State Parliament has passed legislation to handover powers to the Commonwealth to manage the Murray Darling Basin.  While I supported the Bill, I raised the critical question about what the Commonwealth will do with these powers.  The Lower Lakes and the Coorong is in a serious condition, and the INTERIM plan to save the river will take two years to develop. The current limitations on water trading between states will not be lifted in the short term.  Given the State Government agreed to maintain these trading restrictions, an early solution to rescuing the Lower Lakes does not seem likely.

Last week I introduced legislation that would force purchasers of all used cars to install immobilisers when registering the vehicle. The cost of car theft is borne by all South Australians.  Each car crash on average brings a price tag of $52,000 to the State, which includes property loss, health care, police involvement and court processes. Fitting an immobiliser will cost $200 to $300.  This will not only benefit the purchaser but also the community as a whole.

Inadequate parking at the Woodend Kindergarten in Sheidow Park is a serious hazard for children and a major concern to parents. Last week I presented a petition from 336 residents to Parliament urging the Government to look at the problem. The petition requests that adequate ‘pick up and drop off’ facilities be researched and implemented in consultation with the City of Marion, staff and parents of the kindergarten, and residents of affected streets.  

Last week I raised a number of important State and local matters in Parliament:
I drew attention to current inefficiencies in the hospital system, which requires considerable streamlining. This is urgently needed in order to meet the growing demand for surgery considered ‘elective’. I expressed concerns regarding the future of tertiary education and whether the Future SACE requirements will adequately prepare school leavers for entering university.  I reminded the Parliament of the need to retain Glenthorne Farm as open space, in accordance with the wishes of local residents. I will continue to press the current State Government to keep Glenthorne Farm free from housing.  Oaklands Station continues to be an issue for me, so I confronted the Government with the inadequate state of the new station. Traffic flow near the intersection of Diagonal Road and Morphett Road just gets worse and the station itself is lacking in a number of functional facilities. 

To view the complete transcript see: Kris Hanna, Address in Reply speech

I introduced legislation in Parliament last week that will tighten laws for doctors issuing death certificates. This follows the tragic story of a lady who died in the Brighton Aged Care Nursing Home in July last year. The doctors who signed her death certificate owned the nursing home and are married to each other, which raised a number of concerns. My Bill will prevent doctors with a financial interest in medical or health care facilities from signing death certificates for people who die in such a facility. This would include hospitals, nursing homes and aged care services. 

A Bill is currently before State Parliament that will bring laws in relation to gene technology into line with the Commonwealth. A key element of the legislation is that the Federal Minister, in consultation with the Gene Technology Ministerial Council, will have the ability to quickly approve the use of a Genetically Modified Organisms (GMO) in the case of an emergency. An example would be calling on the use of a genetically modified vaccine to respond to a disease outbreak or the use of a GMO to break down an environmental toxin.  Green groups are concerned this places too much power in the hands of the Minister and limits consultation in the application of GMOs.

Dr Irvin Waller was the guest speaker at my dinner last Thursday night.  As an international specialist in the field of crime prevention, Dr Waller referred to proven research to reduce crime rates.  The most effective approach in addressing crime is through programs that offer education, youth development, improvement in living standards and prevention of violence against women.  Dr Waller also strongly holds to the need for victim support, empowerment and representation, particularly through court proceedings. He explained that the least effective and most expensive method of reducing crime is by putting more people in the prison system. 

I am currently drafting legislation that will address the design features of poker machines that falsely entice people into believing a win is not far away. From my extensive research I have found there is a pattern to many machines that have winning symbols coming up on four of the five reels, which lures players into believing the fifth symbol will soon come up, but it is could be only a one in 100 chance. This is a trick in the design of poker machines which has players parting with their hard earned personal and family dollars. My legislation will ban this kind of trickery in the design of poker machines. The cost on State social welfare, health and crime prevention resources far outweighs the revenue raised from these addictive machines … and that is before we talk about the human cost. 

In response to a recent Senate Inquiry into poker machines, I made a submission outlining my concerns and providing some recommendations. To view see:  Senate Inquiry Submission