Mount Gambier Ultrafast Internet

The Hon. J.M. GAZZOLA (15:18): My question is to the Minister for Manufacturing and Innovation. Can the minister update the chamber on the state government's recent announcement about ultrafast internet in Mount Gambier?

The Hon. K.J. MAHER (Minister for Employment, Minister for Aboriginal Affairs and Reconciliation, Minister for Manufacturing and Innovation, Minister for Automotive Transformation, Minister for Science and Information Economy) (15:18): I thank the honourable member for his question and his interest in ultrafast things, including ultrafast internet. Stage 1 of the state government's $4.7 million Gig City initiative will deliver high-speed internet to 14 innovation precincts across the greater Adelaide area from mid-2017. This investment in critical infrastructure will give South Australia an edge in attracting high-tech start-ups and entrepreneurs to our state from across the region. Gig City will offer symmetrical internet speeds of at least one gigabit per second, which is something like 100 times faster than the national average.

Businesses will be able to take full advantage of this ultra high-speed internet for new technology opportunities with things like big data analytics simulation and cloud computing. On the back of the significant interest in this initiative, the government has recently committed to investigate opportunities to expand this initiative outside the greater Adelaide area and particularly into Mount Gambier. As the largest regional centre in South Australia, and with world renowned cultural institutions like the James Morrison Academy of Music, Mount Gambier represents a significant and logical next step in expanding the successful Gig City program.

For this reason, the state government has recently entered into a memorandum of understanding with the City of Mount Gambier and the University of South Australia to make Mount Gambier one of the first regional centres to take advantage of this ultrafast internet. The state government will work closely with the City of Mount Gambier and the University of South Australia to look to expand the Gig City program to a new digital hub in Mount Gambier.

In the last couple of weeks, I had the opportunity to visit Mount Gambier and to announce our intention to expand the Gig City project with the University of South Australia's regional manager in Mount Gambier, Mr Ian McKay, who expressed to me how important projects like this are for attracting and also retaining students once they have finished studying.

Initiatives like this will help make sure that we give every possible opportunity to people who want to start or expand businesses to stay in regional centres or to, in fact, take advantage and move to regional centres. The state government is committed to working to extend where possible the initiative to deliver internet speeds with at least one gigabit per second at affordable prices to tenants like start-up businesses and entrepreneurs working in a new hub located in one of our state's foremost regional cities. This partnership with the University of South Australia and City of Mount Gambier is an exciting partnership and I will be keen to inform the chamber as this project develops.