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House of Assembly - Fifty-First Parliament, Third Session (51-3)
2009-02-04 Daily Xml
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ECONOMIC STIMULUS PACKAGE

Mr HAMILTON-SMITH (Waite—Leader of the Opposition) (14:34): My question is again to the Premier. What new projects, if any, did he ask the federal government to fund when he met the Prime Minister on 30 January 2009? The Premier is reported—

The Hon. K.O. Foley interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. K.O. Foley: Is this the best you can do today?

The SPEAKER: The Deputy Premier will come to order!

Mr HAMILTON-SMITH: The Premier is reported to have submitted a list of projects for federal funding which are already state government funded, including rail electrification, desalination plants and roadworks on South Road, which were all part of last year's budget. The Prime Minister is reported to have been 'dismayed at the lack of planning by some states for their own infrastructure needs'.

The Hon. P.F. Conlon interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order! The Minister for Transport will come to order.

Mr O'Brien interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order, the member for Napier!

Mr HAMILTON-SMITH: The Prime Minister indicated that he is 'determined his cash is not used to fill the gaps'. The Premier told the—

The Hon. K.O. FOLEY: On a point of order, Mr Speaker, the Leader of the Opposition is quoting the Prime Minister. Is he quoting him in total or is he making it up?

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order! The Deputy Premier will take his seat. There is no point of order. I am wondering, though, the extent to which this explanation is adding anything to the question. However, I will let the leader continue for the moment.

Mr HAMILTON-SMITH: Thank you, Mr Speaker. The Premier told the house just a moment ago that leaders who attempt to do so should be named and shamed.

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) (14:36): I guess that if you have a slate of questions that have been written out for you by the same people who wrote that famous Frome declaration you basically have to stick to it, even though you know what the truth is. Can I say that the Prime Minister, in fact, said the reverse: he was incredibly impressed by the fact that the South Australian bids were all about things that could happen as quickly as possible, rather than having to make acquisitions of land and purchase corridors—we own the corridors.

So, what was it about? There were new transport projects. There were new health projects. It was a doubling of existing projects. There was the bringing forward of projects that were slated for two years from now. Of course, you have a choice to make: either you support me and the Prime Minister in wanting to get this activity going or you support Malcolm Turnbull, who does not want a cent of it to be spent in South Australia.

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