House of Assembly Fifty-Fifth Parliament, First Session (55-1) 55 1 Parliament of South Australia House of Assembly published Question Time Child Protection Department Chief Executive Child Protection Department Chief Executive Mr TEAGUE House of Assembly Heysen Child Protection Department Chief Executive Mr TEAGUE (Heysen) (15:19): My question is to the Premier. Is the Premier satisfied that the remuneration on offer for the new chief executive of the Department for Child Protection will attract the best possible candidate? With your leave, sir, and that of the house, I will explain. Leave granted. Mr TEAGUE House of Assembly Heysen Mr TEAGUE: The chief executive of the Department for Child Protection earns up to $382,932, yet the chief executive of the Office of Hydrogen Power South Australia, Sam Crafter, is paid $560,788. The Hon. P.B. MALINAUSKAS House of Assembly Croydon Premier The Hon. P.B. MALINAUSKAS (Croydon—Premier) (15:20): I think I have the ability to say, in this place, that I understand that the former government wasn't always attracted to the idea of paying the former chief executive of child protection a higher remuneration, so I acknowledge their change of position in that regard. Nonetheless, the state government is committed to employing the best possible people that we can recruit to senior chief executive positions. That is certainly true for the officeholder of the chief executive of the Department for Child Protection, and although I acknowledge the advocacy of the shadow minister to drive up the price as best as he possibly can for us to recruit the best possible person, we do remain flexible to respond to the market's needs. As is always the case, when we identify the best person for the job we also then go on to negotiation with them around their remuneration and their salary. But the simple fact is this: as I stated on the very first day that the news of Ms Taylor's resignation came to light, this was going to be a difficult undertaking. I think I foreshadowed on that first announcement that the Victorian government was also in the market for the chief executive, as the shadow minister has referred to publicly more recently as well. So we have to do our level best; we have to be competitive in a difficult market, and we have every intention to do that.