Ed Husic (Chifley, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for the Digital Economy) Share this | Hansard source

The delivery of this motion was misplaced—misplaced in location, and not by virtue of the fact it's here in the Federation Chamber and not by virtue of the fact that it should have been in the House of Representatives. Really, the member for Fisher should have delivered this speech in the coalition party room, because it's not us he needs to convince; he has to convince the people within the National Party—the ones that have really driven relocation of government departments in this country—and what a proud track record they have, indeed. Look at the incredible way in which the Australian Pesticides and Veterinary Medicines Authority of Australia, the APVMA, has been shifted into the Deputy Prime Minister's electorate.

Look at the lack of transparency. Look at the controversy that has surrounded it. Look at the way in which it's being done and the fact that, while the member for Fisher might come in here with noble ideals about representing relocations that should happen in different parts of the country—and I share those ideals—we would not for one minute sidle up to the sneaky and disgraceful way in which some departments get moved based on the whim of a Deputy Prime Minister or of senior people in government. There should be a proper way to do this, not the way that it's been managed so far. So don't come in here—if I may say so to the member for Fisher, through the chair—pleading the case for this type of thing to occur. Get it sorted out in your party room and, importantly, get it sorted out in a way that represents value for money and proper process for the Australian taxpayer, not the sloppy, slimy way that the Deputy Prime Minister's management of this has shown. The APVMA has even lost senior members through the way that the government have forced this relocation on that authority. It is disgraceful.

Another reason that this motion is misplaced is this: it's one thing to have the ideal to move authorities or government departments like this. It's another to actually put them in places where you've got all the infrastructure support and people with skills to make these things happen in the way in which they should be done. Look at the way that this government have managed regional development—and in that I include Western Sydney. I imagine Deputy Speaker Bird would have criticisms about the way in which things like this happen down in the Illawarra and in other regions, as would the member for Herbert, who is in the chamber. There's never the proper support for infrastructure development in our outer regions where it's needed. Look at Western Sydney. The Western Sydney City Deal was announced in Redfern, not in the heart of Western Sydney. It was announced nearly 40 kilometres away. I pleaded with someone to give the Google Maps app to the Prime Minister and the then assistant minister, Angus Taylor, to make sure that they could make this announcement properly. They announced a City Deal for Western Sydney in Redfern and it didn't include the biggest council in Western Sydney, Blacktown council.

These City Deals are supposed to provide for proper infrastructure development, support and planning, and to make sure that we're doing things right. And yet this government can't even do that. There are big infrastructure plays, like the M9, that should link up Western Sydney and the growth areas of Western Sydney down to the Illawarra and provide the parallel infrastructure to the M7, but nothing was talked about there. If it's a media announcement and the glitz associated with a City Deal in Western Sydney that's announced outside of Western Sydney, and doesn't include the council, they're all for it. If it's the hard planning to make sure that the people are there and that they have the infrastructure to support them, it's in the too-hard basket. You need to have the skilled people and the infrastructure around to support the kinds of things that are being put forward by the member for Fisher today. They can't just be plonked in.

There is no depth of thought or longer term planning by those opposite. All this is is a publicity stunt to be able to go back to the electorate and say, 'I spoke up for our region.' But, within the government, that's all that ever comes. It's this wide open series of announcements that are so shallow. It is disgraceful that the parliament's time should be taken up on something where they should be pleading internally within their party room to get things done, because it's the Nationals who call the shots, not the Liberals, on these types of things. And there endeth the rant!

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