Question Time

Government Advertising

The Hon. V.A. TARZIA (Hartley—Leader of the Opposition) (15:02): My question is to the Premier. Can the Premier provide a brief job description for the new role of executive director of government advertising in DPC currently being advertised? With your leave, sir, and that of the house, I will explain.

Leave granted.

The Hon. V.A. TARZIA: On 22 November, the Department of the Premier and Cabinet advertised a position for executive director, government advertising and insights hub, with a salary range of up to $429,104.

The Hon. P.B. MALINAUSKAS (Croydon—Premier) (15:02): I would be very happy to provide a bit of detail for the Leader of the Opposition on this question. The government is leading a bit of change within the public sector in the way that government advertising occurs across agencies. Everyone here present knows, and I think most South Australians would appreciate, that the South Australian government expends money on government advertising for a range of purposes. It is not just the ads that tend to cause a degree of consternation from the opposition of the day, it is also advertising for recruitment for jobs, public health messaging, what we do around road safety, police messaging—you name it.

The way most of those activities occur is that individual agencies have a group of people within their department who are responsible for public communications, including government advertising. Each of those agencies having their own resources to develop that is an approach that we have done a review on internally, and we have formed the view that we can actually rationalise the volume of resources by having a consolidated effort within government to do that piece of work.

Rather than every agency having their own public relations, communications and advertising expertise, instead you would consolidate that, and then agencies would in effect have to bid in to government centrally to be able to utilise the resources of that consolidated government communications exercise. That is the process that is in train. It is about making sure that the amount of dollars we spend is done as effectively and efficiently as possible.

Without wanting to be pejorative towards any effort that occurs within government, which undoubtedly always commences with good intent, the type of advertising that sees us having public messaging that hot water comes out of hot taps—this sort of over-the-top trying to find an excuse for a public campaign where it might not be necessary—I think just invites an inquiry of examination, which the government has undertaken, and now we are bringing in a consolidated effort. I think it is a responsible course of action. I think it is a reasonable course of action, and that is what we are implementing.