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House of Assembly - Fifty-Fourth Parliament, First Session (54-1)
2019-07-02 Daily Xml
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Public Transport Privatisation

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS (West Torrens) (15:07): My question is to the Minister for Transport and Infrastructure. Has the minister met with any operators offering to bid, or who suggested that they would bid, to contract to operate our public transport rail network prior to yesterday's announcement?

The Hon. S.K. KNOLL (Schubert—Minister for Transport, Infrastructure and Local Government, Minister for Planning) (15:07): There is a very clear way that we deal with conflict of interest in relation to this and that is that—

Mr Picton: Have you got a conflict? What's your conflict? Barossa Fine Foods express?

The SPEAKER: The member for Kaurna can leave for the remainder of question time.

The honourable member for Kaurna having withdrawn from the chamber:

The SPEAKER: The minister has the call.

The Hon. S.K. KNOLL: I suppose, Mr Speaker, that coming from the private sector isn't something that's valued by one half of this chamber. Having experience of trying to spend one's own capital to improve and create jobs in South Australia is not something that one side of this house—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. S.K. KNOLL: —thinks is an appropriate use of somebody's time.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. S.K. KNOLL: I have met with so many operators—so many operators—and do you know why?

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order! I would like to hear the answer.

The Hon. S.K. KNOLL: Apart from the fact that these people, for instance, Keolis Downer and Torrens Transit, are actually operators of the current system—

The Hon. A. Koutsantonis interjecting:

The SPEAKER: The member for West Torrens is warned for a second and final time.

The Hon. S.K. KNOLL: —these are people with the global expertise we are seeking to take advantage of. I had a good opportunity to go across with Torrens Transit to look at how—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. S.K. KNOLL: —they operate on-demand bus services in Sydney and look at the way they have been able to integrate their B-Line service, for instance, with some on-demand services, as well as some other various parts of their network. It was a good opportunity to talk with Keolis Downer, which is operating in Newcastle, which also has an on-demand bus service in a low frequency, low patronage area that could actually hold some answers here in South Australia. We should not be scared of talking to smart people and asking them what they think. What we also need to do is to make sure that when—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. S.K. KNOLL: —we go into tender for something we maintain the integrity of that tender process. I have sought to do that on every single occasion. What I don't accept, and what this house shouldn't accept and what the South Australian voters shouldn't accept, is a government who want to stick their head in the sand and think that they are perfect at everything. That is simply not the case, and the facts bear that out with the last three years of the former government seeing patronage decline across our network. Bums on seats going backwards—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. S.K. KNOLL: —is a clear example of their failure to grow our public transport network. We did see some green shoots last year, 1.6 million more passengers over the course of the last financial year. But can I say to the South Australian taxpayers: we are a government who are not scared to admit that going out and talking to other people is a great way to find new ideas. We are a state and a government who are willing to look at best practice—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. S.K. KNOLL: —to talk with recognised experts and then bring that expertise to South Australia. It is something that we are doing in a whole multitude of spheres. South Australians are going to be the beneficiaries of that. All public transport users here in Adelaide will know that they have a government who have left no stone unturned in seeking to improve the service that we offer.

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