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House of Assembly - Fifty-Fourth Parliament, Second Session (54-2)
2021-04-01 Daily Xml
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The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS (West Torrens) (14:42): My question is to the Minister for Education. Were the name, email address or phone number of any respondent to a South Australian government survey, conducted by the Department for Education, shared with the Liberal Party via its NationBuilder platform? With your leave, sir, and that of the house, I will explain.

Leave granted.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order! The Premier is called to order. The member for West Torrens has the call.

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS: The Department for Education ran a government survey on its website asking for respondents to enrol in a survey about the naming of a school in Aldinga from R-12.

The Hon. J.A.W. GARDNER (Morialta—Minister for Education) (14:43): The survey to which the member refers is about the new significant school that is being built at Aldinga. It's a school which is an investment of well over $100 million by this government and it will indeed support the education of 1,675 students from birth to 12 in the Aldinga area and more broadly. It's a very popular new build and a very exciting development for people in that area.

The government is very committed to seeing that community engaged in the naming of that school and, indeed, through that community consultation there were a number of suggestions put forward. There were I think a couple of options put forward. It was a very close run thing.

Through both the survey responses directly—tick a box—and the written feedback that came through, we came up with a name that represented the best of all those responses. We are very pleased that the Aldinga Payinthi College will be open in term 1 next year.

The construction of that survey, the delivery of it to the community, as I understand it—certainly, to the best of my knowledge—was done by the communications unit within the education department. That communications unit is run by a set of experienced public servants in whom I certainly have confidence. I have no reason to think they acted in any way inappropriately at any time and I certainly have regard for their professionalism.

They are headed by an outstanding public servant whose name is Leah Manuel. I have no reason to think anything except the best—the most professional service provider to successive education ministers over a period of years. I think to cast aspersions on someone like Ms Manuel is very much inappropriate. The fact is—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: The minister will resume his seat. The member for Lee rises on a point of order.

The Hon. S.C. MULLIGHAN: The member for Morialta is clearly debating in providing his answer.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order, members on my right!

The Hon. S.C. MULLIGHAN: It was a very specific question about whether the names, email addresses or other details were shared with the Liberal Party from people who responded to the survey on the education website. No reference at all was made to the people who may work in a communications unit in the department.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order! The member for Lee has raised a point of order.

The Hon. A. Koutsantonis: Either me or ICAC is going to ask the same question.

The SPEAKER: The member for West Torrens will cease interjecting.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: The member for Lee—

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: The member for West Torrens will leave for 20 minutes in accordance with standing order 137A.

The Hon. A. Koutsantonis: I am asking these questions; of course you're throwing me out.

Mr Whetstone: Sooky la la!

The honourable member for West Torrens having withdrawn from the chamber:

The SPEAKER: The member for Chaffey is warned for a second time. The member for Lee has raised a point of order under what I understand to be standing order 98(a). The question addressed itself to a survey and to the department's undertaking of the survey. The minister in addressing the question is addressing both the survey and the relevant responsibilities within the department, so I don't uphold the point of order. I am listening carefully to the minister. The minister has the call.

The Hon. J.A.W. GARDNER: It is extremely unlikely that the outstanding public servants in the education department in question would share such information with the Liberal Party. I think that is an unfathomable suggestion. It's preposterous. In relation to the people who work in that team who, as I understand it, constructed this survey, I don't think anybody has ever suggested previously that they have been a Liberal Party-affiliated group of people. They are public servants; they deserve our respect not innuendo.

If the opposition is concerned that people who might have participated in a survey who live in that area have received information from the Liberal Party about this outstanding facility, I can advise the opposition that to my understanding the Liberal Party in the local area and its candidate, Amy Williams, are out talking about the Aldinga Payinthi school every single week and of course they would be sharing information with the whole community there. It is not a matter of capturing data: it is a matter of us talking about the Aldinga Payinthi school.

I am absolutely confident that there will be many occasions between now and the next election when the Liberal candidate and the Liberal Party will be talking to the residents of Aldinga about the outstanding educational facilities that this Liberal government is installing in the southern suburbs, the outstanding support that we are delivering as part of a broader world-class education system for people in Adelaide's south, the Fleurieu Peninsula and right around South Australia.

I'm aware of no such suggestion as has been raised by the member for West Torrens and I am very disappointed in the way the Labor Party is casting aspersions on this outstanding group of public servants.

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