SA time zone change dumped and regional leaders are happy

THE six-month State Government campaign to change South Australia’s time zone has been dumped as political support for it evaporates. But taxpayers will still stump up for it.

• Weatherill dumps time zone change
• Study predicts fall in wages, productivity
• 11 reasons SA should make the switch
• Seven reasons changing the time zone is bad for sports fans
• Would going forward really generate $2.5 billion?

A SIX-MONTH State Government campaign to change South Australia’s time zone, which cost taxpayers an estimated $90,000, has been dumped as political support for it evaporates.

The Advertiseryesterday revealed internal Liberal Party documents showed that it discussed opposing a time zone change in a meeting at Port Augusta last week, and finalised the decision on Monday.

A majority of the crossbench has also spoken out against the Government’s push to move SA’s clocks forward by 30 minutes, delivering more than enough votes to kill the plan.

Investment and Trade Minister Martin Hamilton-Smith held a press conference on Thursday to confirm the Government would dump a campaign doomed to failure.

“The leaked information from the Liberal partyroom and the likely impact that will have on independent members ... means that the Government will not be proceeding,” he said.

“There is a government in this state that is looking to the future and then there is the Liberal Party, that is living in 1899 and looking to the past. The leaks coming out of that party room suggest that somebody is not happy.”

Mr Hamilton-Smith’s office said the estimated cost of the time zone review was $90,000.

Opposition Leader Steven Marshall said the time zone debate had been used as a “massive distraction” from economic issues facing the state, including nation-leading unemployment.

Family First MP Rob Brokenshire said the Government should now consider moving clocks backwards 30 minutes to a full hour behind the east, a move rejected by Mr Hamilton-Smith.

“The process the Government embarked on had a clear agenda to appease one section of the

business sector. It was a joke and confused the community,” Mr Brokenshire said.

“I have had an overwhelming response to the petition I have been running which shows people

thought moving the time zone to the east was lunacy.

“While it is time for the Government to drop their agenda to go to eastern standard time, it is not the time to drop the time zone debate.”

Regional leaders have backed the decision to dump proposed time zone changes.

Ceduna Mayor Allan Suter welcomed the government’s latest decision to backtrack on possible changes, which could have resulted in schoolchildren attending school in the dark.

“We are absolutely delighted that the opinion of the majority of South Australians and people of West Coast have been respected,” he said.

“Our whole community did not want any harm done to our schoolchildren who have to get up ridiculously early.”

Wattle Range Council Mayor Peter Gandolfi said his South East council also opposed change.

“It would be more of an impediment to businesses,” he said.

“There are also concerns on daylight savings because there would be darkness in the morning.”

Citrus Australia chairman Con Poulos said there was little benefit in a time zone shift forward.

“The way business are conducted these days have adapted. It’s 24 hours a day,” he said.

“We’ve got computers, and the world is at our fingertips.”

Mt Gambier Mayor Andrew Lee said his community was split on a time zone move.

Port Lincoln Tuna baron Hagen Stehr hopes to wind clocks closer to Western Australia time.

“Moving backwards half an hour aligns us more to the Chinese market,” he said.

“It gives us more time to freeze our fish — if we move forward we would lose quality control of our fish.”

Regardless of the government’s decision, the clocks on Nullabor won’t be changing.

Brian Pike, 70, owns four of the service stations and accommodation centres in Border Village.

“Whether they (the government) change or not it would not affect us at all,” he said.