Grievance Debate

State Liberal Government

Mr ODENWALDER (Elizabeth) (15:30): Over the last nine months, we have seen a government slowly falling apart. We have seen disunity—

The Hon. C.L. Wingard interjecting:

Mr ODENWALDER: The Minister for Police laughs. You are laughing too early, minister. You are laughing too early—there will be plenty of time.

We have disunity, we have seen confusion, we have seen broken promises and we have seen the loss of common sense in the interests of an out of touch metropolitan leadership. There are now clear fault lines in this government. This was all evident in opposition and more and more evident over the months since the election, but it has only taken a bit of pressure for the cracks to really open up and show the deep divide between the country Liberals and the city Liberals. This is painfully apparent now.

This manifested itself most spectacularly, of course, over the last two weeks, first of all over the Statutes Amendment (Mineral Resources) Bill. We have had the extraordinary spectacle, and I think unprecedented in modern times, of four country MPs crossing the floor to support the Leader of the Opposition in a motion to defer a government bill until next year to allow some consultation, which should have taken place in the first place. It is unprecedented. This was not born of political expediency but from a genuine view that the government's own constituents and the MPs elected to represent them were simply being ignored—

The Hon. J.A.W. GARDNER: Point of order: the grievance debate allows wide scope, but I do not think it allows the member to reflect on a vote of the house.

The SPEAKER: If the member has reflected on a vote of the house, please do not do so. I will be listening carefully, thank you.

Mr ODENWALDER: It is unprecedented and not born of some dark political expediency. These MPs and their constituents felt they were being ignored. They were being ignored.

On top of this extraordinary breakdown in party unity, the Minister for Emergency Services comes in here last Wednesday and pours fuel on the fire. With no consultation with his backbench, and with no support from the farmers they claim to represent, he introduces a bill that seemed almost designed to alienate his country MPs and further exacerbate the difference between country Liberals and city Liberals. Very quickly, of course, we saw the country Liberals revolt again and the whole bill has been sent off to a select committee. But while these two examples—

The Hon. T.J. Whetstone: Ever had a fire burn up to your house?

Mr ODENWALDER: Yes. While these two examples have simply exposed these deep divisions for all of us to see, these divisions have been bubbling away for a long time. The split between the country Liberals and the city Liberals is nowhere more evident than in the city leadership's attitude towards police services in the country. Before the state election, it was reported in The Border Watch, which is a fine publication, although I understand that this is not the view of the member for MacKillop, that a Liberal government would reinstate the police officer at a one-person station at Kalangadoo.

Following the election of the member for MacKillop to this place, that commitment simply evaporated. The Liberals made similar pledges to their city constituents. They promised to reopen extended police station hours at Norwood, Henley Beach and Glenelg. Despite the opposition of the police, who made these decisions in the first place, the city Liberals moved heaven and earth to make these promises come true. If it is good enough for—

The Hon. A. Piccolo: Not for the country.

Mr ODENWALDER: Exactly, member for Light: if it is good enough for the city, why is it not good enough for the country? Since the election, the police minister has run away from the government's commitments at a million miles an hour. I hope that the member for MacKillop, newly emboldened, knowing that his people are right behind him, will now stand up to the police minister and the Premier and the other city Liberals and make them keep their promises to the South-East.

It is a similar story in the Riverland. The member for Chaffey may know something about this. Renmark residents have long complained about the local police station's irregular opening hours. Last year, before the election, the member for Chaffey told this house that Renmark deserves a police service, that it deserves a front-line police service in a police station for their safety.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

Mr ODENWALDER: All of a sudden, once again, the police minister visits, and it is an operational issue: 'Nothing we can do about it. It's an operational issue—nothing we can do about it.' Tell that to the mayor.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

Mr ODENWALDER: The cracks are showing.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Minister for Police, leader and Minister for Primary Industries!

Members interjecting:

Mr ODENWALDER: No, the city Liberals are in charge, but they are no longer in control. They are in charge, but they are not in control. The member for MacKillop is going to go home over the summer, and the member for Chaffey is going to go home, and he is going to be told by his constituents to smarten up, to take on the city Liberals and to take the party back.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order! The member for King has the call.