Peter Lindsay (Herbert, Liberal Party, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Defence) Share this | Hansard source

What a wonderful budget for North Queensland. I advise the parliament that my community were very pleased with what we have been able to deliver for North Queensland. We have delivered a range of initiatives running to half a billion dollars—a tremendous outcome—for things like: new facilities and a boost in funding for the Australian Institute of Marine Science; a wonderful opportunity for James Cook University in the Higher Education Endowment Fund; and a very significant capital boost for Laverack Barracks, home of Australia’s ready deployment force and the 3rd Brigade. There is a very significant increase in road funding for the north: AusLink 2, $22.3 million—thousands of millions of dollars over the next five years being invested in road and rail infrastructure. Certainly it is much needed in the north and we will see many projects and benefits flow from that announcement.

My vice-chancellor at James Cook University, Professor Sandra Harding, certainly warmly welcomed the Higher Education Endowment Fund. It is a fund that will be there forever to continue, through its interest earnings, providing capital for developments at higher education centres across the country. The government has indicated that it has the potential for further investment year by year as we invest our national savings in the fund to do good things for higher education—and what better place to invest our savings than in the future of the young people of Australia.

That comes at a time when the Labor state governments, instead of adding to the nation’s savings, are adding to the nation’s borrowings and while the federal government, by saving money, is putting downward pressure on interest rates, the Labor state governments are putting upward pressure on interest rates. The decision that the Australian people will be asked to make later this year at the next federal election will be to look at who can best manage the economy. Make no mistake about it, a change of government means a change in the management of the economy, and I think that both sides who are offering themselves for consideration by the Australian people have a very significant track record, and I trust the Australian people to make the right decision.

Recently I invited the Minister for Education, Science and Training to North Queensland. Julie Bishop was very pleased to come up to the north and I was able to arrange a visit to James Cook University so she could see how one of the most significant tropical universities in the world operates, how well it does and how it leads the world in things like marine science through Federation Fellow Terry Hughes. The research collaboration and cooperation initiatives designed to build capacity within the region, and nationally centred on JCU, include the Australian Tropical Forest Institute in Cairns and the Australian Tropical Science and Innovation Precinct in Townsville. JCU’s strengths in medicine and allied health and expansion activities through the bid to establish the Australian Institute of Tropical Health and Medicine and the dental school at JCU Cairns are certainly leadership roles.

The uniqueness of JCU as a research-intensive regionally based institution that is internationally renowned in particular areas, such as marine science, was well recognised by the minister on her visit. The potency of the ‘enhancing life in the tropics’ theme, and its power to effect a distinctiveness for the university across the humanities and social sciences as well as in the sciences, in education and in research, certainly underpins the relevance to our region, to our nation and to the world. Our vice-chancellor made these points to the minister:

This issue of enhancing life in the tropics, of strengthening our attention to this theme, will receive serious consideration as the university reviews its strategic position later in the year. Should the university decide to pursue this theme in a focused way, I believe this holds in prospect the development of a university that is truly distinctive in the Australian higher education scene.

The vice-chancellor went on:

I further believe that such a development would be every bit as important to the development of the higher education sector in Australia as the University of Melbourne’s recasting of its undergraduate and graduate programs. Both developments aim to effect and to model a fresh, distinctive and potent approach to education and, in JCU’s case, research.

We often talk about the sandstone universities; we often forget to talk about our regional universities—regional universities that are leading the world in what they do in various fields. Australia has a wide range of choice in relation to higher education in this country, and that is to be commended.

Speaking of choice, I received a letter from Robert Miller of Cranbrook, in my electorate. His letter had the subject title ‘Work choice or no choice’. He thanked me for giving him a hearing regarding the matter. He has concluded that the federal government’s Work Choices is by far a fairer and just system than, as he says, ‘the corrupt and unjust system of the current arrangement’ that he works under. He said that, if he cannot rely on his union or legal aid in testing the bona fides of a workplace agreement document that he never sighted, signed or dated, he is very concerned about that. And he is very concerned about the operation of the Queensland government in relation to these issues. I thank him for his feedback.

Tomorrow is a historic day in Townsville, and I am privileged to be able to attend a ceremony at Mick Curtain’s Wharf on Ross Creek in Townsville. I will be on the HMAS Townsville. Australia’s Fremantle class patrol boats have served our country well over the last 26 years. Two Fridays ago I attended the decommissioning of the last two Fremantles; that was the HMAS Ipswich and the HMAS Townsville. The HMAS Townsville is a very significant ship in relation to our garrison city’s history and heritage. That is why I was tremendously pleased to be able to arrange the gifting of the HMAS Townsville to the city of Townsville, to the Townsville Maritime Museum. At 12.30 tomorrow I will be on the bridge of the Townsville and I will be signing, on behalf of the Australian government, the deed of gift and, when that is signed by Tony Manning, the president of the museum association, and myself, ownership of the ship will transfer to the museum to be preserved for future generations to see the heritage that that ship has produced over so many years.

I thank Navy; they have been wonderful. Normally you expect that, if a ship is to be handed over—and remember it is a Fremantle class—they would remove a whole range of things and basically gut the ship. Well, they did not. They have done every last single bit of maintenance, and the ship is in 100 per cent working order. Everything has been left on the ship except for secret communication equipment. All the antennas are there, and all the bridge structure is there. It is a working ship and Navy are handing it over to the city of Townsville. It is a wonderful gift. Unfortunately some cities that were offered their ship did not take up the offer. Ipswich did not take up the offer, so, sadly, that ship will go to the wreckers in Darwin. It is kind of an emotional moment when you see a ship decommissioned. Navy does it very well and very meaningfully. It was a wonderful ceremony in Cairns. The Air Force does not commission or decommission its aircraft. When an aircraft reaches the end of its life, it finds itself parked outside some RAAF base somewhere, up on a plinth or something, and there is no formality about it. If anybody wants an F111, come and see me in a couple of years time; I might not be able to arrange for one of those. But with ships it is different, and it is a very moving and emotional moment to see a ship decommissioned from service with the Royal Australian Navy. I thank the Navy, and I thank the Maritime Museum for preserving the ship for generations to come.

Last Friday I was again pleased to be the bearer of good news for our city, and it was in relation to the Townsville International Sports Centre. I was able to deliver $6.355 million to be part of a state and local government project to upgrade the city’s Murray sporting complex. At some time in a child’s life in Townsville, they will go to the Murray sporting complex. It is a very significant area, with 14 different sports represented. What we are going to do in the initial phase of this upgrade is to have a new international sports centre. It will be of international standard, of course; it will seat 1,400 people and it will be used by teams like the Townsville Women’s National Basketball League. I say Women’s ‘National’ Basketball League; there are not too many cities in the country that have a national basketball league. We have the male NBL as well.

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