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House of Assembly - Fifty-Fifth Parliament, First Session (55-1)
2025-04-03 Daily Xml
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Drought Round Table

The Hon. G.G. BROCK (Stuart) (14:18): My question is to the Premier. Can the Premier please update my constituents about the outcome of the roundtable discussions held yesterday with relevance to the key stakeholders and regarding the ongoing drought conditions and also any opportunities? With your leave, sir, and that of the house, I will explain a bit further.

Leave granted.

The Hon. G.G. BROCK: Following my questions on Tuesday regarding potential further issues for my farming communities, due to the ongoing drought conditions and the challenges my constituents are facing, can the Premier please indicate what, if any, funds or assistance might be given?

The Hon. P.B. MALINAUSKAS (Croydon—Premier) (14:19): I thank the member for Stuart for his question. Yesterday evening myself, the Treasurer and the Minister for Primary Industries had the opportunity to sit down with quite a broad representation of the state's primary production sector, both geographically and also in terms of what was produced. We had people from the South-East, the Riverland, the Barossa, we had people from the Mallee and across the state. There were people representing beef production, lamb production, people representing broadacre agriculture, viticulture, stone-fruit growing, and it was quite an impressive array. I have got to say from the outset—

Mr Telfer: How many actual farmers?

The Hon. P.B. MALINAUSKAS: Quite a few actually.

Mr Telfer: How many?

The Hon. P.B. MALINAUSKAS: I will get you the number.

Mr Telfer interjecting:

The SPEAKER: The member for Flinders, interjections are unparliamentary. You will stop interjecting and you will listen to the Premier's answer.

The Hon. P.B. MALINAUSKAS: I have to say that the Treasurer and I and the minister reflected immediately after the meeting on just how grateful we were for their thoughtfulness—certainly their passion and enthusiasm, but their keenness to engage with the government to make sure that they can provide their knowledge and assistance in how we calibrate our second round of the drought assistance package that we intend to announce in the next couple of weeks.

Earlier this morning, under my request, the Chief Executive Officer of the Department of the Premier and Cabinet was convening relevant groups of officials to make some adjustments to the package that we have been planning, on the back of some of the information that was shared with us last night.

An honourable member: Such as?

The Hon. P.B. MALINAUSKAS: You will see when the package comes. There are a number of things that we are changing, just in terms of what we give weight to over and above other considerations, but the types of issues that we were discussing in the context of our second round of drought assistance is: to what extent does the government place an emphasis on immediate relief versus the type of relief that will inform long-term better outcomes for drought-resilient farming practices.

I think there is an aspiration amongst farmers and primary producers themselves to focus more on the latter than the former, because the objective here is to make sure the industry remains as productive as it has been over a long period of time, which represents one of the most productive agriculture and primary production sectors anywhere in the world.

I was speaking to a dry seed broadacre farmer yesterday. It's just amazing what so many growers in our state are able to produce with so little water. In other parts of the world it would be incomprehensible. These are innovative and highly-productive businesspeople who, quite frankly, are running some of the most sophisticated operations of any business in the state and what they want to see from the government is collaboration with them, not just on a short-term hand-out—although there is a place for that in some instances—but, more importantly, on allowing them to invest in the infrastructure, as they have done for generations, to be increasingly resilient and successful.

So we are making sure that we are trying to get that balance right within the government. I really appreciated their feedback on a range of measures, I have to say, and I just cannot stress enough how the tone of the engagement was just really productive and genuine and worthwhile. I am very grateful for the time that we had and I hope that we can repay that faith and that gratitude with a well-calibrated package that we will announce in the not too distant future.

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