REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT BOARDS

The Hon. J.S.L. DAWKINS (15:32): I seek leave to make a brief explanation before asking the Minister for Environment and Conservation, representing the Minister for Regional Development, a question regarding regional development board resource agreements.

Leave granted.

The Hon. J.S.L. DAWKINS: Seven of the 13 regional development boards in this state will have their current five-year resource agreements expire on 30 June 2008. In addition, the other six RDBs, the resource agreements of which were to expire on 30 June 2007 but which were given a 12-month extension, will also have their agreements expire at the end of this financial year.

I understand that the minister took this decision so that all boards would be in funding alignment and to allow for the implementation of new key performance indicators in closer integration with the economic targets under South Australia's Strategic Plan.

The level of state government funding under the RDB resource agreements has not increased during the term of the current government. The opposition understands that RDBs have been provided with draft resource agreements to commence in July 2008. These draft resource agreements apparently make no reference to state government funding allocations and largely focus on changes to the membership of the boards, particularly relating to the ministerial representatives becoming full voting members. When will the regional development boards be provided with the details of their funding allocation from 1 July 2008?

The Hon. G.E. GAGO (Minister for Environment and Conservation, Minister for Mental Health and Substance Abuse, Minister Assisting the Minister for Health) (15:33): I thank the honourable member for his question on regional development board agreements and will refer those questions to the appropriate minister in another place and bring back a response.