Jamie Briggs (Mayo, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

The member for Canning asks if I backed it. I did actually back it. It was the only punt I had on the day, and it got home most handsomely. What I can say is that Shauna Black, the editor of the Kangaroo Island newspaper, the KI Islander, also backed Bravely. She had it on the front page last week, so we were on a unity ticket there, which was good. It was a wonderful day, and the sponsors did a fantastic job. One was Coopers Brewery, a famous South Australian company which employs many good South Australians and of course produces a very fine beer, Pale Ale, which is one of the best beers going around. Another was SeaLink, which provides the ferry service.

This leads me to my more serious point this evening. That is to call on the federal government to treat the 15-kilometre—that is all it is—stretch of water between Kangaroo Island and South Australia as a national highway. That would mean freight concessions going forward, and that would make the island more competitive. One of the great challenges the island has is getting enough funding to keep its roads and its services up to scratch. With only 4½ thousand residents, the local government has much difficulty keeping the island’s infrastructure up to standard so that the tourism industry can develop.

What I will do in support of the island’s mayor, Jane Bates, who, with her council, does a fantastic job, is ask the Minister for Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government to consider this submission and to look at it in great detail. I am sure that the Minister for Tourism will be in support of my call here because it will add to the economy of South Australia, it will add to the economy of our country and it will mean more people in jobs. Of course, we on this side of the House are all for jobs, so I would ask the ministers to look at this. It is a small issue in comparison to a lot of the issues we deal with in this place but it is very important for the residents of Kangaroo Island.

In summary, I again congratulate the KI Racing Club. Roger Williams, who is the chairman, did a wonderful job on the weekend. There was a record crowd, Member for Canning, which was welcomed in this time where global economic circumstances have everyone feeling a bit down. It was a great event and I was pleased to be part of it.

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