John Alexander (Bennelong, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

I am delighted to speak today in support of this important motion from my colleague the hardworking member for Hindmarsh. Together with the members for Reid and Robertson, I have to commend the government on the establishment of an infrastructure growth package that will fast-track investment and critical infrastructure across our country. This investment will boost our economy, lift productivity and create jobs around the nation. It will also help us fix the No. 1 complaint by the good people of Bennelong: traffic congestion. Our local community owns the dubious honour of possessing five of the most 10 congested roads in New South Wales. Unlike those opposite, who year after year in government would make promise after unfulfilled promise, the coalition are actually delivering on our commitment to build the roads for the 21st century and to deliver the infrastructure needed by the people who place their trust in us.

Around Bennelong this includes WestConnex and NorthConnex. WestConnex is one of Australia's largest ever road projects. It is a 33-kilometre motorway designed to ease congestion, connect communities and create jobs. Construction on both stage 1 and 2 projects is expected to commence early next year. NorthConnex involves construction of a twin three-lane tunnel linking the M1 and M2 motorways. The tunnels will be around nine kilometres in length, running beneath Pennant Hills Road. This represents a solution for one of the worst choke points that impact on residents of Bennelong. The Commonwealth and New South Wales governments are both contributing $400 million towards this project. Construction on the project is expected to commence next year and be completed in 2019.

The federal government will also be committing funding for the installation of safety devices at two black spot projects in Bennelong: $400,000 in Pittwater Road in East Ryde and $42,500 in Balaclava Road, Eastwood. These projects are just a small part of the coalition's honouring our commitment to the people of Australia, with the federal budget delivering a record $50 billion investment in productivity-enhancing infrastructure across the country over the next five years, including an $11.6 billion growth package. This is $16 billion more than Labor even promised to deliver if they had been re-elected. The coalition's investment in infrastructure will leverage greater co-contributions from state governments and the private sector. The asset recycling program will free up billions of dollars for extra investments that are needed today. In total our measures add up to $126 billion of economic benefits spread across the entire economy. This massive investment will not only deliver productivity-enhancing roads and rail freight projects across Australia; it also frees up the states to get on with building urban rail. Since the federal election, the state governments have committed to investing in over $25 billion worth of major public projects.

These actions are just the first step. Our country has a lot to catch up on, with so many electorates directly affected by six years of broken Labor promises. In Bennelong we saw the farcical situation of the former Prime Minister and former Labor Premier announcing, with great fanfare, their promise to build the Epping to Parramatta rail link. The former minister even dedicated $2.1 billion towards this project, yet not one dollar was spent and not one sod of soil turned. The people of Bennelong were not easily fooled. This was not the first time a Labor government had promised this and other infrastructure. It was the election of the state coalition government in 2011 that finally saw construction commence on the North West Rail Link. Yet when the Premier went, cap in hand, to the former minister asking for the $2.1 billion to be redirected to a project that would actually see the light of day the money was nowhere to be found.

While this work to clean up Labor's mess is proceeding, we will also work on crucial master-planning so that we can continue to provide the infrastructure needs of the next generation. Such planning has been in short supply in our nation's history, yet we are surrounded with examples of long-term benefits that we have derived from strong infrastructure commitments and bold policy thinking. I look forward to working as part of this coalition government in setting the foundation stones for that bright future. I commend this motion to the House and reject the amendments from those opposite.

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