Jodie Campbell (Bass, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Minister for Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government and relates to the Australian National Audit Office performance audit report tabled last week entitled Administration of grants to the Australian Rail Track Corporation. Would the minister advise the House of the report’s findings and outline the government’s approach to investing public money in infrastructure?

Anthony Albanese (Grayndler, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the House) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the honourable member for Bass for her question. I note the critique of the leader of the National Party of the Australian National Audit Office: that it is just more money for bureaucratic inquiries. But, no, these are actually inquiries making sure that taxpayers’ funds are used efficiently. I am not surprised that the National Party are so concerned about the operations of the National Audit Office because, given their concentration on National Party pork-barrelling, the National Audit Office—

Joe Hockey (North Sydney, Liberal Party, Manager of Opposition Business in the House) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Speaker, I rise on a point of order going to relevance. The question did not ask about the National Party at all. There was no reference at all to it in the question. If he does not want to answer the question, we can have someone ask a question that does want answering.

Harry Jenkins (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I am hoping that the minister for infrastructure is making preliminary remarks about the Audit Office. I would indicate that it is not assisted by subquestions being fired across the chamber. I call the minister.

Anthony Albanese (Grayndler, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the House) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The ANAO report outlines how the former government made three special grant payments to the Australian Rail Track Corporation: $450 million in June 2004, $100 million in June 2005 and $270 million in June 2006. Why were these payments made in June each year? The Audit Office finds that these payments were made ‘in the context of assisting to reduce higher than expected budget surpluses’. We have in this nation a significant infrastructure deficit, but were the excess funds used to improve productivity? No. It was just bailed out at the end of the financial year to get the funds off the books. The ANAO report goes on to say this about the $450 million payment in June 2004:

… prior to the grant being approved, the ARTC was not asked to provide any formal advice on specific areas in which a grant of that quantum could be applied ...

It was as if they said: ‘We have $450 million. Here you go. Do with it what you like.’ That was the attitude. Then the government put out a release. They said that it was for rail realignments of the New South Wales North Coast line. It sounds worth while. But what does the Audit Office say the money was used for? The Audit Office says that the money that the government said was going to the New South Wales North Coast was used on the lines from Melbourne to Junee. No wonder they lost the seat of Page on the New South Wales North Coast during the election: they could not find it; they did not know where it was. That is just one of the recommendations of this Audit Office report. Indeed, the National Audit Office is thinking of changing its name to the ‘Nationals Audit Office’, because every week there is a new report being tabled in this parliament about the pork-barrelling and the waste and mismanagement of expenditure over there. There was so much money that they did not know what to do with it.

I heard an interesting story the other day about the Nationals and their use of spending when it comes to infrastructure. During the campaign, the now leader of the National Party rang up some people in Singleton and said that he was going to pay a visit. If you are in Singleton and the National Party are coming to town you think: ‘You beauty! Here come the big bucks. Singleton is going to get some allocations of funding. Here it comes.’ The now leader of the National Party was in Tamworth and he drove down to Singleton. You have to drive through Muswellbrook to get to Singleton. When he got there the announcement was about the Muswellbrook bypass. He did not actually know that you should probably announce the Muswellbrook bypass funding in Muswellbrook.

When it comes to the National Party, it does not matter whether it is funding for Junee to Melbourne, instead of the New South Wales North Coast, or announcing the Muswellbrook bypass in Singleton—it does not matter, because the Audit Office have said this about the management of this scheme:

There are no contracts, funding agreements or documented governance arrangements that require the ARTC to use the $820 million in special grant funding on any particular projects or in any particular time frame.

That is an absolute indictment of the former government’s attitude towards taxpayers’ funds. They stand condemned, not just by the government, not just by the Audit Office but by the taxpayers of Australia.