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House of Assembly - Fifty-Second Parliament, Second Session (52-2)
2013-02-21 Daily Xml
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INDIA ENGAGEMENT STRATEGY

Mr HAMILTON-SMITH (Waite) (14:49): My question is again to the Premier. Following his visit to India last year, why has his government sacked SA's senior trade commissioner in India, Mr A.K. Tareen, and six staff and closed the Chennai trade office, given that the government's 10-year India Engagement Strategy, released in October 2012, says that successful trade between SA and India 'will require a dedicated, fully aligned India team operating both in India and South Australia'? In particular, is the government aware of, or did the government have concerns about, waste or inappropriate use of resources under the former arrangements?

The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL (Cheltenham—Premier, Treasurer, Minister for State Development, Minister for the Public Sector, Minister for the Arts) (14:50): I thank the honourable member for his question. We are reviewing the way in which we approach India, and the India strategy is the guide that will assist us to do that. I think some of the most sophisticated work that has been done in terms of a relationship between South Australia and an overseas country has been done for the purposes of the India strategy.

A very fine-grained analysis using one of the larger counting houses—KPMG, I think—has assisted us in that regard. They have some serious India experts there who have undertaken a capability analysis of India and South Australia and seen where the gaps and opportunities exist for us to work closely together. That is what is guiding us. It is less a place-based strategy than looking at particular opportunities that may exist across India.

That is not to say that there will not be important needs for on-the-ground support within India, but we did receive strong advice that the current arrangements that we had were not appropriate and that the current personnel needed to be changed, and we have acted on that advice. But the trade office's strategy is not about saving money: it is about the appropriate reallocation of resources to get the greater bang for our buck in terms of overseas trade effort.

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