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House of Assembly - Fifty-Second Parliament, Second Session (52-2)
2012-11-29 Daily Xml
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WEATHERILL LABOR GOVERNMENT

The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL (Cheltenham—Premier, Minister for State Development) (15:25): I begin by saying that this year that confronted us in South Australia has been a year when the South Australian Labor government decided to put front and centre in its concerns the creation of jobs. Early in the year we were faced with the prospect of the closure of Holden which would have led to a 16,000 person hole in the employment situation in South Australia—an extraordinary economy wrecking and region wrecking proposition if it had come to pass.

It meant that we travelled to Detroit and, together with the commonwealth government, we negotiated a package of co-investment that leveraged $1 billion of investment from Holden and $275 million of which the South Australian government will contribute $50 million. We did this because we understood that this state, the great manufacturing state that it is, needs to have a car manufacturing sector if it is to make the transition to a long-term sustainable advanced manufacturing state. We believe that we need to continue to make things in this state. That is why we are committed to the manufacturing sector.

We quickly then went on to make a number of substantial investments that spoke to this very ambition. The investments in the Mitsubishi site at Tonsley Park are a fantastic example of the movement from the old to the new. An old car manufacturing plant which would have been destined for a bulky goods factory, we took it over and imagined a vision for advanced manufacturing. We now have a university there, shifting an important part of its campus there. We now have a TAFE college. We have significant businesses committing to relocate. We have a partnership with Siemens, the largest company on the German stock exchange, a country which is renowned for its advanced manufacturing capability. Together we will create one of the world's great sustainable advanced manufacturing precincts.

We also have put in place the building blocks for the training and skills that are necessary for us to make sure that workers have the skills and capabilities to participate in such a sector. We have a blueprint designed by Mr Göran Roos, an acclaimed world leader who has chosen to move his residence to South Australia because he shares our ambition for advanced manufacturing future in this state.

We were also confronted with disappointments: the BHP decision to no longer be pressing ahead with the expansion on the original time line. We did not take that lying down. We sought to negotiate with BHP their ongoing commitment to this state and we negotiated a package of measures which exceeded $650 million which is an extraordinary commitment by this company to the long-term future of this state. At the heart of those negotiations were Labor causes: the proposition about ensuring that we are a mining centre of excellence for the nation in this state, to not only allow people to dig up things here but to ensure that it actually is there for the benefit of our state.

Of course, there is the great fight for the River Murray, asserting our interests, a self-respecting state that does not lay down but actually asserts itself and understands its place in the world, and that is why we were successful. We did not lay down. If anyone looks at the Murray-Darling plan, you will see our fingerprints all over it—an extra 450 billion litres, an extra $2 billion—down to our advocacy, down to our campaigning.

What do we see from those opposite? We see the rerun of the old story, the Hatfields and McCoys that exist on the other side of the parliament, and their complete inability to articulate a single positive policy for this state despite the fact that we have had a promise. The opposition leader has pledged to abandon her small target strategy. Well, where are they? Where are these incredible policies? They simply do not exist. Why don't they exist? Because she has been relentlessly stalked.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order! The members for Davenport and Norwood, behave or leave. You will listen to the Premier.

The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL: Madam Speaker, the reason that she could not come up with any policies is that she has relentlessly and treacherously been stalked for months and months and, when the push failed, she went out there and sought to denigrate the military service of the challenger as she sought to defend herself.

I conclude with these words. Appropriate attribution to the member for Davenport, mutatis mutandis. The opposition does not deserve the opportunity to govern. The opposition is a rabble. You have lost your authority. You have lost your way. You are divided. You are tired. You are arrogant. You are at war. Have a good Christmas!

The SPEAKER: The member for Schubert.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order! Member for Schubert, sit down until we can get rid of some of the rabble.

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