Anthony Albanese (Grayndler, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the House) Share this | Hansard source

The member opposite says, ‘That’s right.’ He should vote with us on this legislation because it is outrageous that owner-drivers and smaller operators are subsidising the big companies, and that is the situation at the moment. This bill removes this anomaly. The opposition understood it when they were in government. Now in an opportunistic move they say they are opposed to it. Twenty-five per cent of the fleet currently pay too much. Twenty-five per cent of the fleet—one in four heavy vehicles—will get a reduction in their costs as a result of this determination. The increase, which is substantial, will only apply to six to seven per cent of heavy vehicles, on the basis that the heavier the vehicle, the greater the cost on the roads and therefore the greater the cost to the taxpayer.

The other comment that was made by the opposition was that somehow the fact that this was a determination of the ATC on 29 February showed that the Commonwealth was adopting charges forced on it by the states. We know that the blame game simply gets us nowhere. The coalition’s chest beating and posturing in dealing with the states was nothing more than rhetoric and they did not get things done. Good government is about working together and getting results. The Federal Interstate Registration Scheme and state registration charges are correctly pegged at the same rate. The opposition should think about this: if they block this legislation, it will lead to different charges at the state level and for those vehicles which are federally registered. Is there a serious argument that that is sensible economic policy? That would lead to a substantial regulatory burden and a substantial increase in costs.

The member for Wide Bay has also said that indexation arrangements will be higher than inflation. That is simply not the case. The indexation is linked to historical road funding. This is about full cost recovery. What it does is look at the actual costs, so there is nothing hypothetical about the way that this will operate. The other extraordinary fact is that of all the opposition members who spoke not one mentioned the safety and productivity package, the $70 million commitment proposed by this government which will trial new black box technologies, facilitate better speed and fatigue management, provide more heavy vehicle rest stops and provide for increased expenditure on infrastructure to strengthen bridges. The fact is this package has been warmly welcomed by industry. In 2007, tragically 1,611 people died on our roads. Accidents involving heavy vehicles account for nearly 20 per cent of these deaths, with speed a factor in around 30 per cent and driver fatigue a factor in up to 60 per cent of cases, but the opposition has remained silent about this important reform.

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