Government Advertising Expenditure

The Hon. V.A. TARZIA (Hartley—Leader of the Opposition) (14:12): My question is to the Premier. How will the Premier's expenditure on government advertising help South Australians in a cost-of-living crisis? With your leave, sir, and that of the house, I will explain.

Leave granted.

The Hon. V.A. TARZIA: According to Government Communications Advisory Committee reports, this government is tracking to spend more than $100 million on government advertising that includes $1.9 million to promote the VAILO 500, nearly $1.2 million on a campaign to promote its Housing Roadmap, and over $420,000 on a campaign regarding Torrens to Darlington.

The Hon. S.C. MULLIGHAN (Lee—Treasurer, Minister for Defence and Space Industries) (14:13): It's funny, isn't it, being lectured by those opposite when it comes to government advertising expenditure, those opposite who spent nearly $150 million on advertising when they were in government. They were wrapping the government-owned trams in their propaganda, talking about 'building what matters', and the funny thing was they weren't building anything.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: The member for Flinders can leave the chamber until the end of question time, and the member for Chaffey can join him, until the end of question time. I want silence on my left.

The honourable members for Flinders and Chaffey having withdrawn from the chamber:

The Hon. S.C. MULLIGHAN: They did not build a thing when they were in government but they tried to tell everybody that they were. The difference between their time in government and our time in government is we actually do things. We are actually getting things done: expanding the hospitals and adding more beds, providing the financial supports and cost-of-living relief, Majors Road upgrades to the Southern Expressway, so people of the southern suburbs get better access to the metropolitan area. We actually do things, and we provide programs and opportunities for South Australians to get more from their government and it's worth telling the community about it. That's the difference between them spending $150 million advertising nothing and us getting on with the job of improving our state, expanding our hospitals, building more roads, improving our schools, expanding education, providing $800 million worth of cost-of-living relief when they did nothing.

The Hon. J.A.W. Gardner interjecting:

The Hon. S.C. MULLIGHAN: Here we go: the former minister for education so proud of that new high school he built in his own electorate, lecturing us about education expenditure that the member for West Torrens put in the state's finances.

The Hon. J.A.W. Gardner interjecting:

The SPEAKER: The deputy leader will come to order.

The Hon. S.C. MULLIGHAN: What an amateur. What an amateur. You have no credibility to come into this place, no credibility to come into this place and criticise this government for getting on with the job of actually doing something in government. It might be worth actually looking in the mirror and instead of practising the question time performance like you all do, looking in the mirror and wondering why—

The Hon. J.A.W. Gardner interjecting:

The SPEAKER: The member for Morialta is on his final warning.

The Hon. S.C. MULLIGHAN: —you only lasted four years out of the last 20. It's because you did nothing, you did nothing—$150 million parroting about nothing. That was your record and that is why you have barely got enough for a twelfth man. That is why.