Grassroots Sports Grant

Mr TRELOAR (Flinders) (14:32): My question is to the Minister for Recreation, Sport and Racing. Can the minister inform the house how the Marshall Liberal government is supporting South Australia's recovery from the impacts of COVID-19 through grassroots sports grants?

The Hon. C.L. WINGARD (Gibson—Minister for Police, Emergency Services and Correctional Services, Minister for Recreation, Sport and Racing) (14:32): I thank the member for Flinders for his question and very much acknowledge his passion for grassroots and community sporting events. As we know, grassroots sport is incredibly important to the whole of South Australia, and amongst this COVID-19 crisis people are telling me more than ever they are missing their sport. Not anyone that I have met hasn't said how much they love their sport and how much they want to see it back.

Players, supporters, volunteers—grassroots sport is about bringing communities together and that is something that we do all want to return to. Hopefully very soon our parks, our grounds and our courts will be able to cheer on local athletes and make us all very proud but, as we know, the decisions around this will be led by SA Health and Dr Nicola Spurrier and the great work that SA Health has been doing. As a government we are making sure we are working with all our sporting organisations to be as prepared as possible when SA Health do give us the all clear to work our way back into sport.

Until that day, we are making sure we are doing all we can to get our sporting clubs and sporting groups and sporting organisations as ready as ever before. Before this crisis, things were ticking along well, and we want to make sure that when we come out of this crisis we are stronger than before. What we want to do is build sport in South Australia and building sport is a major priority for this government.

That's why we have been rolling out our highly successful grassroots football, cricket and netball program. The power of this program has been working with the SANFL, the SACA and Netball SA as key partners in this program working with the Office of Rec and Sport. As we know, the SANFL and the SACA have actually put skin in the game, financial input into this program, and they have been leading the way in the recommendations of the decisions that are being made on the final outcomes.

Round 1 of the grassroots footy, cricket and netball program was incredibly popular, just proving how sports mad South Australians truly are. That's why I was proud to announce that round 3 was brought forward. It was meant to be next financial year, as the Premier has been outlining, but we have brought that forward, so another $5 million is going into grassroots sport, which is just outstanding. So far the investment has yielded more than $40 million worth of projects out in our communities, again delivering better services, which is what we are about.

Can I run through a couple. I know the people in the member for Kaurna's electorate and the member for Reynell's electorate around the Hackham sports complex—a wonderful investment in new change rooms for them, so a great project there. Flinders Park as well in the member for West Torrens' electorate is another great project that is rolling out. The Eastern Parade Reserve in Ottoway, I think it is in the member for Port Adelaide's electorate, is another great project again helping community sports.

Constructing new comprehensive multipurpose sporting facilities with family-friendly change rooms has been the key, change rooms that can be used by everyone. Depending on who is playing there, we can get families in and around sport, which is outstanding. In round 2 was the announcement of the Goolwa Oval Sporting Precinct in the member for Finniss's electorate. These were some of the worst change rooms I had ever seen when the member for Finniss took me down there, so it was a pleasure to see their application be successful as well.

I was up in Whyalla earlier in the year for the Bennett Oval launch and the development that went on there. Again, I do truly congratulate the people of Whyalla, the region and the council on coming on board with this project. Bennett Oval looked a treat when Port Adelaide did beat the Western Bulldogs in a preseason game. It seems like a long time ago. The Clare sports complex has had facility upgrades, and they say their facilities were antiquated for the last 30 to 40 years, so grassroots will be benefiting.

There are a number of others: the Mount Lofty Devils, the North Clare Football Club, the Mid Hills Netball Association, the Victoria Park sporting grounds in Jamestown, and even Paul Caica, the President of the Henley football club, was ecstatic when they received a grant under this program. Again, when we return, when we get back to sport—and hopefully that is soon, but we will be guided by Health—we will be stronger than before.