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House of Assembly - Fifty-Third Parliament, Second Session (53-2)
2017-05-31 Daily Xml
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Global Security Intelligence Centre

Mr ODENWALDER (Little Para) (14:26): My question is to the Minister for Investment and Trade. What is the jobs impact of additional investment in NEC's Global Security Intelligence Centre?

The Hon. M.L.J. HAMILTON-SMITH (Waite—Minister for Investment and Trade, Minister for Small Business, Minister for Defence Industries, Minister for Veterans' Affairs) (14:27): I thank the member for Little Para for his question. This morning I toured and launched NEC's Global Security Intelligence Centre based in the Adelaide CBD. NEC has provided information and communications technology services to South Australia for around 30 years and has progressively grown its staff numbers in South Australia.

The investment to establish a purpose-built global intelligence centre in Adelaide has contributed to the number of jobs at NEC Adelaide growing from 25 in 2010 to 350 this year. NEC's expansion of its investment into South Australia reflects the impact of Investment Attraction agency SA's short lifespan, securing more than $1 billion in investment and creating and securing almost 6,000 new jobs since its inception not that long ago.

Cybersecurity is a real focus area for South Australia. Our industries and strategic characteristics are highly suited to cybersecurity investment. In this digital age, threats to our economic, personal and national wellbeing mean that cybersecurity must be effective across every aspect of our society, including government, business, defence and research domains, as demonstrated spectacularly in the last week with British Airways.

We see South Australia as an ideal place for companies to grow in this industry. Adelaide leads the nation for cyber, space and surveillance, with a rapidly growing industry driven by defence and national research programs. We are home to some of the world's most sophisticated electronics and cyber projects and many of the world's best known security contractors. We have created what is a sophisticated security industry and ecosystem that includes:

global prime cyber contractor projects and defence value chain security companies;

the headquarters of Australia's cyber and electronic warfare capabilities and research programs;

a high proportion of world-class universities and ICT students;

clustered industries relevant to cybersecurity innovation, including sectors such as health care, defence, education, utilities, clean tech and mining; and

shared industry and state government commitment to collaborate.

Over the next 20 years, South Australia will be home to the largest share of Australia's total in-country defence materiel spend, with Adelaide the headquarters for the majority of the nation's defence cyber industry and technology research, development and investment.

This includes the $50 billion Future Submarines project, Australia's biggest ever defence investment and one of the world's single biggest military contracts. This project alone will drive vast activity across defence and associated industries, particularly technology and innovation sectors, and cybersecurity will be at the forefront of this effort.

NEC is emerging as one of South Australia's most prominent investors. What we have here is a leading multinational IT company recognising the advantageous business environment our state presents in making continual investments in South Australia. They are choosing SA. It is another feather in the cap of the state's Investment Attraction strategy which was formed, by the way, by co-locating existing staff and resources from a host of agencies into one agency—something you might want to correct the Hon. R.L. Lucas on in the upper house. In just over 18 months, we have secured $1.1 billion worth—

Mr Whetstone interjecting:

The SPEAKER: The member for Chaffey is warned.

The Hon. M.L.J. HAMILTON-SMITH: —of capital investment, 5,600 jobs and a net economic benefit to the state of $4.5 billion. This is an agency that the opposition spokesman in the other place clearly has on his list to axe. How many other agencies and public servants are on that list? I hope we're not back to the 25,000 from milking day. These people are doing a fantastic job, growing jobs and investment in the state and I commend them.

Mr GARDNER: Point of order, sir: 98.

The SPEAKER: I uphold the point of order. The member for Davenport.

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