Fruit Fly Infringement Notices

The Hon. F. PANGALLO (15:18): I will make it simple. My question is to the primary industries minister:

1. Can she provide full details of how many infringement notices were given to interstate drivers flouting the fruit fly prevention laws in the weeks before and after the football Gather Round?

2. How much discarded fruit was collected?

3. Are the government's costly measures in tackling fruit fly infestations now becoming a costly, futile exercise?

The Hon. C.M. SCRIVEN (Minister for Primary Industries and Regional Development, Minister for Forest Industries) (15:19): I thank the honourable member for his question. In terms of the specific details of fines or infringement notices that have been issued, I am happy to take that on notice and bring back a response to the chamber.

In terms of the response to fruit fly, I think the fruit fly free status has been hard-won by South Australia. It continues to provide an important and significant competitive advantage for South Australian producers and, whilst it is an ongoing issue at this stage, it is important to note that quite a number of outbreaks are no longer active in the sense that they have activity occurring. Whilst the protocols mean that we can't immediately remove the classification, it is important to note that many of them are no longer active.