Labor Party

The Hon. R.I. LUCAS (15:26): At a time when the state's unemployment rate has peaked at 7 per cent, and youth unemployment at over 40 per cent in some areas of South Australia, it has been an unedifying spectacle in recent weeks to see that the only issues of concern to members of the incoming Labor government have been who can knife whom and who can grasp the perks and spoils of office for themselves.

Mr President, as you would well know, former president Mr Gazzola was knifed by Labor Party colleagues in the caucus and in this chamber, and you, Mr President, assumed the office with the support of the all-powerful right-wing faction of the Labor Party. As you will be aware as well, Mr President, your wife, the member for Torrens, also joined the spoils of office, as I understand it, yesterday, and has been awarded with two paid committee positions in the House of Assembly. I guess one will have to wait and see whether the member for Torrens will also be appointed chair of a committee.

I can imagine the difficulties there will be in the Wortley household in the future, should she assume the position of chair of a committee, with a taxpayer-funded car and driver. The Wortley family household will have to extend the garage, I expect, for the line-up of taxpayer-funded cars that might be available for the Wortley household—both taxpayer-funded and chauffeur driven taxpayer-funded cars. I guess we will have to wait and see in relation to what the future holds.

That has been the unedifying spectacle I think for the people of South Australia. It appears that all the Labor Party has been concerned about is not the 7 per cent unemployment rate but who can grab what spoils of office in relation to the perks that can be spread. Clearly, the powerful right faction of the party has decided that they are going to get as much as they can for themselves. They have installed one of their own as the president. The Hon. Mr Kandelaars, I understand, is on four committees and will be chair of three of them. I think, on a rough calculation, the perk of office is almost $80,000 extra in terms of paid committee positions.

In part, that is caused by the hatred that exists within the Labor caucus here. The Hon. Mr Gazzola has refused to take any paid committee position, as we understand it. He is not speaking to some members of the Labor caucus in the Legislative Council. There was formerly a strong friendship between the Hon. Mr Maher and Mr Gazzola and there has been a huge falling out between those two over recent weeks and, of course, a very strong fallout between yourself and Mr Gazzola as well. This is not going to make for good governance, this sort of hatred that exists within the Australian Labor Party.

The other issue I want to raise is in relation to some questions that have been asked of minister Close about the appointment of the new Commissioner for Public Employment. The minister says that she has not turned her attention to that particular issue as yet, but a whistleblower has informed me that minister Close and the Premier intend to appoint Ms Erma Ranieri to replace Mr McCann, and Mr McCann, who was meant to finish in October of this year, will conclude early. I am advised that Ms Ranieri has already spoken to staff and advised them that Mr McCann will be leaving before October and that she (Ms Ranieri) will be assuming the appointment of that particular position.

I am lodging freedom of information requests today in relation to a number of these issues. Certainly, if evidence is turned up to back what the whistleblower has indicated, then clearly what minister Close has told the House of Assembly in relation to these issues is wrong and she has misled the House of Assembly. Time will tell whether or not the information the whistleblower has provided to the Liberal Party is correct. The freedom of information documentation, I guess after some weeks or months, will turn up the evidence one way or another in relation to the accuracy of the statement that minister Close has put on the public record in the House of Assembly.