Luke Simpkins (Cowan, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

It is nice to have this opportunity tonight to talk about the Infrastructure Australia Amendment (Cost Benefit Analysis and Other Measures) Bill 2014. When I first got elected, I used to think in opposition that it will be great to get to the day when we can return to the Treasury benches and have the cheque book there so I can look out across the electorate of Cowan and say, 'This is what needs to be done, and maybe I can get some federal assistance for that.' Unfortunately, in the intervening period the budget has not been balanced and we are in a position now where the debt is significant. Yet, in spite of those circumstances, the reality now is that the Abbott government has still found $50 billion worth of infrastructure in the years ahead. That is good news, but one of the key things we have learnt from the past six years is the importance of using that money wisely to ensure that the taxpayers' money we are using is well spent and, to the best of our ability, that it is efficient, effective and raises productivity in this country—making peoples' lives better. That is a key responsibility of any government.

Around the time I was elected in 2007 we had made some commitments and the Howard government had got some things done. The Ocean Reef Road extension, a major project in the middle of Cowan, received $7 million from the Howard government, working with the City of Wanneroo, and was opened in 2010. It was good to see that important infrastructure project completed. In the lead up to the 2007 election there was also the commitment first by us and then by the Labor Party to make Hepburn Avenue a dual carriage way from Mirrabooka Avenue down to Alexander Drive. That was $5 million; and there was another $5 million to work with the City of Swan to extend Hepburn Avenue from Alexander Drive over to Beechboro Road and then Marshall Road. These were important infrastructure projects. Of course, you could not really describe them strictly as federal roads. They were actually local government roads, but in any case it was effective and there were reasons for it. It certainly improved traffic flows through Cowan and is a great link between the major north-south arterials of the Mitchell Freeway and Wanneroo Road and linking over to Alexander Drive and the light industrial area of Malaga adjacent to Ballajura in the electorate of Cowan. There was certainly value in achieving those things, and I was very pleased that they got done.

I was also very pleased that in the lead up to the last election we promised and in government have committed to providing $615 million for the NorthLinkWA project. NorthLinkWA starts around the intersection of Marshall Road and the Tonkin Highway, just south of Malaga, and continues up to Muchea. It has also been known as the Swan Valley Bypass. It is an important initiative that has been sought after for a long time. I pay tribute to the former member for Pearce, Ms Moylan, and the current member for Pearce, Mr Porter, for the very strong advocacy for the Swan Valley Bypass, which is now known as NorthLinkWA. Swan Valley is of course a significant area of Perth. It is quite a tourist district. Road congestion, with heavy vehicles moving north to mine sites, was a problem that needed to be fixed. I am very pleased that the Abbott government is getting on and doing what needs to be done. It is exactly these sorts of projects that we have to look at in light of this legislation, where a cost benefit analysis can be applied to such projects and across a range of different areas. You can see that there is going to be great value not just in terms of safety but in productivity regarding business traffic and traffic for all people.

As I said earlier, I am very pleased that the Abbott government has found $50 billion for infrastructure investment, because it is important. We are seeing the benefits of this right across the country. The important thing is that when you are entrusted by the people, by the taxpayers, with these sorts of funds there needs to be accountability, openness and transparency. So I am very pleased that the requirements we are putting upon Infrastructure Australia will see exactly these sorts of benefits. It is the case that Infrastructure Australia is already assessing projects which involve Commonwealth funding of over $100 million. It is right that it do so. That is what we said before the election that we would do. I am very happy that it is now happening.

It is important also that the Commonwealth and Infrastructure Australia work with the state and territory governments. It is an important part of Infrastructure Australia's functions that the national infrastructure audit takes place. The audit starts on 1 September, and a report will be released at the start of next year, as I understand it. Infrastructure Australia is in a position to hear from the stakeholders. I encourage the cities in my area, the cities of Swan, Joondalup and Wanneroo, to make a submission to Infrastructure Australia, which has been tasked by the government to provide transparent advice for priorities for the future over a 15-year period. It will try to make sure that there is a bigger plan than just some short-term political fix, that there is actually an ongoing process that is reviewed and looked at every five years to ensure that the infrastructure that has been thought about and that will get funded actually does provide the cost benefits to the community, and to the business community for employment, that, basically, it makes people's lives a lot better. That is obviously a part of Infrastructure Australia's responsibilities. It is important that future growth is supported by the infrastructure that Infrastructure Australia can recommend to the government.

Of course, Infrastructure Australia will remain an advisory body. Ultimately, government still needs to be responsible, to be accountable to the people, and cannot just pass off that sort of responsibility. The point I would particularly like to make about the advisory capacity of Infrastructure Australia is that the projects will be assessed and then Infrastructure Australia's assessment will be loaded onto a website and can be looked at. There will be complete transparency, which is the way it should be done.

Infrastructure Australia's key priorities are to assess projects that are receiving government funding of $100 million or more, undertake an audit of nationally significant infrastructure and develop the 15-year plan on infrastructure priorities. It will be restructured to have a chairman, with a CEO and of course a board with whom the chairman will work. These are important things. They are important parts of our transparency. We know as well that it will not be just a matter of the $50 billion provided by the federal government. It is right that the Treasury has informed us that it anticipates that a further $125 billion in new infrastructure investment will also be achieved by the Commonwealth being able to contribute in this area through the work of Infrastructure Australia as an advisory body. It is a good future, it is a transparent future, it is going to be an effective way forward. This is exactly what needs to take place.

I look forward to seeing some projects from the Cowan electorate of Western Australia get up. Something I would like to see done in the Cowan electorate is a great deal more work on the main road, Wanneroo Road. Wanneroo Road is pretty much a dual carriageway—two lanes each way—but it carries a lot of traffic and a lot of traffic with a lot of load. While there are some parts of Wanneroo Road that could be extended or which could have a third lane added, the reality is that many parts of it could not support a third lane, because the houses are too close to the side of the road. It would be good to see overpasses above Wanneroo Road to try to improve traffic flow—at Joondalup Drive and Wanneroo Road and at Hepburn Avenue and Wanneroo Road. These would be good projects. I can see that there is enough room in these places to support that sort of infrastructure and there would be benefits for business and commuter traffic. Better traffic flows are better for the environment, as well as giving people the opportunity to get where they need to go a little bit quicker. Getting home quicker in the evening also yields a good social bonus, you might say.

I would also like to see an overpass on the Reid Highway going over Malaga Drive. That is a very congested intersection with very significant amounts of industrial traffic. That would be nice to see. I know the state government has it on their list to get done, but it would be good to try to move that along a little bit quicker with some federal money. Again, I know that there is a shortage of federal money at the moment, but, if the case can be made by the City of Swan in that case, or by the City of Wanneroo or the City of Wanneroo on the other matters relating to Wanneroo Road, there are some great opportunities there. If the case can be made to Infrastructure Australia about the value that could be achieved in the outer northern suburbs of Perth, it would be good to see such projects get up.

There are other projects as well. More needs to be done with Nangara Road—and again I know the Barnett state government has some plans there and some money to get that project going. Nangara Road is very much in need of a dual carriageway. There are many other intersections and other areas of road in Cowan and its immediate surrounds that could use work. Another important overpass to get done is at the intersection of the Reid Highway and the Mitchell Freeway. That is another choke point which is a problem for both commuters and some business traffic.

I can look at my electorate and say that there are many projects that would be good—but they need to be properly assessed. The cost-benefit analysis needs to be done to make sure that the money would be well spent. I know that. I am not trying to get any special favours for the electorate of Cowan, but I am determined to help make the case—to demonstrate to Infrastructure Australia just how good some of those projects I have mentioned would be. Before I conclude, I would like to thank the Assistant Minister for Infrastructure, the Hon. Jamie Briggs, for the support he has provided to get the $300,000 set of lights to fix up the black spot on the corner of Alexander Drive and Illawarra Crescent North, adjacent to Ballajura. It is a very important intersection—people have lost their lives there—and fixing it up is a great federal government project.

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