Shop Trading Hours

The Hon. C.M. SCRIVEN (16:25): I move:

That this council—

1. Expresses its support for the decision by Millicent residents to oppose the deregulation of shop trading hours;

2. Acknowledges the Millicent community's overwhelming support for local businesses and local jobs; and

3. Calls on the government to support the Millicent community's efforts to support local businesses and local jobs and oppose the deregulation of shop trading hours.

I am pleased to be able to move this motion in this place, and I note that an identical motion is being moved by the Leader of the Opposition in the other place. This is an important issue to residents of the South-East in Millicent and the surrounding area. I spent part of last week in Millicent speaking to local residents and small business owners about the Marshall Liberal government's plan to deregulate shop trading hours.

On Friday last week, I was joined by the Leader of the Opposition in this place, and one thing was absolutely clear: local people do not want deregulation of shop trading hours in Millicent. Residents feel that the current arrangements strike the right balance for their town and they do not want the legislation to be changed. There are currently three supermarkets in Millicent: IGA, Foster's Foodland and Woolworths. IGA and Foster's Foodland are, of course, small businesses, in stark contrast to Woolworths.

Millicent has a population of around 5,000 people. IGA and Foster's Foodland are adamant that deregulating shop trading hours, which would allow Woolworths to open from midnight to 9pm every day of the year, except Christmas, Good Friday and ANZAC Day morning, would drive at least one of the small supermarkets out of business. Currently, Sunday is the busiest trading day for the IGA in Millicent. On Friday last week, I spoke with Christine from the IGA, who told me that deregulation of shop trading hours will destroy their best trading day and cost local jobs.

If Woolworths opened on Sundays, it would take market share from the IGA. In short, it would destroy the current balance that enables a town of 5,000 people to support three supermarkets. That destruction is not just some theoretical change in rules. That destruction represents the killing of a business, the killing of jobs and the destruction of a community-centred workplace.

I spoke to two workers at one of the supermarkets who had each worked there for more than 20 years, and they are fearful for their jobs. I was told that if trading hours were deregulated competition with Woolworths would mean they would have to cut daytime hours during the week for a number of their employees. So what we will have is not some wonderful emergence of new jobs in Millicent due to this proposed deregulation. No, what we will have is long-term employees losing their jobs, weekday hours being lost and the likely loss of a longstanding business in the town.

Such losses would have a deep impact on a regional community that needs a boost, not a boot. I note that yesterday the Treasurer received a question from an honourable member about shop trading hours, who asked whether the government would consider giving certain areas an exemption. The Treasurer replied:

…country communities were clamouring, were crying out, to be able to trade on Sundays. They wanted, contrary to the shop trading laws of the state, those supermarkets to be able to open so they could go and buy their goods and produce on Sundays.

Despite the Treasurer's tendency to wax lyrical at every opportunity that he came from the South-East, it appears he has absolutely no idea about the place. His statement could not be further from the truth in Millicent. When I was in Millicent last week speaking with Brian and David Foster from Foster's Foodland, a family-run business that employs local people, as I mentioned, the clear message from them was that if deregulation happens they will have to cut staff hours, and that is the last thing they want to do. They believe shop trading hours work well the way they are now.

There was a petition that I had brought for Brian and David to put at the checkouts of the shop and, even in the short amount of time that I was in the store, the petition had already amassed a large number of signatures from local residents, which brings me to my next point.

The Treasurer likes to talk about people having choice. The town of Millicent has undertaken two community surveys over the last 11 years, whereby all residents of Millicent have been asked: 'Do you want to deregulate shop trading hours?' In 2006, as a result of a request from Woolworths for Sunday trading, the Wattle Range Council conducted a community questionnaire to test public opinion on extending shop trading hours: 66 per cent of respondents voted against the proposal.

That 2006 consultation process led the council to decide not to make an application for extended trading hours for Woolworths. There were no changes made to Millicent shop trading hours at that time. In April 2017, just over a year ago, the Wattle Range Council held another vote on the issue of shop trading hours in Millicent, conducted by the Australian Electoral Commission.

Close to 80 per cent of respondents voted against deregulation. Let me repeat: 80 per cent of respondents voted against deregulation. If the Treasurer and the Marshall Liberal government were sincere about giving people choice, they would respect the choice that the people of Millicent have made. The people of Millicent have chosen, have voted, not once but twice against deregulating shop trading hours in their area.

I note that the Hon. Mr Pangallo and the Hon. Ms Bonaros recently held a shop trading hours community forum in Millicent, which was well attended. After speaking with local people who attended the forum, the clear message given at that forum was that they were absolutely opposed to deregulation. In fact, residents attending the forum went so far as to move a motion, urging the Liberal member for MacKillop, who is a member in the other place, to cross the floor of parliament and vote with the opposition on this important matter.

There is a groundswell of support within the Millicent community to keep the shop trading hours the way they are. Those shop trading hours support a community. Those shop trading hours should stay as they are. I urge members to respect the decisions that the Millicent community has made and support this motion.

Debate adjourned on motion of Hon. T.J. Stephens.