South-East Region

The Hon. D.G.E. HOOD (15:38): My question is to the Minister for Trade, Tourism and Investment. Can the minister update the council about his recent three-day visit to the Limestone Coast and the South-East, and the opportunities and challenges facing the region?

The Hon. D.W. RIDGWAY (Minister for Trade, Tourism and Investment) (15:39): Thank you, Mr President. Before I thank the honourable member for his question, can I just quickly respond to—

Members interjecting:

The Hon. D.W. RIDGWAY: They obviously don't want the answers, Mr President. To the Hon. Clare Scriven, the Hon. Tung Ngo and maybe the Hon. Frank Pangallo, regarding the date the grandstands will be down, I think they have to be out of the parklands by 29 April. The total build and dismantle time this year is 18.5 weeks, which is not that long. Our initial commitment was for four weeks and then, following discussions around safety of workers and, I suspect, night-time activities, the SATC assessed that a one-week reduction could be achieved safely at a cost of $100,000. I will add that extensive evidence was given to the Budget and Finance Committee, which I think the Hon. Frank Pangallo and maybe the Hon. Tammy Franks—

The PRESIDENT: You shouldn't refer to a committee, the Hon. Mr Ridgway.

The Hon. D.W. RIDGWAY: I know I shouldn't, but there is a lot of information from that.

The PRESIDENT: I know you know, so don't do it. The Hon. Mr Hood is anxious that his answer is delivered.

The Hon. D.W. RIDGWAY: Thank you, Mr President, and I do thank him for the question.

The PRESIDENT: He spent hours crafting it.

The Hon. D.W. RIDGWAY: He has. I recently had the opportunity to get out into the regions, as I always do. In fact, I have had a lot of regional trips this year to talk to the locals about the opportunities and challenges they face. From 21 to 23 January I visited the Limestone Coast in the South-East of the state to meet with a range of stakeholders, businesspeople and locals about issues that matter to them. Of course, we know that that is an area that I am very familiar with, having been born and bred in Bordertown. Interestingly—

An honourable member interjecting:

The Hon. D.W. RIDGWAY: I will come to that shortly. On the way down I visited Beston Global Food's factory at Jervois to look at their mozzarella plant. It is a reasonably impressive mozzarella plant that was recently refurbished. It adds value to local milk production and they have some exciting business developments.

On Tuesday 22 January, I was able to go to Naracoorte Seeds, South Australian Seed Marketers, having known the family for many years. It is a great business that employs between 10 and 20 staff, depending on the time of the year. They are heavily involved in the local supply chain, both importing and exporting seeds. It is a great opportunity for local producers to get straight to market. They have an innovative seed coating technology, and they are just one of many great small businesses we see in our regions.

I also had a chance to go to the rooftop walk at the Naracoorte caves, where the Minister for Environment and Water, minister Speirs, and I, with the local member for Barker, Tony Pasin, opened this particular walk. Minister Speirs spoke about his first visit to the caves and then there was a chance for me to speak, and I reflected on my first visit to the caves, which demonstrates the diversity in our cabinet. My first visit to the Naracoorte caves was 17 years before minister Speirs was born; it was on a grade 5 trip from the Bordertown Primary School. That shows that these wonderful natural assets we have transcend many generations.

The Hon. K.J. MAHER: Point of order: the minister is probably not aware, but the clock is already on zero. The completely irrelevant answers are entirely unnecessary.

The PRESIDENT: That's not relevant. He is entitled to answer the question.

Members interjecting:

The PRESIDENT: The Hon. Mr Hood doesn't get much opportunity to ask questions, so allow the minister—

Members interjecting:

The Hon. D.W. RIDGWAY: The members opposite, when they were in government, just wanted to talk the clock down; I want to give you information. So 17 years before he was born I went on my first visit. We also went to Teys, the meatworks in Naracoorte, a great local employer. I was impressed with their new 36º South brand, which they are now marketing as a particular brand local to that particular area.

Of course, we also had a chance to visit the Coonawarra and look at some of the issues that confront the Coonawarra vignerons, because it is a challenging time in this competitive world. We looked at a number of other opportunities, especially with the Coonawarra vignerons and their passion to try to connect Coonawarra to Penola with a bike trail. As members opposite would know, I am passionate about bike trails, but I won't dwell on that.

One thing that stood out on this particular trip was the visit to Flinders University's New Venture Institute, which showcased three great local small businesses through their Venture Dorm Accelerator Program. They were fabulous, and Mount Gambier is becoming a hotbed of fashion talent. I met the founder of Ashlee Lauren, which makes bespoke designer bridal headpieces and tiaras. Mr President, you can see that headpieces and tiaras probably don't fit with me, but it is a great little business. It is interesting that a highlight of this little business in Mount Gambier was that Kesha wore one of her custom-made pieces at the 2018 Grammys, so from little old Mount Gambier onto the global stage.

I could go on for another 20 minutes or so on this great trip, but I won't. I thank the honourable member for his question. If he would care to ask me for more details of that trip, I will elaborate at another time when we sit.