The Outsider: pigs, hogs and dashing Yarwoods
Groundhogs, wild boar and a dashing Lord Mayor held sway this week while the State Government looked in the rear-vision mirror for inspiration.
Promises, promises
It’s been a heady week for “major reforms” at State Government level.
For those of us with memories that stretch beyond one four-year fixed term, it had a touch of Groundhog Day.
First came the release of a planning laws review by Brian Hayes QC, which one media outlet said was the first since “the last review of the system more than 23 years ago”.
So, what happened to the major review that led to the Planning Reform Package launched by then-Planning Minister Paul Holloway in June 2008?
Holloway said at the time it would be the “broadest range of planning reforms seen in South Australia in decades”.
You could check out its promises at www.planning.sa.gov.au/go/planningreforms2008 – sadly, that link now takes you to a blank page.
Perhaps it’s been archived along with all those West Lakes tram-line brochures and Lance Armstrong posters.
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Second up on Groundhog Day was the promised reform of WorkCover, where “businesses are set to save more than $180 million a year through a major shake-up that will aim to get injured workers back on the job sooner”.
Could the drama of the 2008 WorkCover reforms have been so easily forgotten?
In his Second Reading Speech to parliament in February 2008, then-Industrial Relations Minister Michael Wright promised reforms aimed at “restoring the financial health of the scheme while ensuring that injured workers have the best possible chance of resuming productive working lives”.
The business of “getting workers back on the job sooner” was even boosted by a government-funded Return To Work PR campaign.
The 2008 reforms were a crock; that’s why current Minister John Rau told InDaily last year the whole thing was “buggered”.
Before we praise the current reform agenda, perhaps it might pay to revisit the previous failure and pose the question: “Why?”
To top it off, the 2014 version of landmark reform to WorkCover includes a proposal by the State Government to rename the scheme “Return to Work”.
That should do it.
Yarwood’s stage dash
When Restaurant and Catering Association President Michael Sfera left his seat at the RCA 2014 Awards gala do on Monday night to make his closing speech and major announcement of the winner of Restaurant of the Year, his speech notes fell from his back pocket.
An eagle-eyed Lord Mayor Steven Yarwood noticed the slip and that Sfera was heading for the stage sans notes.
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Yarwood grabbed the papers and made a dash for Sfera, reaching him just before he stepped up for the big moment and alleviating any embarrassment.
Given that Sfera had chided the Lord Mayor’s love of food trucks in his earlier opening remarks, it was a gallant display by Yarwood.
Politics Darwin-style
When the State Government seeks to impress visiting dignitaries and business leaders, it often takes them to Magill Estate for some steak and Penfolds Grange.
In Darwin this week, a small group of VIPs was taken out by Chief Minister Adam Giles and Deputy Chief Minister Dave Tollner for a spot of pig shooting.
Perhaps the “wild boar” versus “crushing bore” strategy explains why the Top Enders’ economy is booming and ours is stuck merely “improving with age”.
A media conference?
Look out EPA – Brian’s back
A few years ago, The Advertiser’s Bryan Littlely upset the folk at the Environment Protection Authority (EPA) with his breaking stories about residents at Clovelly Park not being told they were at risk from contaminants in the soil. At the time (March 2011), the EPA spin doctors were keen to label Littlely’s stories as a beat-up.
They breathed a sigh of relief when he headed to Alice Springs to be editor of the Centralian Advocate.
Littlely, however, is about to return to Adelaide – and he’s kept a keen eye on the Clovelly Park developments.
Adelaide-bound
Still with a Territory theme and one of Darwin’s leading business and sporting identities is about to shift to Adelaide.
Brett Dixon is the chairman of the Darwin Turf Club and a director of several leading NT companies with interests in construction and servicing the giant gas projects underway in the NT.
Originally hailing from Perth, Brett has lived in Darwin since 1981 – he plans to spend one-third of his time in Darwin and two-thirds in Adelaide.
He built and funded Brett Dixon House for the Darwin Turf Club; officials at the South Australian Jockey Club have already made him feel welcome at Morphettville, but you can also expect Dixon to take a strong interest in the state’s business community.
Brett Dixon House on Fannie Bay Racecourse
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