Julian Simmonds (Ryan, Liberal National Party) Share this | Hansard source

The 2020 Morrison government budget and the appropriation bills before us are all about jobs. It's our nation's economic recovery plan to create jobs, rebuild our economy and secure Australia's future. We are investing in skills and training, building the instant asset write-off scheme, providing tax relief for hardworking Australians, increasing our sovereign manufacturing capability, investing in shovel-ready projects in infrastructure, supporting mental health services and NDIS providers, and advancing our renewable technologies and recycling capabilities.

The 2020 federal budget will provide the necessary support to families, businesses and industries to lead Australia out of the COVID-19 recession. The COVID-19 pandemic has imposed an economic shock like no other, and it has seen our global economy contract by 4.5 per cent. Compare the scale of that challenge to the GFC, where the global economy contracted by less than one per cent, to understand the scale of the economic challenge and the economic mountain that Australia has to climb now. Ten per cent of our workforce have either lost their job or had their working hours reduced to zero, decimating businesses and forcing many people to become unemployed—some for the first time in their lives.

The record $257 billion of direct economic support provided by the Morrison government has cushioned the blow of the pandemic and provided the necessary social safety net to protect Australian lives and livelihoods. The JobKeeper program has enabled businesses whose revenue has been impacted due to the pandemic to retain their staff, to keep Australians in jobs and to keep those employees connected to those businesses so that business can come out the other side of the COVID-19 recession. The cash flow boost gave businesses a leg-up when the downturn first hit. JobSeeker rates were increased to ensure that those who were not eligible for JobKeeper still had the support they needed.

As I have moved around the electorate during the COVID-19 recession and the health crisis, I have been talking to local businesses, local employers and local employees about the supports that the Morrison government has been offering. For a number of businesses that operate within the electorate of Ryan, the economic support provided by the Morrison government has been absolutely instrumental in retaining staff, keeping their doors open and just making sure that they exist on the other side of the COVID-19 recession. I spoke to Dean, the franchisee of JAX Tyres at Mitchelton. He undertakes a range of things—like it sounds, it is a car servicing and tyre changing business. They are accessing JobKeeper. The support has meant he hasn't had to let staff go. He said this: 'The support has provided peace of mind, especially to my long-term casual staff who, without JobKeeper, would have been the first to be stood down.'

Lisa is the owner of F45 gyms located in Indooroopilly and Pullenvale. They are using JobKeeper for permanent and part-time staff, including their PTs and trainers. Because it is being supported by JobKeeper, the business is able to afford to also keep on its short-term casual staff who didn't qualify for JobKeeper. When the gym was shut, when the initial pandemic occurred, the staff were doing three Zoom training sessions a day and pre-recorded sessions with clients. Because of JobKeeper, their business was able to rapidly adapt to the new circumstances and the new model that they found themselves in so that they could focus on retaining their clients, not on the bill to retain their employees.

Luke is the owner of Suburban Social at Chapel Hill—a local restaurant and bar that, when the pandemic first happened, switched to takeaway service and a drive-through service. It operated throughout the initial shutdown without dine-in but has since, thankfully, been able to open back up to its dine-in patrons. They had six staff on JobKeeper. His quote was as simple as this: 'JobKeeper saved our bacon.' His words, not mine: 'JobKeeper saved our bacon.'

Dal at Performance Physio said that JobKeeper not only assisted them to continue to operate but also enabled them to honour their rent agreements. This put them in a strong position to ensure the success of their business as they navigate through these unprecedented times. This support is helping not just their small business but the local landlord as well.

The Picabeen Community Centre in Mitchelton is a fantastic not-for-profit organisation within the Ryan electorate. It works directly with young people and their families and provides essential support and wellbeing services. Never have their services been so important to our local community than right now while families are dealing with COVID. David, who does the centre's administration, said that the cash flow boost has allowed them to increase the services they provide to the community at the time that the community needs it the most. He said, 'More people are requesting mental health services and food packages, and the cash flow boost has allowed us to meet the demand.'

The Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary was hit hard by the COVID-19 restrictions. It initially had to close its doors. Still it remains a shadow of its former self because it relies heavily on international tourists, who simply can't come at the moment. However, while the people who normally attend the sanctuary can't attend, there are ongoing operation costs. It has to provide animal care, medicine, landscaping, maintenance, security and plantation management. All of this continues despite the lack of visitors. Robert, the general manager of the Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary, said, 'It is government support schemes, such as JobKeeper, that have allowed us to maintain the employment of many full-time equivalent staff and continue to care for our 470 resident animals.'

Finally, I look at Flash Printing, a family business in Brisbane that provides printing and digital photocopying services. The owner, Jeff, lives in the electorate of Ryan. He said that JobKeeper has been fundamental to the ongoing survival of his business. Initially it enabled him to plan a period of grace while demand collapsed and then it ensured that the extended families related to the business were confident that bills would be paid and food put on the table.

This support has a human face right across the Ryan electorate, whether it be in the not-for-profit sector, the tourism sector or the small business sector. This is food on the table for families. This is jobs. This is opportunities for them. These are just a handful of examples from across the Ryan electorate where the economic downturn is being alleviated by the government's current support packages, which are continued in these appropriation bills. The Morrison government, through its economic recovery plan in the 2020 budget, is going to continue to back local businesses like these, to protect lives and livelihoods, and to secure our future post COVID.

There are a couple of other aspects to the appropriation bills that I want to touch on. Firstly, the commitment of the Morrison government to local infrastructure in the Ryan electorate. This is significant because one of the key aspects of the last election, when I put myself forward to the Ryan electorate, was that our focus had to be on fixing local roads, reducing congestion and getting more federal funding to get people home to their families sooner and safer. I'm glad to see that that advocacy is starting to yield results.

The 2020 budget is providing $112 million to upgrade the Centenary Motorway, which affects Ryan residents; $50 million to upgrade the Indooroopilly roundabout; $12.5 million for the Kenmore roundabout upgrade; $1.4 million to upgrade the intersection at Sir Fred Schonell Drive in St Lucia; $700,000 to contribute to the upgrade of the Gresham Street Bridge in The Gap; and $11.7 million for the Brisbane City Council to upgrade local roads and to improve safety. These investments might seem small in the scheme of the federal budget, but, gee, they're big for the Ryan electorate. They're going to help connect our communities, improve road safety and create local jobs.

When construction on the Indooroopilly roundabout project starts next year it will create over 350 jobs for our local community. These projects are going to get people in my electorate home sooner and safer. Investing in these shovel-ready projects is an important focus for the Morrison government in the 2020 budget. Overall, the Treasury estimates that the full $100-plus billion infrastructure package will support over 30,000 direct and indirect jobs over the life of those projects.

In addition to the infrastructure funding, there is other local support for our community. There is $150,000 in grants through the Stronger Communities Program that will go to our local community organisations and to the fantastic volunteers who work day in, day out to support our community and who need those grants in order to either improve their service to the community or to get improved facilities. There's $100,000 to establish a new Australian cadet unit at Kenmore. There's $50,000 for the Bardon Bowls Club for a project that they're currently undertaking. There's $50,000 for The Gap men's shed for a project that was recently signed off, which is going to include both new CCTV cameras—can you believe that there are some grubs within the wider community who would seek to vandalise something as important as the local men's shed, but unfortunately it happens—and more sustainability equipment.

I want to particularly talk about the new Australian cadet unit that will be headquartered in Brookfield. This has tremendous support from the local community, and it is something I personally advocated for with the Treasurer. COVID has been tough on our local kids. We know that. The new cadet unit will provide an exciting outlet for them to learn new skills and to make lifelong friends. With the support of the Kenmore-Moggill RSL and the Gallipoli Barracks at Enoggera, the new unit will be an important addition to our community. Army Cadets is a community based youth development organisation that focuses on preserving the customs, traditions and values of the Australian Army. Prospective cadets in our local community will have the opportunity to develop leadership, team-building and survival skills that will set them up for life. This is a community that isn't currently serviced by a cadet unit. The closest is at the barracks itself, at Enoggera. The president of the Kenmore-Moggill RSL sub-branch, Lieutenant Colonel Richard Maher, and the sub-branch Treasurer, Richard Ponsonby, have been instrumental in proposing this initiative and ensuring the necessary support is in place to make this project is a success so that the federal government, in providing support, can be assured that we can get on with establishing this cadet unit for the local community. It's intended that the proposed unit will be named after Corporal Mathew Hopkins, who was killed in Afghanistan in 2009 while serving with the 7th Battalion of the Royal Australian Regiment. Corporal Hopkins was educated locally at Kenmore State High School, just down the road from where this cadet unit will be placed, so it's fitting that the proposed cadet unit will be named in his memory—the memory of a distinguished soldier and father. The Department of Defence has already approved the cadet unit application and the costs associated with its establishment, and the project has the support of the Gallipoli Barracks at Enoggera. Although the Brookfield cadet unit will run independently, the Enoggera cadet unit has agreed to facilitate their establishment and operational logistics.

I was very pleased that when the Prime Minister came up to Queensland last week to talk to Queenslanders about the budget and what it means for their families he took the opportunity to visit the Ryan electorate. We went out to the COVID-19 vaccine lab at the University of Queensland where some of our nation's best researchers are use federal funding to test a possible COVID-19 vaccine. Can you believe that there of all places, where such important work is going on, some infantile student protesters were running amuck and vandalising the PM's car? But not even that could prevent us from talking to these researchers, who are doing vital work for our Australian community and for our nation. We are incredibly grateful for the sacrifice that these researchers are making, away from their families and friends, and working long hours on long days, to make sure that we are given every opportunity to get our community COVID-safe and to get our economy firing again.

There is so much in this budget for the electorate: the JobMaker Hiring Credit, the extra support for apprentices, which is going to help our young people, and the extra funding to improve recycling and waste management. Overall the Morrison government is committed to seeing Australia through the COVID-19 recession. Our strong economic plan—this recovery plan, the 2020 budget—will provide the support that Australia needs to create jobs, rebuild our economy and secure our families' future. As the Treasurer said on budget night, our plan will grow the economy and our plan will create jobs. This is the discussion around the kitchen tables of Australian homes that is important. This is the focus that they want to see from the Australian parliament, from the government. We are focused on that 100 per cent—to give your families jobs and opportunities.

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