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Legislative Council - Fifty-Fourth Parliament, First Session (54-1)
2018-12-05 Daily Xml
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Industry and Skills

The Hon. C.M. SCRIVEN (15:32): As the parliamentary year draws to a close, I want to touch on a number of issues related to the area of industry and skills. There have been significant changes in the portfolio, some good and some definitely not so good. We have seen cuts to career services programs that successfully help people into jobs. We have seen cuts to disability support services, including Bedford Industries, cuts to the University of the Third Age, cuts to the retrenched workers program and cuts to the Jobs First employment program. We have seen cuts to the Small Business Development Fund, despite the Liberals claiming to be the party of small business, and cuts to the digital game development program. We have, sadly, seen a pattern of cuts, cutting support for employees with no alternative support provided.

Members will recall that the Marshall Liberal government cut the $4,000 support package for workers from the Castalloy plant in Plympton just at the time the workers were due to start accessing the support. When the government was asked what support would be offered to these retrenched workers for reskilling, what was the government's response? The Skilling South Australia program. So the government thinks that a 50 year old or a 60 year old who loses their job should go and get an apprenticeship or a traineeship. Adults who have mortgages, who have families to support, are being told to start over as though they are teenagers. It really does show just how out of touch this Liberal Marshall government is.

It seems, with the minister, that the question does not matter. The only answer is 'apprenticeships and traineeships'. When the minister cut all support for employment transition services or disability support services, apparently apprenticeships and traineeships was the answer to these cuts. Whilst I commend the minister for setting targets on delivering more apprenticeships and traineeships, unfortunately he has not told the whole story.

The government has repeatedly claimed that they will deliver 20,800 new apprenticeships and traineeships in South Australia but, under the scrutiny of estimates, it was confirmed that their promise is not 20,800 completed apprenticeships and traineeships but merely commencements, and the non-completion rate is very high.

The Hon. J.E. Hanson: Tricky.

The Hon. C.M. SCRIVEN: Tricky, as the Hon. Mr Hanson says. So they are spruiking this number of 20,800 in the full knowledge—the full knowledge—that many thousands of these apprenticeships and traineeships will not be completed. On a brighter note, however, I understand that public servants in the Department for Industry and Skills are still enjoying playing minister Pisoni's 'I was a tradie' bingo game.

The Hon. J.E. Hanson: Bingo!

The Hon. C.M. SCRIVEN: Bingo! Members will recall that this involves keeping a tally of the number of times in a single speech the minister mentions that he used to be a tradesman. I see from Hansard that Liberal members also enjoy participating in the game, particularly the member for Waite in the other place, so at least the minister has been able to provide some light entertainment for his many friends on his side of the house.

One may have thought that, after being a shadow minister for 10 years, the minister would have been eager to introduce legislation to enable his exciting plans to come to fruition. Instead, he has introduced just one, a rushed bill that is currently before this chamber to ensure that he can choose, without restraint, every member of the Construction Industry Training Board (CITB). This was rushed through the House of Assembly, preventing serious debate, then came to this chamber.

The bill removes the current balance of interests from across the construction industry that requires the board to have five representatives from employer groups, three representatives from employee groups, and two members with experience and expertise in vocational education and training, as well as a presiding member. And what do we find out?

Firstly, the minister has not abided by the current legislated process to appoint the presiding member. Then we find the person he appointed as a member with experience and expertise in vocational education and training has no experience in vocational education and training. Next, the minister has refused to answer whether that same appointee is a member of the Liberal Party. He has also refused to answer whether that same person had any involvement in organising Liberal Party Future SA forums, including the Unley forum, which I understand are fundraising events for the Liberal Party.

The minister spoke in the other place from notes that appeared to refer to confidential board minutes, raising serious concerns about probity and breaches of confidentiality, apparent breaches which have only arisen since the time of this appointment made by the minister. The dark clouds hanging over this embattled minister now place many questions over this legislation. I hope that the performance of the minister will improve next year. It has been a little embarrassing to watch him stumble his way through question time, with the Premier often jumping in to save him when a question is asked. On that note, I wish the minister, everyone in the industry and skills portfolio, and the rest of the industry a very happy Christmas and new year.

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