REGIONAL STATEMENT

The Hon. J.S. LEE (14:40): I seek leave to make a brief explanation before asking the Minister for Regional Development a question about the regional statement.

Leave granted.

The Hon. J.S. LEE: The draft regional statement 2012 was released in December 2012 and the Regional Communities Consultative Council was ordered to undertake public consultation. Almost 12 months have passed and the final statement is yet to be released. I believe my colleague in the other place Mr Steven Griffiths (shadow minister for regional development) wrote to the minister and received a reply, dated 13 October, in which she said:

I am expecting to receive the Regional Communities Consultative Council's final consultation report in the coming weeks.

My questions are:

1. Can the minister provide a definite date for the release of the regional statement?

2. Can the minister advise why the final report has taken almost 12 months to be made publicly available?

The Hon. G.E. GAGO (Minister for Agriculture, Food and Fisheries, Minister for Forests, Minister for Regional Development, Minister for the Status of Women, Minister for State/Local Government Relations) (14:41): Because it is a very comprehensive, well-consulted report. That is why it has taken so long. We have extensively involved our regional communities and organisations. It is quite right that it was back in December 2012 that I released the draft regional statement. It was about enabling regional communities to have a greater input and influence in decisions around regional matters, highlighting the essential contributions made by regions to South Australia's economy and outlining a framework for prosperity for regional communities to be able to drive forward change from the community up.

The statement has been really a conversational tool between government and regional communities to work in partnership and ensure the ongoing future prosperity of our regions. It reaffirms our longstanding commitment to regions and signifies our work towards greater collaborative partnerships and a more strategic and coordinated approach, particularly to planning and services. It brings together current government plans, strategies and services with regional plans (things like our roadmaps), and highlights how we will consolidate and build on those current initiatives to help ensure that regional communities remain prosperous.

I asked the RCCC, my independent advisory body, to undertake targeted community consultation and provide feedback. They undertook a number of workshops throughout this state during this year and, to complement that consultation process, we also conducted an online survey which was placed on the PIRSA website inviting broader public input, if you like, and engagement.

I asked the RCCC to undertake further targeted industry consultation to ensure that the views of specific industry stakeholders were considered. I also asked my department to consult with government agencies and stakeholders to help identify opportunities for government to better engage with regions through the statement. The RCCC has finalised its report, and now that has gone to PIRSA, which is finalising the final version of the statement.

As you have seen, a great deal of work has gone into ensuring that our regions have comprehensively been involved in consultation and engagement in this process. An enormous amount of work has been done, and I have to say the last draft that I was presented with was of very high quality, so I think it will be well worth the wait. I think that regions will be very pleased to see the way that their input has been incorporated into the statement. It is imminent. Any day now, any tick of the clock, I will be releasing that statement. It will not be long. I am sure that it will be a pre-Christmas present.

The Hon. I.K. Hunter: Worth waiting for.

The Hon. G.E. GAGO: And it will be well worth the wait.

The Hon. R.L. Brokenshire: It is exciting, minister.

The Hon. G.E. GAGO: It is very exciting. We are all very excited about it.