Pat Conroy (Shortland, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I want to raise a few matters. I want to continue on East West Link, as the minister commented on it. Minister Fletcher, in a February 2016 interview regarding the Victorian request for support for Melbourne Metro—a most excellent project—is quoted as saying:

And of course what now needs to happen is the Commonwealth Government will have Infrastructure Australia study the business case carefully. We’re not in the business, unsurprisingly, of handing over a check for $4.5 billion just because we’re asked for it.

Given that the ANAO found that that is exactly what this government did regarding East West Link—handing over a cheque for $1½ billion dollars before an Infrastructure Australia assessment had been conducted—why do you say that this government is not in the business of writing cheques?

My second issue returns to the subject of the smaller projects that the member for Grayndler highlighted before: the coalition's election commitments around road projects, which was pork-barrelling at its very worst. I am sure that will be the subject of an ANAO audit in due course. The government committed $858 million to 78 road projects, 76 of which were in coalition held electorates—76 out of 78. There was not a single public transport project, yet again demonstrating this government's commitment to public transport. So I have a question for the minister: what does he say to the 40 per cent of Australia's population who do not live in those electorates? Are they not worthy of improved road funding?

One of the most interesting projects funded under that was one million dollars for upgrading a road mainly used for billycart races—that is right, Mr Deputy Speaker. They spent a million dollars on a road whose most notable claim to fame is to be used for billycart races. And this stands in stark contrast to this government's continuing failure to fund the most important project in the entire Hunter region, which is the Glendale transport interchange. This project has been identified by all 11 Hunter councils as the most important project, and Minister Chester would know that getting 11 councils to agree on anything is a remarkable achievement.

All 11 Hunter councils have said that the Glendale transport interchange is the most important project in the region. Labor, in government, funded it to the tune of $13 million. The Abbott-Turnbull government cut a million dollars from it and is refusing to play any part in funding the remaining $32 million required to get the project completed.

Labor, I am proud to say, under the shadow minister, committed another $13 million during the election campaign, and this is a no-brainer. Independent economic modelling has shown that this $32 million will drive a billion dollars in private sector construction activity. It will create 10,000 jobs. It will drive $780 million in regional income. It will lead to 5,000 dwellings being built in the Glendale area, driving another 1,000 full-time jobs.

This independent modelling has found that this project, for every dollar of public sector investment, will drive $38 of private sector investment—not 45c as the East West Link; $38. I ask the ministers that table: why will they not commit to the most important project in the entire Hunter region?

My third area is this government's addiction to spin and propaganda. It was revealed before the last election that $18 million was spent in propaganda ads bragging about its record—a false record, might I add, because they have not done much on infrastructure but they spent $18 million bragging about it. That $18 million, we confirmed, came out of the infrastructure budget. So they spent $18 million less on building bridges and roads to brag about building bridges and roads.

What is even worse is we also found out the former minister, Minister Truss, spent $3,200 in one year alone on props for media events—easels, A1 maps and other things for media events.

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