Pat Conaghan (Cowper, National Party) Share this | Hansard source

Since coming to this place in May last year, my electorate of Cowper has been hit by three severe natural disasters and then COVID-19. It has been a really tough time for my region and, indeed, for many regions around Australia. Many areas have suffered the triple crisis of drought, bushfires and then coronavirus. So I think if there were ever a time when a government could hide behind a veil of excuses of why there might be a gap between announcements and delivery, it would be now. But this government does not have to hide.

I am very proud to be part of the coalition government, the Morrison-McCormack government, because not only have we kept delivering our usual services and infrastructure, infrastructure that Australians rely on; we've also been able to support them in their time of need. I'm confident that tonight's budget will see more support for Australians, will help those who don't have a job get a job and will help those who do have a job retain that job.

We have had the single biggest economic shock this country has ever seen. Despite this, in my electorate, over the last 18 months our government has successfully completed over one hundred projects from our Infrastructure Investment Program. Just yesterday, the Deputy Prime Minister shared that this budget will provide an additional $491 million for the biggest infrastructure project in my area, the Coffs Harbour bypass. This hugely important 14-kilometre bypass will cure the current bottleneck on the Pacific Motorway, where the excellent dual carriage at the moment grinds to a halt at Coffs Harbour, requiring motorists to go through 12 sets of lights.

Members opposite—who have vacated the chamber—questioned the gap between our government's announcement and its delivery. On this Coffs Harbour project alone, in the past 18 months we have delivered an environmental impact statement for the bypass, a further EIS public consultation on the refined designs, the release of EIS submission and amendment reports, and early on-ground works by Transport for New South Wales for geotechnical investigations and maximising benefits to local contractors. In fact, on 9 September, I met with roads minister Paul Toole; and state member for Coffs Harbour, Gurmesh Singh, and announced a market interaction process, inviting industry to put in expressions of interest for delivering the bypass.

Another major infrastructure project is the Port Macquarie tidal pool. This is not just a pool. This would bring in further investment through sport, through health, through aged care and through rehabilitation. I gave this my full support during my election campaign and secured a commitment to $4.5 million for this project. Since then, we've completed a feasibility study and we've started work on a development application to the Port Macquarie-Hastings Council. This is real action on completing the tidal pool. Further examples of us delivering are the Deep Creek Bridge replacement in Bellingen, the Lanes Bridge replacement in Nambucca, the Bardens Bridge replacement in Coffs Harbour, the Turners Flat Bridge in Kempsey—over $4 million worth of bridges. And yet the backdrop to this is a one-in-100-year global health crisis.

During this crisis, this government has delivered a safety net to Australians, to keep as many Australians in work as possible. There are 5,300 grateful businesses in the electorate of Cowper. In the words of one JobKeeper recipient in my electorate, John Cassegrain of Cassegrain Wines, 'JobKeeper allowed me to retain my staff and keep making wine, so my winery can recover when the market returns.'

Before that, there were the bushfires. There was $29 million in the first round of $1,000 for adults and $400 for children, and then compassion moved to double those amounts. There was over $34 million in New South Wales alone, with over $10 million in grants of up to $75,000 to about 175 producers in my electorate alone, as well as $10,000 grants to numerous small business owners.

We will continue to fight the virus, we will continue to deliver the economic lifeline to Australians, and I look forward to hearing more about the Treasurer's road map tonight.

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