Mr GARDNER ( Morialta ) ( 15:02 ): This has been a deeply disappointing display by a dysfunctional Labor government that has long forgotten that they are here to represent the people of South Australia and do what is in their best interests, yet the people of South Australia cannot turn a corner these days without being mugged by this Labor government that does not care for their future, but only cares for their own political survival.
Mr GARDNER: This bill is to appropriate money for public servants to be paid to enable the government to undergo its business, and it will be supported by the opposition so that supply may continue and government may go on. However, the budget papers contain many things that are worthy of some comment, some of which have already received a goodly amount of comment today, but there are a few things left to say about the government's state bank tax.
Mr MARSHALL ( Dunstan—Leader of the Opposition) (11:02): I indicate that I will be the lead speaker for the opposition on this bill. Let's stop mincing words. South Australia is in deep economic trouble and this budget offers no solution, because it will destroy more jobs and deter future investment in our state. This government continues to smash our economy with its wrecking ball of higher taxes and budget waste and mismanagement. Labor is ruining the future prospects of our children.
The State Liberals have called on the Weatherill Labor Government to abandon a draft schools procedure that could see Christmas carols banned in SA public schools.
Mr GARDNER ( Morialta ) ( 15:22 ): I have extraordinary pleasure today in rising to reflect on the remarkable life of Bill Corey. Bill is a constituent in the Morialta electorate. He lives in Rostrevor in a retirement village just a stone's throw from the street where I grew up and, thankfully, very close to where my office is now. I had great pleasure in visiting him a couple of years ago to spend some time reflecting on his extraordinary war record and range of achievements in community and public service that he has undertaken since.
Mr GARDNER ( Morialta ) ( 11:25 ): This is a very worthy bill that the member for Adelaide has brought forward. I appreciate the endeavour she has put in to identifying an issue that has been brought to her by a number of residents who have faced issues and that this is actually a solution to the problem that is entirely sensible.
Mr GARDNER ( Morialta ) ( 16:58 ): It is a very great privilege that I have the opportunity to talk about some important policy initiatives and their benefits to South Australian people. Last week, the Leader of the Opposition launched what he has committed to if we form government after the election in March, and that is a literacy guarantee for South Australian students and families. Literacy is fundamental to everything that we seek to do in the education system. Frankly, the Liberal Party position can be summed up very simply: we want our schools to be the best in the country and we want our education system to be the best in Australia. To achieve that, we need to deliver a literacy guarantee.
Education Department figures show that violence in South Australian schools remains at an unacceptably high level, according to the State Liberals.
The State Liberals will commit $300,000 to make breakfast programs available to every school that needs one, as part of the Literacy Guarantee policy to be released today.
State Liberal Leader Steven Marshall will today launch the Literacy Guarantee – a key education policy aimed at giving every South Australian child a strong foundation in literacy.
