Michael McCormack (Riverina, National Party, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister for Finance) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I move:

That, in accordance with the provisions of the Public Works Committee Act 1969, the following proposed work be referred to the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Public Works for consideration and report:

Construction of a new Australian High Commission in Nairobi, Kenya.

In 2004-05, a global review of physical security at Australia's overseas missions was undertaken, which identified a number of high risk chanceries, including the current mission in Nairobi.

As an important overseas mission in Africa, the Nairobi High Commission is significant in representation terms, as well as acting as a hub for Australia's interests in East, West and North Africa. The new site will enable appropriate setbacks for the chancery for blast mitigation, and the buildings themselves will be designed to mitigate blast and ballistic attack.

As well as providing appropriate physical security, this project will deliver a modern, functional chancery building to accommodate tenant agencies as well as provision of guardhouse, service building and recreational facilities all within a secure compound.    The proposed new construction will ensure updated security measures and compliance with Australian standards and work health and safety requirements. The estimated cost of the proposal is $57.6 million, and includes all construction costs, site preparation, infrastructure, management and design fees, contingencies and escalation.

Subject to parliamentary approval, construction of the major works package is forecast to begin in early 2016 with practical completion and occupancy in late 2018.    I commend the motion to the House.

Question agreed to.

I move:

That, in accordance with the provisions of the Public Works Committee Act 1969, the following proposed work be referred to the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Public Works for consideration and report:

CSIRO Consolidation Project, Australian Capital Territory.

The Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation—CSIRO—proposes to consolidate its property holdings in the Australian Capital Territory by relocating staff from leased premises in Campbell, Yarralumla and Acton to CSIRO's owned site at Black Mountain. The Black Mountain site has an area of 37.3 hectares and the current dispersed layout reflects a legacy of earlier autonomous divisional structures, which are spread across a number of different buildings with replicated activity clusters.

The intent of the proposed consolidation project is to implement, through two phases, a development program consisting of two science research and support facilities in the order of 13,731 square metres on the Black Mountain site. These new buildings will accommodate staff and functions that currently occupy buildings that have passed their effective design life, do not meet current standards for health and safety, represent inefficient use of space, have high maintenance costs and present operational risk. The buildings which are unsuitable for continued use will be demolished.

The estimated cost of the proposal is $195.6 million plus GST, and includes the following works over two phases: construction of two new buildings with laboratory and office accommodation; construction of a new car park; demolition of unsuitable buildings; refurbishment of four buildings; and landscaping. Construction is expected to commence in July 2014 with completion scheduled for March 2019.

I commend the motion to the House.

Question agreed to.

I move:

That, in accordance with the provisions of the Public Works Committee Act 1969, the following proposed work be referred to the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Public Works for consideration and report:

Development and construction of housing for Defence at RAAF Base Tindal, NT.

The Defence Housing Authority proposes to undertake the development and construction of housing for the Department of Defence at the Royal Australian Air Force Base Tindal in the Northern Territory. This project aims to extend the base's married quarters precinct to accommodate an additional 50 dwellings. T he project aims to deliver dwellings that are designed to be sustainable and appropriate for tropical conditions. T he new homes will help to lessen the stress and associated impact of moving families to this remote location.

T he estimated overall project cost is a bout $89.4 million , including GST, contingency and escalation costs, but excludes the land cost — as the land is already owned by the Commonwealth. S ubject to parliamentary approval, integrated civil and dwelling construction is expected to commence in June 2014 and be completed by June 2016. I commend the motion to the House.

Question agreed to.

I move:

That, in accordance with the provisions of the Public Works Committee Act 1969, the following proposed work be referred to the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Public Works for consideration and report:

Integrated fit-out of new leased premises for the Australian Taxation Office at the site known as Site 5 and 6, the Revitalising Central Dandenong Project, Dandenong, Victoria.

The Australian Taxation Office proposes to undertake an integrated fit-out of new leased premises at Site 5 and 6 of the Revitalis ing Central Dandenong Project, Dandenong, Victoria. This proposal was referred to the Public Works Committee on 16 May 2013 but the reference lapsed when the previous c ommittee ceased to exist when parliament was prorogued on 5 August 2013.

T he ATO has a substantial presence in the Dandenong region and is currently located in a building at 14-16 Mason Street, Dandenong, which has a lease in place that expires on 31 December 2015. It is expected that the relocation into a new building will provide the tax office with considerable advantages in terms of building design, operational performance and operat ing cost efficiencies, and long- term viability through improvements in building infrastructure.

T he estimated cost of the proposal is $21.3 million , plus GST, and includes all costs associated with an integrated fit-out, as well as furniture, workstations and builders' costs. Subject to parliamentary approval, the proposed integrated fit-out works are scheduled to start in August 2014 and be completed by 1 October 2015. The developer will commence base building work on site in March 2014, with earthworks and excavation for the basement areas being the first tasks. I commend the motion to the House.

Question agreed to.

I move:

That, in accordance with the provisions of the Public Works Committee Act 1969, the following proposed work be referred to the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Public Works for consideration and report:

Reserve Bank of Australia, National Banknote Site, Craigieburn, Vic.

The Reserve Bank of Australia is the sole issuing authority for Australian banknotes. The key objective of the b ank in meeting this legislative responsibility is to maintain public confidence in Australia's banknotes. There are three facets to this: firstly, ensuring sufficient banknotes to meet demand; secondly, minimising the risk of counterfeiting; and , thirdly, ensuring that the banknotes in circulation meet the functional requirements of the public.

T o achieve this objective, the b ank has embarked on a program to upgrade the security of Australia's banknotes. The Next Generation Banknote project will progressively replace the currently circulating banknotes over the next decade. T he current storage, distribution and processing capacity at the Reserve Bank's Sydney, Melbourne and Craigieburn sites is insufficient to enable the Reserve B ank to store and issue the new series of banknotes and to accommodate banknote growth in the medium term.

The Reserve Bank proposes to build a national banknote site on vacant land owned by the b ank at Craigieburn, Victoria, which is the most appropriate location for the expanded requirements. The NBS , the National Banknote Site, will replace the existing National Note Processing and Distribution Centre located on the same site. It will include storage capacity to accommodate the Reserve B ank 's banknote holdings that are currently held in the b ank's Melbourne site.

T he estimated cost of the proposal is $72 million plus GST, and includes all construction costs, site preparation, infrastructure, management and design fees, contingencies and escalation. S ubject to parliamentary approval, work is proposed to commence in early 2015 and be fully operational in early 2017 to enable the transition to the NGB series and meet the b ank's banknote storage, distribution and processing operations for at least the next 25 years. I commend the motion to the House.

Question agreed to.