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House of Assembly - Fifty-Fifth Parliament, First Session (55-1)
2024-08-28 Daily Xml
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South Australian Museum

The Hon. J.A.W. GARDNER (Morialta—Deputy Leader of the Opposition) (15:00): My question is to the Premier. Will the Premier finally draw a line through the proposed restructure to the staffing, collections and galleries of the South Australian Museum as requested by more than 10,000 South Australians who signed a petition tabled in the house today?

The Hon. P.B. MALINAUSKAS (Croydon—Premier) (15:01): As the Minister for Arts has been indicating throughout the Deputy Leader of the Opposition's questions, the government will be releasing the outcome of the review. It has been a comprehensive effort. There have been a number of people who have been able to contribute to that exercise. It has been well led. We have made sure we have experts including the state's Chief Scientist and then a well-regarded museum director from the Queensland Museum, along with the CE of the DPC.

The Minister and I are looking forward to the receipt of that report in the not too distant future. I should make mention that there have been a number of people who have represented the group of, I think, concerned citizens around the original proposition that was being put forward by the Museum board. I can say at this point from the briefings that we have had, as the review has been ongoing, that the original proposition that was being pursued by the board was not satisfactory, that there was a very underwhelming effort on behalf of the Museum's management to engage with people who have a really legitimate and genuine interest in the Museum. So there is clearly work to be done.

We look forward to the outcome of that review. I want to thank people who have contributed to that review. This government's objective is to make sure that the Museum remains a strong institution in this state, that its outstanding collection is able to be preserved and put on display, and we want to make sure that the science and research that is well-regarded around the country at the Museum is able to be preserved.

But, at the same time, we do acknowledge that there is a need to modernise elements of the Museum. I don't mind saying, and I think I have mentioned in this place before when the Deputy Leader of the Opposition has asked questions about it, that my kids go to the Museum every school holidays it feels like. I myself went there a few weeks ago to have a look, and I went there with the kids, and they know the place far better than I do. But it did strike me that there are parts of the Museum that feel like they need a bit of a freshen up. There are parts of the Museum—the parts that are public facing because so much of what the Museum does isn't public facing—but there are parts of what is public facing, that feel like they haven't changed since I was a kid.

A part of that engenders nostalgia. I mean, who doesn't love the lion that wags the tail. But it is also true that we don't want the Museum to end up being a museum of a museum. So there is a balance that needs to be achieved here. I think, rather thoughtfully, those people who I characterise as concerned citizens about the proposed changes acknowledge that there is a need for effort in the Museum going forward. So that is where there is work to be done and we keenly await the outcome of the review.

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