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

It's going to take three minutes actually. I want the members opposite to consider two numbers—51,625 and 7.7. The reason why those two numbers are important—and I will start with the latter first—is that 7.7 was the percentage swing to the member for Flynn at the last election. You know why? They backed him in because he's investing in and delivering infrastructure. He's backing in and delivering jobs, and he's backing in and delivering tax cuts. Now 51,625 taxpayers in the member's electorate of Flynn are going to receive tax relief for the 2018-19 income year under the tax relief plan currently before the parliament. That's good news.

It's good news for Flynn, it's good news for central Queensland, and having the member for Flynn back as their representative is great news for that great electorate. The great people of Central Queensland have clearly delivered a great person who will deliver for them.

As I've said previously, Australia has entered the age of infrastructure. In fact, there are more cranes over Australian skylines than there are over the United States of America at the moment. That is a fantastic outcome. A lot of those are private investors building for a better future. They are also building public infrastructure.

Ms Catherine King interjecting—

I hear the shadow minister opposite cry out about the New South Wales government. They're delivering $94 billion of infrastructure over the next four years. That's what coalition governments do when they're in surplus, Shadow Minister. We're delivering a pipeline investment of a record $100 billion. The budget on 2 April, which was overwhelmingly endorsed by the Australian people on 18 May, saw a 25 per cent increase in infrastructure spending. The Liberal and National government will bring $100 billion over 10 years—a rolling infrastructure plan that's helping manage our growing population in cities, in towns, in regional capitals and in farming districts right across the nation.

In the member for Flynn's electorate, we're investing $100 million in the Port Access Road extension into the Gladstone port, and the mayor there, Matt Burnett, is delighted about it. He said it is:

… fantastic news and we can get the trucks off stage one right onto stage two, bringing our commodities into the Gladstone Port …

We have added $3 billion to the Urban Congestion Fund, now worth $4 billion. That's delivering car parks; that's delivering better roads and better infrastructure. The fact is people in the city areas do not want to spend all their time looking at brake lights in front of them; they want to get where they need to get sooner and safer. That's what our Urban Congestion Fund is going to enable them to do. That's what our $100 billion record of infrastructure is doing in capital cities and regional Australia, right across the nation.

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