaffey) (14:54): My question is to the Minister for Transport and Infrastructure. Has there been any analysis done on the effects of the taxi levy and the increase for peak periods and weekends in regional areas, such as the Riverland and Mallee, where public transport does not exist?

The Hon. S.C. MULLIGHAN (Lee—Minister for Transport and Infrastructure, Minister for Housing and Urban Development) (14:54): I thank the member for Chaffey for his question, has there been some analysis of the impact of the taxi levy? Well, yes, of course. As we have said in our reforms, we are significantly reducing not only the amount of red tape but also fees and charges imposed across all industry participants, not just the taxi industry but also the chauffeur vehicle industry and also introducing a very low regime of fees and charges for new industry entrants like ride-share operators.

One of the ways in which we are offsetting the cost of such a significant reduction in those fees and charges, as well as to pay for some improved incentives to provide services in access taxis for those people with mobility issues, as well as to introduce a regime of industry assistance and support to existing participants in the taxi industry, is a suggestion which was developed by the Baird Liberal New South Wales government, and that is the introduction of a $1 per trip levy across all industry participants.

Contrary to the views put forward by some academic who released a report which did not mention South Australia, or indeed any of the issues here in South Australia, it is also consistent with how governments should be looking to regulate our industries, and that is raising the cost of regulation from the industries which have been—

The Hon. A. Koutsantonis interjecting:

The SPEAKER: The Treasurer will not converse aloud.

The Hon. S.C. MULLIGHAN: —regulated, so that was another part of it. What will the cost be? What will the impact be, for example, of a $1 levy? When combined with the halving of the maximum credit card surcharge, which is also part of the reforms to the industry, to give an example, the average fare, albeit in metropolitan areas, I am advised is approximately $21 for a taxi fare, and increasing that cost by, for example, $1 will clearly take that to $22. But if you then reduce the credit card surcharge or the EFTPOS surcharge, which is imposed by one company which is—

Mr Marshall: You could have done that anyway; they are not related in any way, shape or form.

The Hon. S.C. MULLIGHAN: The leader interjects that we could have done that anyway, which of course is contrary to the view that his shadow transport spokesperson put at the time that we first announced it. I appreciate you don’t tend to talk about transport issues in your party room, with the cycling war failure to talk about that for 11 months, but maybe you two need to talk a bit.

Ms CHAPMAN: Point of order.

The SPEAKER: The point of order, I suppose, is that the minister is debating the question. That is because he is responding to interjections he shouldn’t be, but neither should the leader be making them.

Ms CHAPMAN: Which wasn’t my point of order; I am ignoring all of that. What I am asking you to rule on is that we have had three minutes of general information about the taxi levy, and the question was: has there been any assessment of its impact in regional areas and the Riverland? That was the question—nothing to do with the general proposal.

The SPEAKER: And that contribution is an impromptu speech—a vice. Minister.

The Hon. S.C. MULLIGHAN: Thank you, Mr Speaker. Well, if the deputy leader wasn’t displaying such wilful ignorance to what was contained in my explanation to a pretty reasonable question, I think, from the member for Chaffey about what the impacts of this reform would be—

Mr Marshall: Well, answer it then, you’ve only got 50 seconds.

The Hon. S.C. MULLIGHAN: Well, it stopped the panicked, shrill interjections, leader. We realise you are on your last legs—three major KPIs not achieved: election outcome, by-election outcome, federal election outcome. I realise it's tough times for the leader. It's tough times.

The SPEAKER: The minister is, alas, debating the question. Could he return to the substance of the question, which was about taxi services in rural and regional areas.

The Hon. S.C. MULLIGHAN: Yes. As I was stepping through the reasonable question from the member for Chaffey, if one considers the addition of a levy, yet the reduction of the 10 per cent surcharge to a maximum, not a mandated but a maximum of 5 per cent, you would see that somebody would be, particularly as the fare increases—and fares are likely to be larger in regional areas because you are doing larger distances—fares are actually likely to be cheaper net of the dollar levy. So, yes, there has been a consideration, and the other point, with the matter that he raised about the night-time surcharge on Friday and Saturday nights, is to put more money in the pockets of some of our most underpaid workers in our community—and that's taxi drivers.