5 May, 2026
The Hon. R.A. SIMMS (16:12): I seek leave to make a brief explanation before addressing a question without notice to the Deputy Premier on the topic of LIV Golf.
Leave granted.
The Hon. R.A. SIMMS: Back in February 2025, the Premier announced that SA would be redeveloping the North Adelaide Golf Course in an effort to secure the long-term future of LIV Golf in SA. That was his rationale, and in June 2025 the Malinauskas government rushed through special legislation to enable the state government to redevelop the Adelaide Parklands and seize the land from the Adelaide City Council.
By December, it was announced that Greg Norman designs was awarded the multimillion dollar redevelopment contract, without the project even going to open tender. On Monday last week, the South Australian government officially took control of the North Adelaide public golf course and had begun breaking ground. In that same week, Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth fund announced that it was pulling out of funding LIV Golf, and this came shortly after announcing that LIV Golf, scheduled for New Orleans in June, would be postponed. So the future of LIV Golf is under a cloud.
The project has been costed at $45 million, and this government has failed to read the writing on the wall. Meanwhile, South Australians are facing significant cost-of-living pressures, including spiralling costs of fuel, groceries, rent and mortgages. My questions to the Deputy Premier are:
1. Given the significant cost-of-living pressures faced by South Australians at the moment, how can his government possibly justify spending $45 million and upgrading a golf course for a tournament that may not even go ahead? Isn't this just another Labor white elephant?
2. How much money has the government already provided to Greg Norman designs and LIV Golf to support the redevelopment?
The Hon. K.J. MAHER (Deputy Premier, Minister for Aboriginal Affairs, Attorney-General, Minister for Industrial Relations, Minister for Arts, Special Minister of State) (16:14): I thank the honourable member for his question. Notwithstanding this area doesn't fall in my portfolio area, I am happy to make some general comments and then, if there is anything further that I can find, I will bring back further details for the honourable member.
Work has already started, but we have always said as a government that this is about more than LIV Golf. It is about a community asset, just as we have had other community assets, such as Barossa Park and the countless other community sporting grounds, clubs and change rooms that have been upgraded over the last four years. However, the government will, as any responsible government should, monitor the matter closely. For questions in terms of money already spent, I don't have figures but if there are any that are available to be provided, I am happy to go away and see if I can provide them.