Telstra Job Losses

Mr MALINAUSKAS (Croydon—Leader of the Opposition) (14:40): Wise words from someone we don't know about.

The SPEAKER: Leader of the Opposition, the question please.

Mr MALINAUSKAS: My question is to the—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

Mr MALINAUSKAS: My question is to the Minister for Industry and Skills. In the face of these significant Telstra job losses in South Australia, will the minister reverse his cuts to Northern Futures Inc?

The Hon. S.S. MARSHALL (Dunstan—Premier) (14:41): As I have indicated to the house, we will be doing everything we can to support job growth in South Australia. We are waiting at the moment to find out precisely if and what cuts there may be for Telstra employees in South Australia. We would like to know, if there are going to be cuts, where they are going to be located and what is the best way we can help them.

We are not waiting to do anything. What we are doing is working. We are not waiting; we are working. We are working every single second of every day we are given in this office to grow the size of our economy and create jobs and broaden our economy here in South Australia. Lowering payroll tax is just one of the things we are doing here in South Australia, and building long-range productive infrastructure is another one of our major areas of focus.

What we need to do is make sure that we are creating new jobs through the building of infrastructure, and I would like to commend the Minister for Planning, Transport and Infrastructure for the work he is doing at the moment. Let me tell you, he has a huge amount of work to do to actually bring the business case proposals—

Dr CLOSE: Point of order: 98, relevance. He was clearly asked a question about the program called Northern Futures.

The SPEAKER: Do you mean debate, 98?

The Hon. J.A.W. GARDNER: Point of order, sir.

The SPEAKER: A point of order on the point of order.

The Hon. J.A.W. GARDNER: The question was clearly in light of Telstra job losses—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order! There is a—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order, members on my left! Members are able to make points of order on points of order. Let's hear it.

The Hon. J.A.W. GARDNER: The member asked a question, in light of Telstra job losses, about whether the government would be taking an action. The Premier is clearly identifying other actions.

The SPEAKER: I will listen carefully. I have noted—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order, members on my left! I have been writing down that during the Premier's answer he has been interjected on, and those interjections have been responded to, by the member for Reynell, the member for Lee and the deputy leader. So it is a bit rich for me to rule that the Premier is deliberately straying when there is a constant barrage of interjections. Premier, I do ask you to please stay on the substance of the question. I will be listening very carefully.

The Hon. S.S. MARSHALL: Thank you, sir. I'm so pleased that you are listening carefully. Not everybody in this chamber is listening carefully. The question is about a bright future for those people living and working in the northern part of metropolitan Adelaide, and what an incredibly important part of our state that is.

As you would be aware, sir, this area is doing it tough at the moment, there is no doubt about it. The failed policies that were put in place by the previous government have exacerbated the employment situation in the north, and that is why we are working very hard. One of the programs we are very keen to see occur there as quickly as possible is the completion of the Gawler line electrification. This was a—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. S.S. MARSHALL: It is incredible to me, sir, that those opposite—

The SPEAKER: Please don't respond to interjections, Premier. Stick to the substance of the question.

The Hon. S.S. MARSHALL: No, I am just speaking to you casually, sir. It is incredible to me that not everybody in this chamber is interested in the Gawler line electrification.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order! The Premier is answering the question.

The Hon. S.S. MARSHALL: To me, the Gawler line electrification, often promised by a former government that we won't refer to at the moment—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. S.S. MARSHALL: —would be a real fillip for the people living in the north of metropolitan Adelaide. I would have thought that members opposite would have been, I don't know, cheering, getting out their pompoms saying, 'Go for it. Let us know what we can do to support you in government to deliver this project. Yes, we didn't deliver it. Yes, we didn't get there, but we're glad that you guys are.'

The SPEAKER: The Premier has finished. Leader.

Mr MALINAUSKAS: Point of order regarding relevance.

The SPEAKER: The Premier has finished.

Mr MALINAUSKAS: The question was very specific—

The SPEAKER: The Premier has finished. Is there another question?