Ms Catherine King (Ballarat, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I am really delighted to be following the new member for Grey, who spoke about the Infrastructure Australia Bill 2008. I congratulate him on his election to this place. I also wish to say that I think what he demonstrated in his speech is actually why this bill is so desperately needed. The connectivity issues that he raised, the issues around the tiers of government and the fact that a lot of the focus has been on road funding and not necessarily on some of the rail freight issues and port connectivity issues or on some of the broader issues around broadband are really important issues that we want Infrastructure Australia to deal with. We certainly look forward to the opposition’s support on this bill.

This bill provides for the establishment of Infrastructure Australia, whose role is to advise government, investors and owners of infrastructure concerning nationally significant infrastructure priorities; policy and regulatory reforms desirable to improve the efficient utilisation of national infrastructure networks; options to address impediments to the development and provision of efficient national infrastructure; the needs of users; and possible financing mechanisms. The bill is another example of the government delivering on its election commitments. The bill keeps our promises to concentrate our efforts on expanding the capacity of the Australian economy and to combat inflation. Infrastructure Australia will play an integral role as the conduit for a more nationally coordinated approach to infrastructure. Australia does need a strategic blueprint for our country’s infrastructure needs. Infrastructure Australia will be charged with the responsibility of auditing the adequacy of our nation’s infrastructure as its first point of business.

The review of the current state of play is needed so that we can start to really understand what is happening and how to address Australia’s national infrastructure bottlenecks. Within 12 months, by March 2009, Infrastructure Australia will develop an infrastructure priority list for presentation to the Council of Australian Goverments. This list will clearly set out the partnership approach between the state and federal governments and where the priorities lie when it comes to national infrastructure investment. These priorities will be based on the needs of our nation and its economy.

In its dealings with COAG, Infrastructure Australia will continually monitor and report information on the progress of nationally significant infrastructure investment and also on the progress of the implementation of relevant decisions set out by COAG. Infrastructure Australia will also take part in combating our climate change future by providing advice on infrastructure policy issues that arise from this great concern. Infrastructure Australia’s other responsibilities include the following: where commissioned, they will also deal with policy, pricing and infrastructure issues that impact on infrastructure utilisation; where commissioned, they will evaluate business cases of projects, project financing options including public-private partnerships and manage the probity process; and they will also identify disincentives to investment in nationally significant infrastructure. This will be done with scope to harmonise regulations, legislation and guidelines across jurisdictions by improving the efficiency of the delivery of projects or by standardising formats in tender documents and contracts.

Australia has to be competitive in world markets. We must set clear investment priorities. Infrastructure Australia will focus investment away from the previous government’s political approach to infrastructure funding decisions and focus on a needs based infrastructure investment system—a system that will act in the national interest and tackle infrastructure bottlenecks head-on, a system that will be decided not on the basis of the margin of a seat but on a strong cost-benefit analysis.

The Australian Labor Party have always recognised the need to act in the national interest to build this nation’s infrastructure. We led the way in nation building under Ben Chifley’s watch with the beginning of the Snowy Mountain Hydro-Electric Scheme. Gough Whitlam came to power when our hospitals and sewerage systems were badly in need of mending and upgrading and got on with the job. Tom Uren, as minister for urban and regional development, saw the creation of land commissions to ensure availability of reasonably priced housing blocks and the development of new planned communities. Bob Hawke pushed forward an economic agenda that allowed us to be competitive with the rest of the world. Paul Keating completed the standardisation of rail tracks in 1995 and introduced reforms that saw innovative housing programs under the Better Cities Program.

Today the Rudd government is continuing Labor’s nation-building tradition. The bill is essential to growing the Australian economy. We have introduced the bill to the House so early in our term because Australia needs sound investment in infrastructure. We have heard example after example of where lack of strategic investment in infrastructure is contributing to capacity constraints within the Australian economy. According to CEDA, our current infrastructure backlog has been conservatively estimated at $25 billion in water, energy and land transport alone—infrastructure shortfalls that are costing us 0.8 per cent of GDP in lost production.

The Infrastructure Australia Bill is vital to growing the Australian economy. A coordinated approach to infrastructure investment, which is what this bill would deliver, is imperative for Australia’s growth. We simply cannot do without it. If you just look at what we inherited from the 11 long years of the Howard government, the former government left behind high inflation, a skills crisis and significant capacity constraints in the Australian economy. Although the Leader of the Opposition would have us believe that the economy was left in absolutely first-rate condition, after over 20 ignored Reserve Bank warnings on inflation and recurrent investment rate rises, I think the term ‘first-rate’ is embellishing the truth a little.

We are also now picking up the pieces of a government that was never interested in nation building. No plan or policy was ever established by those opposite to coordinate its approach to infrastructure investment. The bill has received widespread support from industry groups. These groups, like the Australian Industry Group, Infrastructure Partnerships Australia, the Business Council of Australia, the Committee for Economic Development of Australia and Engineers Australia, have all called for a coordinated approach to infrastructure planning and development. Engineers Australia have maintained that for more than a decade infrastructure throughout Australia needed better coordination and long-term integrated planning.

The Business Council of Australia has called for an integrated long-term planning framework across jurisdictions for the coordinated provision of infrastructure to underpin sustained economic growth. The cries of groups like the Business Council of Australia and Engineers Australia were falling on deaf ears under the previous government. This country is in desperate need of Infrastructure Australia, a body to coordinate the provision of infrastructure and to set a long-term plan for the country’s infrastructure needs. In the past this has not existed. This is in fact the first time we have actually had a minister for infrastructure, and I congratulate my colleague the member for Grayndler on his appointment and also for his dedication and hard work on this most important and difficult portfolio area.

Infrastructure is one of the five points in Labor’s plan to lift productivity, fight inflation and sustain economic growth. Without modern and maintained infrastructure, particularly in the areas of transport, energy, communication and water assets, Australia has no strong economic future. The bill clearly provides a foundation as part of our five-point plan to provide national leadership to tackle infrastructure bottlenecks.

The coordinated approach will ensure that our view is long-term, and not one that extends only to the next election. This coordinated approach will ensure that infrastructure is approached in a structured, sustainable manner and that Australian taxpayers are getting value for money. The bill will provide the base that will enable Australia to lift investment for new infrastructure whilst making sure that our existing infrastructure is used to its maximum benefit.

While new investment in infrastructure is absolutely critical, it is essential that the benefits are maximised and not approached in a haphazard way. This bill will see a more streamlined approach to infrastructure establishment and maintenance. One of the first jobs of Infrastructure Australia is to undertake a national audit that will determine the condition and the capacity of our current nationally significant infrastructure. This is a major task of great importance and the expectation is that it will be completed within 12 months—a big job but one that this government is up to.

The audit will provide the evidence that is necessary to funnel real dollars from real investments into real projects. The audit will identify the gaps, the impediments and the bottlenecks of our current infrastructure and provide guidance as to our future demands. It is not going to be an easy task to tackle; we absolutely acknowledge that. Our nation’s major infrastructure concerns are a very complex task to fix. We cannot click our fingers and fix every one of them tomorrow, and there is a lot of money involved in the investment, but with this bill the Rudd government is determined to make an absolutely serious start. I commend the bill to the House.

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