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House of Assembly - Fifty-First Parliament, Second Session (51-2)
2008-03-06 Daily Xml
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SOLAR CITIES CONGRESS

Mr HAMILTON-SMITH (Waite—Leader of the Opposition) (14:41): My question is to the Premier. What was the cost to South Australian taxpayers for airfares, accommodation and entertainment for the delegation of Canadians at the recent Solar Cities Congress, along with the cost of visits to Canada by officials of his department to drum up support for the gathering? In April 2006, the Premier announced that all 14 provincial premiers of Canada would be attending a super forum of Canadian and Australian leaders—an event described as a world first, the biggest gathering ever outside CHOGM. By January 2008, the number of Canadian premiers was down to one, and the opposition is advised that officials were dispatched to Canada to recruit more attendees. By February 2008, the delegation had been expanded to include a range of Canadian officials on the condition that South Australian taxpayer-funded travel arrangements were appropriate to their standing.

The Hon. M.D. RANN (Ramsay—Premier, Minister for Economic Development, Minister for Social Inclusion, Minister for the Arts, Minister for Sustainability and Climate Change) (14:43): Can I just say that we had a meeting in Montreal (or 'Montréal' as people who are French speakers would know) in Quebec province in Canada in April 2006. The former premier of Victoria Steve Bracks was there. The current (then deputy) Premier of Queensland was there, along with me and other Australian state ministers. We met with the Canadian premiers who had a Council of the Federation of Canada which comprised a group of premiers from different political parties: Conservative, Liberal—because there they have a real Liberal party—Social Credit, the NDP, and other political parties. I think there were about 13 premiers in the room, and we all found that there was much we could learn from each other because no two constitutions in the world are more similar than the Canadian and Australian constitutions. Canada has a structure based on a federal government and the provinces and territories; ours is based on a federal government and the states and territories.

Many issues, whether they related to horizontal fiscal equalisation or vertical fiscal imbalance or special-purpose payments—all those issues that are close to my heart—were addressed at this meeting. In fact, think about the structure of Canada: we have a coastal strip of cities; they have their population centres largely along the US border and, of course, with vast hinterlands with natural resources, multicultural in nature, indigenous in heritage—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. M.D. RANN: —and a whole range of issues where we can learn from each other.

I know that the Australian premiers the other day found it extremely helpful to discuss issues relating to climate change, resources, indigenous affairs and migration. We are swapping ideas. Universities also were discussed. I know that the Leader of the Opposition is not very interested in this area, but he may want to ask the three vice-chancellors about the agreement negotiated with the University of Manitoba on a range of research issues, for instance, cancer research or issues relating to agriculture.

All I can say is that it was the most valuable exercise and, in terms of the outcomes, there will be a series of continuing outcomes as a result of that first meeting in Montreal, where I met with the Premier of Quebec, Jean Charest, who of course was a former federal government figure who then changed from the Conservatives to become a Liberal minister.

The Hon. P.F. Conlon: Does he read 'Camous'?

The Hon. M.D. RANN: Yes; and I am sure, like the Leader of the Opposition, he is a great existentialist leader who reads 'Camous', as opposed to Albert Camus. What we have found is that all the premiers, and the Canadians, believe that this is a useful exercise. After I led the charge and became the first chair of the Australian Council of the Federation, I remember the Leader of the Opposition denouncing this as a talkfest but then, of course, we saw him flying over to a meeting that apparently he initiated—according to reports in South Australia, but not reports in the other states where others initiated it—to have a council of the Liberal leadership: the opposition leaders, the alternate premiers. It was more a lament than a fact-finding exercise.

What we saw was that he was, of course, the prime mover; although in the Victorian media it was the Victorian leader of the opposition who was the prime mover for this. But, apparently, that was not a talkfest; that was really about policies for the future government as opposed to people who had been elected and were doing things, swapping ideas and doing joint projects for the benefit of our citizens.

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