Legislative Council Fifty-Fifth Parliament, First Session (55-1) 55 1 Parliament of South Australia Legislative Council published Bills Bills Appropriation Bill 2025 Appropriation Bill 2025 Appropriation Bill 2025 Second Reading Second Reading The Hon. K.J. MAHER Legislative Council Minister for Aboriginal Affairs Attorney-General Minister for Industrial Relations and Public Sector Special Minister of State The Hon. K.J. MAHER (Minister for Aboriginal Affairs, Attorney-General, Minister for Industrial Relations and Public Sector, Special Minister of State) (17:47): I move: That this bill be now read a second time. I seek leave to have the second reading explanation and explanation of clauses inserted in Hansard without my reading them. Leave granted. Mr President, I present to the Chamber, the 2025-26 State Budget, the fourth budget of the Malinauskas Government. Three years ago, this government came to office with a clear mandate. We set out a plan to reinvigorate our state, to restore a clear sense of direction and leadership for our community. We committed to rebuilding our health system, building more beds and stopping the cuts to frontline staff, and to tackle ramping at our emergency departments. We committed to reform our education system, ensuring it can give our kids the best start to life and to give them the skills to succeed in the future economy. To tackle the crisis in housing supply and affordability, and to get more young South Australians into their own homes. And we committed to supporting families and small businesses through cost of living pressures caused by spiking inflation and interest rates. From day one we have set out to be a government that would deliver nation leading reforms, so once again our state could be leading the nation. We set out to use the authority of government, the power of the parliament, and the capacity of the state's finances to deliver the reforms and make the investments necessary to succeed in these ambitions. And in just three short years, look at the progress we have made. Our economy has gone from laggard to leader. We have the lowest unemployment rate in the state's history. We are ranked the best place in the nation to do business. We have the best planning system, the best-performing housing market and increasing numbers of first home buyers moving into their own homes. We have expanded capacity in our hospitals. We have increased the number of doctors, nurses and ambulance officers to record levels. We are introducing preschool for 3-year-olds. We have reintroduced technical colleges into our high schools. We are supporting the merger of the state's two largest universities. We are delivering a historic boost to skills and training funding. We are finally finishing the North-South Corridor. We are building a new Women's and Children's hospital that's actually big enough for future generations. We returned the Adelaide 500, introduced Gather Round and brought LIV Golf to Australia. We have proven to the country that no one does major events better than South Australia. We have led the nation in reforming social media laws, demanding and achieving a ban on social media accounts for children under 16. We have led the nation—if not the world—in banning political donations. We are the lowest taxing state on the mainland. And we have kept our promise not to introduce new taxes or increase existing ones. We've done all this while returning the budget to surplus and improving the state's credit rating outlook. Mr President, the 2025-26 State Budget proudly builds on the progress we have made. It is a budget that once again supports our economy, stepping in to protect steelmaking in Whyalla, and supporting our farmers during drought. It is a budget that puts more police back on our streets, invests in our prisons and in our criminal justice system. It is a budget that boosts our health system, and supports families and businesses with cost of living pressures. It is a budget that accelerates our reform to deliver preschool for 3-year-olds. It is a budget that will help South Australians buy their own home sooner. It is a budget of sound financial management that forecasts the delivery of another surplus and ensures debt levels remain sustainable. Mr President, we have consistently shown this is a government that responds quickly to challenges. Over the past 12 months, we became increasingly alarmed at the reports that the steelworks in Whyalla were under threat. Reports of businesses not being paid. Of workers being laid off. Maintenance work not being done. Safety being put at risk. Investments being delayed. Enough was enough. Our unprecedented intervention to place the Whyalla steelworks into administration has protected thousands of jobs, hundreds of businesses and ensured Australia remains a country that manufactures critical steel products. Under this government, South Australians will not be taken for fools by fast-talking businessmen that continually break their promises to our state. That is why, together with the Commonwealth, we financed a $2.4 billion rescue package, not only to save Whyalla and its steelworks, but to rebuild it, remake it and to give it a future. The budget outlines how South Australia's contribution of $650 million over six years is accommodated. The funding is for administration costs, investment in the plant to support the sale, and for a comprehensive rescue package that safeguards the Whyalla community. The budget still forecasts a surplus for the current 2024-25 financial year even after the impact of the Whyalla rescue package. In addition, the government has limited the impact of the rescue package on the state's debt position by deferring the Hydrogen Jobs Plan. Not only has the government's intervention restored confidence in Whyalla and the steelworks, we have already financially supported more than 100 businesses in Whyalla who were so badly let down by GFG. The government has taken the same approach to the unprecedented drought conditions afflicting our state. We are stepping up to assist farmers and regional communities when they need help the most. The budget provides a further $55.4 million in a comprehensive drought support package, on top of the $18 million already committed in November last year. We didn't wait until today to announce this funding, instead it is already being rolled out to farmers and across communities. And it follows the example set in previous budgets when the government supported regional communities through the River Murray flood event. While the nature of primary production is that there will be good seasons and bad, when nature intervenes so harshly, as it has over the last 12 months, then it is imperative governments lend a hand. To make sure that when it does rain again, the farmers are still there to grow their crops, raise their livestock and continue as the heartbeat of regional communities. That is why the budget also provides a $3 million fund to help the state's dairy farmers who have been left stranded by the collapse of Beston Global Food group. In the same way, this government is helping South Australian families with further cost of living relief. Thankfully, some of the pressures faced by South Australian families are beginning to ease as the rate of inflation returns to the target band, allowing the Reserve Bank to twice cut interest rates this year. Most economists are now predicting there will be more cuts before the end of this year. But it does not mean the financial pain felt by many over the last three years has disappeared. We know that many families, many businesses, are still trying to recover. Which is why the government is providing additional cost of living assistance in this budget. While the federal government is delivering its energy bill rebate and introducing its $1,000 instant tax deduction for workers, the budget is complementing this with relief for families, and small and medium businesses. The budget extends the $200 reduction of the government school materials and services charge for another four years, saving the parents of more than 120 000 school children $96 million over this period. We are also slashing the cost of public transport for students. Parents of school age children well understand the daily pressure of organising the school drop-off and pick-up, and the interruption it causes to the work day and other commitments. To further support families, the budget introduces a new low cost public transport ticket for school students, costing only $10 for a 28-day pass from 1 July. This will give four full school weeks of public transport for an equivalent of only 25 cents per trip. By dropping the price of public transport for school students, we hope to encourage more children to catch public transport to and from school. It will also make it far easier for parents and caregivers to get to work and stay at work rather than be interrupted by the school run. And even better, the ticket can be used for unlimited trips, including on weekends and public holidays. At the same time, the government is spending $9.6 million to improve security on public transport, including upgrading CCTV at key interchanges. Together, the extension of the government school materials and services charge and the $10 28-day pass will save a family with two school-age children up to $884 a year. This brings the total cost of living assistance delivered by this government to almost $1 billion over our four budgets. Mr President, protecting the community is a government's primary responsibility. While crime rates have fallen over the course of this government, we continue to toughen laws, expand our prisons and equip our police and criminal justice system with the resources needed to combat crime. This budget provides the largest boost to police funding in the state's history. More than $170 million will be spent over the next six years to build South Australia's largest-ever police force. The budget funds an increase in sworn police officers of 243 full-time equivalents by 2028-29 and a further 83 by 2030-31. The additional 326 sworn officers will give our state a record total of 5000 police, reaffirming South Australia as having the highest number of sworn police per capita of any state. The budget also continues the government's efforts to get more sworn officers out of support roles and back onto the front line. A further $29.6 million will enable 98 police security officers to be recruited by 2028-29, building on the 189 extra officers funded in the 2023-24 Budget. The police security officers will be deployed to regional areas, meaning there will be more sworn police out on the beat in regional communities. The budget also funds a further $9.7 million to continue the civilianisation of administrative roles, releasing a further 20 sworn officers back to operational duties. Together these measures will see a significant increase to the number of police on the frontline bolstered by a total of more than 630 by 2030-31. People like to see police in our streets and in the community. It makes them feel safer, and it deters criminals from acting. We have the best police force in the nation; highly respected, capable and successfully combating crime in our community. I want to thank the Police Commissioner for advocating for these measures and working with the government to develop this record funding package. Keeping the community safe also means keeping criminals off our streets. Over the next five years, the state government will spend $72.4 million to increase prison capacity by 116 beds across the system. This brings the total number of extra beds to 468 funded over the last two budgets. There will also be $6.8 million allocated to boost security in our prisons to make it more difficult to smuggle contraband, including drugs and weapons, into prisons. But we also believe it is important to invest in places where people can turn their lives around if they choose. The budget provides $8.1 million to establish an additional 30-bed bail accommodation support program to create a remand to bail pathway and help support Closing the Gap targets. The government is also committed to a more efficient and well-resourced criminal justice system. The Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions will receive an extra $9.4 million, while a further $5.5 million for forensic science will improve the capacity for those charged to be brought before the courts more quickly. There will be $20 million invested in critical upgrades of court infrastructure, and $4.8 million to enhance security at courts across the state. Improving community safety also extends to our roads. It is shocking how one moment on our roads can end a life, and change others' so profoundly. The impact on families is crippling; the distress for emergency services, police and our health system just as powerful. Before the Easter long weekend, I stood with Sargeant John Hong to plead with motorists and road users to be safe on our roads. Sargeant Hong has not only lost a loved one from road trauma, he has spent most of his policing career with the task of informing families their loved one has lost their life on the road. None of us can imagine the gravity of that task. This budget again invests to improve safety on our roads, in the hope those knocks on the front door become less frequent. A $17.8 million investment will see the number of motorcycle police patrolling our roads double, with a further 33 officers to be recruited. The budget also provides $46.8 million to install new mobile phone detection, red light and a point-to-point camera at high-risk locations. Revenue raised through these new cameras will be ploughed back into improving road safety across the state, with an extra $7.5 million for regional road safety infrastructure and $20 million for road safety maintenance. And to reinforce the message that the road toll must come down, there will be $4.5 million dedicated to new targeted road safety campaigns. The budget also invests heavily to improve our road infrastructure. This budget commits $125 million to match the Commonwealth's $525 million on an 80:20 basis to build the High Productivity Vehicle Network, together funding a $650 million project to improve freight efficiency and reduce trucks on the South Eastern Freeway and already busy suburban arterial roads. Curtis Road will be upgraded with $125 million to match the Commonwealth's $125 million commitment to remove the level crossing, improving travel times for 21 000 vehicles each day and to support future housing development. On Main South Road between Myponga and Yankalilla, $80 million will be directed to build overtaking lanes and widen bridges, also co-funded by the Commonwealth. Mr President, our health system will once again receive a major boost in this budget, with a further $1.9 billion to meet increasing demand. This brings our total extra investment in health to $9 billion over four budgets. The investment to date has allowed us to recruit record numbers of doctors, nurses, ambulance officers and allied health workers and we will have built an extra 330 beds by the end of the year. The government's investment has drastically improved ambulance response times, so sick people receive the critical care they need as soon as possible. But there is still much more work to be done. There will be $117 million of new investment in mental health services, with more than 130 new mental health beds brought online. $13.9 million is allocated to expand the Mental Health—SA Police co-responder program to manage mental health crises outside of hospital emergency departments. $2.2 million over three years is provided to expand the scope of services pharmacists can provide, helping keep South Australians out of emergency departments. The budget also builds on the government's efforts to tackle the housing supply and affordability crisis confronting our nation. We've been alarmed that for many South Australians, the dream of home ownership has never felt more out of reach. We are committed to putting it back within their grasp. Since coming to government, we have committed almost $3.2 billion to boost public and social housing, release land, build infrastructure and cut taxes—all with the aim of increasing supply and improving affordability. Through the Greater Adelaide Regional Plan, we have identified where 315 000 new homes will be built over the next 30 years. The government's Housing Roadmap will speed up the development and approval process to ensure more houses can be built more quickly. South Australia is now ranked the best performing state for housing by the Housing Industry Association. This budget ensures we continue the progress we have already made, with a further $552 million to build more homes for South Australians including: $270.1 million to increase development of new housing at Playford Alive East at Munno Para $104.7 million to deliver the Southwark Master Plan, on the site of the former West End brewery $30.5 million towards preparing the Onkaparinga Heights site for new homes. Together, these developments will support the construction of at least 2935 homes. This budget also introduces the Rent-To-Buy Affordable Housing Initiative which will allow long-term renters to buy one of 100 homes currently under construction by the South Australian Housing Trust. Mr President, while our housing policies have meant a huge boost to the construction industry, we have also ensured the conditions to allow other sectors of the state's economy to flourish. It is why we have kept our promise to not increase or introduce any new taxes. Our payroll tax system has been recognised as the most competitive in Australia. We are also the lowest taxing state on the mainland. But this government knows there are times local businesses need an extra boost. In this budget, we are announcing the new $20 million Powering Business Grants program. Grants ranging from $2,500 to $75,000 will be offered to encourage small and medium-sized businesses and not-for-profit organisations, including community and sporting clubs, to invest in energy efficient equipment. This will help businesses cut power bills not just as a once-off, but on an ongoing basis. Our government will also contribute $50 million towards a new Venture Capital Fund to encourage our best and brightest entrepreneurs to take their business ideas to the world. This budget also includes a new $5 million program over two years to help guide exporters through the current global trade uncertainty and new tariff environment. The budget supports our reputation as the defence state, investing another $13.5 million in the Defence Innovation Partnership and $3.3 million in the Advanced Manufacturing and Defence Uplift program. The Defence Teaming Centre is funded to help more South Australian companies become involved in critical supply chains as we commence the construction of the most complex machines ever made, nuclear-powered, conventionally armed submarines at Osborne. The budget includes funding for the Department of Energy and Mining and the Copper taskforce, assisting BHP develop its expansion of the state's copper deposits and cementing South Australia's critical role in the decarbonisation and electrification of global industry. Mr President, when the government was elected in 2022, Gather Round didn't exist, LIV Golf wasn't an event in our country and the Adelaide 500 had been scrapped. Now all three are among the biggest events across Australia, drawing tens of thousands of people to our state. Gather Round alone creates around $100 million in economic activity. These events fill hotel rooms, pack flights, add energy to our bars and restaurants and signal to the rest of the nation that South Australia is open for business. To build on this success, the budget also includes $10.9 million in additional funding for Business Events Adelaide to attract more events and conventions. The funding arrives just as the Adelaide Airport welcomes further international routes, with Qantas, Cathay Pacific and United Airlines introducing direct international flights to Adelaide in the coming months. Mr President, the last three years has seen remarkable progress in our state's employment figures. We have added almost 65 000 jobs since the 2022 election, most of them full-time, and we have recorded record low rates of unemployment. The challenge now is to increase the number of higher-skilled, higher-paying jobs across our economy and to make sure workers have the skills to perform them. To achieve this, the government is investing in every stage of education from preschool to trade schools to universities. Last budget, the government set out our $1.9 billion commitment to introduce preschool for 3-year-olds. This year, in response to overwhelming demand from the long day care sector, the government is spending $27.7 million to accelerate the roll out of preschool for 3-year-olds. This will provide an extra 2000 places for South Australian families from January 2026. We also continue to expand our schools; in addition to the two new schools announced as part of last year's budget, today's budget also provides $70 million for a new Birth to Year 6 primary school in the northern suburbs. Treasury will work with the Education department to put these three schools to market through a public private partnership, given how successful the last round of PPPs for schools has been. The budget also continues the government's commitment to the environment. It includes $109.7 million funded by the Commonwealth for a range of measures to support and improve the health of the River Murray, and $8.3 million to begin the planning and preparations for the 31^st Conference of the Parties, the largest environmental and climate change conference in the world. As recent storms have eroded beaches along the metropolitan coast, the budget commits a further $14 million to sand replenishment. With the emergence of the toxic microalgae along South Australia's waters, the budget provides $44.4 million to replace the coastal research vessel, and a further $45 million is provided to continue the fight against fruit fly. Mr President, on coming to government we committed to return the budget to surplus, to end the run of deficits recorded under the previous government. Running budget surpluses means the government has the capacity to respond to community needs such as cost of living support, flood and drought response, and economic issues like Whyalla. Surpluses are also vital to ensure we have the capacity to take on additional debt to build the South Road tunnels and new Women's and Children's Hospital. Today the government is forecast to deliver its third consecutive surplus. A surplus of $18 million is forecast in the 2024-25 financial year, increasing to $179 million in 2025-26. The budget also forecasts surpluses over the next four years. While debt rises over the forward estimates, it will fund productive infrastructure that will benefit successive generations of South Australians. More than $27 billion will be spent on infrastructure over the next four years, including the new Women's and Children's Hospital and the South Road tunnels project, the two largest projects in the state's history. Our debt projections remain manageable and South Australia compares favourably against other states and territories in our budget settings. Indeed, the budget's strong position means that in the current financial year, net debt is $2 billion lower than forecast in the last budget of the previous Liberal government and the key debt to revenue ratio is improved by 30 percentage points. Among all states, South Australia has the second-strongest credit rating and outlook, trailing only a Western Australian economy fuelled by an unfair GST distribution. The state's credit rating outlook has improved under this government, moving to a stable outlook from the negative outlook under the previous government. Before I finish, I would like to thank those who have been instrumental in delivering this year's budget and to those that have supported me through the process. First, to my wife Antonia, and our children Ben, Isaac and Olivia—it's a great privilege for me to be a Member of Parliament, and to be a minister and Treasurer. But it's a privilege that all too often compromises a far greater privilege of being a father and a husband. Thank you so much for all your support, your love and your patience, allowing me to do this work, I am so grateful to you all. To the Premier and his office, and my ministerial colleagues, I'm grateful for the input and collaboration throughout the budget process, and I also thank my caucus colleagues for their ongoing support. Under Treasurer Tammie Pribanic is one of the finest public servants in this state, and her sound advice, work ethic and unfailing commitment have been vital in putting together this budget. As to her exceptional team at the Department of Treasury and Finance including Sandy Burness, Phoung Chau, Scott Bayliss, Greg Raymond, Ben Ryan, Mark Beveridge and many others, thank you for your tireless efforts. And to my ministerial staff, including chief of staff John Atkinson, Tara Yoon, Michael McGuire, Grace Nankivell, Emma De Favari, Sam Chapman, Kate Wheeler, Elicea Tomlinson—and Jack Berketa who has done an outstanding job stepping in for Andrea Nicolas while she takes maternity leave, thank you all for your hard work and dedication. Mr President, In a global environment of increasing volatility, this budget further demonstrates what a strong, united, experienced government can deliver. It's a budget that responds to the economic challenges of Whyalla and drought. It's a budget that backs the people who keep our community safe, with record investments in police, in prisons and the criminal justice system. It builds on the capacity we have built in our health system, and delivers more housing for South Australians. It's a budget that continues our proud record of providing cost of living relief, while backing South Australian businesses. It keeps our taxes low and our budget in surplus. It's also a budget that recognises the business of government is never complete. Mr President, there is a sense of energy and optimism about our state that we haven't seen for a long time. This budget builds on the foundations of the last three years and sets our state on the path to a more prosperous, productive and inclusive future. I commend the budget to the Chamber. Explanation of Clauses Explanation of Clauses 1—Short title This clause is formal. 2—Commencement This clause provides for the Bill to operate retrospectively to 1 July 2025. Until the Bill is passed, expenditure is financed from appropriation authority provided by the Supply Act. 3—Interpretation This clause provides relevant definitions. 4—Issue and application of money This clause provides for the issue and application of the sums shown in Schedule 1 to the Bill. Subclause (2) makes it clear that the appropriation authority provided by the Supply Act is superseded by this Bill. 5—Application of money if functions or duties of agency are transferred This clause is designed to ensure that where Parliament has appropriated funds to an agency to enable it to carry out particular functions or duties and those functions or duties become the responsibility of another agency, the funds may be used by the responsible agency in accordance with Parliament's original intentions without further appropriation. 6—Expenditure from Hospitals Fund This clause provides authority for the Treasurer to issue and apply money from the Hospitals Fund for the provision of facilities in public hospitals. 7—Additional appropriation under other Acts This clause makes it clear that appropriation authority provided by this Bill is additional to authority provided in other Acts of Parliament, except, of course, in the Supply Act. 8—Overdraft limit This clause sets a limit of $150 million on the amount which the Government may borrow by way of overdraft. Schedule 1—Amounts proposed to be expended from the Consolidated Account during the financial year ending 30 June 2026 Debate adjourned on motion of Hon. D.G.E. Hood.