Nola Marino (Forrest, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I move:

That this House:

(1) congratulates the Government on the success of the National Stronger Regions Fund (NSRF);

(2) acknowledges the significant and positive impact that the NSRF is having in rural, remote and disadvantaged regions around Australia; and

(3) notes that the:

(a) Government is investing $66,336,110 in 34 projects around Western Australia under 3 rounds of the NSRF; and

(b) NSRF is delivering infrastructure projects to create jobs in regional areas, improve community facilities and support stronger and more sustainable communities across Western Australia.

The National Stronger Regions Fund was established by the coalition government to deliver a $1 billion investment over five years from 2015-16 to 2019-20. It was designed to help regional communities increase productivity and help build confidence in these communities right across the country. These are the very communities that produce so much of our export wealth, be it from mining or agriculture—natural gas, minerals gold, coal, meat, wool or alumina, right across the board. This is something that Labor has never done. The Turnbull government has absolute confidence in rural and regional communities. We not only acknowledge their current contribution to local, regional, state and national economies but also we know there is continuing potential for regional Australia through new opportunities through the free trade agreements as well. We are practically backing these communities and supporting them as much as possible through this program.

In Western Australia, like other regions all over the country, the government is investing in the future of regional communities, delivering infrastructure projects which help create jobs, improve community facilities and create stronger and more sustainable communities. It is an acknowledgement of their great contribution to this country. The government has invested over $66 million in 34 projects around Western Australia—a direct, tangible example of how the Turnbull government is backing regional communities. In my own part of the world, my community has benefited from the third round of the NSRF. Arts Margaret River has benefited from the redevelopment of the arts and business events hub, which will provide venues for arts and cultural performances as well as conferences and business events. This hub is called the HART project; tourism will be involved as well. We will see the redevelopment of the 33-year-old building, and there will be a redevelopment of the 37-year-old squash courts. This is a very exciting upgrade and expansion of the existing facility which will enable many more groups to use the facility. The whole community will be able to enjoy it. This is a very practical outcome. I look forward to attending the graduation ceremonies for the Margaret River Senior High School—a great high school—and even the local small business awards. It will be a multipurpose performance and convention space and expo area that will provide a great spinoff for local businesses.

The government has also invested in the expansion to a freight level of the Busselton-Margaret River Regional Airport, and the state government has also invested in the airport as well. This will lead to an increase in domestic tourism as well through the airport, with possibly an extra 120,000 visitors, which means the opportunities for the arts hub through this investment at the airport are significant. I congratulate the CEO of the Augusta-Margaret River shire, Gary Evershed, and the shire councillors for their commitment to this project. There are some very excited people in that part of the world. It is very important for the community and I do want to acknowledge and pay tribute to the Shire of Margaret River and the board of Arts Margaret River for their vision. This fund has been a major success right around the country. When we look at where these projects have practically landed and the difference it is making, we can see that a small amount of money can make a massive difference in small regional communities. There are a great variety of projects, and the one thing they all have in common is that they go to practical outcomes on the ground to assist local communities.

We will also see the Building Better Regions Fund. This fund will also support infrastructure projects and community investment, again creating local jobs, driving local economic growth and helping to build stronger regional communities in the future. I am looking forward to seeing the small community grants part of this program. Very often in these very independent, very self-reliant local communities a small amount of money can make a massive difference. I am proud to be part of a government that shows its commitment to and caring for regional communities and their future. All of my fellow members on this side of the House are very aware of the contribution made by rural and regional Australia.

A division having been called in the House of Representatives—

Sitting suspended from 12:24 to 12:38

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

Is the motion before the House, the motion moved by the member for Forrest relating to the National Stronger Regions Fund, seconded?

Craig Kelly (Hughes, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I second the motion and reserve my right to speak.

Tim Hammond (Perth, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Forrest for drawing attention to what is a very important issue. I agree with her assessment that the Commonwealth plays a vital role in funding community infrastructure in Western Australian regions. However, with respect to the substance of the motion, I simply cannot agree that it is appropriate in any way, shape or form to ascribe any success to the government for the role they have played in the rollout of the National Stronger Regions Fund, for reasons I will articulate shortly.

Firstly, let us put to one side the fact that in Western Australia all but one of the grants over the three rounds of the NSRF have gone to Liberal electorates and let us dig a bit further down into that. In Western Australia, in May 2015, round 1, five grants were awarded; in December 2015, round 2, 13 grants were awarded; and in October 2016, round 3, 15 grants were awarded. That adds up to 33 grants in Western Australia in relation to funding regional community infrastructure, and only one of those grants went to a Labor-held federal seat in the state of Western Australia. The only grant to a Labor-held electorate was just shy of $5 million in round 2 to the City of Rockingham in Brand for the Rockingham Beach foreshore masterplan—and not for want of applications. In round 3, there were applications from the City of Gosnells, Armadale, my fine friend, the member for Burt's electorate as well as an application from the City of Fremantle.

Let's put aside the fact that, in each successive round, the proportion of funding sent to WA projects has only slightly increased, presumably, in a flimsy attempt by the federal party to prop up Colin Barnett's failing state government, falling apart as we speak. Round 1: WA's proportion of the total funding allocated was about 4.9 per cent of total federal funds. Round 2: WA's proportion of that funding was about 12.5 per cent. Round 3: only slightly better—Western Australia's proportion then rising, somewhat coincidentally I do not think, to 15.3 per cent.

As if that wasn't enough, the fact is that many projects funded under the National Stronger Regions Fund, so to speak, are simply not regional, which begs the question: what is the point of trying to pay lip-service to the regions who dearly need the infrastructure support, if that is not where the money is going?

Let's look at this great bastion of regional Western Australia—and that is South Perth. South Perth is perhaps, as the crow flies, three kilometres away from the heart of the central business district: $2.5 million—the second-biggest grant in Western Australia in round 3 going to the City of South Perth to revitalise the Mends Street Jetty precinct. Don't get me wrong: I am quite happy to disclose, as a former long-term resident of South Perth, that I grew up there and it holds a place very close to my heart; my late father had a business just a stone's throw from the Mends Street Jetty. However, if it is that we are ascribing regional funding to a place such as South Perth, we just wonder what is the entire point of badging this process. However, it goes further than that: it really goes to the heart of the blatant lip-service paid by this government to supposedly propping up the regions. It is just not the case with these funding grants.

Another example of NSRF round 1: $6 million to the City of Belmont to upgrade traffic and infrastructure around the Belmont Business Park. This is in the same inner-city federal electorate as the Mends Street Jetty. What special powers indeed does the member for Swan have in convincing his ministerial colleagues that he is actually in a regional electorate?

The real question is whether the Liberal Party here is misusing these funds, valuable taxpayer funds, in a desperate attempt to save the member for Swan or if they are desperately trying to sandbag Glenys Godfrey's seat, which she only holds by a matter of one per cent in the seat of Belmont ahead of the 11 March.

Simply put, the National Stronger Regions Fund does not do what it says it does on the label. It is not regional or, if it is, the expansion of the definition is now so wide as to render the term completely meaningless, especially for those in the regions. It is not national. Funding is not granted equitably between states and between regions within the states. It is simply doled out, from what I can tell, according to the Liberal Party's priorities for pork-barrelling. Thirdly, it does not make our regional and outer suburban areas stronger.

We welcome Commonwealth funding. What we do not welcome is a hunger games type arrangement where we have district versus district. The regions are not getting the attention they deserve.

Rowan Ramsey (Grey, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Madam Deputy Speaker Vamvakinou, I commend my good friend the member for Forrest on this motion and I am sure we will have your indulgence in speaking more about South Australia than perhaps Western Australia. The National Stronger Regions Fund was launched in 2014, and over a billion dollars over three rounds has been pumped into regional Australia.

I would have to say in the first round in Grey, I was disappointed: we did not land any projects. As a result of that, I and my office worked very hard with the proponents following to lift the quality of their applications and I am very pleased to report almost $25 million has come the way of the Grey electorate in the last two rounds.

In round 2, there were 111 projects Australia wide—$293 million dollars. There were five in Grey, totalling more than $15 million and they were all fantastic projects: the Whyalla leisure centre, $150,000 to add to the council funds for a complete upgrade of the centre including better ventilation, circulation, lowering the humidity in the place and replacing pumps. I was speaking with manager Clare Mclaughlin quite recently about the excellent community response to the upgrade, they extra members they have signed up—and the family fun day yesterday attracted more than 400 people.

In Ceduna, out in the west of my electorate, the Thevenard Marine Offloading Facility received support of almost $5 million—$4.8 million—and I thank the mayor there, Allan Suter, for his very hard work in bringing this project to fruition, with support from both the council and the state government roughly matching those funds. Over the years, Thevenard has become one of the busiest ports in South Australia, and fishing has been squeezed to one side. This will rejuvenate the fishing industry in Thevenard.

The Port Pirie Regional Sports Precinct received $5 million from the National Stronger Regions Fund, with matching funds from the state government and roughly similar from the council again, for a multipurpose sporting facility including squash courts, an indoor swimming pool and a dedicated gymnasium—Garry and Lee-ann Nayda, the leaders of the gymnastics group in Port Pirie, are absolutely delighted with that outcome—and repositioning the oval and new lighting to AFL standards.

Barunga nursing homes in Port Broughton are receiving funding of $990,000. They are the biggest employer in Port Broughton, with more than 100 staff. It is a great industry they have built there, led by Maureen Coffey and Merrilyn Hewett. It is a wonderful facility, and they attract a lot of retired people to the township of Port Broughton.

Also in Ceduna, the Copper Coast Sports & Leisure Centre redevelopment received $4.8 million from the National Stronger Regions Fund. That was round 2.

In round 3, there were two projects which landed in Grey. One was for $990,000 to assist with the construction of shellfish reefs near Stansbury-Androssan, at Rogues Point, in Gulf St Vincent. They will construct native shellfish reefs which are pre-seeded with juvenile oysters. The reef footprint will be approximately 20 hectares in size, and they expect to employ 15 people during construction, and nine people post construction. This is a very important tourist precinct for South Australia. Over the years, there have been moves to restrict fishing and, in recent times, closures by the state government. This will help to address those issues of providing fertility back in the sands that are off-coast.

Very importantly, there is an investment in Peterborough of $8.6 million to support and build a reticulated wastewater management system—from the federal government, $8.6 million; Peterborough council, $6½ million; and the LGA, $2½ million.

I might tell you a little bit about Peterborough, the town, in the time I have left. This is the lowest socioeconomic group in my electorate. At the moment, it exists on individual septic pits and then soakage pits. Because of the economic circumstances of the town, it is very difficult for people there to keep those systems in order, so this has become a first-order health issue. The system needs to be replaced. I have been working with Peterborough council over a number of years, trying to get it on one of the particular programs to get funded, so I cannot tell you how delighted Mayor Ruth Whittle, the council CEO and I were. We were delighted. It will really change things in Peterborough, and it shows a great investment with confidence from the federal government.

Matt Keogh (Burt, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Just how disingenuous can this motion possibly be? The member for Forrest has congratulated the Turnbull Liberals on their investment in regional Western Australia, but the figures just do not hold up. The total government spend in the three rounds of the National Stronger Regions Fund was more than $630 million, and yet Western Australia, the state that takes up over a third of the country, with communities spread far further than in any other state, a state suffering from an economy in recession and a terrible Barnett Liberal government, received just $66 million from that pool. Maybe that is why the member for Forrest could not find one other Western Australian Liberal to speak in support of her motion here today.

But how has this happened? The answer lies in the nature of the projects funded. Three rounds of this program in WA chart the political course of this failed government. In round one of the program, we saw money flowing to only one suburban area in Perth in need of new infrastructure: Belmont. Then, take a look at round two: round two saw infrastructure funded in only one suburb again, in Rockingham. In round three, the outer suburban funding dries up altogether. This is the National Party's increasing stranglehold on the Abbott-Turnbull government on full display in the budget papers.

I am certainly not arguing the WA's remote and rural towns should not receive funding under this program. Of course, they should and they do. But outer suburban areas are in crisis across the country, particularly in Perth. High unemployment, combined with years of neglect from state and federal Liberal governments, has left existing local infrastructure in a state of disrepair and much-needed new infrastructure is non-existent. Perhaps most amusingly of all in this motion, is that it congratulates the government on a program that is actually being killed off by the Nationals anyway. There is no more National Stronger Regions Fund. It has been replaced by the Building Better Regions Fund. With this, the Turnbull government has proven once and for all that it does not care about outer suburban areas. But, as always with the Turnbull Liberals, keeping the conservatives inside the party happy takes precedence over all else, including investing funds where they are needed.

When areas in the seat of Canning, a metropolitan seat, were cut out of the program late last year, suddenly there was outrage from WA Liberals. In the Liberal world view, it is fine to cut funding from Armidale—after all, its local MPs, federal and state, are Labor—but when the National Party's knife comes to the suburban areas of Liberal seats there is an outrage. So the Prime Minister steps in and promises to change the rules so that this one metropolitan seat can take part in the program. It is a naked bid to shore up the member for Canning's ever decreasing margin. Though, given today's news reports about the member for Canning's activities with his fellow 'deplorables', the Prime Minister may be regretting that decision. This is apparently the way a good government works: outer suburban areas deserve no investment unless a Liberal seat is at risk.

I am regularly contacted by community groups in my area looking for funding grants from the federal government on infrastructure projects. While other programs exist for small projects, there is nothing that provides the substantial funding opportunities for infrastructure projects that will benefit entire communities. Why should our outer suburbs be put at a disadvantage simply to allow support for the National Party's seats and to support Malcolm Turnbull's prime ministership? So congratulations to the Turnbull Liberal government on your now abolished, pork-barrelling, misguided National Stronger Regions Fund! Congratulations for nothing.

Melissa Price (Durack, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Here I am again at the start of another week, highlighting work by the federal government with respect to what it is doing in regional, remote and rural Australia. Like my colleague Nola Marino, I am a WA regional Liberal who gets the bush and represents regional Australia. I am very proud to do so. I am pleased to rise today to speak on the member for Forrest's private members' business, because it gives all of us in this place a great opportunity to hear about the government's track record in regional Australia as compared with those opposite, who do not understand it and do not appreciate regional Australia.

The National Stronger Regions Fund promotes sustainable, robust projects that make a real difference in the lives of those who are living in some of the most rural and remote parts of the country, including in my electorate of Durack. The National Stronger Regions Fund is a multifaceted program with lots of different levers, all of which can be implemented by government and communities to improve regional and outback Australia. Last week, I was in the Pilbara, where the National Stronger Regions Fund is helping to build a world-class arts and community precinct in Karratha and is also restoring the historic Victoria Hotel in Roebourne. When you combine this with the government's funding of the Northern Australia Roads Program, you can clearly see that this side of the House cares for and respects those living in our regions and we want to see them prosper.

When I was in Port Hedland, there was a very serious discussion about the use of the northern Australia infrastructure funds to develop a general cargo handling port in Port Hedland at Lumsden Point. This would allow the northwest live export market to prosper. Currently we have about one million head of cattle in the Kimberley and Pilbara regions, with a strong state government commitment to grow that to two million head. If this is to occur, we will need a port capable of handling that increase in traffic, as currently many of the cattle are being transported thousands of kilometres to the south to be shipped overseas. This project will cut the distance, time and cost involved in live export from northern Australia and will move our strong agricultural sector forward.

In this government, we get the bush, we get outback Australia and we get northern Australia. The latest round of projects to be funded through the NSRF was announced in October last year. Those projects will have immense value in my electorate of Durack, delivering improved infrastructure and creating jobs but also improving the livability of many of those towns.

The health of residents in Hedland will benefit from the new St John Ambulance Port Hedland training subcentre, which will be a state-of-the-art facility, replacing the existing ageing facility. In addition to being a brand-new facility, the building will cater for an increased need for ambulance services in the area, with improved access to first aid training and equipment—great news for residents of Hedland and the surrounding towns and for the many travellers who travel through Hedland.

The Kimberley region were also winners in the last round, with Kununurra Bushmen's Rodeo Association receiving a grant which will benefit the East Kimberley enormously. The Kununurra Bushmen's Rodeo Association has received over $319,000 for a major upgrade of the Kununurra Rodeo Grounds, which will open up the town to new tourism opportunities.

In the last round of the National Stronger Regions Fund, I was very proud that Durack got a total of eight projects, and I want to take the time to congratulate the local RDAs, my staff and all of those councils who applied for those funds. Together we have made an awesome team, and that is obvious from the eight projects that we managed to achieve. Let there be no doubt in the minds of regional and rural Australians: this federal government is listening to your needs. To my electorate, I want to confirm—and I think it is obvious from the eight projects we got in the last round—that I am delivering across the breadth of Durack. Together we are delivering, from Kununurra in the north to Southern Cross in the south. Long may we continue to do so.

Anne Aly (Cowan, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I find it quite extraordinary that this government is focused on patting itself on the back for investing in 34 infrastructure projects in WA over the last three years and, in particular, that the members for Forrest and Durack should be speaking to this motion. It seems that they are either unwilling or unable to call out their colleagues on the matter of an absolute neglect of Western Australia. The purpose of the National Stronger Regions Fund is to promote economic growth and to address disadvantage—a noble purpose indeed. It is supposedly a mechanism for allowing communities to identify their own priority infrastructure projects. But this government knows that that is not happening at all. The federal government uses the regional infrastructure fund to pump tens of millions of dollars into capital city projects, mainly in coalition-held seats.

In its first round, Senator Glenn Lazarus was right to call it 'another head scratcher from the government'. Why? Because the National Stronger Regions Fund does not actually spent all of its money in regional Australia. The first round of funding, worth $212 million, committed $57 million to projects in Melbourne, Adelaide, Brisbane, Perth and Darwin. The third round, announced just last year, committed $2½ million to connect South Perth to the Western Australian Liberals' vanity project of Elizabeth Quay. As my colleague the member for Perth mentioned, in WA all but one of those projects have gone to Liberal electorates.

Close to 60 per cent of the projects over the life of this initiative have been in coalition-held seats. This should come as no surprise, given this government's extraordinary track record of what can only be described as pork-barrelling. During the election campaign last year, this government came out with some extraordinary promises, in an unashamed and crude exercise of pork-barrelling. Seventy-six of its 78 projects were in seats held by the coalition before the 2 July poll. In the marginal seat of Swan, the Turnbull government pledged $20 million for an on-ramp to Manning Road and the Kwinana Freeway. In the seat of Hasluck, another marginal seat, $300,000 was promised to upgrade Hale Road. In my seat of Cowan, previously held by the Liberals, the government promised $20 million for an overpass at Ocean Reef Road and Wanneroo Road. But WA has been ripped off by the Turnbull government, with just three of 78 infrastructure projects promised during the election campaign actually being allocated in the state. Despite promising $860 million, announced during the election campaign, for road and rail projects in WA, the government will instead dedicate just over $40 million, or 4.6 per cent, to these much needed projects.

I stand here as a proud Western Australian. I have not lived there all my life but I have lived there for most of it. I cannot stand here as a Western Australian without mentioning this government's appalling lack of attention to and incredible neglect of WA and just how complicit in all of this the WA Liberals have been. We have here in this chamber, in this Commonwealth parliament, senior federal ministers on that side of the House. When have any of them spoken for Western Australia? Why are they all so silent? They have failed to deliver a fair GST, and in the same breath the federal Liberal Mathias Cormann has threatened to pull even more money out of Western Australia. The Liberal Party has continued to rip-off Western Australians for far too long. They have taken Western Australia for granted over our GST share for far too long.

The National Stronger Regions Fund pays lip service to the regions, which is why it is so extraordinary that we have a motion here actually praising the government for investing in the regions. In all of this the outer suburbs of Perth in particular continue to suffer. Voters who live in the outer suburbs have had enough. This government offers no vision for addressing their issues. Those who live in the outer suburbs of Cowan can spend hours in their cars each day just to get to and from work and other basic services. It is not good enough, I am afraid, to congratulate the government on relatively minor spending on much needed infrastructure in WA, especially in the outer suburbs and especially when Western Australia is already coping with years of neglect by both Commonwealth and state Liberal governments.

Josh Wilson (Fremantle, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Forrest for moving the motion, and I thank my Western Australian Labor colleagues for responding to the topic and coming here to speak today. It is a shame that we have not seen a full book on the other side.

Support for regional Western Australia is important. We are the largest state in Australia, we face the greatest challenges in relation to a dispersed population across enormous distances, and we have a capital city where outer metropolitan areas have a regional function. It is those outer metropolitan regions that are under the greatest pressure from the prevailing economic circumstances in Western Australia. Western Australia is in recession. We have gone from top to bottom: we have gone from lowest debt and lowest unemployment to the highest per capita state debt and the highest unemployment in a very short term. So we need that support.

The National Stronger Regions Fund, if it did its job, would have played a part in addressing those issues. I am not sure that it really has. In round 1, certainly, Western Australia received only five per cent of all the funding. That seems to be a bit of a pattern in the way in which the coalition approaches Western Australia. As the member for Cowan said, in the course of the election campaign last year, 78 road and rail projects were promised by the coalition as it approached the election but only three of them were for Western Australia. That was $40 million out of $860 million in that pool, or 4.6 per cent—less than five per cent. That is half of our population share. As the member for Burt pointed out, we are talking about a state whose regional and rural areas account for a third of the nation, so when it comes to regional funding we should be getting more than our population share. Earlier this year, in the Regional Jobs and Investment Package—another package that is supposedly designed to support economic diversity and play a role in creating jobs in areas that face high unemployment—there was $220 million for 10 projects. For WA? Zero. There was nothing for Western Australia, even though some of the eligible areas in Western Australia have unemployment two and three times higher than equivalent areas that were funded.

I am glad that under round 3 of the NSRF there were some important projects for Western Australia as a whole. I think the agriculture, innovation and research facility in Dalwallinu is a good initiative. It is one of the areas of economic and jobs growth in the future. I think it is one of the niche, high value-added agricultural areas in Western Australia. I support the upgrade to Centenary Park in Kellerberrin, with a facility that is aimed at young people and tourism. It will provide a skate park in Kellerberrin, which I am sure will be as much loved there as the fantastic esplanade youth park is in my seat of Fremantle. I support those projects. But, as the member for Perth pointed out, it is a bit hard in metro Perth, and it is certainly a bit hard if you are not in a coalition seat to be too positive about the National Stronger Regions Fund when only one or two of the 34 projects in Western Australia under the three rounds so far have gone outside coalition electorates. I think that would cause many people to question just how rigorously that selection process is being undertaken.

Now we transition to the government's Building Better Regions Fund, which the Weekly Times described in the following terms:

The Coalition’s pet fund for regional development projects will be rebranded and criteria changed to exclude outer metropolitan suburbs.

So the area of greatest need in Western Australia, outer metro suburbs which have a particular regional function in WA, are going to get nothing as the NSRF becomes the Building Better Regions Fund.

So, in Western Australia, we are still waiting to see any meaningful infrastructure spending. In my seat, we desperately need support for shipbuilding and public transport, but we needed that to start two years ago. It would be nice if it started now, but it should have started two years ago. We have had no support for public transport. We have had no support for local roads and bridges. We have had no support for shipbuilding or for coastal shipping, which is an important provider of jobs in my electorate. Really, if you are a Western Australian, the only conclusion you can draw on all the evidence is that the Abbott-Turnbull government and all its members from WA take the people of Western Australia for granted.

Maria Vamvakinou (Calwell, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The time allotted for this debate has expired. The debate is adjourned and the resumption of the debate will be made an order of the day for the next sitting.