Justine Keay (Braddon, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

It is with great pleasure that I rise here today to talk about the 2016 budget and what it means to my community in the electorate of Braddon. It seems that, in bringing together the 2016 budget, the coalition made the decision that led to the Tasmanian community saying, 'Adios, amigos,' to three former Liberal members, in Bass, Braddon and Lyons. In so many areas, the coalition have neglected Tasmanians, and they demonstrated in their budget just how out of touch they are with the needs of our communities and regional Tasmania. Whether it is in the critical areas of health care, education or job-creating infrastructure, the coalition just do not seem to get it. When you compare the priorities of the coalition to those of Labor, it is clear why their agenda was overwhelmingly rejected by Tasmanians.

The centrepiece of the coalition's budget was a $50 billion tax cut for big business and the banks—based on the false premise of trickle-down economics, which we all know just does not work—and tax cuts for those on higher incomes. While the coalition is happy to give these tax cuts of $16,715 to those on higher incomes, the average person in Braddon receives zero. What the coalition does not seem to understand or want to know is that the median income for a wage or salary earner in my neck of the words, according to the latest figures from the ABS, is just $39,887 per annum.

When it comes to funding health care, once again the coalition fails to understand Braddon and Tasmania. Braddon has some of the worst health indicators in the nation. Combined with an ageing population and a disproportionate amount of people receiving a Commonwealth benefit, it becomes clearer why people in Braddon are worried about the cost of health. My electorate has a high degree of chronic disease and poor health outcomes, higher preventable hospitalisations and higher all-cause cancer and all-cause mortality rates compared to the state average. But the ability for people in my electorate to pay more for health care is of concern, and any pressure they face to pay more will only add to poor health indicators for my community.

The national average per electorate of people receiving the age pension is 16.36 per cent. In Tasmania that average is 18.81 per cent of the five electorates. In my electorate the percentage receiving the age pension is 20.67 per cent. The national average per electorate of people in receipt of a Health Care Card is 7.98 per cent. In Tasmania that figure is 10.29 per cent, and in my electorate of Braddon the figure is just below that, at 10.08 per cent. In the adjoining electorate of Lyons it is 10.55 per cent and in the electorate of Bass the figure is 11.89 per cent. So it is little wonder that across all three electorates a universal health care system that does not hit the back pockets of people in our communities is a really high priority. It is a message that the self-styled three amigos failed completely to understand.

If the coalition wanted to look further to understand why health is so important to Tasmanians and the people of Braddon, perhaps they could look at the figures provided by the ABS relating to the number in receipt of a pensioner concession card. These people are not wealthy by any means. Their circumstances are such that they rely on Commonwealth support just to get by. The national average is: 26.59 per cent of each electorate receives a pension concession card. The Tasmanian average is 33.7 per cent. In Braddon the figure is 38.19 per cent. Given the low wage, poor health outcomes and reliance on Commonwealth support, you would think that the coalition would respond in a positive way—but, no. Tasmanian community members shook their heads in amazement when figures obtained from the Parliamentary Budget Office revealed that Tasmanian hospitals will suffer a $1.151 billion cut over the next 10 years. With the health challenges the community faces in my electorate of Braddon, the cut is $153 million over that term. Our local hospitals just cannot afford it.

Then there is the cruel attack on Medicare, with a GP tax being extended for another two years. The coalition wrongly labelled the campaign 'Medi-scare'. But it was not Labor's campaign that scared the community. When you are living on a low income, struggling to put food on the table with a sick member of your family and facing increased costs to see the doctor, you are very scared. Making the sickest and poorest pay more to see a doctor is not fair. I am proud of being part of the Labor campaign that put health care as a payment issue for the community.

But there is more. It seems that the coalition just cannot get enough of slugging those living in regional communities. The coalition cuts to the health Flexible Funds have and will continue to hit Braddon hard. The fund that is delivered by what is known as TAZREACH has been cut from $3.9 million to $1.4 million. On the west coast of Tasmania, where the community has been struggling terribly economically and socially, the TAZREACH cut has had severe impacts. I would like to take a moment to use some quotes from local mayor Phil Vickers on what these cuts mean to his community. On 28 June this year he said:

The loss of these services places more stress on unwell residents and will also place more pressure on these services in other regions as West Coasters will now have to travel to attend appointments.

There is a concern that people will stop seeking help for their medical problems knowing they cannot access assistance locally. You need to understand that the west coast of Tasmania is an isolated community. It is not a place where you can have quick access to any service; it takes many hours to travel anywhere. In winter, sometimes the roads are iced over or snowed over.

It is not just health cuts that cause my electorate so much concern. Braddon, along with the rest of Tasmania, has low educational attainment. The proportion of our community who complete year 12 or gain a tertiary qualification is one of the lowest in Australia. So what is the coalition's answer to this issue? They defund education by refusing to invest in years five and six of Gonski. Implementing the Gonski reforms on time and in full means that students outside of the cities will have the same opportunities to learn the skills they need to succeed. I heard some of our opponents, particularly in Tasmania, say during the campaign that we cannot afford Gonski. If you cannot afford to invest in a proven model of education funding that puts the child first and is based on need—which is Gonski—then you should not be in government. In a community with high unemployment and, in particular, high youth unemployment, you would think the coalition would also be prepared to invest in job-creating and economy-growing infrastructure. The hollow words of 'jobs and growth' were nowhere more hollow than in Tasmania—a state with high unemployment and a slow economy.

In March this year the Tourism Industry Council of Tasmania and the Cradle Coast Authority, which represents the nine councils of the north-west coastal region, launched the $160 million Cradle Mountain master plan. Tasmania is experiencing a tourism boom, as international and national visitors seek to enjoy some of the best nature-based experiences combined with some of the most amazing food and wine. But, unfortunately for Cradle Mountain and for northern and north-west Tasmania, this growth is disproportionately favouring southern Tasmania in what is known as the 'MONA effect'—that is, the Museum of Old and New Art in Hobart, which is very popular with visitors. The issue at Cradle Mountain is its infrastructure, which has not kept pace with the demands for a high-quality experience. Today people are required to queue for buses, have limited shelter from the elements at Dove Lake and are not receiving the world-class experience they expect. For Cradle Mountain to continue to hold its place as one of Australia's iconic destinations, change is needed.

The master plan seeks to renew Cradle Mountain as Tasmania's iconic destination. The proponents of the master plan had it subjected to some of the most rigorous analysis. Deloitte Access Economics research forecasts that the Cradle Mountain redevelopment would have an economic benefit to the Cradle Coast region of up to $29 million per year, based on attracting 59,000 more visitors and translating into 102,000 more visitor nights. Deloitte found the project would create almost 150 full-time jobs in construction and more than 110 full-time jobs in operation—in a region that particularly needs sustainable jobs. Market testing and a funding model have been completed, and planning and infrastructure work has been assessed. Such is the scope of the work undertaken that private investors have committed to build a new hotel.

There was some anticipation in the lead-up to the federal budget that the master plan would receive support. As far back as September last year the Tasmanian government—a Liberal government—was holding discussions with the federal coalition. No budget announcement was forthcoming. The project did receive strong support from the Tasmanian Liberal government, who committed $15 million in their May budget. I am so proud to say federal Labor committed $15 million to this project, with a further undertaking to work with the proponents as the project developed. This provided confidence to private investors that this project had the backing of all levels of government and the Tasmanian community.

So how did the coalition ultimately respond? On 23 June former tourism minister Senator Colbeck—a senator from, and who lived in, my home town, who knows the area very well and the proponents as well—announced the coalition would support this $160 million project with a paltry $1 million to fund a business case, despite all the work previously undertaken. I have to say that the coalition was led kicking and screaming to make any announcement on tourism funding or support for Tasmania. All they announced was a $5 million package. Quite rightly the response from Tasmania's tourism industry and wider community was scathing. It could best be summed up by a tweet from Tourism Industry Council CEO Luke Martin, who said he hadn't been so underwhelmed since Hangover Part IIIandalso described it as a disappointing and lightweight commitment.

The coalition's failures in tourism infrastructure in Braddon also extend to our main arterial roads. The Bass Highway runs from Marrawah, all the way through Braddon to Latrobe, continuing through Lyons and finishing in Launceston in the electorate of Bass. Under the coalition's last three budgets not a single cent has been allocated to any work on the Bass Highway in Braddon. From Burnie to Launceston it is classified as part of the national highway. This part of the highway carries the largest volume of freight of any road in Tasmania. At Devonport the road is the vehicle gateway for Tasmania's tourism industry for those arriving on the Spirit of Tasmania. West of Burnie to Marrawah the road has other classifications, but over the years it has seen a massive increase in freight volume.

I launched a community petition earlier this year in Circular Head, highlighting the state of the road, especially from Smithton to Marrawah. In a matter of weeks the petition gathered overwhelming community support. It was clear that this issue was of high importance to the people of this area. For Labor's part, and with the support of the shadow minister for infrastructure and transport, Anthony Albanese, I was able to secure a funding commitment to invest in this part of the highway. I was hoping the strength of the petition and the voices of the community would jar the coalition into action. Sadly, I was mistaken.

The campaign to fix this section of road continues in Circular Head. Local bus operator, Kimbra Wells, from Wells Wagons, and the Circular Head community road safety committee have been proactive in allowing people to understand the dangers of travelling on this section of road and in giving people a chance to experience what is, at times, a treacherous journey for school kids on the buses. The road is narrow. There has been significant increases in heavy vehicles—milk tankers and log trucks—as well as tourist drivers who may not be familiar with the challenges of this part of the road. Not only that, the road requires significant re-engineering at the Brittons Swamp section.

I want to put on the record my thanks to Kimbra and the committee for continuing to raise this important issue. At Latrobe, on the highway local service station proprietor Ian 'Daggy' Hartnett and his wife, Trudy, gathered over 2,000 signatures on a petition calling for dangerous intersections to be fixed. This is a single lane highway that has the largest volume of traffic, with trucks and cars turning into their petrol station and leaving other vehicles nowhere to go. The near misses, the accidents—it is a scary piece of road.

I am pleased federal Labor was able to respond through shadow minister Albanese and allocate funding for the necessary planning works. For reasons best known to them, the coalition also ignored this section of road. I congratulate Daggy and Trudy for their work and want to assure them that Labor will continue the fight on their behalf. So it is little a wonder the people of Tasmania and Braddon rejected the coalition at the 2 July election. There is no doubt the coalition's budget decisions were at the core of this rejection, along with the failure of the so-called 'amigos' to listen to their communities. It was a budget that contained tax cuts to millionaires and big business, but it was a budget that failed the sick, elderly, vulnerable families, our children and job-creating infrastructure.

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