Michael McCormack (Riverina, National Party, Leader of the Nationals) Share this | Hansard source

We are building, we are creating, we are delivering. We understand the importance of getting people home sooner and safer. The South Australian government is currently finalising the scope of this project that the member for Mayo asks about. Once it's concluded, project time frames will be available and we can get on with the job and build it, because that's what we do. The Morrison and Marshall governments, working in tandem with each other, get on with the job and build things. With increasing demand on commuter and freight traffic, the South Eastern Freeway between Crafers and Stirling has been affected by increased traffic at peak periods. We acknowledge that there are congestion and safety issues. That's why we want to get on with the job of doing those sorts of things not only in the member for Mayo's electorate but also in all electorates right around the nation. Crafers has a population of 2,000 and Stirling's population, in the Adelaide Hills, is about 3,000. They want things to be built, and we're getting on with the job of doing just that. The South Eastern Freeway is the most direct corridor between Adelaide and Melbourne, as well as providing a vital link in moving freight between eastern and central Australia. We acknowledge that the freight task is going to double over the next 20 years. Mayo is an important part in that freight task.

I know the member has raised the matter, as you mentioned, with Stephan Knoll, who's the Minister for Transport, Infrastructure and Local Government and the Minister for Planning. He is a good minister. It's an important issue and an important project. I acknowledge that, and I know Minister Knoll acknowledges that as well. The planning is important. It's critical. Working with the Marshall state government, we expect to see this project commence and also be completed in 2019. That's next year. That's because we get things done.

I tell you what does threaten those sorts of things: it's if a Labor government gets in, because there are going to be a lot of things that they are going to rip up—just like the Andrews government when they ripped up a billion dollars worth of East West Link money. That's what they did. That's what Labor does. They just rip contracts up with not a metre of bitumen being laid. That's all they're good for.

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