SA Health

Mr PICTON (Kaurna) (14:55): My question is to the Premier. Will the Premier now agree to a request from the ICAC commissioner that was made last year to provide $2 million over two years to conduct an inquiry into maladministration and corruption in SA Health?

The Hon. S.S. MARSHALL (Dunstan—Premier) (14:55): I have answered these questions before, but I am happy to canvass them again. This is a government which respects the Office for Public Integrity and the work that the ICAC and the ICAC commissioner do, and that is one of the reasons why we have put new money into that office since coming to government. In fact, I think that in our most recent state budget there was additional money made available of around $15 million. I note that those opposite were violently opposed to the establishment of an ICAC over a very extended period of time and had to be dragged kicking and screaming—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. S.S. MARSHALL: —over a long period of time.

Mr Malinauskas interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Leader!

The Hon. S.S. MARSHALL: One thing I am concerned about is the very obvious amnesia which is sort of occurring in the opposition at the moment. Having no understanding—

Mr PICTON: Point of order.

The SPEAKER: Point of order.

The Hon. S.S. MARSHALL: —of what has happened in the past is a little bit disconcerting.

Mr PICTON: Debate.

The SPEAKER: For debate. I uphold the point of order. Premier, please come back to the substance of the question.

The Hon. S.S. MARSHALL: We made it clear that we have (1) been a strong supporter of the establishment of the Office for Public Integrity and the ICAC commission and the ICAC commissioner in South Australia, and (2) we have advanced significant increases in funds and resources to the ICAC commission. But it is not a situation where we can have unlimited funding going to every single institution in South Australia.

We provide the resources, but it is actually up to the commissioner and the commission themselves to determine how they allocate that money. Of course, the commission can make a choice to prioritise health, and that would be completely up to the commission. It is not something that we would interfere in whatsoever. We welcome the fact that the commissioner has said that he will be making a report to government by the end of this year, and we await that report.