Legislative Council Fifty-Third Parliament, Second Session (53-2) 53 2 Parliament of South Australia Legislative Council published Question Time Northern Economic Plan Northern Economic Plan The Hon. J.M. GAZZOLA Legislative Council Northern Economic Plan The Hon. J.M. GAZZOLA (15:04): My question is also to the Minister for Manufacturing and Innovation. How does the 2015-16 South Australian budget encourage investment and growth in the northern suburbs? The Hon. K.J. MAHER Legislative Council Minister for Manufacturing and Innovation, Minister for Automotive Transformation, Minister for Aboriginal Affairs and Reconciliation Northern Economic Plan The Hon. K.J. MAHER (Minister for Manufacturing and Innovation, Minister for Automotive Transformation, Minister for Aboriginal Affairs and Reconciliation) (15:04): I thank the honourable member for his very important and sensible question, which follows on from the last question. As members are aware, in the government's budget last week there was a range of measures and announcements to support the northern suburbs. The budget will support industries that are growing in South Australia, particularly in Adelaide's north. The government's northern economic plan has a strategy and specific actions that are needed to support the transformation of industry in our northern suburbs. The northern economic plan will identify short-term projects to provide immediate jobs for Adelaide's north, and it will also identify the industries that are growing and those that will provide jobs for the future in the northern suburbs. It will importantly also identify the skills and training required for workers to move to these growing industries. We will continue to work very closely with local councils, business, industry and communities. I commend the cities of Playford, Salisbury and Port Adelaide Enfield for their cooperation with the development of the plan thus far, and the input from those mayors and chief executives has been valuable in progressing the plan's development. It has been a highly positive working relationship so far and I look forward to continuing working with them. It has been clear that everyone involved has had at their focus the best interests of the northern suburbs as we go forward dealing with the challenges and pressure as the automotive industry winds down. This budget provides for a manufacturing technology centre to be established in northern Adelaide. This centre will provide a physical location for businesses in the manufacturing sector to access support programs. The state government is investing in infrastructure in the north. The state government is investing $10 million over three years to upgrade schools and children's centres across the north. The Fremont-Elizabeth City High School, the Swallowcliffe School, and Keithcot Farm Children's Centre will all receive substantial upgrades. In addition to providing an education boost for the north, these upgrades will stimulate construction and jobs. Last week in the budget the Treasurer also announced a massive investment in social housing, with $65 million for the renovation, upgrading and rebuilding of Housing Trust homes, and $25 million of this money has been specifically allocated to the northern suburbs. Again, in addition to providing an improved standard of living for South Australians who need support, it will create jobs to undertake this work. Both the renovations to schools and public housing will require local building companies and a whole range of tradies to undertake the work. These measures will deliver great outcomes for the community while creating local jobs. Over the last 17 years, food manufacturing has grown every single year. That is 17 straight years of growth, and there are not many industries that can boast that level of growth. The state government is supporting this growing industry with targeted investment. The budget allocated $2 million to the development of a food park in the northern suburbs. There is an enormous potential to create jobs in South Australia by producing and exporting very high quality food and beverage from Australia into our export markets, particularly our near neighbours in Asia. This initiative will bring together a range of manufacturing, packaging, distribution and transport companies to come together in a single location. The food park will allow manufacturing businesses to access shared infrastructure. This will improve the productivity and competitiveness of our food manufacturing sector, leading to more jobs. The government will shortly assess land options, which will allow more detailed planning for this project to be undertaken. The population of Adelaide's northern suburbs is growing at almost twice the rate of the rest of the state, and projections indicate that this growth can be expected to continue. In order to support this growth, the South Australian government will create new road infrastructure in Gawler East that will seek to unlock $1 billion of investment and allow the building of an additional 3,000 homes. Over the life of this new project, it is estimated that there will be an additional 6,000 new jobs created. In addition to creating new jobs, the government has undertaken a raft of measures to make it easier for existing businesses to grow and to employ more people. The budget provided for almost $670 million in tax reductions over the next four years which will give a boost to business across our state. The government has abolished stamp duty on non-real property transfers, and introduced a phased removal of stamp duty on non-residential property transfers. We have abolished the Save the River Murray Levy, saving businesses $182 on average and also saving most households $40. We have extended the temporary payroll tax rebate for 12 months. This will save small businesses up to $9,800 each. Some of these changes will help companies in the automotive sector that are looking to restructure, expand and diversify. If a company wants to purchase another company to allow diversification and to compete in a new industry, and if that purchase was to contain non-residential property assets of about $1.7 million, then the company will be able to save over $87,000 in stamp duty once the government's tax changes have been fully implemented. It is fair to say that many of these measures in the budget have been welcomed by many sectors of the South Australian business community. The Hon. R.L. Brokenshire Legislative Council The Hon. R.L. Brokenshire: Name them. The Hon. K.J. MAHER Legislative Council The Hon. K.J. MAHER: Ah, I might read out some. Daniel Gannon would be familiar to many people in this chamber. For example, Daniel Gannon said: The state needs to be commended for taking an axe to one of the biggest dead weight taxes in South Australia. And, Daniel Gannon said: Stamp duty abolition on non-residential properties is a major green light for investment. Earlier today even I was reading more from Daniel Gannon about just how good this budget is. That is to name just one of them. This budget delivers for northern suburbs businesses, and it delivers for northern suburbs families, both for the immediate and long-term future.