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Legislative Council - Fifty-Fourth Parliament, First Session (54-1)
2018-09-04 Daily Xml
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South Australian Businesses

The Hon. I. PNEVMATIKOS (14:28): I seek leave to make a brief explanation before asking a question of the Minister for Trade, Tourism and Investment regarding South Australian businesses.

Leave granted.

The Hon. I. PNEVMATIKOS: Earlier this year, I met with a local wholesaler regarding difficulties his business had been experiencing due to complexities with the trading of cheese quotas. To my dismay, I was advised that at least a dozen other major wholesalers in our state were experiencing the same difficulties, not to mention numerous minor wholesalers.

Understanding the complexity of the process that will need to be undertaken, I wrote to the minister to request his support to South Australian wholesalers to ensure that they received adequate assistance with beginning a review process.

An offer to facilitate a meeting with the wholesalers was included because some issues should be above party politics. Support for local businesses and jobs should be one of those. What I received back were the avenues for review available through federal departments, with no mention made regarding my offer and the opportunity to meet with local wholesalers. My questions to the Minister for Trade, Tourism and Investment are:

1. What was the reasoning behind neglecting an opportunity to meet with local business-people to discuss the matter in further depth?

2. Keeping in mind the Liberal Party plan of backing small businesses and fair competition, what were the reasons behind the refusal to provide local support for those South Australian companies?

3. Will you consider the opportunity to meet with these South Australian businesses to support them in their negotiations with your federal counterparts, or is it the case that your loyalty to your federal counterparts comes before South Australian businesses?

The Hon. D.W. RIDGWAY (Minister for Trade, Tourism and Investment) (14:30): I thank the honourable member for her question in regard to cheese quotas. I do recall the response that it is, unfortunately, a federal matter, and I was more than happy to refer it off to my federal colleagues. It is interesting, I do meet with the dairy association quite regularly. As ministers would know, I originally was the shadow minister for agriculture and had extensive connections in the dairy industry. They haven't particularly raised those issues with me.

I haven't refused as such, I just think it is a federal issue. It isn't loyalty. I am more loyal to the South Australian business community than, I suspect, most people in this chamber. I grew up on the South Australian/Victorian border where you learnt to be very parochial. In fact, I was offended one day when my South Australian friends, after South Australia had beaten Victoria in the state of origin football match, thought I would be upset. I was more delighted than them because of my love of South Australia. So it's not that I have any greater allegiance to the federal government than the South Australian businesses that I represent. But, if it pleases the honourable member, I will contact the dairy association. I met with the chief—

The Hon. I. PNEVMATIKOS: Point of order: I was not raising any issue about the dairy association in South Australia. I was raising an issue about businesses that are cheese importers into this country. So it has nothing to do with the dairy association. It's not relevant.

The PRESIDENT: Yes, that's the point of order. Minister, please keep your answer relevant to the question.

The Hon. D.W. RIDGWAY: Certainly, import quotas are absolutely a federal issue. I am happy to, if it pleases the member, have a second look at the issue she has raised and then take it up further with my federal colleagues. But it is clearly a federal matter and we have no jurisdiction over those federal matters. I will be happy to have a further look at it if it pleases her.

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