Private Members' Statements

Private Members' Statements

Mr COWDREY (Colton) (16:09): I want to acknowledge and put on record in the house today our community's appreciation for the efforts of four young adults at West Beach early last month. I will read the words put together by Henley High School as I think they perfectly capture the sentiment:

Henley High School are immensely proud to celebrate the heroic actions of two brave students. Kai [Nixon] and Cruz [Campbell] have demonstrated exceptional courage and quick thinking during a recent rescue at West Beach with two other friends [Louis Kempster and Riley Kellock].

On March 5, while enjoying a surf after school, they noticed a woman signalling for help, her grandson had fallen from rocks into dangerous water [at the breakwater around the boat ramp].

Without hesitation, the four boys jumped into action to assist. Despite challenging conditions near the rocks, they managed to reach the boy. In a selfless act, the grandmother also entered the water to help, only to become trapped herself. The boys continued to assist until emergency services arrived. Thanks to their bravery, both the boy and his grandmother were safely rescued unharmed.

This remarkable act of heroism reflects the values these students hold. Kai and Cruz exemplify the best of our school, and we are incredibly proud to have them as part of our community.

I know that at least one of the boys is a member of the West Beach Surf Life Saving Club, and they are not the first to rescue others in need over the last couple of years. I know Kai in particular has been dealing with his own health issues in recent times and, in light of that, his efforts are all the more impressive. Boys, you should be proud, your parents should be proud and we are all certainly proud of you. Great job, and we are only too happy to recognise your efforts in the South Australian parliament today.

The Hon. A. PICCOLO (Light) (16:11): It was an honour to welcome the Hon. Frances Adamson AC, Governor of South Australia, and her husband, Mr Rod Bunten, to Freeling during their official visit to the Lower and Mid North regions yesterday. Meeting them in our local area was a special moment for the local communities to showcase the vibrant spirit and rich heritage of the region. I extend my heartfelt thanks to the Light Regional Council for the invitation and for hosting such a meaningful day of engagement.

At Kapunda High School, students were thrilled to have the unique opportunity to discuss leadership and community engagement with the Governor, a moment that will undoubtedly inspire them in future years. At the Kapunda Town Square, the community's creativity and resilience shone through as Kapunda kindergarten students performed an acknowledgement on Ngadjuri country in song before the Governor explored the mural walk and visited the Kapunda Community Gallery, all celebrating our region's heritage and artistic talent.

Joining the Governor for lunch at the Barns of Freeling was a privilege. What a wonderful place the Barns of Freeling is, a tourism business and accommodation mecca in natural surroundings. Discussions on community resilience with local business leaders highlighted the strength and determination of the people in the local area.

The Governor's two-day tour exemplifies a commitment to understanding and supporting regional South Australia. This visit reminded us of the power of connection and the collaboration in building a brighter future for our regional communities.

Mr WHETSTONE (Chaffey) (16:12): I want to talk about the importance of being a volunteer and what it means to a community, particularly a regional community. As regional MPs, we all know how hard it is to draw volunteers into any organisation, but I have made a commitment to reignite my volunteering to Meals on Wheels, who deliver freshly cooked meals to the elderly five days a week and frozen meals on the weekends.

Meals on Wheels have been operating in South Australia for over 70 years. They have delivered over 50 million meals to South Australians and the organisation relies solely on volunteers. In the Riverland, the four branches that we have are at Waikerie, led by Shirley Mudge; in Morgan, Jakob Gamertsfelder leads the unit there; in Berri, it is driven by the hospital; and in Renmark Rozz Dyer is doing an outstanding job. She gave me the induction only a couple of weeks ago before I went out onto the hustings to deliver a three-course meal. There was a nice soup, a nice chicken schnitzel with vegetables and an apple crumble with ice cream, just to get the taste buds rolling. What I must say to all of those 168 clients in the Riverland is: you are on notice. I will be calling soon to deliver the food and will be looking for some conversation.

Ms SAVVAS (Newland) (16:14): Minister Koutsantonis spoke earlier today in question time about the small claims compensation scheme. I thought I would just take a moment to acknowledge what has gone into the introduction of that scheme here in South Australia. In October 2022 there was a power surge on Whiting Road in my electorate, where through no fault of residents there was a surge at the power box that meant that a number of residents on and around that road actually saw a significant amount of damage to electrical goods in their houses.

In the weeks and months that followed, I was contacted by a large number of residents asking if there was a vehicle for compensation. Some had lost air conditioning, some had lost fridges, and many had lost kettles and toasters and that sort of thing. They were very frustrated—rightly so—that at the time there was not a vehicle to be compensated for their losses despite the failure of SAPN infrastructure that, of course, was not their own fault.

Those residents came to me and as a group we advocated to Minister Koutsantonis and his office for a bit of change in that area. We were incredibly pleased to announce late last year, I believe it was, that the South Australian government would be introducing for the first time a small claims compensation scheme for individuals and households affected by power surges such as this one. Residents can claim up to $15,000 for losses incurred as a result of that scheme. I just want to thank the residents of Whiting Road for advocating on behalf of South Australians.