Darren Chester (Gippsland, National Party, Shadow Minister for Regional Education) Share this | Hansard source

At the request of the member for Maranoa, I move opposition amendment on the sheet revised 10 May 2023:

That all words after "That" be omitted with a view to substituting the following words:

"whilst not declining to give the bill a second reading, the House:

(1) notes this Government's record of cancellations, cuts and delays to infrastructure projects across Australia;

(2) criticises the Government's failure to adhere to processes of assessing infrastructure investment projects they set themselves before the 2022 election by agreeing to invest $2.2 billion in the Melbourne Suburban Rail Loop and $2.5 billion in the Brisbane Arena without first obtaining advice from Infrastructure Australia; and

(3) notes the nation-building and economy strengthening $120 billion 10-year pipeline of infrastructure investments inherited by the Government upon its election in May 2022".

This amendment is an important, practical and fair measure that will ensure that regional Australia has a strong voice on the board of Infrastructure Australia. In appointing the commissioners on the board of Infrastructure Australia, our amendment requires that the minister must ensure that at least one of the commissioners has a substantial connection or substantial experience in a regional area through business, industry or community involvement. The federal coalition urges the House to support this amendment.

While I have the opportunity, I want to turn to the minister's summing up speech last night in the Federation Chamber. She is becoming increasingly desperate in trying to justify the infrastructure review process associated with the Infrastructure Australia bill before the House. For the record, I want to make it very clear that I have made every attempt since the election to help the minister with her job in Victoria, to deliver infrastructure that Victorians want and Gippslanders want. Unfortunately, my attempts have been largely ignored.

This minister can't help but play politics and turn to talking points rather than constructively engaging with a member who is trying to represent his region to deliver important safety improvements when it comes, particularly in this case, to the Princes Highway as it travels through Gippsland. So I'm glad the minister has a new assistant minister to help her do her job and, hopefully, get a more constructive working relationship with local members.

This may seem harsh, but I've written to the minister on seven occasions and I've met with her staff face to face as well as on the phone to try to engage with them in a very constructive manner. If you would like, Mr Speaker, I will release those letters publicly. They describe how I want to find some room to allocate priorities in the community to save lives associated with the Princes Highway works.

The minister talks a lot about trying to find some headroom in the program to deliver projects. What the minister doesn't tell you is that the Princes Highway east program has $60 million in it, and my requests to her are all about finding out how many of the unallocated funds were still available, because there is money available—

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