Maria Vamvakinou (Calwell, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I want to take this opportunity this evening to refer to the Victorian election result and reflect on what an Andrews-led Labor government will now mean for the people of my electorate. First, I would like to congratulate Daniel Andrews and his team on their wonderful victory on Saturday night, and I certainly look forward to working with them for the benefit not only of Victorians but also of my electorate in particular.

The Victorian state election was as much a judgement on the federal budget as it was on the four years of a state coalition government which effectively saw policies and measures taken that hurt Victorians generally and provided little or no support to the many people and families who live in my electorate. In fact, I well remember that, upon coming to office four years ago, the now former coalition state Liberal government stripped away from my electorate $30 million that had been allocated and budgeted for by the previous Brumby Labor government for the redevelopment of the Broadmeadows train station centre. This was a bad omen indeed for my constituents, and, unfortunately, it did not get any better for them, as our local families and communities were largely ignored by the Baillieu and Napthine governments.

At a time when families were already experiencing difficulties and facing further stresses, we saw very little government investment in health and education services, or, more importantly, in the vital area of job creation. In the city of Hume, unemployment has increased since June 2013 from 6.9 per cent to 10 per cent in June 2014. In Broadmeadows in particular, unemployment has risen from 21.9 per cent to 26.4 per cent, and unemployment in the suburbs of Campbellfield and Coolaroo has risen from 18.8 per cent to 22.9 per cent, and unemployment in Meadow Heights has risen from 18.6 per cent to 22.9 per cent. These are very worrying figures, and they also show that unemployment in Melbourne's inner north is now higher in some cases than in the unemployment crisis currently facing Europe.

Of course, we are yet to fully absorb the effects of the hollowing out of local manufacturing industry, not assisted, unfortunately, by the Abbott government's decision to abandon manufacturing and the Napthine government's failure to defend it, particularly through the closure of Ford's manufacturing plant in Broadmeadows. Thankfully, however, and despite inaction, my electorate is set to benefit—and I welcome this—from the former Rudd-Gillard Labor government initiatives that were put in place when Ford announced it would cease manufacturing in Broadmeadows by 2016. The then federal Labor government did not blame the workers. Instead, we had the foresight to create far-reaching initiatives to assist employment by setting up the $24.5 million Melbourne's North Innovation and Investment Fund, to encourage local businesses to diversify and to create jobs in the region. I am pleased to say that an Andrews state Labor government will invest an additional $10.5 million into this fund, and it will help create some 100,000 jobs across Victoria by investing in the industries of the future and encouraging companies to hire retrenched workers and unemployed youth.

Fourteen grants to date have been allocated from the Melbourne's North Innovation and Investment Fund, to a total value of $17 million, and they are said to leverage some $81.9 million in private sector investment. They are expected to create more than 580 new full-time equivalent jobs. I am very pleased at the announcement made by the federal Minister for Industry Ian Macfarlane in October that $1.1 million from this fund would assist a very important food manufacturer in my electorate, Colonial Farm, to establish a food production line and new manufacturing and warehouse plant, and this will create 23 new jobs.

There are many other businesses in my electorate that have received money under this fund. I realise I only have time to mention a few, but I would like to single out Top Cat's Kitchen Innovations unit, in Campbellfield, which has received $600,000 to expand on its operations to service the market for stone top kitchen benches, and that is expected to create some 15 jobs. The Sparkling Beverages company in Campbellfield has received $993,000 to upgrade its production lines for glass bottle and canned beverage production and to create 27 jobs. Cottage Cheese Farm in Broadmeadows has received funding— (Time expired)

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