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House of Assembly - Fifty-Fifth Parliament, First Session (55-1)
2023-03-21 Daily Xml
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Service SA Centres

Ms HOOD (Adelaide) (15:01): My question is to the Minister for Infrastructure and Transport. Can the minister inform the house of the importance of Service SA centres in assisting South Australians?

The Hon. A. Koutsantonis: Sorry, hang on a sec.

The SPEAKER: Minister, you will not use that text as a prop.

The Hon. A. Koutsantonis: Sorry, sir.

Members interjecting:

The SPEAKER: Order!

The Hon. A. KOUTSANTONIS (West Torrens—Minister for Infrastructure and Transport, Minister for Energy and Mining) (15:01): I thank the member for the important question. Once again, Service SA is stepping up to the plate, offering free licence replacements for those affected by the recent Latitude data breach. The government is awaiting further details from Latitude about affected customers in South Australia, after which we will be able to provide an option to request a replacement licence online. In the meantime, South Australians who have been told by Latitude that they should obtain a replacement licence can do so by taking the information they have received from Latitude to a Service SA centre.

Assistance isn't just about waiving fees; it's also about accessibility. The Optus data breach demonstrated the importance of face-to-face contact for many South Australians. Not every South Australian has internet access or is able to complete forms online. It wasn't that long ago that a previous government announced the closure of three important Service SA centres: Prospect, Mitcham and Modbury. Interestingly, all three of the Liberal MPs representing those areas have been defeated, or not re-elected.

I remember it well, a proposed cost-saving measure in the former government's first budget and the immediate reaction from the South Australian public—a very angry reaction. Despite being amongst the most utilised Service SA centres in South Australia, the previous government didn't seem to care about the many thousands of customers who attended those centres for assistance, and simply abandoned them. However, not at Mount Barker, where I understand a young ambitious backbencher at the time made sure that that Service SA centre was completed.

The Malinauskas Labor government took to the state election a commitment to keep these Service SA centres operational and to even increase the hours in which they are open. In line with that election commitment, I am pleased to advise the house that starting on Saturday 6 May this year, Service SA centres in Elizabeth, Marion, Modbury, Prospect and Seaford Meadows will be open on Saturdays from 9am to 5pm, offering important services and information for customers who are unable to attend during regular business hours.

The Malinauskas Labor government is making it easier to drop in and access important services and advice. The five Service SA centres chosen to open on Saturdays are some of the most visited locations and provide convenient options for customers across Adelaide. An additional 12 full-time staff will be allocated to these centres to ensure we can cater for the additional operating hours and we thank our Service SA staff for their willingness to be flexible to support more easily accessible services for South Australians.

In closing, I provide the house with this important statistic: for the 2022 calendar year, the Mitcham Service SA centre completed 99,322 transactions; Modbury, 149,146 transactions; and Prospect Service SA completed 138,621 transactions. Those opposite wanted those centres closed, so when they ask themselves why they lost those three seats, perhaps they should ask the hundreds of thousands of people they would have denied services to.

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