Question Time

Commonwealth Infrastructure Funding

The Hon. V.A. TARZIA (Hartley—Leader of the Opposition) (14:10): My question is to the Premier. What advocacy did the Premier do on behalf of South Australians ahead of the last federal budget? With your leave, sir, and that of the house, I will explain.

Leave granted.

The Hon. V.A. TARZIA: Last week, following the federal budget, The Advertiser reported that 'Beyond Whyalla, SA gets a relative pittance while the eastern states are lavished with infrastructure billions.'

The Hon. P.B. MALINAUSKAS (Croydon—Premier) (14:10): I thank the Leader of the Opposition for his question. In a way that might get touched on during the course of question time, I had the chance to be with the Prime Minister this morning and it provided an opportunity to reflect on the work that the state government has been able to do in conjunction with the commonwealth, particularly on infrastructure.

We were at Flinders Medical Centre, and anyone who drives past Flinders at the moment will see a huge investment unfolding. There are cranes in the sky. There is the biggest investment in the Flinders Medical Centre being undertaken at the moment that has ever occurred since it has opened—a massive expansion of facilities at Flinders. There are a lot more beds coming online at Flinders because we committed to $200 million to upgrade Flinders at the last state election. It's happening. The commonwealth committed to $200 million—their money is happening—and then we have added another $98 million on top of that. So Flinders is progressing.

Of course, to get back into town we drove down the north-south corridor and what we see now is the T2D Project well and truly in train. There are many milestones to be realised between now and its completion, but you will see all the civil works, all the compulsory acquisition—that project is motoring along, no pun intended. More than that, it's worth noting that this is the largest infrastructure project in the nation. There is no infrastructure project in Australia right now that is larger in dollars being expended than on the north-south corridor.

Of course, that's a project that I am very grateful to acknowledge was started by this government. It is a project that was started in conjunction with an up-and-coming infrastructure minister in Canberra, none other than Anthony Albanese, and I made the point to him this morning—or he made the point to me that he started the project and I said, 'Now you're helping make sure that we are able to finish it.' Then we drove past the Repat, and I thank the member for Morialta for—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Members on my left! The member for Morialta is on his final warning. Members on my left will come to order!

The Hon. P.B. MALINAUSKAS: I thank the member for Morialta for his interjection because what's being developed now at the Repat is the biggest investment we have seen at the Repat since it opened—

Members interjecting:

The Hon. P.B. MALINAUSKAS: —the biggest investment at the Repat since it opened—which we are very grateful to be delivering. So these projects add up. Of course, if you were to continue all the way up through the north-south corridor and go on the Northern Connector and find yourself on the Port Wakefield Highway and continue north from there, eventually you will get around to Whyalla. In Whyalla there is a $1.9 billion commitment from the federal government to steelmaking in this country. When you add all that up, I think it accounts for something like 11 per cent of the infrastructure budget—and then, of course, there is the Whyalla contribution. So there is a big investment.

Our advocacy to the federal government doesn't end there, though. I was onto the Prime Minister on a range of issues. Naval shipbuilding is now being honoured, the Skills and Training Academy has been delivered and, of course, the big one that we are really proud of on this side of the house is the legislation to protect kids from the harms of social media. That was advocacy from us that the Prime Minister has delivered federally. So I think there are many runs on the board that we are very grateful for.