Anne Aly (Cowan, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I move:

That this House:

(1) notes that:

(a) Western Australia has consistently been neglected by the Government;

(b) despite promising $860 million during the federal election campaign for road and rail projects in Western Australia, the Government will instead dedicate just over $40 million for much needed projects;

(c) the Government has failed to deliver key infrastructure funding in Western Australia; and

(d) families and businesses in Western Australia continue to be disadvantaged by a government that ignores them;

(2) condemns the Government for its failure to deliver on its infrastructure promises for West Australians; and

(3) calls on the Prime Minister to explain why West Australians are consistently neglected, ignored and ripped off by the Government.

I'm pleased to put forward this motion because it draws attention to the neglect of Western Australia by this government. There are 15 Liberal members and senators from Western Australia, six of whom are Liberal federal ministers—that's one-fifth of the cabinet—but not one of them is willing to stand up for Western Australia when it counts. Not one of them is willing to fight for WA jobs. Not one of them is willing to fight for WA infrastructure. And Western Australia has, time and time again, been dudded by this federal Liberal government, robbing us of jobs and the opportunity to build a better state. Excluding the GST top-up funding, which we so righteously deserve—and I don't want to get started on GST or we might be here for a while—in 2015-2016, WA received just $437 million of federal infrastructure funding. In the 2016-2017 budget, that dropped to $390 million.

So, as unemployment soared, the people of Western Australia were doing it tough. Families were struggling, mortgage stress was through the roof and we were all crying out for job-creating projects. But those cries fell on deaf and uncaring ears. Then the WA state election happened, where more than 100,000 voters turned away from the Liberals and the Nationals, who had taken them for granted, and 26 seats were lost. And, in almost the blink of an eye, infrastructure spending in WA almost tripled. Those opposite will crow about it and call it their victory. They'll talk about this as a great investment in jobs and growth and pat themselves on the back. But we all know this one thing: that not one Liberal from WA or anywhere else paid any attention to Western Australia until their jobs were on the line—and that from our federal representatives, who we are meant to trust to fight for us and advocate for us. Western Australia will not be taken for granted. We will not be the 'wait a while' state.

But infrastructure spending isn't the only area in which WA is being neglected. For years now, the rate of methamphetamine usage in WA has been one of the highest across the country, ripping families and communities in Western Australia apart. And, despite regional WA having the highest meth use of anywhere in Australia, we received just 11.4 per cent of the federal funding to tackle addiction. In contrast, New South Wales has almost three times as many people, but its population uses meth at less than half the rate of Western Australians and yet New South Wales has been allocated 31.2 per cent of Ice Action Strategy funding pie. Those numbers simply do not add up for Western Australia. The funding is not enough to cope with the magnitude of the problem in Western Australia, and the Turnbull government, with its six WA ministers and 15 WA Liberal ministers and senators, won't do anything about it.

Just four days ago, it was confirmed that the Turnbull government has refused to invest any money in the new Perth stadium. There's been $100 million promised to the Townsville stadium, and past governments have put a total of $244 million towards football stadiums in New South Wales, in Victoria and in Adelaide. But, as is so often the case with this Liberal government, there is nothing for the people of Western Australia. I'm actually really pleased to see my colleagues from the other side here to speak on this—because, unless their jobs are on the line, they don't do anything for Western Australia. Unless the government are on the line, they are dragged kicking and screaming to do anything for Western Australia. I implore this Liberal government and I implore my colleagues over the other side to stop taking Western Australia for granted. Stop taking us for granted. Stop ignoring us. Stop neglecting us. Western Australians deserve better representation than this. Whether it's in infrastructure funding, whether it's in funding to tackle methamphetamine addiction or whether it's in funding for a stadium, time and time again we're getting left behind. Whether it's the national discourse on housing affordability, which simply does not take into account any of the WA experience, whether it's the national discourse on tax or whether it's the national discourse on infrastructure, we are consistently being left out. I feel the pain of Western Australians in my electorate when, every time they see me, they ask me, 'What is this government doing for us?' I implore the government to start taking notice of WA. (Time expired)

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