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House of Assembly - Fifty-Second Parliament, First Session (52-1)
2011-09-13 Daily Xml
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Grievance Debate

SCHOOL BUS CONTRACTS

Mr GRIFFITHS (Goyder) (16:25): It is interesting that the member for Cheltenham, in his most recent contribution, referred to the fact that the community expect more of us. They are very wise words; the community does expect more of us. Those of us who had the chance to be on the steps of Parliament House yesterday to witness a rally by concerned small business operators worried about school bus contracts would know that those people expect a lot more of us, too.

I am sure that all members in this chamber would be aware of the worries held by these people. There are about 250 privately-operated school bus contractors out there and every one of those contractors is greatly concerned about what their future will be when their contract comes up for renewal.

That rally yesterday was the second one to be held. Again, it involved approximately 80 buses brought in by people from within a couple of hours drive of Adelaide—people who want to ensure that the people in this great city have the opportunity to be aware of their concerns and what the issues are and what needs to happen to fix the problem. Admittedly, there were not a lot of people on the steps of Parliament House, but all of those people who were there are worried about the relationship they have with a family business that provides a school bus opportunity.

I commend those people greatly, because they were there fighting passionately for things that are important to them and for the services provided to regional communities, and they were there fighting passionately, not for the provision of a corporately-operated school bus contract where people come in and who knows how much they will care about the wider community, but for the continuation of a family business that, in some cases, has been operating for up to decades, with good people associated with it who give a commitment to their community. They are worried that their future will be taken away from them.

I have had many telephone calls from people all around the state who are very concerned about their contracts. In some cases, they have been told either that they have lost them or they are in a state of limbo; they have been asked to extend their contracts for short periods. In that time, though, they are being forced into a situation where they could make decisions that could have terrible results for them and their families.

One operator I spoke to three weeks ago had received the dreaded telephone call advising him that he did not have the contract anymore. This chap operates three buses. He and his business partner had taken some risks, and they would acknowledged this, on the basis that they were hopeful they would win the contract. They thought they had put absolutely every effort into ensuring that the tender price they submitted was the best possible price. They had provided this service for 27 years, and they thought they would have a good chance. They knew that they needed to have good buses to meet the contract provisions, which meant they had to meet some Euro IV standards. They had gone out and spent $600,000 on two new buses then to be told that they did not have the contract.

This chap has been in the industry for 27 years. I have never been so close to having a man on the telephone cry because the news had devastated him—and there are other stories like that, too. All across the Southern Fleurieu Peninsula, the Adelaide Hills, the Mid North, as far as Balaklava as it currently stands, through the Barossa area, there are bus companies that are screaming out for assistance. They want assistance from a minister who understands their issues—and that is where it again comes back to the member for Cheltenham. He is the minister who has responsibility for this. He is the minister who has allowed the procurement of this contract service from within the DECS organisation to be so flawed so as to give very little chance for the current suppliers to get a contract, and these people are now in desperation mode.

I spoke with a lady yesterday who is part of a family business that has been doing the job for some 50 years. She had a serious health condition 12 years ago which caused her to lose her mobility and the ability to speak, although she is now healthy. However, the stress that she is facing as a result of this decision and the potential of the contracts to be taken away from her and her husband and the business they operate has put her in a situation where yesterday was her last stand—that was the last day she will be involved in this fight because she is fearful that she will have a relapse and be confined to a wheelchair. That is the sort of pressure that people are under.

These are real people who want to ensure that they have a future. They want the member for Cheltenham, as the Minister for Education until 20 October, to listen to their issues. The minister did provide them with a meeting yesterday, but from that they got nothing. The Bus and Coach Association is desperate about this. Its membership is desperate about this. They need minister Weatherill to understand the issue, to use some common sense in this to give some future to small family businesses that operate school bus contracts to regional South Australia and the outer metro areas and to give them a future, because unless he listens very soon these people will be gone; and once they have gone they will not come back.

They will have no capacity to continue their businesses just relying on short-term contract work they might get. They need the surety that the school bus route gives them and the communities need that surety, because if they lose those buses, no other hire option is available and I really fear for that. People living in regional areas know they have to transport themselves and an important aspect of it is school bus contracts.

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