The State Government has a strong plan to help protect the health and wellbeing of South Australians as we tackle the coronavirus.
Following discussions with the Opposition and Crossbench, it has been agreed that Parliament will sit next week with modified arrangements in the interests of the health and safety of Parliamentary Members and Staff.
The State Government's priorities will be implementing measures to safeguard our economy, businesses and jobs against the impacts of the coronavirus.
The arrangements agreed to for the House of Assembly by the Government, Opposition and Crossbench, for the week commencing 24 March, include;
- Mutual pairing arrangements of 10 pairs, with eight allocated to the Opposition, two to the Crossbench and ten to the Government;
- The cooperation of all parties to obtain an absolute majority of the House in favour of suspending standing orders to allow Members to sit anywhere in the Chamber;
- Government, Opposition and Crossbench members agree to collectively provide a quorum.
These arrangements will be re-evaluated for the sitting week commencing 7 April 2020.
"The State Government has reached an agreement with the Opposition and Crossbench to ensure State Parliament can continue to operate effectively," said Leader of Government Business Stephan Knoll.
"Our priorities will be fast tracking important legislative and regulatory bills and amendments to address the impacts of the coronavirus.
"The Marshall Government has a strong plan to help protect the health and wellbeing of South Australians, and also safeguard our economy.
"We have been and continue to be ahead of the curve here in South Australia in our efforts to tackle the coronavirus and we will continue to be so as we act swiftly and decisively to implement our plan."
