PRIVATE MEMBERS' BUSINESS
Mr VENNING (Grey) (11:48): This is the first time in Australian history where the next generation of Australians will be worse off than their parents. It's absolutely outrageous. The overarching theme of this Albanese Labor government is also undeniable regional neglect.
Consider the Nyrstar smelter in Port Pirie. Finally, we welcomed a $150 million transitionary package from the federal and state governments. This was a sigh of relief for this resilient community, but why were our proud smelter workers and their families left in a state of limbo for over a month?
Furthermore, the previous package expired on 1 May, yet the minister for industry only found time to brief my office in early June. These delays are worrying. The hardworking people of Port Pirie must never endure another period of cruel uncertainty.
They need full momentum and growth to plan their long-term futures in this town. These living standards and this regional neglect bleed into our community sport, where Labor delivered a devastating $182 million blow to grassroots. Ignoring expert advice, the government is slashing ongoing funding to vital programs like Sporting Schools, Local Para Champions and Local Sporting Champions.
They are gutting the sports grants budget from $331 million down to just $151 million. Local sport is the heartbeat of regional South Australia. It keeps our country towns united.
Olympic champions like Kyle Chalmers and Dean Lukin from Port Lincoln started their sporting journeys in local clubs. Cutting these grants directly hinders young, aspiring rural athletes, and it is families who will take the hardest hit, right when rising costs are already hurting their hip pockets. Regional families are also suffering because this government cannot properly manage our economy.
That is clear. Inflation data confirms that regional South Australia is being left behind. South Australia recorded the highest monthly inflation increase of any mainland state, maintaining an annual inflation rate of 4.6 per cent.
The minister claims renewable energy is driving down power bills, but this is a complete fantasy in my electorate. South Australia has 80 per cent wind and solar penetration in the grid, yet, depending on how this metric is used, we suffer the most expensive power bills in the developed world. Under Labor, households have endured a 36 per cent increase in energy prices since 2022, and over 18,000 households are on energy hardship programs.
This failure to lower power prices directly threatens the very survival of energy-intensive regional employers like the Whyalla steelworks and the Port Pirie smelter. With a South Australian based federal health minister, you'd think regional SA would get some support in the health space. Wrong!
The decision to divert birthing services from Jamestown and Crystal Brook to Port Pirie until July 2026 has shaken my electorate. Expecting mothers are worried. They are being forced to travel over an hour to give birth, stripping away their long-established relationships with their local midwives and destroying continuity of care.
Kapunda lost its services two months ago, and my community fears these temporary closures will become permanent. I want to assure my constituents that I have demanded the state Labor government outline its long-term strategy immediately, but this is not just a state failure. I'm putting federal Labor and SA's own Minister for Health and Ageing, Mark Butler, on notice today.
You must stop burying your heads in the sand. Our workforce crisis is crippling our regional healthcare networks, and the silence from Canberra is deafening. Minister Butler needs to step up, intervene and work with the state to deliver genuine solutions for our regional communities.
Regional mothers deserve safe, consistent care, not empty promises and closed doors. The hardworking citizens of regional South Australia demand and deserve so much more than this neglect. That is why I will continue to fight for the best interests of regional South Australian families.
The DEPUTY SPEAKER ( Mr Buchholz ): I will remind the honourable member to use correct titles when addressing health ministers.