City Of Adelaide (Capital City Committee) Amendment Bill

This speech is in relation to the City Of Adelaide (Capital City Committee) Amendment Bill. More specifically business hours of bars.

The Hon. J.M.A. LENSINK (17:06): I thank my colleagues the Hon. John Gazzola and the Hon. Mark Parnell for their contributions, and I will make some remarks following those contributions. I noted with interest the Hon. Mr Gazzola's reference to laneway bars. We are actually yet to see a bill in relation to that, and we await that with interest. So, to describe that as being sought, I think, is a bit far-fetched.

In light of the fact that the government attempted to shut down all bars between 4am and 7am last year, it is quite a backflip with a triple pike and comes on the comments about the troika of the Adelaide Club, the Adelaide City Council and the Legislative Council. I am not sure that there are particularly strong linkages there. Indeed, the Adelaide City Council was one of the stakeholders which said, 'We won't shut the bars down between 4 and 7, we will shut them down between 3 and 7.' The Legislative Council was certainly in disagreement with the Adelaide City Council, and what the views are of members of the Adelaide Club, I do not know what relevance that has.

I appreciate the fact that the member recognises that the argument in relation to this bill is to recognise the democratic election of who the elected member for Adelaide is at the time. I do not think there has been any suggestion that the member for Adelaide would have a veto over decisions of that particular committee, and I think that in modern governance practice the more direct lines there are the better.

The Hon. Mr Parnell spoke of the executive members, and I take that point, I think it is a valid one. Unfortunately perhaps, were it not for the manner in which this government operates, with much secrecy and depriving the member for Adelaide information about what is taking place, I do not think her frustration would be quite as acute. It is a situation where constituents expect the member to be at the front line of knowing what is going on in quite a number of areas: festivals, city activations, city safety and projects that take place within the CBD, and they expect her to provide them with feedback.

As the member said, she is the first person people call when they have issues. I think that is a very important point in this argument, and I think she made it very well. I thank honourable members for their comments and look forward to the committee stage of the debate.

The Hon. J.M.A. LENSINK (17:16): I move:

That this bill be now read a third time.

Bill read a third time and passed.