Tea Tree Gully Toy Library

Ms LUETHEN (King) (14:19): My question is to the Minister for Education. Can the minister advise the house about the details of grants to the Tea Tree Gully Toy Library and, in particular, whether the government has or has not increased funding to the Tea Tree Gully Toy Library over what the previous government was providing?

The Hon. S.C. Mullighan interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Is the member for Lee interjecting? He is called to order and warned.

An honourable member: Chuck him out.

The SPEAKER: I might do that. The Minister for Education has the call.

The Hon. J.A.W. GARDNER (Morialta—Minister for Education) (14:20): I am very pleased to receive this question from the member for King, who is a firm advocate for the needs of young people in her electorate. The member for Newland has also written and spoken to me on a number of occasions about the Tea Tree Gully Toy Library. It was a pleasure to visit the toy library with those members and deliver on the government's commitment—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order, members on my left and right!

The Hon. J.A.W. GARDNER: —which did indeed increase funding over and above what was made available by the former government. There were some further questions about this during estimates, so I think it's useful to provide further information to the house. The Tea Tree Gully Toy Library has been receiving funding from the South Australian Department for Education in its various forms for a number of years. Going back to 2014 and earlier, $19,300 per year was provided to the library. In January 2016, a new agreement was provided for the Tea Tree Gully Toy Library to receive $19,000 a year. That agreement was for three years. It started in January 2016 and ends in December 2018.

I am advised that there is one payment left of $9,500 to meet the contract of that agreement, and that payment is underway in this financial year. In addition to that, prior to the last election, on 16 February, the former minister for education and child development, the member for Port Adelaide, approved an allocation of $84,000 over four years to the Tea Tree Gully Toy Library, which was to start in the previous financial year. That agreement was increased from $84,000 to $100,000 as a result of the approval I gave on 23 May this year. The execution of that agreement was undertaken on 8 June this year.

So one agreement was coming to a conclusion at the end of this year. There is an agreement that started at the beginning of this year, and that second agreement has been increased. The effect of that increase and the overlap, if you like, in the grants, is that this year the Tea Tree Gully Toy Library was set to receive $40,000 under those opposite. Next year, it was set to receive $21,000 and $21,000 for the two years after that. Under this government, this year, the Tea Tree Gully Toy Library is, in fact, receiving $44,000 and next year will receive $25,000 and $25,000 for the two years after that.

The Hon. S.C. Mullighan interjecting:

The Hon. J.A.W. GARDNER: The shadow treasurer just said that there is a cut, I believe.

The SPEAKER: No.

The Hon. J.A.W. GARDNER: That was the suggestion that the member for Wright made during estimates.

The SPEAKER: Please do not respond to interjections, minister.

The Hon. J.A.W. GARDNER: If that were the case, then the member for West Torrens' last budget should have identified that the original $19,000 grant was going forward, or the shadow minister for education, as the minister for education she was before the election, might have indicated that that $19,000 was going forward. I have received no advice from my department that any such instruction was given. There was $19,000 this year, and that grant was not provided past the end of December this year. That was not provided by the former government.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order, members on my left!

The Hon. J.A.W. GARDNER: It's worth noting that there are two other toy libraries supported by the Department for Education: Clare, which receives $9,600 a year, and Goodwood, which receives $7,000 per year. I believe that those toy libraries and those communities are very grateful for that support. The Tea Tree Gully Toy Library will continue to receive $25,000 a year, as this government committed before the election, which indicates $4,000 more this year than they would have received under the former government, $4,000 more next year and $4,000 more for the two years to follow.

The SPEAKER: I call to order the members for Hammond, Playford and Wright.