Question Time

Education Department

Mr BOYER (Wright) (14:05): My question is to the Minister for Education. Why are people leaking against the minister?

The Hon. D.C. VAN HOLST PELLEKAAN: Point of order, sir.

The SPEAKER: The Minister for Energy and Mining rises on a point of order.

The Hon. D.C. VAN HOLST PELLEKAAN: Standing order 97: the question contains argument, and I am sure the member knows it.

The Hon. A. Koutsantonis interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order! The member for West Torrens is called to order.

The Hon. L.W.K. Bignell: You haven't got a cabinet; you've got a colander!

The SPEAKER: The member for Mawson is called to order.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Members on my left! I will rule on the point of order. I uphold the point of order. I will give the member for Wright an opportunity to rephrase and/or seek any necessary leave that might be required.

Mr BOYER: Thank you, Speaker. My question is to the Minister for Education. Why are people leaking against the minister? With your leave, Speaker, and that of the house, I will explain.

Leave granted.

Mr BOYER: The opposition has been provided with confidential budget documents that reveal that $84.4 million will be allocated to construct the new year 7 to 12 high school at the Norwood Morialta High School Rostrevor campus, which is also in the minister's electorate.

The Hon. S.S. MARSHALL (Dunstan—Premier) (14:06): I thank the member for his question.

Mr Brown: You leaked it!

The SPEAKER: The member for Playford is called to order.

The Hon. S.S. MARSHALL: I note the way he has characterised this. I just think it's somebody in the department who is very excited about the Liberal Party's plan to continue to invest in educational facilities in South Australia. It's quite clear they are very happy with the way that we are going about fixing the mess that we inherited from those opposite.

We are very proud in South Australia about our investment in education: four new schools in South Australia. I commend the Minister for Education for the great work that he and the department have been doing in terms of upgrading our schools ready for the transformation that those opposite shirked. Those opposite shirked it for a long period of time, failing to move year 7 into secondary school, which was something they had signed up to—

Mr Whetstone interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Member for Chaffey!

The Hon. S.S. MARSHALL: —as part of the national curriculum signature that they provided to that national partnership agreement but failed to do anything about it. It required a lot of money.

Mr Boyer: This is why you should let the minister answer the question—because you don't know what you're talking about.

The SPEAKER: The member for Wright is called to order.

The Hon. S.S. MARSHALL: And that is why we have provided that money in our budgets that have already been put forward, and we are continuing to invest in education facilities that those opposite failed to provide over a long period of time. I've got to say I am very pleased with some of the new schools that are on the agenda since we came to government. Those opposite knew about the need that was required in the member for Giles' seat for a long period of time, but after 16 years—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. S.S. MARSHALL: —did they actually provide it? No, they didn't.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Members on my left!

The Hon. S.S. MARSHALL: They talked about a lot of things. In fact, they talked about a lot of things just before election day virtually every year that they were in, but they didn't deliver.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. S.S. MARSHALL: They didn't deliver in Whyalla. They didn't deliver for the people of the Southern Fleurieu Peninsula—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: The Minister for Innovation and Skills—

The Hon. S.S. MARSHALL: —like we have with the fabulous new school—

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS: Point of order, sir.

The SPEAKER: Order! The Premier will resume his seat.

The Hon. S.S. MARSHALL: —down in Goolwa.

The SPEAKER: The Premier will resume his seat. The member for West Torrens on a point of order.

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS: Yes, standing order 98, sir: debate. The Premier is arguing about the last election, comparing what Labor said and what Labor did and what his government is or isn't doing, or what is being leaked. It's debate and not answering the question at all.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order! Members on my right will cease interjecting, and the Minister for Education is called to order. Leaving aside those facts that might have been introduced with leave, the question was extraordinarily broad, bordering on esoteric in its nature, and the Premier has an unusually wide scope in responding to it. That said, I draw the Premier's attention to the question. The Premier will direct his answer to the question. The Premier has the call.

The Hon. S.S. MARSHALL: This question is really about which party in South Australia is best positioned to provide the educational facilities that we need in our state. We are happy to put our credentials up every day of the week. Those opposite had to be—

Ms Wortley interjecting:

The SPEAKER: The member for Torrens is called to order.

The Hon. S.S. MARSHALL: —dragged kicking and screaming to a new city high school, something that we promised on this side of the house back in 2010, 2014 and 2018. They had to be dragged kicking and screaming—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: The member for Playford is warned.

The Hon. S.S. MARSHALL: —in regard to it. We are talking about the Rostrevor campus of the Norwood Morialta High School. Let's be very clear: the plan from those opposite was to close the campus. We have been opening campuses: their plan was to close the Rostrevor campus.

We have made no secret of the fact that we need a greater level of facilities here in metropolitan Adelaide and across the country in South Australia. We see a lot of our excellent schools in South Australia under real pressure here in metropolitan Adelaide, especially in the east—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: The member for Wright is warned.

The Hon. S.S. MARSHALL: —an area which those opposite neglected over a long period of time. Their plan was to sell off the Rostrevor campus. Our plan is to consider whether this is an ideal campus for us to create a new school. This is no secret. It has been the subject of an InfrastructureSA report published earlier this year. Everybody can see that.

I think it is now time to get on board with making sure that we have a logical way to improve our educational facilities in South Australia. We are happy to put our credentials up every single day of the week: $1.3 billion in capital improvements right across South Australia—$1.3 billion. They can whinge, they can whine, they can carp, they can complain, but they can't rewrite history. They didn't do it when they were in: it’s being done at the moment and congratulations to the Minister for Education.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order! Before I call the member for Wright, I warn the member for Torrens, I call to order the member for Chaffey, I call to order the member for Cheltenham, I call to order the Minister for Innovation and Skills and I call to order the member for Kaurna.