TOURISM, EYRE PENINSULA

The Hon. D.W. RIDGWAY (Leader of the Opposition) (15:30): There are 22 members of this chamber, each with an electorate that covers over 1 million square kilometres. All of us have offices in this building, but all of us represent 1.6 million people, who almost never, if ever, step through the doors of Parliament House. To represent the electorate we must go out into it, and in the past fortnight I have travelled nearly 3,000 kilometres to more than half-way across the Australian continent. I have listened, I have learned and I have lost hope in this government.

In 1839, Edward John Eyre set out for country to the north and west of here. In commemoration, we now have Lake Eyre, Eyre Creek, the Eyre Highway and Eyre Peninsula, that huge triangle between Spencer Gulf, the Great Australian Bight and the Gawler Ranges. The land he discovered was dry and harsh. Early explorers lost their lives to drought, starvation, fatigue and desperation. Then came railways, coastal shipping, the tapping of underground aquifers, land clearing on a massive scale and wheat fields—tens of thousands of hectares of grain and hundreds of thousands of dollars in exports.

The Eyre Peninsula's riches are not just in its fields and views, although I will come back to those, they are also below the ground, vast mineral resources waiting to be tapped. As part of the mission, I spoke with potential miners and investors, to people interested in developing ports, water resources, primary industries, including offshore ones like fishing and aquaculture, and tourism operators and planners. The picture they painted was one of government neglect.

One of the most pressing issues is a secure and affordable water supply for the region. The lack of water is holding back development on the peninsula, but this government does nothing, or the little it does is a drop in the bucket. It is a disgrace. It is not as though we have suddenly discovered there is a water shortage holding back development, it is just that the government has had its head in the sand, and in that position the part which sticks out into the atmosphere is looking very vulnerable and exposed. That is the part that needs a good kick.

Without water there will be no proper mining development, population growth or tourism development. Tourism is a $4.5 billion industry in South Australia, and I am determined that the Eyre Peninsula receive a greater share of that bonanza. Tourism is more than a holiday, it is one of the state's largest industries, with almost unlimited potential for sustainable growth, except for the Eyre Peninsula where the lack of water is holding back its potential.

I demand a government response from the incompetent minister opposite. I demand, on behalf of my electorate and my state, a government with a sensible regional development plan for the Eyre Peninsula, and that includes developing the tourism industry. Instead, I discover firsthand that Labor has starved the visitor information centres of money and staff.

The government is slashing the number of licences for shark cage diving. I have spoken with operators, such as Calypso Star, which is a very professional operation. Adventure Bay Charters, which has a huge capital investment and has received a sustainability award, may close if the government takes its licence away. The sharks are circling, but they are white pointers of the Labor government's ineptitude.

Then there is the disgrace over the regional tourism guides. The current edition is so far out of date it still shows the horses running in the Streaky Bay Cup on 2 April of last year. I can tell you that even the last runner in that race has long passed the post. The next edition—whenever or if ever it comes out—will be just a fraction of the current guide's size and information. The Eyre Peninsula has some of Australia's most spectacular and unspoilt coastal scenery and fabulous recreational fishing. I met visitors from Queensland, Victoria and New South Wales, who were spending their money growing the economy in places like Streaky Bay, Smoky Bay and Port Lincoln.

Tourism will never be enough. For the Eyre Peninsula to prosper, for the state to prosper, we need a deepwater port capable of loading the right size ships and making us world competitive. I have investigated sites on the Eyre Peninsula, and the location will have implications for a century or more. It is vital we get that location right. On a smaller scale, but still important, is the management of our commercial fisheries. Official representatives of the sardine, tuna, abalone and oyster industries I met were appalled at the high cost of government regulation and compliance.

When the local rock lobster quota was 600 tonnes a year, the government said it would charge 600 hours for administration and compliance. Now the quota is only 300 tonnes, but the charge has not gone down by half. In effect it has doubled for every kilo of rock lobster caught. Despite government neglect, I am expecting huge economic growth throughout the region that has to come hand in hand with growth in social services, infrastructure, public spending on health services, and school facilities.

The PRESIDENT: Order! The honourable member's time has expired.