Tanya Plibersek (Sydney, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Childcare) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I am rising today to add my opposition to that expressed already in the community to the proposed development by the Sydney Airport Corporation of a massive cinema and retail complex at Sydney (Kingsford Smith) Airport, which is going to have a terrible effect on the local residents and businesses in the surrounding communities. I am calling on the federal government and the transport minister, in particular, to reject the proposal. The development has no regard to the views of local residents and has no regard to the effects on local businesses and local communities. It is all about optimising the profits that Sydney Airport Corporation can suck out of Kingsford Smith airport. I do not mind that so much except that every dollar will be at the expense of the local community.

The New South Wales state government and the City of Sydney Council, when they say that the proposals will cause traffic chaos, have hit the nail on the head. You are talking about a car park of 3,000 cars and an estimated 3,000 cars an hour on Saturday morning coming in and out on local suburban residential streets. The New South Wales government have estimated that they would have to spend $2.7 billion on roadworks to support this new development. Not a cent would come from Sydney Airport Corporation. All of the cost of the upgrading of the surrounding facilities that would be necessary because of this massive new traffic thoroughfare through suburban streets would be borne by the New South Wales taxpayer, with no consequential benefits flowing from the Sydney airport redevelopment, aside from the number of jobs provided.

The retail development is going to suck the life out of the surrounding shopping centres. I do not think we will see the creation of a whole lot of extra wealth; I think we will see a transfer of wealth from existing, established shopping centres. There are many of them already in the local area. We have the redevelopment of Green Square nearby, new suburbs being built and new shopping centres—new community hubs being built that do have the associated infrastructure needed. The result of building this massive complex at Sydney airport will mean that all of those well-planned, well-integrated centres that have community support and that have worked with local and state government to build sustainable neighbourhoods will have the life sucked out of them and instead will be sucked into the vortex of the Sydney Airport Corporation and their endless desire for expansion. (Time expired)