Sharon Grierson (Newcastle, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

It is a real pleasure to rise and speak on this matter of public importance, because the economic security of regional Australia has always been a priority for Labor governments, and nothing shows that more than the current budgets, which of course sits on the shoulders of four previous budgets which have reflected massive investments into regional Australia.

Before I speak particularly about my region and the benefits flowing to that region I just say to you as a member of parliament you do not always get the opportunity to go to remote Australia. Just recently as part of the ATSIA committee I went there, having not been for about five years. I must say that to go to a place like Utopia and have a meeting in their BER facility is absolutely wonderful. To go to a place like Halls Creek and see a massive, wonderful community centre, built by the federal government in a partnership agreement with the Western Australian government, who will pay for the services inside that centre, is satisfying. To see these quality resources and facilities that remote Australia have never seen before is very uplifting and it reminds us all what a fortunate country we are and certainly how we have the wealth to spread right throughout this country.

In terms of this budget, though, any suggestion that it neglects regional Australia needs an absolute reality check. Families and businesses are the heart and soul of our regions and they are the heart and soul of this budget. Across my own region, Newcastle and the Hunter, 61,000 businesses may be eligible for lost carry-back tax relief, as well as being able to immediately deduct the cost of any new business asset costing less than $6,500 for as many assets as they purchase. Just imagine what that can mean to a small business and to our region.

In addition, businesses will be able to write off assets that cost more than $6,500 in a single pool and will be able to immediately deduct the first $5,000 of new or used motor vehicles purchased from 1 July this year. What a wonderful opportunity for business to say, 'Yes, we've been cautious. Yes, there is uncertainty in the global economy. But we want to keep our regional economies strong. We are going to take those investment steps. We are going to invest in our business.'

Almost 41,000 local families in my region are expected to receive the schoolkids bonus—$410 for each primary school student and $820 for each secondary student. I am a former educator and school principal. I know very well how much costs have increased in this technological age. I know how much kids need to gain the most from their education and I know the pressure on parents to give their child the best. The schoolkids bonus will be a wonderful thing right across every region in Australia.

In addition, 48,000 families in the Hunter region will receive an increase in family tax benefit part A from 1 July 2013. Not only is there that assistance, but we have actually assisted many young people in this budget—students, single parents and the unemployed, who will receive a supplementary allowance: $210 for singles or $175 for a person who is a member of a couple. That is to help with those essential bills, those cost-of-living pressures that that side of the House have been telling us about and the public have been telling us about. I am really excited that tripling the tax-free threshold to $18,200 in this budget means approximately 212,000 working people in the Hunter region will get a tax cut beginning on 1 July. That is typical of regional Australia, where incomes are not always as high, and those are the people that are going to benefit most.

Secondly, any suggestion that federal Labor is ignoring infrastructure investments in regional Australia defies the reality of over four years of significant investment. I am very fortunate in my region that we have been given the opportunity to have some wonderful region-to-region links and capital city-to-region links built into our area. The $1.6 billion Hunter Expressway is progressing well. When you fly over my electorate and my region you will see this infrastructure. It is a wonderful, blissful scar on our environment! The $1 billion coal chain improvements continue. The Newcastle northern freight corridor improvements have commenced. These are projects that have been outstanding for years.

In this budget we saw a $3.6 billion pledge from the federal government to complete the duplication of the Pacific Highway. Every electorate from my electorate north to the Queensland border is a regional electorate. For them, tourism growth and smooth freight interactions are very much part and parcel of the Pacific Highway. The safety record on that highway is not well known. The Premier of New South Wales went to the New South Wales election promising this was a priority for him. I can only say to him: it is your turn to put in. We have put our pledge on the table. Let us get the Pacific Highway finished.

In this budget we saw funding for another important link—the F3 to the M2. Yes, that is in Sydney, but I can tell that you that regional Australians do not always want to go into capital cities when they are moving around the country. They want smooth bypasses; that is what benefits them. We set aside $150 million for the project; let us see the New South Wales state government put in.

We have not neglected community infrastructure either. There would be no member of this parliament who has not received some bonuses, some special investments into community infrastructure. It is terribly important to regional Australia. In the past, during the 10 years of the Howard government, we begged for regional community infrastructure in seats such as mine. We all remember the regional rorts. My seat was not a priority because it is a Labor seat. Money was only going to National and coalition seats.

A government member: Wentworth!

Yes, that is a good example. I say judge us on what we have done. The BER went to every community around Australia. Our regional community programs have gone to every region around Australia. It has been more important to build productivity in this nation by investing in every part of Australia. That is what we do, and that is what we are proud of.

We have seen investment in research reflected again in this budget because we know it is also part of economic security. That has been wonderful. For my electorate new institutes in research that have never been there before are being completed, are underway right now or are investing into our communities. I am sorry the member for New England has left the chamber. There has been investment in regional universities, and our policy has opened universities up to students from lower socioeconomic areas. I saw the figures today for some New South Wales universities. My university, the University of Newcastle, and the member for New England's University, the University of New England, had a 20-plus per cent increase in the number of offers to students from regional Australia, from low socioeconomic backgrounds. That is building the capacity of our regions and it is something we should be very proud of.

The budget also shows the future projections for the NBN. Within the next three years the NBN will be rolled out to 110,200 households and businesses in the Hunter region. That is outstanding. What a productivity lift, what an economic boost to our region. I noticed that today in the papers the member for Paterson is complaining about not getting enough roll out of NBN to his electorate. But remember, the greatest threat to regional Australia lies with an Abbott-led coalition government. They would scrap the NBN. They would scrap the Clean Energy Future package. They would scrap the MRRT. And the budget mentions that too. There will be over $6 billion available through the MRRT for critical infrastructure in mining regions. Well, come on down, that is where we live! By the end of this year we are planning on exporting 200 million tonnes of coal from the Hunter Valley through the Port of Newcastle. The biggest threat remains an Abbott coalition government. These investments are important.

Starting from this month, something like 90 per cent of my electorate will receive household assistance packages from the Clean Energy Future package, with an impost of less than 1c in the dollar. That side opposite forget that they introduced the 'never ever' GST, which was 10c in the dollar. My goodness, they have short memories! Federal Labor has got us through a global financial crisis. It has turned a mining boom into the wealth of the nation by spreading it throughout the whole nation. It has achieved a AAA credit rating from all international ratings agencies for the first time ever in this country, reaffirmed this week. The benefits to regional Australia are indisputable. They are a source of great pride to me and my colleagues. I congratulate the Treasurer on the 2012-13 budget, his fifth budget. (Time expired)

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