Bernie Ripoll (Oxley, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

we are backing it up with funding of $2.2 billion. It is another first step. It is all right for the opposition to say, ‘You’re having a summit; you’re having an inquiry,’ but we are following through. It is called follow-through. Do that, get the right information, invite the community to participate and then do something about it. In the budget we are also providing $1.2 billion over four years to assist first home buyers and committing $623 million over four years to the National Rental Affordability Scheme. That is on top of $8,000 annually for 10 years for people who build investment rental houses and keep rents 20 per cent below market rate. Housing affordability is front and centre. We are committed to it and we are doing something about it.

In the past I have talked a lot about broadband. I talked about it in opposition but I am going to talk about it in government as well. Areas in my electorate, such as greater Springfield, Sinnamon Park, Forest Lake and new estates around Acacia Ridge, have been neglected for many years. It is a difficult job that we have to do. It is a long-term job; it is not going to be fixed overnight. Most people understand that, but you need to take the first steps. You need to invest; you need to understand the problem. The Rudd Labor government is committed. We will make a difference in these areas.

Nowhere could you go where infrastructure is more critical than Queensland. Queensland is a booming state and the Rudd Labor government will continue to commit additional resources to Queensland. We have given over $826 million in nation-building roads and rail projects in Queensland, including more than $63 million to make an early start on election commitments. There is an urgent need to fix a whole range of Queensland’s overstretched road networks. The reality is very simple: when a state like Queensland has net migration of between 50,000 and 80,000 every year from the southern states, it puts the pressure on. They are coming to live in the western corridor, and no amount of roadworks can possibly keep up with the pace, but we are committed to doing it and will continue to do it. Particularly with the Ipswich Motorway, I am very pleased that we have met all of our election commitments. I am glad to see there was $5 million advanced for planning for the Dinmore-to-Goodna upgrade.

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