Tony Zappia (Makin, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise to speak in support of Appropriation Bill (No. 5) 2008-2009 and Appropriation Bill (No. 6) 2008-2009. These bills allocate $2.14 billion to nation building and productivity improvement initiatives, with investments in infrastructure, education, workforce skilling, workforce transitioning assistance and child care services—investments which are responsible, necessary and urgent. We face some very difficult times ahead of us, not only in Australia but for governments around the world—times that none of us have ever experienced before.

To date, more than 30 banks have collapsed or have needed to be bailed out. Economies like the US, the UK, Germany and Japan are now in recession. Six out of the nation’s top 10 trading partners are now in recession. China and Japan, Australia’s top two trading partners, have both experienced a significant slowing down of their own economies.

Investment in infrastructure and human resources in Australia will therefore make Australia more competitive. It will make Australian businesses not only more competitive but also will bring down their overheads. If they can do that, then Australian businesses are more likely to remain viable and, will in turn, support Australian jobs. If we can do that, particularly during these very tough times, then we would have achieved a very important objective in terms of the responsibilities of government.

In regard to the responsibilities of government, if the previous Howard coalition government had invested more in infrastructure, invested more in upskilling our workforce, and invested more in education when they had the opportunity to do so—because they governed during a period when there was a resources boom in this country—Australia today would have been much better placed to see through the global financial crisis.

Let us look at what is happening with infrastructure in the Hunter Valley. This bill makes particular reference to the Hunter Valley because of its rail corridors and the allocation of funds to improve them. Those corridors over the years have been referred to as ‘bottlenecks’. These bottlenecks were created because of  underfunding of national infrastructure. With the additional funding that is proposed, there will be an increase from 97 million tonnes to 200 million tonnes a year of coal that can be taken out of the Hunter Valley. That is the kind of difference that this investment will make. Again, this kind of difference could have, and should have been made, under the previous government.

There is an old saying that goes something like this: you fix the roof while the sun shines. The time to have made many of these investments in our productivity was in the boom times over which the previous government presided. Regrettably, they failed to do so. The test of a good government is how well it governs in hard times, not how it governs in boom times, and it is my contention that history will judge the Howard coalition government accordingly. In fact, to some extent, history has already begun that judgement. In the 2007 election, voters voted that government out. As a candidate in that election—and I can clearly recall the campaign—I would say that the lack of investment in productivity improvement measures in areas such as infrastructure and education in this country was one of the key policy issues on which that election was fought. Voters did understand that there had been a lack of investment in those areas and that there was a clear policy difference between the two major parties when it came to investing in productivity improvement measures in this country, and they voted accordingly. That is at least one of the reasons why the Howard government was voted out of office.

I said earlier that we face unprecedented times, with the collapse of the global financial system in a globalised economy where national responses are highly dependent on international agreements. That has now been further complicated by a drastic change to the weather patterns that we had adapted to and built our economies on. Conventional responses to the economic downturn are being complicated by global climate change. Anyone who still believes that the way of the future is to have free markets operating in an unrestrained global market is sadly misguided. Governments are elected to protect the common good. Capitalism is fundamentally about protecting and growing the wealth of a few—that is its prime objective.

The $2.14 billion allocated in these two bills will fund a number of projects to meet community needs which require immediate responses. I take this opportunity to speak about two matters related to this funding. The first is the $250 million allocated to accelerating water purchase and associated structural adjustments. There is an implied assumption in that allocation that there is water available to be purchased. If there is, and the government enters the market with $250 million with the expectation that it will be immediately spent, the obvious reaction will be a spike in the price of water. That in turn would cause serious consequences for the growers and, indeed, for the nation as a whole. That is for two reasons. Firstly, Australian taxpayers would pay dearly for less water, and that is not in the public’s interest. Secondly, and even more seriously, the farmers and horticulturalists who need the extra water to survive would also be forced to pay more and possibly to pay at a rate at which they would be priced out of the market. If water prices continue to rise, struggling farmers and growers will suffer even more. So spending up big quickly is not necessarily in their interests. I am aware that the minister for water understands this issue, but it is a matter that needs to be managed very carefully.

The second matter that I want to speak about is that of the funding of national infrastructure and, in particular, the $392 million that has been allocated to accelerate the commencement of a number of roads and other transport links throughout the country. One of the projects that those funds will go towards is the construction of the Northern Expressway in South Australia. This is a project that communities in the northern suburbs of Adelaide and South Australian industry have been calling for for nearly 25 years. The new expressway connects the town of Gawler with a continuous expressway through to the Port of Adelaide. It is 22 kilometres of new freeway and about 10 kilometres of an upgrade to the existing Port Wakefield Road, which is already a national highway.

In terms of the work that is required, the project started in about 2003 with the initial assessments, and is expected to be completed by around 2010-11. I understand that in the course of the construction some 5,000 jobs will be created. Already, many of those jobs have been put in place, but most of those 5,000 jobs will be created over the next 18 months or so—that is, at the time of greatest need in respect of placing people in jobs in this country. That is a classic example of the merits of the investment being made in infrastructure under the government’s $42 billion Nation Building and Jobs Plan.

Equally importantly, the construction of this expressway will save, on my estimates, transport operators around 20 to 25 minutes when travelling from Gawler to the Port of Adelaide in normal traffic. If they were to travel that distance in heavy traffic, the expressway could easily save half an hour in both directions. Given that most transport operators have to travel in both directions, this expressway will save one hour off their trip every day. Given that this expressway will be used by thousands of trucks per day, you can understand very quickly that the economic savings to the nation and those industries that rely on transport services will be huge. Of course, those savings can in turn be passed on to their clients through the cost of their services.

The second benefit for transport operators from saving an hour per trip on a daily basis is the reduction in emissions as a result of the trucks being on the road for less time. Those savings will go a long way towards assisting us as a nation to reduce our greenhouse gas emissions. The savings in emissions that we are implementing as separate strategies can be achieved simultaneously as we save costs.

There is a third and very important reason why I talk about this expressway. The expressway will not travel through the Makin electorate; however, it will be of huge benefit to the Makin electorate. Vehicles currently use Main North Road to get to the same destination. Main North Road forms the western boundary of the Makin electorate and is used by many people in the electorate. The expressway will provide all of those trucks and many motorists currently using Main North Road with an alternative route. That reduction in the volume of traffic on Main North Road will make life much easier for people commuting to work five, six or even seven days per week. If their commuting time can be reduced not only will they save petrol and therefore costs but they will contribute to the reduction in greenhouse gas emissions that we as a nation are trying to achieve.

The benefits of this kind of investment are massive. I suspect that if you were to take the time to work it out—and I have not had the time to work this out—you would find that what is being spent on this expressway will be returned in only a few years. In fact, what is returned to the government and consumers will be more than what is being expended right now, and in years to come there will obviously be ongoing benefits.

A couple of weeks ago the Minister for Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government formally opened an asphalt plant that has been designed and constructed onsite to service the construction of this expressway. It is a very impressive asphalt plant. I have seen asphalt plants and I have to say that this is as good as I have ever seen. It will produce about 2,000 tonnes of asphalt per day. This plant is an investment in the local region that will continue long after the expressway is completed and it will support other construction projects in the northern part of South Australia. With this national infrastructure project, we are building not only an expressway but a plant that will be there for the long haul. I know there have been some other transport projects in this general region that have been put to the federal government. Certainly, if and when those projects are funded, this new facility will be in close proximity to them to provide asphalt. This new plant will be able to provide asphalt at the best possible price.

I could talk about a number of other initiatives that are being funded in these two appropriation bills, but others have done so so I will not repeat them. Both of these bills fund projects that are urgent and that have long-lasting benefits for this nation. For those reasons I support and commend the bills to the House.

Sid Sidebottom (Braddon, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I too am very happy to support Appropriation Bill (No. 5) 2008-2009 and Appropriation Bill (No. 6) 2008-2009. These bills appropriate approximately $2.2 billion, or about 2.7 per cent of the total annual appropriations. They support and enhance this government’s attempts to stimulate and sustain the Australian economy both now and in the future by both short-term and longer term stimuli, particularly in relation to social and economic infrastructure. The total additional appropriation being sought through additional estimates is $2.2 billion, which I have mentioned, of which $384 million is being sought in Appropriation Bill (No. 5). In effect, this is to support and secure the jobs and training of apprentices, trainees and adult workers who are vulnerable to redundancy during this economic downturn and also to provide assistance to workers who have recently been retrenched. The Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations will be provided with funding for a range of measures. This is intended not only try to support those who are unfortunate enough to be made redundant, whether they be apprentices or indeed full-time employees, but also to try to invest in the maintenance of the necessary skills that will be required when we come out of this economic downturn. That is a very important part of preparing for our future.

As I have mentioned, some of the funding will provide for a range of measures, including an additional $43.7 million to provide for an increase in the commencements and completion claims under the Australian apprenticeship system, which provides financial support for employers and their apprentices. This is a very important component of the funding. An additional $38.8 million will be provided to assist apprentices and trainees to return to the workforce and maintain their training. Employers and training organisations will also be encouraged to retain apprentices and trainees through an additional payment provided on completion of training. So this is an added incentive, where a disincentive for an employer to put off an apprentice or a trainee may exist because of the economic downturn, for instance. It is an additional incentive to try to retain them so that they can complete their training.

An additional $43 million will be provided to keep the 241 ABC Learning Centres open until 31 March 2009, and that date is fast looming. I congratulate this government and the minister for taking the steps to at least provide the continuation of these important services, not just for the families who have been seriously affected by this highly unregulated example of an industry provider but also for the jobs of those people who were involved with those ABC centres, including one located in Devonport, in my own electorate of Braddon. The receiver has assessed these centres to be unviable under the ABC Learning business model.

An additional $36.8 million will be provided to ensure any Australian worker made redundant will receive immediate and personalised assistance to help them get back into the workforce. Rather than having to wait at least three months to receive intensive customised assistance, all newly redundant workers will be entitled to receive this support immediately to try and help them through a very difficult period or seek new skills and, hopefully, find new employment. This is a very important contribution towards helping with that.

There is an additional $70 million to meet an anticipated increase in expenditure against the General Employee Entitlements and Redundancy Scheme. I understand the scheme assists employees who have lost their employment due to the liquidation or bankruptcy of their employer and who are owed certain employee entitlements. The scheme will require this additional amount before May 2009.

They are some of the appropriations in relation to the Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations, and there are other major provisions of funding in relation to transport, regional development and local government which I will not go into here, as well as in relation to the Department of Families, Housing, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs, and the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade.

Appropriation Bill (No. 6) has an appropriation amount of $1.83 billion. Under this package, the government proposes to bring forward $711 million to invest in building better roads. The Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government will be provided with $392 million in 2008-09 for payment to the state and territory and local governments to accelerate the commencement of a number of important projects on the national network and other strategic roads. One of these is the Brighton bypass, which straddles the electorates of Franklin and Lyons, on the Midland Highway, so Tasmania will benefit from these appropriations.

These appropriations are part and parcel of appropriations designed to sustain and stimulate our economy. Nobody doubts that our economy is under great stress, even more so when you humanise and localise that into families and individuals who are facing the stress of the economic downturn, and the businesses that employ them. They are part and parcel of a long-term strategy to try and deal with this economic downturn—a downturn that many people denied we could see happening, one being the current Leader of the Opposition, who then claimed that we should have known about it anyway. Of course, his inability to craft the architecture for an economic security strategy for the opposition’s has left them divided on this issue. At least we have tried to get on with the task, warts and all. We do not claim to have a foolproof way of dealing with this unprecedented economic downturn, certainly in the memories of most people in this House. At least it is an attempt to strategically work our way through the difficulties that we face.

We must remember, Madam Deputy Speaker, that worldwide the crisis has caused more than 30 banks to collapse or be bailed out and major economies like those of the US, the UK, Germany and Japan to fall into recession. It has caused unemployment to rise in practically every country—unfortunately, in many countries it has risen higher than in our own country. We hope that some of the stimulus packages that other countries are setting out will, like our own, bring some kind of a halt to these figures. We know that Australia is not immune and that the situation may well get worse before it gets better. That is not talking the economy down; that is a fact, and we have got to deal with that, as this government has sought to do.

Six out of 10 of our trading partners are now in recession. Growth in China and Japan—our two largest export markets—has slowed dramatically and in December China recorded its slowest growth in seven years. I was heartened recently to see that China is embarking on a massive stimulus package or series of packages of its own. Japan had its largest contraction since the 1974 oil shock and the Japanese economy has shrunk by 4.6 per cent over the year. That is a massive reduction. These are our leading trading partners. That has to affect our economy and unfortunately it has.

Some time ago we set out to protect our financial system and tackle some of these issues. In order to avoid the collapse of banks that we saw falling like ninepins overseas and the loss of thousands of jobs, we moved quickly to guarantee bank deposit accounts and the term funding of our banks, building societies and credit unions in an effort to maintain the stability of our financial system and to protect people’s savings. We also set up the Australian Business Investment Partnership with the Australian banks. The purpose of this partnership was to provide credit to commercial property projects which, due to the financial crisis, would have been forced to retrench thousands of employees. These were attempts to maintain what is and what was on the drawing board so that employment could be sustained.

In relation to the guaranteed bank deposit accounts it is disturbing to hear that a bank like the ANZ is prepared to offshore 500 jobs to India at this time.

Sharon Grierson (Newcastle, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

They are reconsidering.

Sid Sidebottom (Braddon, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I hope they are reconsidering because I am sure that the view in both caucus rooms and in both houses of this parliament is to bring pressure to bear on the ANZ and any other banks which make similar decisions to offshore jobs. I am sure other members in this place have had some very angry ANZ customers contact them. I had one today who told me they are withdrawing their funds. They know that on an individual level it may not register with the bank, but I assured them that we will try to register their disquiet over the decision by ANZ in this place.

We all know that late last year we introduced our Economic Security Strategy to try to maintain and try to sustain jobs, particularly over the last quarter, and to try and stimulate the economy. Those opposite are happy to call it a ‘cash splash’ and I would like to remind them where that cash went. It was not a splash at all. It was strategically targeted and the results show that it had its effects. Whilst other countries had a decline particularly in their consumer index over the same quarter, Australia’s increased. The strategy provided much support to the retail industry in particular. We had the one-off pension payments gratefully accepted by those who are struggling but opposed by those opposite. We had one-off carers payments gratefully accepted but opposed by those opposite. We had one-off seniors payments to Commonwealth seniors health card holders and eligible veterans gold card holders gratefully accepted but opposed by those opposite. We had family tax benefit A payments of $1,000 per eligible child gratefully accepted but opposed by those opposite. On top of this, the Productivity Places Program expanded the number of trainee places. Again, it was gratefully accepted and needed in our economy but opposed by those opposite.

The first home owners boost—additional payments between October 2008 and June 2009—has been very gratefully accepted, as has been our able economic management in keeping interest rates down. That has stimulated the building industry and the home and real estate industries. We know that the boost is fuelling that industry now. It certainly is in my home state and it certainly is in my electorate of Braddon. It has been gratefully accepted by all those that benefit from it—not just the buyers and sellers but all those who are involved in the building industry. It has been gratefully accepted by them but opposed by those opposite.

You would have thought that after that lesson those opposite might have analysed the results and been supportive of further stimulus packages to try to keep and sustain jobs and to maintain our economy. Indeed the $42 billion stimulus package of the Nation Building and Jobs Plan, by its nature, has a short-term and longer-term objective, just as the Economic Security Strategy did, particularly in shoring up those infrastructure funds for health and education, and major transport and other infrastructure. Unfortunately it was voted against by those opposite.

You would have thought they would support the $42 billion stimulus package which is now rolling out throughout our electorates. Part of that was the short-term stimulus of $12.2 billion to low- and middle-income families, couples and singles, students, the unemployed and drought-affected farmers. That has been gratefully accepted but was opposed by those opposite. It is quite extraordinary.

I can tell you that the $14.7 billion that has been allocated to education is most gratefully accepted. It will not only help enhance the education revolution that we started some time ago—and also help with the improvement of teaching and learning in all our schools by creating better conditions for that to take place, and which is so important to us—but also stimulate the construction industry and all those service industries that are going to provide their services and their materials for this massive amount of construction.

New school libraries, multipurpose halls and classrooms will be upgraded in primary schools. It will be a record investment in primary education. I am sure everyone in this room has seen their primary schools jumping for joy and saying: ‘Thank you very much. This is how we want to stimulate our teaching and learning and improve it. It will also help stimulate our local economy.’ But it was voted against by those opposite, and they have the gall to come into the House and criticise us for it.

Sharon Grierson (Newcastle, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

And talk down the economy.

Sid Sidebottom (Braddon, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

They talk down the economy. And in the building industry—just cop this figure while you are playing with your Treo, Member for Tangney!—$6.7 billion was allocated for the construction of new public housing: 20,000 public and DHA homes. There was $400 million for repairs and maintenance to existing public buildings and $250 million for the DHA to build an extra 802 residences. Of course that is not stimulating the economy, is it!

Day in and day out, when they are not worrying about their own internal affairs, we have the mob opposite—it is rather gory, isn’t it, that they are playing around with their own internal affairs?—who have the gall to criticise us for stimulating the economy with a massive building program in public housing and defence housing. They have the cheek to criticise us—and not only that, they voted against it. But they will go to the openings, won’t they? Of course they will; they know it is good stuff.

What about the environment? We have allocated $3.9 billion to increase the rebates of $1,600 to install solar and heat pump hot-water systems, and free ceiling insulation of up to $1,600 to eligible owner-occupiers and up to $1,000 for rental properties. This will mean possible savings of $200 per year on those costs. That is pretty good. I know you are smiling over there, Member for Tangney, because you do not believe any of this is necessary. I have heard and read your speeches—unbelievable stuff! You make the Luddites look progressive, Mate, I can tell you. Not only that, just for your edification, we are going to support local stormwater harvesting projects and accelerate water buybacks in South Australia.

Road and local infrastructure—something we all need—is something you opposed. But we are providing $650 million to fund regional road maintenance in Australia and another $500 million on top of that to help local councils build town halls, libraries, and community and sports centres. You know, it is so unpopular that it was oversubscribed by $1.2 billion—cop that! (Time expired)

Sharryn Jackson (Hasluck, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I have a hard act to follow in the member for Braddon, but I too rise to support the passage of the Appropriation Bill (No. 5) 2008-2009 and the Appropriation Bill (No. 6) 2008-2009. These proposed appropriations will meet funding requirements for a number of different initiatives, not the least of which will be funding required for the December 2008 Economic Security Strategy as well as much needed changes to employment and apprenticeship programs, changes to expenditure due to variations in the timing of various payments and forecast increases in program take-ups. These bills also provide for funding initiatives agreed with the minor parties during the debate on the government’s Nation Building and Jobs Plan. And, finally, these proposed appropriations will provide additional funding for infrastructure investment—rail and roads, in particular, AusLink and black spots in our local communities.

I want to touch on a number of different aspects of these programs. I also want to congratulate the government for its decisive and early action in trying to address the global financial crisis and to ensure as much as possible that Australians are cushioned from the worst of its impacts, and for making sure that we are ready to assist and increase funding into employment areas to support those people who lose their employment through no fault of their own. I note in particular the increased funding to GEERS, the General Employee Entitlements and Redundancy Scheme, which is part and parcel of this particular appropriations bill, for claimants in the current financial year.

There is a considerable amount of additional money—millions—to ensure that there are funds available, as I said, to employees who have lost their employment through no fault of their own where a company, due to liquidation or bankruptcy, has closed the business and owes basic employee entitlements. I think one of the biggest examples we saw of that this year was with respect to the ABC Learning Centres. Like many other members, I have centres in my electorate that have been affected by the closure of those ABC centres and I represent a number of staff who have been made redundant. I have to say that there still remains in Western Australia a shortage of qualified childcare workers, and to that extent many of the employees affected will be able to pick up alternative employment. But in the last couple of months we have seen a downturn, especially in the mining industry, which is dramatically impacting on employment in Western Australia.

I think the additional funding for GEERS is especially timely. I was also really pleased that, because GEERS is a demand based program and we have seen an increase in demand, the government’s actions did not stop at simply adding funds to GEERS but also looked at what steps could be taken to assist employees who have been made redundant. I particularly want to congratulate the government on allowing for earlier access to employment programs for redundant workers. Current provisions require some three months delay prior to people getting the intensive support that is often required to assist people back into employment, and we know from available research that the sooner redundant workers are back looking for jobs the less time they are likely to be unemployed. I understand that, certainly from the beginning of this month, any person made redundant after 24 February will be able to access that early assistance, and I would certainly encourage them to do that.

I am also extremely pleased that the government have taken steps to continue to invest in skills acquisition and training during this period. We know that during the good economic times over the last decade insufficient investment was made in skills training for our workforce of the future. Indeed, it was precisely that lack of investment in skills training which led in many cases to labour shortages in crucial areas, perhaps nowhere else experiencing it more strongly than my home state of Western Australia. So I am particularly pleased that there is additional funding in these bills for infrastructure, training, as well as for additional training places, and also support and assistance for apprentices, particularly where their current employer is unable to continue their apprenticeship.

While I am addressing this point, I want to congratulate Group Training in Western Australia, who do a magnificent job in supporting apprenticeship training for young people. They have created great opportunities for young people to be able to move and experience different workplaces as part of their apprenticeship training. Many employers, particularly small business employers, in Western Australia have seen the value of being members of the Group Training scheme rather than necessarily taking on apprentices directly into their workplaces. I must admit that I have recently been contacted by the chief executive officer of Group Training South West, who has expressed his concern to me that a number of the group’s committed employers have foreshadowed that they will be taking on fewer apprentices this year and perhaps next year. I am very pleased to see that the government continue to be in discussion with groups like theirs to look at other ways that we can assist them and to assist apprentice centres to try and keep those apprentices, especially young people but also mature-age apprentices, working and studying towards achieving their qualifications.

In my own electorate of Hasluck, we have many, many industrial areas, especially at the Midland end, which have a significant role in supporting mining services in Western Australia. We are beginning to see some impact in what has been a very tight labour market. I know local employers, along with me, are still very keen to see investment made in training infrastructure to ensure that we do not ever again find ourselves in the situation of labour shortages that we have recently experienced. Without wanting to be seen to inappropriately lobby the minister, I would encourage the Deputy Prime Minister to consider closely the proposal by Raffles University for a university college in Midland in my electorate in the wonderful buildings of the Midland workshops, which have a long history of over 100 years associated with industrial skills training in Western Australia. Unfortunately it was an organisation which was closed by the Liberal state government in 1994, making some 1,500-odd workers at the time redundant. Many of those buildings and grounds have been rehabilitated, and we are hoping to see that their history involved in industrial skills training will continue with the creation of a university college.

Raffles is a private university. I hope very much it will continue with its proposed investment in Western Australia. Unlike many other companies at the moment, it is not in a position whereby it is required to borrow money to develop the proposal at Midland workshops, and I hope we have some considerable success with it. Similarly, my local TAFE college, Swan TAFE, has been examining new methods of apprenticeship training. I am pleased to see some commitment on its part to the establishment of a virtual training centre which uses computer aided technology to expose pre-apprentices in particular to genuine workplace skills prior to their being placed in practical workplace settings. I hope to see both of these proposals continue. They have my full support.

In addition to the funding that the government have sourced in a number of different areas, the government have also made some considerable progress in Indigenous employment reform. This is also very pleasing to me. I have a very large local Indigenous population in both Gosnells and Midland in my electorate. I was delighted to host the Minister for Employment Participation, Brendan O’Connor, in my electorate only a couple of weeks ago. He presented the City of Swan with $418,750 to help sustain an Indigenous traineeship program that the City of Swan has been undertaking. This allows a number of young Indigenous people from the region to gain skills and find work in a variety of areas. One of the areas that is being explored and considered with much success in the local region is Indigenous tourism. Under the traineeship program some 15 trainees will undertake a 12-month placement with the City of Swan in a variety of employment settings, from environmental restoration, tourism, leisure services and libraries to community work and youth development. I particularly congratulate the City of Swan for having indicated that once trainees have successfully completed their year-long traineeship they will be welcome to apply for ongoing employment with it. I am very glad to be part of an Australian government that has a commitment to seeing projects such as this proceed while receiving generous funding. I note that this is only one of a number of Indigenous employment reforms and I congratulate the minister for the steps that he has taken in that regard.

As I continue to address the appropriation bills, it is appropriate that the Parliamentary Secretary for Regional Development and Northern Australia has joined us because I note the financial commitment that is contained in the bills for the development of the East Kimberley. I note our commitment to the development of the East Kimberley region. I am especially pleased that agreement has been reached with the state government to see that proposal proceed. I look forward to further economic development of the East Kimberly region.

Of more importance to me and my electorate of Hasluck was the terrific announcement by the minister for local community infrastructure investment, not the least of which will be in rail and roads, as I mentioned earlier. Hopefully we will see in my area at least a feasibility study looking into the development of train services to Perth airport. While the parliamentary secretary is here, I note that it is a relatively short jump from the Perth airport passenger terminals to Forrestfield, which is in the heart of my electorate. One of the things about my electorate is that it is a long eastern suburbs electorate with its two far ends well served by train services and its middle parts not. Public transport is a great problem for people who live in suburbs such as Forrestfield, High Wycombe and Wattle Grove. I hope we can continue to see some development in those areas.

I was also pleased to see additional funding for the Roads to Recovery program and for the highly successful Black Spot Program. This means I will see, just this year, the completion of two projects in Hasluck that are long overdue: an upgrade of street lighting at the intersection of Wharton Road and Forest Lakes Drive in Huntingdale and an upgrade of street lighting at the intersection of Kelvin Road and Bickley Road in Maddington. Both have seriously bad records for traffic accidents, and it is hoped that the upgrades will greatly assist the safety of transport users in those local areas. There is no doubt that the Black Spot Program has been a considerable success for the time it has been running.

The only other comment I wanted to make was to do with the fact that we have heard much today in the parliament regarding small business. Our friends opposite like to think they are the only people who champion the cause of small business, but that is far from the truth. Indeed, during the break I spent a considerable amount of time liaising with a number of small businesses in my electorate and in particular the local chamber of commerce. One great concern I had was in fact how little of the information or the message had got through to small business about some of the steps, through initiatives like the most recent Nation Building and Jobs Plan, the government has taken to try and assist small business. I must admit I have a criticism of my local chamber of commerce, as they seem to have spent much time, in some respects, circulating surveys for the opposition about changes to unfair dismissal laws, union access to workplaces and other things but have failed to make sure they tell small business about the opportunities that are currently available to them—things like the 30 per cent tax break for investment in new productive assets, such as new plant and machinery, and the 20 per cent reduction in BAS payments due at the beginning of March.

In times like these, I think it is really important that we make sure that small business know what benefits and assistance are available to them as they undertake their very important role in our local communities. As I said, I am very supportive of mine; I understand the contribution they make to local employment. It is not helpful to make small businesses fearful about what changes are before the parliament rather than explain the impact of those changes—and, indeed, bring to their attention the benefits that are available to them now through a range of different packages. Those are things that people ought to properly address.

As I indicated at the outset, I certainly support the passage of these appropriation bills. I congratulate the ministers involved in the specific funding initiatives within the packages. I urge the House to likewise support the bills.

Gary Gray (Brand, Australian Labor Party, Parliamentary Secretary for Regional Development and Northern Australia) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise to bring the debate on Appropriation Bill (No. 5) 2008-2009 and Appropriation Bill (No. 6) 2008-2009 to a close, and I thank all those members who have made a contribution. Since the passage of the nation building and jobs appropriation bills, it has become necessary to introduce a further two annual appropriation bills. The supplementary additional estimates bills propose appropriations that give effect to and complement elements of the December 2008 nation-building package and the more recently announced Nation Building and Jobs Plan. They also include appropriations for enhancements to employment and apprenticeship programs and other urgent measures and variations. The total additional appropriations being sought through these supplementary additional estimates bills is $2.2 billion. This funding will be used to strengthen the Australian economy now and in the future. This will be achieved through the immediate support for jobs at this critical time and the delivering of the long-term investments needed for future economic growth.

Infrastructure is one of the key drivers of productivity growth. This funding will provide for critical infrastructure in transport. It deals with rail and it deals with road. The government will inject $1.189 billion into the Australian Rail Track Corporation in 17 projects to improve the reliability and competitiveness of the nation’s rail freight network. The funding provided through the Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government includes $580 million for the expansion of capacity along the rail corridors connecting the Hunter Valley coalmines to the Port of Newcastle. This expansion of capacity will more than double the amount of coal capable of being transported to port from 97 million tonnes a year to 200 million tonnes a year.

The Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government will be provided with $392 million in 2008-09 for payments to the states, territories and local government to accelerate the commencement of a number of important projects on the national road network and other strategic roads. This will bring forward expenditure on projects including the Bulahdelah bypass on the Pacific Highway, Melbourne’s Western Ring Road, the Douglas arterial on the Bruce Highway in Townsville, Adelaide’s Northern Expressway, and the Brighton bypass on the Midland Highway in Tasmania. The payment to the states also includes an additional $60 million investment this year in the highly successful Road Safety Black Spots Program.

Consistent with the agreement reached with the minor parties during the passage of the Nation Building and Jobs Plan, the government proposes to bring forward expenditure totalling $500 million over four years, beginning in 2008-09, to assist in expediting the return of water to the environment and to deliver long-term benefits to the Murray-Darling Basin. The Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts will be provided with $250 million in 2008-09 for this purpose. The government considers that this is the maximum pace of water recovery that can be pursued without causing unnecessary disruption to the water market, and without compromising the amount of water that can be returned to the rivers over time.

The government is continuing to deliver on its commitment to protect Australian jobs at risk due to the impact of the severe global recession. To support and secure the jobs and training of apprentices, trainees and adult workers who are vulnerable to redundancy in the economic crisis, the Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations will be provided with funding for a range of employment and training programs, including an additional $43.6 million for the increase in the commencements and claims under the Australian apprenticeship scheme, which provides financial support for employers and their apprentices; and $38.9 million to assist apprentices and trainees to return to the workforce and maintain their training. Employers will also be encouraged to retain apprentices and trainees through an additional payment on completion of training.

Thirty-four million dollars will be provided to keep 241 ABC Learning Centres open until 31 March 2009. The receiver assessed these centres as being unviable under the ABC Learning business model. However, the government believes that a number could be viable under different arrangements, and that these centres could represent an opportunity to gain greater diversity in the childcare market.

The Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations will also be provided with additional funding to provide assistance to recently retrenched workers. Some $36.8 million will be provided to ensure that any Australian worker made redundant will receive immediate and personalised assistance to help them get back into the workforce rather than having to wait at least three months to receive intensive customised assistance. All newly redundant workers will receive this support immediately. A further $70 million will be provided to meet an anticipated increase in expenditure against the General Employee Entitlements and Redundancy Scheme. This scheme assist employees who have lost their employment due to the liquidation or bankruptcy of their employer and who are owed certain employee entitlements.

These bills contribute to the government’s response to the global financial crisis in providing immediate support for Australian jobs. They also look beyond the crisis to enhance the long-term capacity required to strengthen the Australian economy, build long-term productivity and promote future economic growth. I commend the supplementary additional estimates bills to the House.

Question agreed to.

Bill read a second time.

Ordered that this bill be reported to the House without amendment.