South Australian Motor Sport (Miscellaneous) Amendment Bill

Second Reading

Adjourned debate on second reading.

(Continued from 5 May 2022.)

Mr TARZIA (Hartley) (12:35): I rise to support the South Australian Motor Sport (Miscellaneous) Amendment Bill 2022 and indicate that I am the lead speaker for the opposition. I believe we should see motorsport as an opportunity. I think we should see motorsport as a tourism opportunity. I think we should see motorsport as a social opportunity, and I also think we should see motorsport as an economic opportunity.

We know that motorsport is an economic opportunity for this state and this country because recent studies and analysis have shown that the motorsport industry, in terms of output to the Australian economy, comprises some $8.6 billion in recent times. When you look at direct industry output, you are looking at $3.1 billion, and when you are looking at indirect industry output it is over $5½ billion to the Australian economy.

In terms of value added to the Australian economy, it is some $2.8 billion, and when you look at the number of jobs that are represented, in terms of paid employment and also volunteering, you are looking at around 66,000 people across the country. In terms of the output that I spoke about, about 10 per cent of that is from South Australia. We know that in motorsport there are over 188,000 participants right across our nation and over 20,000 participants here in South Australia.

When you look at what a participant profile looks like for, say, a competitor, we know that a competitor would spend, well and truly, probably $20,000, in terms of annual expenditure on motorsport activities. When you look at motorsport vehicle purchases, plus initial fit-for-purpose-related modifications, they could spend over $60,000 a year. They also contribute in terms of events and also nights away from home, which, if we can attract events here, we know can also be a very positive factor for the tourism sector as well.

When you look at officials or volunteers, they would spend thousands and thousands of dollars each and every year. They also participate in multiple events during their calendar year in the motorsport world and they also tend to stay in the sector for a long period of time. People may hurt their shoulder, like you or me, because we think we are a bit younger than maybe we are and we go too hard at some sport event. In motorsport, if you play the long game, you can stay for a long period of time.

EY did a study recently which stated that the average age spent in sport was 20 years because you can stay a motorsport fan for a long period of time. You can not only spend time with friends and family but also participate and help to improve facilities as well.

We know that the Motorsport Board was axed by the former Weatherill government following a review of state government boards. It was determined that this board, amongst others, was creating what they called at the time unnecessary work for the Public Service. At the time, the national governing body urged the state government of the day to reverse a decision to abolish the South Australian Motorsport Board. It also went further: it actually warned that, by the board disbanding, it would hurt the state's economy and also unquestionably damage South Australian motorsport, which generates, as I pointed out, hundreds of millions, if not billions, of dollars each and every year.

And so we come to the bill at hand. It obviously aims to re-establish the South Australian Motorsport Board. We know that the board will undertake things like the promotion and management of motorsport events in South Australia, as well as enter into agreements on behalf of the state. It points out that up to nine members would be appointed by the Governor, and the eight Motorsport Board members who were actually on the board up until 2014-15 we know were paid up to $30,000 a year. Things like costings, things like the performance management of the board once it meets when set up, we think should be examined during the committee stage, and there will be a whole range of questions we may wish to ask.

In 2016, the former minister, the member for Mawson, actually said, 'We decided to get rid of this Liberal invention of a motorsport board so that we had more control over what was going on.' He went on, 'If we could run the biggest bike race in the world outside of the Tour de France, then we could probably do a pretty good job of running the motorsport race here, the Clipsal 500.'

We are a little bit interested in the change of heart that the now government has, and sometimes governments do change their mind—it does happen. We have a few questions in regard to this board, but let me put a few things on the record. In recent times, I did take the time—and I thank Eugene Arocca, the Chief Executive of Motorsport Australia and his team—to, bona fide, reach out to them to talk about the sector and the industry and what they thought.

Let me just say that I think what everyone will agree on is that there is universal support for Mr Daniels as chair and Mr Warren as CEO of the board, and I say that for the following reasons: they have previous extensive experience in conducting motorsport events in South Australia, which is very important. They also have a degree of familiarity with the previous operational activities of the board, and in particular the Adelaide 500, and of course, as I look at today's date, 14 June, there is also a short amount of time to the line, to the 2022 Adelaide 500 event, requiring a chair and a CEO who would hit the ground running. We appreciate that these events do take a lot of resources. I do not think we know who is performing at the concert yet, but perhaps that will come out in the committee stage.

We will certainly not be holding up this bill, but we do have answers we would like to extract from the government, mainly around costings but also performance. If we are to support this board, it is really important that it does do what it sets out to do, that it has the right people, that it has people of the right calibre, skill set and measure and that this board achieves what it sets out to do. I will conclude my remarks at this stage and look forward to furthering some of those issues in committee.

Mrs PEARCE (King) (12:44): It is not much of a spoiler to anyone to share that I am so glad the Adelaide 500 is coming back. Whether it is about the V8s, the side attractions, the incredible live music scene or the vibe itself, my community love a race, and it was a bitter disappointment when it was taken away. It was raised with me almost every day while I was out engaging with my community. They made clear their disappointment at the decision to cancel the event, as well as their bitter frustration over the desperate decision to try to pawn off the racing infrastructure. I heard it while making calls, being out at the doors, at my local community catch-ups, at shopping centre visits, at the markets and in every pocket of my community, up and down the hill. The feedback I received has been invaluable.

With that, I give a very special shout-out to all the incredible people in my community I met at Coffee N Classics and Show and Shines. They know motorsport inside and out, and the value of what the 500 brought to our state, and they took the time to share with me just how important the race is to them. A very special thank you goes to the man who was really keen to get things back on track: Sam Henderson.

For those who do not know Sam, the race is incredibly special to him and his family. Sam spoke his first sentence at the age of five on the lap of Mark Skaife at the Adelaide 500. This was especially significant, as his parents had been told that he would be non-verbal for life. The passion for the race brought something out in Sam, and it was his passion that helped move the state to fight to bring back the race. Sam and his family gave many hours over recent years fighting to get to where we are today. To you all, thank you for never giving up.

Like so many South Australians, my community wanted to see the Adelaide 500 return. Being an event so deeply woven into the cultural fabric of our city, and in particular of my area of King, this was hardly a surprise to me. Those who cancelled it seemed to have neglected the love South Australians had for the event, but those on this side of the chamber heard you. We acknowledged early on that the decision to cancel the Adelaide 500 was short-sighted, as did the thousands of people who signed the petition to bring back the race.

We understood that the decision would be to the dismay of not only motorsport fans but fans of the event in general and, more significantly, to the detriment of our state at a time when we needed the stability and support provided by the 500. With no plans for its replacement, hundreds of South Australians were left wondering if they would have a job still or if their businesses would be able to hold on during what was already a difficult period.

I fought for the race for these people. I fought for the photographer in Salisbury Heights who worked hard to capture the iconic moments and atmosphere at every race, for the gentleman in Golden Grove whose business supplied materials to the event, for the lovely family-run business in the north-east who relied on the work created from the race to see them through those quieter winter months and for every other person who relied on work from or generated by the race. The decision to axe the race was a devastating blow for them all, particularly as they were navigating through such uncertain times.

In addition to fighting to keep more people in jobs, bringing back the race is also about providing a critical boost to our state's economy and making sure that our state remains on the map. In 2019, the Adelaide 500 was the largest domestic-ticketed motorsport event in Australia. It supported over 435 full-time equivalent jobs in our state and contributed $45.9 million into our economy—up from $41.9 million in 2018. It helped deliver a massive boost to our local city economy, including hotels, restaurants and the broader hospitality sector, and also provided a great opportunity for local live music acts.

We are now racing ahead to bring back the Adelaide 500 in December because we listened to the feedback provided by the South Australian community. Can I just share how pleasing it is to see all the excitement and hype building for the race again. I am hearing from my community some great tips on what makes the race special—from bands they would like to see to attractions throughout the day—and I especially enjoy hearing about their favourite moments from races past. I am so excited to be working with them to ensure that the race this December is better than ever.

We may have only been elected a few months ago now, but we have been quick to act. We have set the date, and can I say that December has never looked better. The Adelaide 500 is a major tourism opportunity for our state. We want it to be more than just a race, but a festival of motorsport, and this is what this bill seeks to achieve.

This bill will re-establish a dedicated motorsport board to focus on realising the full potential of motorsport events in our state. It will support the board in its efforts to identify new motorsport events as well as promoting and delivering future growth. What is more, they will commit to continually reviewing and refreshing the event to ensure the experience at the race is nothing less than exceptional. Most importantly, it would charge the board with prioritising South Australian businesses, which is only good news for local jobs.

With support from across the affected sectors and dedicated motorsport fans, we are excited to be bringing back the much-loved Adelaide 500 and getting people back into the city, supporting local businesses and seeing the cars racing around the track again come 1 December. As you can see, I am absolutely revved. It is going to be great.

Mr PEDERICK (Hammond) (12:50): I rise to support the South Australian Motorsport (Miscellaneous) Amendment Bill 2022. I note that the South Australian Motorsport Board was axed in 2014 by the Weatherill Labor government following a review of state government boards. Quite a few boards got the chop at the time. It was determined that this board, among others, was creating unnecessary work for the Public Service. As indicated by the member for Hartley, the member for Mawson at the time thought, 'If the government can run this, why do we need a board?' He must have had a change of heart.

The national governing body urged the state government to reverse the decision to abolish the SA Motorsport Board. It warned the board's disbandment would also hurt the state's economy and unquestionably damage South Australian motorsport, which generates hundreds of millions of dollars each year. When it is introduced, the board's role will be to undertake promotion and management of motorsport events in South Australia as well as enter into agreements on behalf of the state. Up to nine members will be appointed by the Governor. The eight Motorsport Board members on the board in 2014 were paid up to $30,000 a year.

Groups of motorsport enthusiasts will support the re-establishment of an SA Motorsport Board, and the Confederation of Australian Motor Sport (CAMS) will also support the re-establishment of the board. On the discussion about CAMS, I was involved as a local member in promoting my area for the opportunity to have a dragstrip in the future in South Australia. It was quite a few years ago. Five sites were investigated. Thankfully, and hopefully, by the end of the year we will see Tailem Bend fire up out at The Bend Motorsport Park that the Shahins operate. Drag is recommencing.

Sadly, I am old enough to remember being there in 1979, when we had the jet truck—I am trying to think of its name offhand. We had a truck with a jet motor in it running up the dragstrip, going from the Tailem Bend end towards the Melbourne end. A dragstrip is currently being built. I was proud to be part of the previous Marshall government, which assisted with a $2 million grant. We are told that there will be up to 55 events annually. That will bring a whole new range of motorsport enthusiasts from right around the country.

At the launch of the announcement of the funding, it was noticeable that some people had driven from Melbourne that morning. They had got up really early to travel nearly seven hours to get to Tailem Bend for that announcement. The facilities at Tailem Bend are just fantastic. I hazard a guess that, alongside the dragstrip, the Shahin group, the Peregrine Corporation, would have invested at least $200 million into the local community. It has just fallen out of the seat of Hammond slightly, but it is certainly my local area, being only 20 minutes from my home at Coomandook.

To have those world-standard racetracks there is fantastic, with four configurations where you can have two small tracks running alongside of each other if you want to, or you can run out to the big track of 7.77 kilometres, which I have had the opportunity to do in my V8 five-litre five-speed ute. What a pleasure it was to see my two boys running alongside me in a five-litre VS III Statesman on the Holden demonstration day. It was a fantastic day.

I note what the member for King said about Show and Shine events. My son Mack gets out there at those events to show off his car and interact with people involved in motorsport. It has a lot of people involved.

One thing I know about the track at Tailem Bend is it is at least 85 millimetres thick and it could stomach Formula One. It would take a bit more investment, putting in a few more barriers and a few other things. I think at a push that it could be set up in under a month. It would obviously need funding. I think the annual licence fee just to run Formula One is about $30 million and it is probably north of that now.

I can remember the open wheelers during the late eighties and nineties; how good were they? The Supercars are great, but I do not think anything matches watching Formula One open-wheel events. They are expensive to run. It is interesting to note that we have that capability at Tailem Bend to operate that.

It is not only at Tailem Bend that we have those facilities. The Peregrine group purchased the racetrack at Mallala, and that is going through various upgrades as well. It is in the member for Frome's seat. There is quite a bit of investment going in by private investors, which would not have happened—governments do not do this kind of thing and nor should they. It is great to see investment by people who have their own interest in motorsport—that is well known—and who run their own cars. It is huge for the state that this investment is made.

With the re-establishment of the Motorsport Board, I am sure they will be involved in features across the state, whether that be opening up the Adelaide 500 again—and we know they are on a tight time line before December—or events at Tailem Bend where there is something on nearly every week. My young son Angus is only 18, but he has had the opportunity to go around the track and go up the straight in a BMW M3 doing 200 km/h self-drive—

An honourable member interjecting:

Mr PEDERICK: No, it is not mine. Thankfully, he did not bin it because essentially if you bin it, you win it. A $400,000 Porsche got turned into a cube one day. The bloke got out of it, but the $400,000 Porsche turned into $5,000 worth of scrap. That is the risk you take if you enjoy a sport.

It is interesting to note the friends that young Angus has who have these cars. I would be guessing, and I might get the number wrong, but there are a couple of BMWs and one of the blokes did bin it and rolled one the other day, but I think they will be able to straighten it up and get it going. I could go on, but with those few words I support the bill.

Debate adjourned on motion of Mr Fulbrook.

Sitting suspended from12:59 to 14:00.