Ian Goodenough (Moore, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

In contributing to the grievance debate I take this opportunity to advocate for further federal government assistance in four key areas within my electorate. Firstly, there exists an urgent and compelling need to upgrade the telecommunications infrastructure by implementing the National Broadband Network. Currently, several homes located in the older, more established suburbs in my electorate, including Craigie, Duncraig, Edgewater, Joondalup, Padbury and Marmion, have inadequate access to even the most basic of broadband internet services. Timely provision of this essential telecommunications infrastructure will help build the digital economy by connecting people in residential settings with access to information, services and networks on a global scale.

Investment by government in opening up the information superhighway will connect the community at a number of levels. For instance, it will provide global access to the vast knowledge base contained in the Joondalup Learning Precinct, which includes Edith Cowan University, the West Coast Institute and the police academy. Similarly, the Joondalup Health Campus will also be able to utilise the high bandwidth to facilitate telemedicine, specialist medical imaging and robotic medical procedures and to promote interactive, experiential learning in conjunction with remote universities.

The communications network will extend to further link local industry and commerce in the Joondalup CBD, the Winton Road business park, with global markets and supply chains via e-business and e-commerce. According to research by Deloitte Access Economics, it is estimated that the value of Australia's digital economy generated $79 billion in the current financial year, representing 5.1 per cent of gross national product. The city of Joondalup was the first local government in Western Australia to launch a digital city strategy which advocates for an expansion of technological infrastructure platforms and content. It aims to create an educational city and attract new business in innovative sectors. The new digital economy will be the driver of innovation and growth for knowledge based activity, incorporating new ways and opportunities to access knowledge, information and services and creating opportunities through teleconferencing, telecommuting, computer aided design and manufacturing, and exciting new business models. Joondalup is already home to several leading research institutes and dynamic business clusters, such as the collaborative sixty27 working space based at Edith Cowan University, which leads to the next issue of extending federal government support for research and innovation.

With an enrolment of 24,000 students, Edith Cowan University is the cornerstone of the Joondalup learning precinct. A leader in the field of research, innovation and enterprise initiatives, the university has a number of leading research institutes based on campus. The Security Research Institute is one of the leading cybersecurity and digital forensic groups in the world, recognised for expertise in human, physical and aviation security. Similarly, the university's Electron Science Research Institute has developed into a world leader in fundamental and applied research on nanophotonics and material science. The Health and Wellness Institute houses an innovative multidisciplinary research team in exercise medicine dedicated to investigating the extent of how exercising can be deployed in cancer management to materially improve patient outcomes.

Continued support, recognition and investment by the federal government will allow these exciting fields of research and innovation to flourish, creating a wide array of career pathways and providing the highly skilled and educated workforce required to build a stronger economy. I acknowledge the exemplary work of Vice-Chancellor Steve Chapman, Professor Margaret Jones, Director of the Office of Research and Innovation, and Neil Butler, Community Partnerships Adviser, in promoting the ECU's research capabilities to industry and to government.

Professor Daryoush Habibi, Head of School of Engineering, recently hosted me on a comprehensive tour of the engineering faculty, which covered the complete range of civil, mechanical, chemical and electrical engineering disciplines. Working in close collaboration with industry, the university has demonstrated an emphasis on practical research, innovation, entrepreneurship and commercialisation. I viewed a range of projects, including a bushfire detection system, environmental monitoring systems and practical applications of technology involving hydraulics, robotics, materials science and automotive engineering.

The third issue relates to attracting federal government support for the Ocean Reef Marina redevelopment project to match the contributions by the WA state government and the City of Joondalup towards planning and environmental consultancy costs for the project. I have worked with the city's mayor, Troy Pickard, the chief executive officer, Gary Hunt, and the state member for Ocean Reef, the Hon. Albert Jacob MLA, to make a strong case for extra federal government assistance.

This represents one of the most significant economic development projects within the Moore electorate with the site covering 57.8 hectares of land based development and 33.6 hectares of development off the coast. A mix of residential development combined with hospitality, tourism and recreational facilities will deliver lifestyle amenities for the community that include the provision of 850 boat moorings. Overall, it is reasonable to expect that the transformation will have a positive impact on real estate values in surrounding suburbs. More timely delivery of the project will yield considerable taxation and revenue benefits for all levels of government as well as creating new jobs and promoting local employment and self-sufficiency. Furthermore, diversification into tourism and hospitality will make the local economy less susceptible to economic downturns in other industries.

Finally, I support the City of Joondalup's plan to develop a regional performing arts and cultural centre in the heart of Joondalup on a site adjacent to Central Park. A report identified the primary catchment area for cultural and arts patrons as being primarily 330,000 residents, essentially drawing from my neighbouring federal electorates of Cowan, Pearce and Stirling. The main facilities will comprise a lyric theatre with capacity for 850 seats and a smaller 200-seat black-box theatre for more specialised theatre staging. The objective is to attract high-profile and renowned performers and artists to our regional city by staging popular and sought after musical performances. This initiative will boost local economic development in the surrounding precinct, particularly by attracting patrons and tourists to bars, restaurants, cafes and retailers.

Recently I facilitated a meeting between City of Joondalup representatives and staff from the office of the Deputy Prime Minister and infrastructure minister to provide a project briefing to initiate the application process for federal funding. On behalf of my constituents, I seek greater and more timely federal government assistance to further the very worthy causes I have just outlined.