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House of Assembly - Fifty-First Parliament, Third Session (51-3)
2008-09-23 Daily Xml
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FUNDS SA

Mr GRIFFITHS (Goyder) (15:00): My question is to the Treasurer. What are Funds SA's losses so far during 2008-09, and how does the Treasurer propose to fund the increasingly unfunded superannuation liability position for public sector employees? Budget papers show that the unfunded superannuation liability deteriorated by over $1.8 billion during 2007-08, driven partly by equity market losses. On 1 April 2008 (before the presentation of the 2008-09 state budget), the Treasurer told the house that, due to an 11.2 per cent fall in Australian equity markets since 30 June 2007, the budget would provide an extra '$100 million, possibly close to $120 million, to make up for the deteriorating position in the government's unfunded superannuation liability'. Since the Treasurer's comments, Australian equity markets have now fallen by over 21 per cent.

The Hon. K.O. FOLEY (Port Adelaide—Deputy Premier, Treasurer, Minister for Industry and Trade, Minister for Federal/State Relations) (15:02): The honourable member was not listening to my ministerial statement, and to imply that Funds SA has dropped by 21 per cent is not correct. I will just find the numbers again.

An honourable member interjecting:

The Hon. K.O. FOLEY: Yes, but that is individual shares.

Mr Williams interjecting:

The SPEAKER: The member for MacKillop will come to order!

The Hon. K.O. FOLEY: With respect to the balanced funds (and I will just find it again), it is a negative 9.3 per cent return to 30 June 2008, and that is not good. I wish it did not happen, but that is the lot of the equity market. That is what happens. There is no control I can have over it. What happens is that, as the unfunded liability increases, we put more money into it from the budget. That is why, when the Leader of the Opposition is out making reckless statements that he will build a $1.2 billion sporting stadium, he has no appreciation of what financial risks are currently in the market.

So, we will put more money in from the budget to keep track with the unfunded liability pay-back schedule put in place by the last Liberal government. That is exactly what happens. We will give updated figures on that in the mid-year review at next year's budget time. But, as he knows, the Leader of the Opposition's large portfolio holdings are also down in the period in question—in fact, more than Funds SA's are, but I am not making an issue of that. His individual stock selections have seen his portfolio down at 30 June, I am told, 13.6 per cent as against Funds SA's 9.3 per cent. I am not criticising the Leader of the Opposition's selection of stocks, as vast as they are and as many as they are, but, if the honourable member wants to criticise Funds SA's balanced portfolio being down 9.3 per cent, well, I will put 9.3 per cent against 13.6 per cent any day.

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