Bushfire Recovery Support

Mr PATTERSON (Morphett) (17:22): My question is to the Minister for Industry and Skills. Can the minister update the house on how the state government is supporting the small businesses impacted by the recent bushfires?

The Hon. D.G. PISONI (Unley—Minister for Innovation and Skills) (17:22): I can, and I am very pleased to. I thank the member for Morphett for his question and also his interest in this matter. Of course, the South Australian communities of Cudlee Creek, Kangaroo Island and Yorketown have been severely impacted by bushfires. The state government is supporting residents, small business and industry and their workers as well as community groups.

As the Minister for Small Business, I have visited small businesses in the Adelaide Hills—Woodside and Lobethal—and I was pleased to do that with the member for Kavel. It was a busy day, but we learnt a lot about the needs of industry and business on that day. Of course, I was on Kangaroo Island on 14 and 15 January and again back there at the end of January with my Liberal Party colleagues.

The conversations I had with small business owners have been extremely valuable to gauge the extent of the losses and the challenges. My visits were supported by the Small Business Commissioner, Mr John Chapman. The commissioner and his office are committed to being present in these regions for a longer period of time. I believe on Kangaroo Island Mr Chapman is making weekly visits to continue to offer support and advocacy for businesses that may be coming across hurdles in dealing with insurance companies or the bureaucracy in some way.

Of course the state government, through the Small Business Commissioner, is working closely with my department, the SA Tourism Commission and of course PIRSA. We also deal, if necessary, with bank and insurance companies should disputes arise with their small business and farming customers. The Small Business Disaster Recovery Grants are starting to roll out and are being administered by my department, the Department for Innovation and Skills. The state and federal governments are providing grants of up to $50,000 to eligible small businesses and not-for-profit organisations. Funding will assist the clean-up and immediate restoration.

To date, the department has received 33 applications from South Australian businesses impacted in Yorketown, Cudlee Creek and the KI region. So far, $769,000 in funding support has been committed. The Department for Innovation and Skills has an active presence at the Lobethal Recovery Centre and the Kangaroo Island Recovery Centre.

On a sidenote, I was very pleased to bump into Craig Pollard with the member for Kavel. Craig Pollard has an antique centre. It's a little bit like Steptoe and Son when you walk in there. There is glassware, bric-a-brac and farmhouse furniture. He was very pleased to share with me that agents for Warner Bros, who are producing Mortal Kombat, spent a lot of money in his shop for props for the movie. It's a typical Adelaide story: wherever you go, somebody has a story that relates to something you might be doing. Of course, he was very, very pleased to share that story and very pleased to have the visit from the member for Kavel and myself.