Lucy Wicks (Robertson, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

The people of the Central Coast deserve a government that delivers on its commitments, and I am pleased to say that with this package of appropriation bills before the House today this coalition government is doing exactly that. We took to the electorate of Robertson the coalition's growth plan for the central coast, a document with clear commitments to our region that would deliver growth, jobs and opportunity. I am pleased to say that we are delivering, and in some cases increasing, our commitments to the people on the Central Coast. These commitments reflect the concerns and aspirations of people in my electorate. We are privileged to live in the best region of the best country in the world, but we also need to see better infrastructure, more jobs and a place where hope and opportunity abound.

As part of this positive growth plan for the Central Coast which we took to the last election, we pledged to locate a Commonwealth agency, or part thereof, in Gosford's CBD. This is a city that local newspapers have recently described as a 'dead zone' with empty buildings and run-down streets. We want to revitalise Gosford so it can truly be the capital city of the Central Coast that our region needs. Combined with the other commitments that I will outline today, and the great work being done by the New South Wales state Liberal government and by Gosford City Council, things are starting to turn around. In fact, many community leaders are declaring that they are more optimistic than ever.

The Commonwealth agency relocation—thanks to the delivery by this coalition government—has the potential to add significantly to their optimism, because this is an investment of 600 jobs. That is 600 new jobs for Gosford right into the heart of the CBD. In the lead-up to the election we committed 250 to 300 jobs, but in last year's budget we doubled it to 600. Five hundred of these jobs will be from the Australian Taxation Office, with another 100 from a complementary agency or agencies. There has already been significant interest in this project and in the tender process, which will ultimately see a purpose-built building constructed in Gosford and open by the end of 2017. In fact, the Treasurer recently described this Commonwealth agency as 'a centre of excellence for Gosford', and in his earlier visit to Gosford outlined why this will have such a vital impact on the Central Coast as a whole. The economic multiplier effect of 600 jobs into Gosford shows great flow-on effects to our economy. That is 600 more lunches that will need to be bought and 600 more coffees every single day—and, if you are like me, that is probably 1,200 coffees that will need to be bought.

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