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House of Assembly - Fifty-Second Parliament, Second Session (52-2)
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GOVERNMENT POLICIES

The Hon. P. CAICA (Colton) (14:10): My question is to the Premier. Can the Premier advise the house about policies to build a stronger South Australia?

The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL (Cheltenham—Premier, Treasurer, Minister for State Development, Minister for the Public Sector, Minister for the Arts) (14:10): I can advise the house that we have now released eight policies since we announced our program for building a stronger South Australia—

Ms Chapman interjecting:

The SPEAKER: The member for Bragg is called to order.

The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL: Eight policies, count them, and we—

The Hon. I.F. EVANS: Point of order: the information subject to this question is publicly available. The minister has sent all of those policies to every member of parliament.

The SPEAKER: I will listen carefully to what the Premier has to say.

The Hon. I.F. Evans: A display.

The SPEAKER: I hardly think it is a display to pick up papers on your desk. If that is a display we are all in violation. We will wait to see what the Premier has to say, to see whether the information the Premier is conveying is already publicly available. The Premier.

The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL: The reason we have embarked upon this series of policies directed at building a stronger South Australia is because the economy of South Australia is in a period of rapid transformation. We cannot afford to stand still at this moment in our history, and there is no doubt that over the last few years we have created a sense of urgency and a sense of excitement that exists in the City of Adelaide. What we need to do is ensure that this spreads more broadly into the South Australian community.

Mrs Redmond interjecting:

The SPEAKER: The member for Heysen is warned for the first time.

The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL: Adelaide must be a city that delivers economic opportunities but also the sort of culture and lifestyle that are going to attract and retain the best and brightest here in our state. We have outlined a clear vision where more people can enjoy affordable inner-city living, with expanded trams and public transport to get them around and better utilise our Parklands to enjoy their leisure time.

To support economic growth we will also grow our transport networks and boost our premium food and wine reputation and export opportunities. We have detailed a plan to create more jobs to prepare us for the changes that we know are going on in the South Australian economy, to support people moving between jobs, to give them the skills in the jobs that we know are being created.

We also need to maintain our enviable status of being one of the safest places in the world to live, and we are investing in ensuring that we deal with stronger laws with gun violence, and to make sure that our city retains its reputation for being a great place to come in and have a great time on a night out.

We are supporting more children to get outdoors, to play and grow into healthy and strong adults, and we have started planning for a brand-new Women's and Children's Hospital, to be co-located with the new Royal Adelaide Hospital, in our ongoing transformation of health care. And, of course, we are establishing a future fund to share the resources prosperity with future generations.

We have demonstrated over the last 11 years that we understand that there is a role for government to play in transforming the economy, creating new opportunities in defence and in mining, and creating new industries that did not even exist before in the renewable energy sector. We have done all this in the face of a global downturn. We are announcing these policies now in the months before the state election so that we can invite the South Australian community to be involved—

The Hon. I.F. EVANS: Point of order, sir.

The SPEAKER: What is the point of order?

The Hon. I.F. EVANS: The minister is now well into his answer and there is nothing that he has told us that is not in the documents that are already publicly available.

The SPEAKER: I think that is a frivolous, vexatious and obstructive point of order, because I doubt very much whether the member for Davenport has read those documents.

The Hon. I.F. EVANS: On what basis, sir?

The SPEAKER: Because I don't think he has sufficiently photographic recall to assert to the house beyond reasonable doubt that the Premier is reproducing what is in those documents. The Premier.

The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL: We are announcing these policies now so that we can treat the people of South Australia with respect so that they can be invited into a debate about the future of our great state. We have our policies. In contrast, we have the Liberal pamphlet, a so-called—

Mr PISONI: Point of order.

The SPEAKER: If the point of order is going to be that the Premier is holding a piece of paper in his hand and, therefore, that is a display, I am afraid I cannot uphold that.

Mr PISONI: He is entering into debate, sir, and speaking about what others may or may not be providing is clearly debate.

The SPEAKER: I will listen carefully to what the Premier has to say.

The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL: We need a debate in this state about our future prosperity and we need more than brochures, completely lightweight brochures.

An honourable member: Feeble.

The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL: That's right. This is what we have come to expect from the Leader of the Opposition. In fact, there is not one positive idea in here for the future of South Australia.

Mr PISONI: Point of order, sir. If claiming that what others are presenting are not positive ideas is not debate, I do not know what is, sir.

The SPEAKER: You have answered your own question, thank you. The Premier.

The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL: Mr Speaker, what we do know is that this is the excuse. The groundwork has been laid—the AAA credit rating, waste, all of those sorts of weasel words—this is the excuse for the deep cuts in jobs and services. This is the excuse. That is all there is.

The SPEAKER: The member for Morialta.

Mr GARDNER: Sir, I seek clarification on your earlier ruling in relation to display. If the Premier's flaunting of what he is now making into a paper plane is not, in fact, display, does that mean that any minister at any time should be able to display anything in their hands and that is not considered display?

The SPEAKER: My understanding of 'display' is something with large writing on it or gaudy colours that express some impermissible message, but not holding a piece of paper.

Ms Chapman: But he made it into a plane.

The SPEAKER: Is the point of order that the Premier has turned the opposition leader's policy into a paper plane?

Mr GARDNER: Directly to the explanation that you have just given, sir, the original display by the Premier with the gaudy colours that he was holding up as the Labor Party's policies fits the description of a display.

The SPEAKER: I now order the Premier to flatten the piece of paper and to take the shape out of it because, otherwise, it might have been a display. The member for Stuart, is this a point of order?

Mr VAN HOLST PELLEKAAN: Yes, sir. Mr Speaker, the Premier has exceeded his time, including time that he—

The SPEAKER: That is a point of order I uphold. I was wondering when you were going to get around to it. The leader.

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