Tania Lawrence (Hasluck, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

The Albanese government already has a proud record on local government spending, some of which I will cover in the time allowed. But this motion is a cynical one. The member for Gippsland knows this nation's capital is about to be descended upon by 700 or more worthy local government representatives, including those from the cities of Swan and Kalamunda and the Shire of Mundaring, in Hasluck. He wants to pretend that the coalition is the best friend of local government, and nothing could be further from the truth.

From 2014 to 2017, the coalition froze the indexation of the Financial Assistance Grants program. Local councils fell behind then and have been borrowing from Peter to pay Paul ever since. It is in the light of the long-term effects of those coalition cuts that the minister has asked the parliament to review the financial sustainability of local governments. The Standing Committee on Regional Development, Infrastructure and Transport, chaired by my friend the member for Solomon, will examine local government sustainability. The terms of reference for that inquiry include financial sustainability and funding; the changing infrastructure and service delivery obligations; structural impediments to security for local government workers, infrastructure and service delivery; trends in the attraction and retention of a skilled workforce; and impacts of labour hire practices.

It is a comprehensive review, yet a few weeks ago the member for Gippsland called it cynical. And that's coming from a National Party and coalition that failed to act on the financial sustainability of councils, that ignored the need for fair and transparent processes in grant allocation and that froze indexation, taking millions out of council coffers. I've been here long enough to see what happened to inquiry reports under the coalition. They just sat there without even the courtesy of a government response. Do you know what our inquiries are often followed by? Legislation.

The member for Gippsland talked about roads with potholes, just prior to this year's budget. Labor has increased local government road infrastructure funding. We're increasing the Roads to Recovery funding to $1 billion per year by 2027-28 and the Black Spot Program by $50 million per year to $150 million. Every local council in Australia will receive more funding for local road infrastructure under Labor—that's more for potholes too. The member for Gippsland is happy to move a well-timed motion, but, really, he should be on his feet explaining why the coalition weren't planning these increases when it was under their watch and why they froze the funding indexation for years.

The new Safer Local Roads and Infrastructure Program also involves $50 million more funding than previous programs. Our financial assistance grants to local governments have increased in each budget under this government. This was $2.8 billion in 2022-23, $3.1 billion in 2023-24 and $3.27 billion in 2024-25. Our transparent grant programs include the $600 million Growing Regions Program, $400 million for the Regional Precincts and Partnership Program, $200 million for the Thriving Suburbs Program, and $150 million for the Urban Precincts and Partnerships Program.

In Hasluck we have vital local councils doing excellent work. Last week I met with the Shire of Mundaring and heard from them about their exciting plans for the rejuvenation of the Mundaring town site. The week prior I met with the City of Swan to discuss proposals for the Ellenbrook Community Hub, Ellenbrook Leisure Centre and the redevelopment of the Ellenbrook district open spaces, as well as a host of other issues. Ellenbrook is the centre of one of the fastest-growing corridors in the country, and the council are hopeful that their worthy application for one of the government's suburban university study hubs will also be successful, as am I.

When local governments and others apply for government grants and consideration under the host of programs available, some of which I've mentioned, they can do so knowing that their application will be considered fairly and with the proper application of due process. One of the reasons the former coalition government was so on the nose with voters was that they failed to ensure that government money was spent fairly. After a while, the voters noticed the rorts and the inequities that flowed from those practices. But constituents in Gippsland and Hasluck and their local governments can now apply for funds knowing that the system is fair.

In summary, the member shouldn't bring motions pretending that the coalition have a good record in this area. The government has increased funding across the many programs administered at a local government level. Moreover, we've brought the measure of probity to the process, which was unknown to those opposite when they were in office.

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