Joanna Gash (Gilmore, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

One of the region’s most tragic road black spots in my electorate of Gilmore is to be eliminated thanks to the $457,000 black spot funding announced by the Australian government. These funds will now be directed in the new financial year to creating a left-hand turn deceleration lane at the intersection of Princes Highway and Island Point Road at Tomerong, south of Nowra, in my electorate of Gilmore.

This is news that people who travel on that section of road of the Princes Highway have been waiting to hear for quite some time. It is a horrible intersection and these funds will put a lot of minds at ease. A lot of credit must go to the member for the South Coast, Shelley Hancock, who has constantly lobbied to have this intersection repaired, and the local community for their unyielding campaign to draw attention to and maintain attention on the Island Point Road intersection.

I have to say here that the parliamentary secretary for roads in the state Labor government has completely ignored the pleas of these people about this particular intersection. I also have to say that the $457,000 is part of the Australian government’s $44.5 million AusLink black spot program. This is doing more to reduce the number of lives lost in the Princes Highway.

There is a well publicised campaign by the NRMA calling on governments to ‘fix our bloody roads’. Well, this is designed to do exactly that. As I have always said, the Princes Highway remains a state road, but we will continue to lobby for Australian government funds under the National Road Safety Black Spot Program to pick up the slack that has been created by the state Labor government, which simply refuses to acknowledge its responsibility for the Princes Highway.

I could not be happier than to see more Australian government funding directed to the Princes Highway. It is great news for the people of Gilmore and, in particular, for the people who use that dangerous section of road. May I repeat what I have always said: we understand it is a state road. The state government has not contributed enough funds to the Princes Highway. But, as part of the federal government and as the local member for Gilmore, I will continue to fight for funds for the Princes Highway.

A lot has been said about nuclear debate and nuclear power. On the record, I have said that if there is going to be a nuclear plant built in Jervis Bay I will certainly resign. I cannot be stronger than that. Jervis Bay is a natural Australian icon and it is certainly not suitable for that reason. I have to mention here that the Australia Institute report deals with hypotheticals. I do not deal in hypotheticals. The debate over whether we should use nuclear energy is still raging. This is a debate about future power sources. People wanting the Australian government to address climate change cannot, in all seriousness, enter that debate without debating the pros and cons of nuclear energy. To deliver base load power, that is not enough power to keep the industry running in our towns and keep our cities operational. We have the two options. We need the debate and we need to debate it further.

A division having been called in the House of Representatives—

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