Sam Rae (Hawke, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

My electorate of Hawke is home to some of Victoria's fastest-growing suburbs—indeed, some of Australia's fastest-growing suburbs. Thousands of new families, of all colours, creeds and backgrounds, enjoying the fine Australian ambition of building a new home, of raising kids and of providing the best possible life for them. The Albanese government shares their ambitions. We want to empower that ambition by creating opportunity, by easing the pressure of cost of living and by fostering an economy where no-one is left behind.

The National Reconstruction Fund represents the biggest ever peacetime investment in Australian manufacturing capacity. It is a critical and necessary investment in the future of our nation, ensuring the strength of our sovereign capabilities and outlining an aspiration for the economy that we want to be. Its outputs will be consequential and wideranging. But, importantly, for the people of my electorate, the National Reconstruction Fund is about being a country that makes things again. It's about providing a new pipeline opportunity for them and for their children. It will mean that the students at Sunbury Downs College studying science, maths or technology, who hope to go to one of our world-class universities, know that this government will back them if they choose a career in research and development; that this government wants to see them succeed, see their work commercialised and see that their talent stays here in our country. It will mean that the TAFE student studying for free, thanks to Labor governments, know the skills they are learning will fill jobs now and well into the future. That training in advanced manufacturing and the industries that support it is a worthy endeavour. It will mean new, good, well-paid, honest jobs in my electorate and in so many others across the outer suburbs and regions of our country.

It recognises the workers who proudly fill manufacturing jobs. Let's remember that it recognises them 10 years since those opposite dared the car manufacturing industry to leave this country and to leave my state of Victoria. It says to manufacturing workers that we value them and we value their work, that their skills and labour are a critical part of our economy and that they will never be forgotten or left behind by this Albanese Labor government.

In his recent address to the National Press Club the Prime Minister outlined Labor's plan for Australia for this year. He put forward a clear agenda that seeks to shape our nation's future, not be scared of it. After a wasted decade of inaction, drift and reactionary politics under the Liberals, Labor, under the leadership of this Prime Minister, is balancing the urgent action needed to address global challenges and fix the mess left behind by those opposite with long-term reform and investment that will deliver the lasting progress that Australia needs. The National Reconstruction Fund is an investment in this progress and, indeed, it is an investment.

Based off the model of the Clean Energy Finance Corporation, the National Reconstruction Fund will be required to generate a positive portfolio rate of return. This means the government's $15 billion investment will be returned with profit to reinvest in the fund itself, ensuring that it becomes self-sustaining. It will generate growth across our economy, it will boost productivity and it will create decent, well-paid Australian jobs.

The National Reconstruction Fund will provide finance to drive investments in seven priority areas of the Australian economy. These leverage our natural and competitive strengths, support the development of strategically important industries and shore up our supply chains. The seven priority areas are: firstly, transport, where we need to develop capabilities in transport manufacturing and supply chains for our car, train and shipbuilding industries; secondly, resources, to expand Australia's mining science technology and ensure a greater share of the raw materials we extract here are processed here, value-added here and not shipped off and imported back at higher prices; and, thirdly, agriculture, forestry and fishery sectors, to unlock potential and value-add to raw materials in sectors like food processing, textiles, clothing, and footwear manufacturing.

A fourth priority area is medical science, to leverage Australia's world-leading research to manufacture essential supplies like medical devices, PPE, medicines and vaccines. A fifth area is renewables and low-emission technologies, to capitalise on the opportunity presented by building the components for cleaner, renewable energy right here in our country. A sixth priority is defence capability, to close the capability gap left by those opposite, with Australian defence suppliers employing Australian workers to keep Australians safe.

The seventh priority area is a range of other enabling capabilities to support and develop key enabling capabilities across engineering, data sciences and software development, from artificial intelligence to robotics and quantum. These priority areas cut across the broader sections of our economy. They are deliberate and are about building a diversified and resilient economy well into the future.

Those opposite have decried the National Reconstruction Fund as interventionism. Many in their ranks think that the government have no place in this space and that we should not be, as they claim, picking winners. This is a tired, narrow-minded and diminished view of what governments can do. We need modern solutions that meet the challenges we face today and considered, strategic investment in research and manufacturing across these priority areas. It's critical to rising to those challenges and putting us in the best possible position for the future.

The pandemic and Russia's illegal war in Ukraine have shown the vulnerability our country faces in being the last stop in the international supply chain. We know that supply-side shocks are a significant driver of the economic environment and the economic challenges that we face today. Indeed, the inflation that is currently putting extreme pressure on households across our country is largely driven by supply-side pressures. Indeed, the Reserve Bank of Australia noted in its most recent Statement on monetary policy that supply-side factors likely account for between half and three-quarters of the inflationary pressure currently facing our economy.

With a strong manufacturing base, we can stand on our own two feet as a nation. We can protect ourselves from these challenges emanating from across the seas, but we can also commercialise Australian smarts, create new industry and build well-paid, decent Australian jobs. The National Reconstruction Fund is a very wise investment in a smart economy for the future.

That is why it is so shocking to me and to my colleagues that those opposite are not supporting this bill. They were a failed Liberal government that has become a 'say no to everything' opposition. They say no to power bill relief. They say no to sensible and targeted cost-of-living relief. And now, in voting against this bill, they are saying no to Australian jobs, no to Australian industry and no to Australian research. Here in this place they show their true colours. Underneath the Sharks hats, behind the 'daggy dad' get-ups—nonsensical facades they think will appeal to working Australians—and through their confected culture wars designed to divide our communities, we see them for who they are. Australians know that, deep down, this Liberal opposition has not changed since Joe Hockey stood in this place and dared Ford to leave our shores. The people in my electorate, in my community, know the coalition are against good conditions. They're against well-paid union jobs, and they're still fundamentally antiworker. Once again, they have made a choice to turn their backs on Australian jobs.

The Albanese government backs in workers. We back in Aussie smarts, and we're backing in Australian jobs. The National Reconstruction Fund is a smart investment in the potential of our nation. It is about renewing, revitalising and rebuilding Australia's manufacturing industry for Australians, for small-business owners, for the regions and for Australian jobs. It's not a handout and it's not about picking winners. It's about creating opportunity from Australian smarts for the people in my community and so many others like it.

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