Bob Baldwin (Paterson, Liberal Party, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Industry, Tourism and Resources) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to speak on a very important issue in my electorate—that is, the upgrading of the Pacific Highway. As work continues to roll out, upgrading the road between Karuah and Bulahdelah, the state Labor government in New South Wales continues to ignore the requests from residents of the Tea Gardens and Hawks Nest community for a flyover to be built from the Myall Way turn-off.

An enormous amount of work is already being done at this intersection and, despite the fact that the land for a flyover is available and the ramp-up banks have already been built, the New South Wales government is still refusing to construct a flyover. Instead, the New South Wales Labor government is happy to wait a further 10 or 15 years, or even more, before it will start construction. Inevitably this means that the project will cost far more in future than taxpayers had anticipated. The community knows that building a flyover is commonsense. The community knows that not putting in the flyover at the intersection now will put at risk the lives of fellow Australians. The Australian government knows that building a flyover is commonsense.

Last year the then roads minister, Michael Costa, had a meeting with the state member for Myall Lakes, John Turner, and it was reported back to me that Minister Costa said, ‘If the federal government want it, the federal government can pay for it.’ The budget handed down in May provided an additional $160 million in payments before 30 June. Of course, that has to be matched by the New South Wales government. So there was the money to pay for the flyover. The additional funding is there, but they have reneged on the agreement.

I have had representatives from the Tea Gardens-Hawks Nest community—Patricia Michell, Juergen Seil and Ed Bolehala—attend a meeting with Minister Lloyd. At the meeting with Minister Lloyd they put forward the importance of having a flyover built at this intersection. Minister Lloyd agreed to write to Eric Roozendaal, the new roads minister in New South Wales, in support of this project being funded from the additional $160 million. I say to the state Labor government in New South Wales: listen to the people in the community; let us put forward a priority program that allocates funding out of the $160 million additional funding that they did not anticipate receiving in the first place. When the Pacific Highway is upgraded and has safe access and egress, it will be a world-class road. But at the moment we are going to have a high-speed road passing Tea Gardens without proper access. This puts fellow Australians in danger.

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