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

I withdraw. It is now since 2009 that I had a question on infrastructure from the shadow minister opposite. So you have the local member for Cowper and when he goes and has a look at the work taking place—today more than a thousand workers are in place working on the Pacific Highway—and what is happening on the Kempsey bypass, well, maybe it's a mirage! Well, I tell you what: the incoming New South Wales government have built a viewing platform at the Kempsey bypass so they can look at our dollars at work, so they can look at our jobs taking place. The shadow Treasurer has gone further. The shadow Treasurer has said that this is just for planning and he cannot understand why it is just for planning. It is not. What it will do is enable construction to be brought forward including on the Frederickton to Eungai section, which is where the Clybucca bus crash happened all those decades ago. Two decades ago it happened, but it has taken this government to provide the funds. We provided $58 million for planning in 2009. Now we have provided an extra billion dollars to make sure that construction can be brought forward. This is a government that believes in nation building. This is a government that is delivering.

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