‘Covid no excuse to not deliver on policy commitments’: SA Premier kicks off first cabinet meeting

The new Premier says his government is focused on more hospital beds and fixing ramping – but also should also be more “ruthless” in using natural resources as it scrambles for more GST.

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Premier Peter Malinauskas says health and education are top of his new government’s agenda, but has blasted SA’s current “dud” GST arrangement, saying the state should be more ruthless in using its natural resources.

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Mr Malinauskas told reporters: “There are urgent needs … health, and there are other long-term needs to ensure that no family is left behind.

“Education is a key hallmark economic policy, seeing to the delivery of three-year-old preschool, the examination of university amalgamation, reforming the way TAFE operates, reinstating particular courses – these things take time.”

He said the plan for the $662m city Riverbank Arena would be “terminated”, with nearly $80m redirected to pay for capital expenditure for health needs.

“We have a very big policy agenda when it comes to health: 300 more beds, 300 more nurses, over 100 more doctors and 350 ambulance officers,” he said.

“Cabinet approved a $2m campaign exercise on increasing the take-up of the third dose booster. If you get Covid with the third dose, the likelihood of you needing hospitalisation dramatically reduces.”

“By you staying out of hospital that bed is available to another South Australia. We will be better prepared for the onset of winter and the onset of the flu.”

Mr Malinauskas said the date of the state budget would be announced in next fortnight.

Premier Peter Malinauskas chairing the first cabinet meeting of the new Labor Government. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Brenton Edwards

GST deal a ‘dud’

On GST, the Premier said he was “worried” about the deal that was approved by the Marshall government calling it a “dud”, costing the state $200m a year.

“It’s not just SA that’s concerned about the GST deal,” Mr Malinauskas said.

“The nature of the vertical fiscal integration took into account the different situations of the states – WA campaigned politically and got that changed.

“WA has exploited their natural resources very efficiently and we need to be ruthless in trying to achieve the same – like with our hydrogen plant.

“So that in the second half of this century it is South Australia that is enjoying the resources boom just as WA did in the first half of this century.”

He said hydrogen power was also on the agenda but was “a complex undertaking”.

The Premier admitted he was worried about the prospect of inflation being embedded in the economy, describing it as “the working person’s curse – but it is also bad for those on a fixed income”.

No change to school holidays

On education, Mr Malinauskas said different schools were at different stages and the department needed to maintain flexibility about different schools.

“In terms of bringing forward school holidays, my position remains that it should be an absolute last resort,” he said.

“I acknowledge that teachers are under pressure. This is the reality of living with Covid.

The new arrangements will make it easier for some staff.”

While the Premier quipped that “every parent has new appreciation of the work that teachers do,” he said he was still opposed to extending school holidays by a week.

“We cannot have a situation where we bring school holidays forward and sole traders, contract workers, have a situation where they are not able to work. I am satisfied the department is exploring every last option available to them.”

‘Arena’ cash all going to health

Health Minister Chris Picton said all of the arena money would be put into capital expenditure for health – as the number of infectious Covid patients being admitted to hospital hit its highest level in more than a month.

“This decision means my department can get straight to work. We are really excited that we have what we need to end this ramping crisis,” he said, announcing there had been 4140 new Covid cases, with three deaths and 181 in hospital, an increase on Sunday’s hospitalisation rate of 158.

“We don’t want to wait for months for the budget to get the health projects started,” Mr Picton said, adding that architects, engineers, planners and contractors would be consulted as soon as possible.

“First priority is about increasing hospital capacity and a huge investment in mental health, a generational investment in terms of expanding our mental health capacity,” he said, adding there would be 72 extra beds in city hospitals and more investments in community, regional and pediatric mental health services.

Mr Picton acknowledged that mental health is one of the big blockages as people with mental illness get stuck in emergency departments – sometimes for longer than 24 hours needing treatment.

The Minister has asked for the southern intermediate (mental health) care facility at Noarlunga, which was closed a few months ago, to be reopened as soon as possible.

And he said there would be health investment in other regional areas including Mt Barker and Mt Gambier’s emergency department.

Premier Peter Malinauskas chairing the first cabinet meeting of the new Labor Government. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Brenton Edwards

The minister said a 50-50 funding arrangement had been offered by the federal government to fund new Covid beds, and that he would like that arrangement to continue.

“This is urgent and our absolutely no. 1 priority – and we need to be able to staff those new beds as well.”

Earlier, Mr Malinauskas opened the meeting at the State Administration Centre by highlighting the impact Covid continued to have on South Australians.

Mr Malinauskas told the new ministry they would need to “expect the best, but prepare for the worst”.

“We shouldn’t allow ourselves to contemplate at any point using anything that happens with Covid as an excuse to not deliver on our core policy commitments,” he said.

The health policy remained the top priority with the first order of business to free up capital funds to address the pressure on the system.

“Namely the basketball stadium or the Riverbank arena, and redirect that money towards health expenditure,” Mr Malinauskas said.

Ministers Stephen Mullighan, left and Chris Picton flank Ministers in isolation for the first cabinet meeting of the new Labor Government. Picture: NCA NewsWire / Brenton Edwards

Speaking before the meeting, Mr Picton said the hospital system is in crisis.

“We are looking to open as many beds as possible to deal with the current situation in our emergency departments,” he said.

“We are leaving no stone unturned to try to find additional capacity.”

Excited to join a government ministry for a second time, independent MP Geoff Brock said he would be raising issues affecting his own electorate in the Upper Spencer Gulf.

“The biggest issue I’ve got confronting us is the anti-social behaviour in Port Augusta,” he said.

“I think it’s been going on far too long and we need to put some sort of remedy to it.”