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House of Assembly - Fifty-Fourth Parliament, Second Session (54-2)
2020-03-25 Daily Xml
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Coronavirus

Mr PICTON (Kaurna) (14:57): My question is to the Premier. Why has the government not released a COVID-19 plan to either the public or our clinicians, unlike other jurisdictions such as Victoria, WA and the commonwealth?

The Hon. S.S. MARSHALL (Dunstan—Premier) (14:57): Well, we have one national plan and we have our plan here in South Australia. As I have said previously, there are three critical components to that. One is slowing the spread of the disease, lowering the peak and pushing it out as far as possible. The second one is a resources-based one that we have also spoken about in this parliament in depth, which is looking at all of the resources that we need, whether they be physical resources, human resources or testing resources, and making sure that we have a plan to deliver all of those in time.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order! We have the question.

The Hon. S.S. MARSHALL: Sorry, sir, it is just that they were asking about what the plan was. I am sort of outlining—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Yes, we have the question. The Premier has the call.

The Hon. S.S. MARSHALL: The third element is making sure that we can continue to provide high-level public information on this disease. It is really important that people understand as much about this disease as they possibly can. There is a lot of misinformation about this disease and the response to that disease and I think it is really important that we provide—

The Hon. A. Piccolo interjecting:

The SPEAKER: The member for Light is warned.

The Hon. S.S. MARSHALL: —all that information, as much as possible, to inspire public confidence. We know that in other jurisdictions around the world the lack of information going out has caused major problems. This is one of the reasons why we have now had the information with regard to this virus translated into 30 different languages and made that available. I think that is going out this afternoon or tomorrow. There was some preliminary information made available, but that is continuing to go out and then we will ramp up. A public information campaign is already underway at both the state level and the federal level.

I was very pleased earlier this week to go on a teleconference with the Minister for Planning, Transport and Infrastructure, who is also the Minister for Local Government in South Australia, and speak to pretty much every mayor across the state about their opportunities to participate in this public education campaign.

The fourth area that we have here in South Australia, which isn't part of the health plan in terms of response but which is certainly part of our overall state response, is with regard to the effects that it is going to have on the economy. As we all know, there are very serious and significant effects that are emerging now in terms of business failure and in terms of a high level of unemployment very rapidly coming here in South Australia. That is why we were the first state in Australia to move with our first stimulus package, which we have—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. Z.L. Bettison: No-one knows about it.

The SPEAKER: The member for Ramsay is warned!

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Leader!

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: The member for Playford!

The Hon. S.S. MARSHALL: We have been very clear with the people of South Australia that we are fast tracking $350 million worth of projects around South Australia.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. S.S. MARSHALL: One of these projects, which has been extraordinarily well received, of course, especially in country SA, is $15 million going to rapid maintenance projects and important—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: The member for Playford is on two warnings.

The Hon. S.S. MARSHALL: —maintenance projects here in South Australia. We believe that our response to date has been immediate, but we also recognise that there is much greater need even over and above the two separate stimulus packages which have been announced by the federal government. That is one of the reasons why we are working overtime at the moment to bring forward a second stimulus package—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. S.S. MARSHALL: —the second one in two days.

Mr Malinauskas interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Leader!

The Hon. S.S. MARSHALL: I took the opportunity—

Mr Malinauskas interjecting:

The SPEAKER: The leader is warned!

The Hon. S.S. MARSHALL: —to go back and have a look at the last global financial crisis and the response of the former government. In that response, they laid off 1,600 public servants in South Australia, they stopped a whole pile of public projects and they cancelled the prisons project, costing the taxpayers of South Australia tens of millions of dollars. So I am very happy for my stimulus—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. S.S. MARSHALL: —and economic response to be put up alongside the previous Labor government's any time, sir.

The SPEAKER: The Premier's time has expired. The member for Kaurna and then the member for Colton.

Mr Malinauskas: If the GFC is the comparison, no problem.

The SPEAKER: The Leader of the Opposition is warned, because I am trying to give the member for Kaurna a question. The member for Kaurna.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: The Minister for Education, be quiet, and the leader, be quiet!

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: The Minister for Education and the leader will be doing this outside at a 1.5-metre distance if this continues. The member for Kaurna.

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