Royal Adelaide Hospital

Mr MARSHALL (Dunstan—Leader of the Opposition) (14:06): My question is to the Minister for Health. Why did the government sign a $12 billion contract to build and operate the new Royal Adelaide Hospital that does not address ramifications for noncompliance?

The Hon. J.J. SNELLING (Playford—Minister for Health, Minister for the Arts, Minister for Health Industries) (14:06): Well, it does. It was very interesting to see the Hon. Stephen Wade once again completely out of his depth—

An honourable member: Wading in.

The Hon. J.J. SNELLING: —wading in, quoting comments he had only heard second-hand. How extraordinary! The simple fact is that that assertion by the Hon. Stephen Wade is not an accurate representation of what Justice Blue was saying.

The second point I would make is that we do have a very strong contract. That contract does have ramifications for noncompliance. Those penalties amount to at least $1 million a day for every day that hospital doesn't reach technical completion. The government will be seeking compensation for other areas as well. The fact is we do have a very strong contract, and that contract does protect the interests of South Australian taxpayers.