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House of Assembly - Fifty-Fourth Parliament, First Session (54-1)
2018-11-28 Daily Xml
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Adelaide Oval Hotel Development

The Hon. S.C. MULLIGHAN (Lee) (14:58): My question is to the Minister for Child Protection. Does the minister support the government loan for the development of a hotel at Adelaide Oval?

The SPEAKER: The Minister for Transport and Infrastructure.

The Hon. S.K. KNOLL (Schubert—Minister for Transport, Infrastructure and Local Government, Minister for Planning) (14:58): Thank you, Mr Speaker.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. S.K. KNOLL: The members of the opposition can ask us about deliberations of cabinet any time they choose, but this is a government that wants to build our tourism and visitor economy here in South Australia, and the provision of a $42 million loan to help underpin a development at Adelaide Oval to help turn what we would admit, we would concede, is a world-class stadium—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. S.K. KNOLL: —to keep it at the forefront of world-class stadia right across the world is an important way for us to invest our money. There has been so much commentary from members opposite trying to muddy the waters on this issue, so I would like to explain it quite clearly for them.

A loan is different from a grant. It is different from underwriting something, and do you know why? Because a loan gets repaid. So in this instance the South Australian taxpayer is actually going to see a direct return from this asset—not the least of which is the fact that, because Adelaide Oval is an asset that the people of South Australia own, they will actually own this hotel as well. Regardless of that, there is a margin that is going to be made on the provision of this loan to Adelaide Oval for the construction of a hotel.

More than that, there is some suggestion that somehow the Stadium Management Authority is some sort of private-for-profit developer. I don't understand because it was those opposite who actually put the deal in place in the first place. All we are seeking to do here is to make sure that we keep Adelaide Oval the world-class venue that it is—but more than that. And when the member for Lee is on radio talking about, 'If they're charging $9.50 for a pint of beer, that's too expensive,' well, it's a deal that you guys set up.

An honourable member interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. S.K. KNOLL: All we are trying to do is to make sure that the Adelaide Oval has a diverse range of revenue sources so that, if there is an eventuality in the future when Port Adelaide once again need to pull out the tarps and their revenue streams go backwards, if they have alternative options to be able to sustain themselves that don't involve the taxpayer, this is actually about building resilience for the Stadium Management Authority.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. S.K. KNOLL: It is an extremely good use of taxpayers' money. We stand by this decision as a cabinet. We stand behind this decision as a government because this is how we grow our visitor economy. Unlike those opposite, who would throw grants around willy-nilly, what we have done is a deal that actually delivers a return for taxpayers, that actually has a net positive benefit for the budget. What it will do is help underpin the visitor economy.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. S.K. KNOLL: What it also enjoys is the fact that we are trying to incentivise and grow part of our state that has seen some difficulty in recent times. Even just the other day, we heard that Paesano, a business that has been in North Adelaide for some decades, has been struggling to be able to survive. By making this strategic investment, what this government is doing is helping to underpin the visitor economy in and around Adelaide Oval. That is a great use of taxpayers' loan facility—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. S.K. KNOLL: —because we know that in the end it's actually going to pay more than it costs. Somehow, this basic financial accounting eludes members opposite. If it means that we need to have some sort of basic economics lesson, some sort of understanding of how basic loan facilities work, then I think we can provide that briefing.

I think that it is extremely disingenuous to suggest that we are doing anything other than building into a great asset that South Australians get to own and making sure that we have a model that sees that Adelaide Oval is successful and remains successful into the future and will help to grow jobs in our state, which is something that the former government failed to do for a decade.

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