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House of Assembly - Fifty-Fifth Parliament, First Session (55-1)
2024-05-01 Daily Xml
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South Australian Museum

The Hon. J.A.W. GARDNER (Morialta—Deputy Leader of the Opposition) (14:48): My question is to the Premier. When was the Premier—and, indeed, the Minister for Arts—first provided a briefing in relation to the restructure of the South Australian Museum? With your leave, sir, and that of the house, I will explain.

Leave granted.

The Hon. J.A.W. GARDNER: The Museum Board's September minutes, released under FOI, describe proposed meetings being planned with the minister, DPC and DTF to gain approval for the proposed restructure. The November and December minutes then refer to such meetings taking place with senior executives within the Premier's department.

The Hon. P.B. MALINAUSKAS (Croydon—Premier) (14:48): I thank the shadow minister for education and leader of opposition business for his question. Let me say from the outset that this government is committed to ensuring that the Museum is able to maintain a position of leadership around the nation as being a great institution that serves our state's scientific community well and does justice to the extraordinary collection that we have under our stewardship through the Museum. We are committed to making sure that the Museum's strategic approach into the future is fit for purpose to honour both pursuits but that it's also evolving in such a way that it appeals to as many demographics as possible.

As the shadow minister is well aware, the stewardship of the Museum on a day-to-day basis is bestowed within the SA Museum Board, and they have the responsibility to set that direction, employ people, and other day-to-day functions. Notwithstanding that, the state government sees its role as being an important one as, I guess, the ultimate shareholder in that endeavour, which is why the minister and I have made a decision to intervene. Intervening in the proposed restructure the Museum was pursuing was generating a degree of concern amongst many of those within our community who share this government's passion for the Museum itself. We make no apologies for that intervention.

That intervention is characterised as putting on hold the restructure that the Museum Board have put in train and then in turn putting in its place a very quick review to be led by three people: chaired by the CEO of DPC, Mr Damien Walker; the Chief Scientist, who the Premier has recently appointed and who has a great history and a CV that reflects their commitment to science; and also the director of the Queensland Museum who is also a former chief scientist in their state. We think between those three individuals we can formulate a path forward. There will be active engagement with representatives of those—we can call them the concerned group—who have been campaigning against the proposed Museum restructure. They will be actively engaged with, which I think is appropriate, given the level of organisation and concern that the proposed Museum restructure had raised.

Can I also take this opportunity, though, to illuminate the house and the broader public with some of the misinformation that those opposite have been peddling: the idea that somehow the Museum needed to be saved or that somehow there was a plan to close certain galleries when there was not. They will do their political misinformation and they should be held to account in various forms, but this government will get on with the job of making sure that our Museum is fit for purpose and serves the community well into the future.

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