Michael McCormack (Riverina, National Party, Shadow Minister for International Development and the Pacific) Share this | Hansard source

RMACK () (): I heartily agree with everything the member for Parkes has just stated on this motion on investment in infrastructure put forward by the member for Barker. The member for Barker and the member for Parkes and particularly other regional members in this place, in the Liberals and the Nationals, are very concerned about the 90-day review put in place by the member for Ballarat, the minister for infrastructure, prior to the May budget. Sadly, the 90-day review has blown out to 169 days—169 days where regional communities and regional employers, regional small businesses have had to pause, stall, procrastinate and wait for a decision to be made by this Labor government. It's not good enough, I say. This government should explain why the review was necessary in the first place. We heard earlier one of the speakers from the government say that if we had just gone along with it we wouldn't have had any new projects put in place until 2033. The projects put in place by the former government were good projects. They were good progress. They have all been delayed or abolished by this government.

I can remember going out with the member for Parkes on some of his dirt roads, country roads, and seeing the farmers, seeing the councils—not just in the member for Parkes's electorate, which is half of New South Wales, but so many of the electorates right throughout the country—indeed, yours, Deputy Speaker Archer—and in Tasmania, to talk to people, to listen to people and to see what a game changer the infrastructure projects were that we were building and announcing, that we had in place with the vision that we had to build a better Australia, and the difference it was making to those councils and those communities—changing lives and saving lives. It's probably no coincidence that, sadly, the road toll at the moment is all too high. So many councils are just begging for money because of the pothole situation in regional and rural Australia.

Whilst they wait, the government is delaying, is procrastinating, is putting in place a review, but we don't know how long it's going to go for. It has already gone on for 169 days. I asked the member for Ballarat how much longer do these communities have to endure, how much longer do they have to suffer? How many more jobs and good people are we're going to lose on projects such as the signature Inland Rail? But not just that. Indeed, the East West Link in Melbourne was just ripped up by the Andrews government, at the cost of millions of dollars, without a piece of bitumen being laid. But it doesn't seem to worry those opposite when they burn projects off.

Just look at the Commonwealth Games. I was in Ballarat for a committee hearing just the other day. I let the member for Ballarat know I was in her electorate, being the good and courteous member of parliament that I am—I don't get the same courtesy shown to me. Let me tell you, in the anger in the evidence that we took at one of the joint select subcommittees investigating education and tourism from people affected by that decision to rip up the Commonwealth Games contract was palpable. They were just furious at the lost opportunity. The Victorian government says it will build infrastructure to replace it. We'll believe that when we see it.

I listened closely to the Prime Minister in question time today responding to a query from the member for Kennedy. The Prime Minister was talking about infrastructure. He was puffing out his chest and I heard him saying, 'Well, we're spending $2 billion on water infrastructure.' I can remember putting in place another $3½ billion on top of the money we were already investing in water infrastructure, so where has that money gone? Those opposite aren't interested in building water infrastructure. They are not. If they were they would have partnered with the New South Wales government to raise the wall at Wyangala. They would have promoted Dungowan Dam. They would have built Emu Swamp dam near Stanthorpe. But they're not interested in water infrastructure. They're not interested in building roads. They're just interested in stalling and procrastinating and extending the 90-day review, which is now 169 days.

See this speech in context