Andrew Wallace (Fisher, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I move:

That this House:

(1) welcomes the results of Round One of the Building Better Regions Fund (BBRF), including the allocation of $3 million in funding to the Events Centre, Caloundra, on the Sunshine Coast;

(2) congratulates all of the successful applicants in Round One of this program;

(3) notes that:

(a) the BBRF is another example of the Government investing in our regions to boost local economies, grow regional confidence, create jobs and build vibrant communities;

(b) nationally the successful projects will support a diverse range of important infrastructure in regional and remote areas for projects ranging from tourism and transport, to culture, sporting and healthcare facilities;

(c) the Events Centre is such an important piece of infrastructure, providing world class cultural experiences for local people on the Sunshine Coast and drawing tourists from all over South East Queensland; and

(d) nearly 550 organisations applied from all across Australia for the Infrastructure Projects stream;

(4) commends the Government for its allocation of an additional $200 million in funding for this important program in the 2017 budget; and

(5) encourages eligible organisations to make an application to Round Two of the BBRF, which is anticipated to open later in 2017.

It gives me great pleasure to move this motion, as I'm a strong supporter of the government's Building Better Regions Fund. I understand the enormous benefits it can bring to a local community such as my electorate in the north of Brisbane on the Sunshine Coast. It still truly remains a regional area. The main focus of the Building Better Regions Fund is on creating jobs, driving economic growth and building stronger regional communities.

One of the directors of the Caloundra Events Centre in my electorate of Fisher, Mr Don Smith, was quoted recently as saying: 'This is a major outcome for us and a big hit for our local community. I can assure you that, when this work is finished, we'll really be able to roll out the red carpet and dress this place up to welcome everyone, even the Queen.' Mr Smith's comments came on the back of the results of round 1 of the Building Better Regions Fund in which the Events Centre in Caloundra was successful in being granted $3 million for upgrades to the centre. Mr Smith is a long-term supporter of the Events Centre, having dedicated much of his time in recent years to securing funds for vital upgrades to the facility. Mr Smith's comments relate to his dogged determination to ensure that any upgrades to the centre included a porte-cochere that would be fit for the Queen. Once these upgrades are complete, that is exactly what we will have. Mr Smith's next job is to try and get the Queen to Caloundra!

The Events Centre Caloundra is an important piece of infrastructure that provides a world-class cultural experience for local people based on the Sunshine Coast, but it also draws tourists from all over South-East Queensland. The project, which, due to this grant, is expected to be completed by the end of 2018, will have an array of transformative upgrades. The project will improve the acoustics of the main theatre and upgrade the foyer, the bar, the verandah cafe and box office facilities. It will also upgrade the heating and air conditioning throughout the building, it will increase accessibility at the main entrance and it will install toilet and lift facilities for patrons with a disability. Because we are actually celebrating Disability Action Week in Queensland this week, I'm very proud to be announcing an upgrade which will see much greater facilities for those with a disability.

Nationally, the Building Better Regions Fund received more than 500 applications, and the Events Centre Caloundra was one of around a hundred that were approved. More applications were received under the Infrastructure Projects Stream than in any of the three funding rounds conducted under the previous National Stronger Regions Fund. I'd like to extend my personal congratulations to all of those worthy community groups across Australia who successfully received funding through these grants.

Round 1 of the Building Better Regions Fund Infrastructure Projects Stream has been highly competitive, with the applications received demonstrating significant strength and quality across the three project sizes. Strong applications were able to describe and quantify project economic benefits in the short and long term, and how they would deliver social benefits in the region. There was also a need to demonstrate that the project was both viable and sustainable, and that it would be delivered on time, on budget and to the standard required for important infrastructure projects. The Events Centre Caloundra ticked all of these boxes, and their success is testament to the importance of this facility to Sunshine Coast locals, the huge effort that the team put into consulting with the locals and preparing their application, and the groundswell of support we received from the community.

Only the coalition government is backing regional communities by funding critical projects that support economic development across the regions.

Scott Buchholz (Wright, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Is the motion seconded?

John Alexander (Bennelong, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I second the motion and reserve my right to speak.

Cathy O'Toole (Herbert, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Regional Queensland, and in particular North Queensland, has been facing some very tough times. Our unemployment rates and youth unemployment rates are amongst the highest in the country; Townsville is the insolvency capital of the nation; and, in the last five years, we have had three massive cyclone events—however, this has not always been the case. We also have a large population of veterans and ex-service personnel who want quality employment opportunities. During the global financial crisis, whilst unemployment was around 10 per cent in Brisbane, unemployment in Townsville was less than five per cent. Fortunately, Townsville's economy was diverse enough to survive the GFC. But that has not been the case for the residents on Palm Island, in my electorate. Lack of infrastructure and jobs have always been major issues for this remote community.

Between 2012 and 2015, regional, rural and remote Queensland experienced the wrath of the Newman LNP government, and now, after four years of the coalition Abbott-Turnbull governments, Townsville has really felt a significant negative impact and is, as I said, the jobless capital of the nation. LNP governments are not the friends of regional, rural and remote Queensland. This is borne out by recent history and the savage cuts made by LNP state and Liberal-National federal governments. LNP governments have always looked after their city mates at the expense of people living in regional, rural and remote Queensland, especially in first-nation communities. The Turnbull government have done nothing to address the growing rate of inequality in regional, rural and remote Queensland; in fact, they have just added fuel to the fire.

Since the GFC, whilst unemployment has been on the decline in Brisbane, wages are on the increase. Compare and contrast this to North Queensland, where employment is on the rise, and the only thing dropping is wages. Life expectancy is lower in regional, rural and remote Queensland. There are more households with no access to the internet in regional, rural and remote Queensland than in capital cities. Insurance is higher in regional Queensland than in Brisbane, even though Brisbane experiences more regular and severe weather events. Townsville has the highest homeless rate per capita in the nation. Rates are higher, energy prices are higher and the overall cost of living is higher. Inequality in regional, rural and remote Queensland is on the rise, and the Turnbull government is doing nothing to rectify this situation.

More focus and action is needed in regional, rural and remote Queensland, and deservedly so. We need short-, medium- and long-term solid plans and not just bandaid solutions. In particular, urgent attention must be paid to the regions that have been identified for rapid population growth. It is concerning to note that the regions with the highest projected growth rates are the same regions being excluded from capital works grants like the Building Better Regions Fund. To help build the vital infrastructure necessary to prepare for the rapid growth, the government has little to offer these communities. In fact, these regions are almost excluded from the $500 million Building Better Regions Fund, the $220 million Regional Jobs and Investment Packages and the new $200 million Regional Growth Fund despite their urgent and obvious needs. This situation must be reviewed because much needed growth is dependent upon the funds to address the necessary infrastructure that will guarantee this sustainable growth.

Funding projects are just one piece of the puzzle. It is not just about dollars. We also need to set our priorities. This includes our value proposition and social capital. The government needs to understand the real social dividend that comes from local projects and not just short-term ribbon-cutting opportunities. The decisions regarding the best bid must consider more than dollar value—they must also include social capital. Delivering a one-off, short-term project based on cost alone will do very little in the long term. However, the same project that has a genuine local focus, including local jobs, purchasing local resources and services and local manufacturing opportunities that may be slightly higher in cost, will deliver real economic and social benefits in regional communities in the longer term. This will enable local small businesses to build their capacity to create more jobs. Funding that takes these elements into account will build both a strong and growing local economy and a thriving society.

Awarding tenders and delivering funding that is focused only on the initial cost and not the broader picture does not take into account the positive flow-on effects for regional communities. The Building Better Regions Fund needs to address this crucial focus. The Sunshine Coast is not regional, rural or remote Queensland, and the differences are blindingly obvious. I demand action from the Turnbull government to provide the funding that will deliver community capacity building and local jobs for all Townsville residents, including the residents on Palm Island and our ex-service personnel and veterans.

John McVeigh (Groom, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Today I rise to recognise our government's foresight and commitment to building better regions across Australia. I'm a proud resident of the Darling Downs. My parents, my grandparents and my great-grandparents before me were residents there as well. My family tree of McVeighs and Mearas is proof that regional Australia can support ambitions and efforts across the generations. My family put down roots in the amazing, cracking black-clay soils of the Darwin Downs, and those roots are still there today. There are five generations, with my children's generation starting to make its way in the world.

The city of Toowoomba is the beating heart of the Darling Downs, and it would be safe to say that it would be unrecognisable to my great-great-grandparents today. Toowoomba is a city of some 116,000 people and is perched on the Great Dividing Range. In the latest round of the Building Better Regions Fund, a life-changing project in our city was successful. The dream of having a purpose-built permanent home-base facility for LifeFlight emergency medical helicopters is becoming a reality. The funds, which were a partnership in the true sense of the word, were provided through the coalition government's Building Better Regions Fund, which provided $2.05 million; local businessman and philanthropist Clive Berghofer, OAM, who provided $1.87 million; and LifeFlight Australia, which provided $171,000.

The money will replace existing ageing buildings with new purpose-built aviation facilities, including hanger capacity for two AW139 helicopters, aircrew accommodation, administration operations and a flight-simulator room. It will be a boost for our regional community as the project will create 350 jobs during construction and, more particularly, will enhance the entire healthcare chain throughout our region. Most importantly, it will provide more vital aeromedical services to people throughout our region of south-west Queensland, be they farmers, miners, locals or tourists. This type of project continues to build the future for our region so that families like mine will continue to stay and prosper, or, as many of us do, go away and see the world before realising there is nowhere that compares to the Darling Downs and return home. The LifeFlight project is an example of a significant project enhancing our community on the Darling Downs, but it is also an illustration of broader Australia and the benefits that can be achieved in regional Australia in particular.

As chair of the Select Committee on Regional Development and Decentralisation, I know there is huge potential for economic growth in regional areas. The government's Building Better Regions Fund is part of the investment in the futures of these regions. The government is doing this as it wants to partner with regional communities to build confidence across the entire nation, as regional communities are the lifeblood of this country, as you well know, Mr Deputy Speaker. We need to capitalise on the strengths and local resources we know our regions offer. We certainly need to focus on required infrastructure and community facilities for growth in regional Australia. But we need to recognise, at the end of the day, as this government does, that so much of Australia's economic prosperity is generated from our regions, from mining to agriculture, from education to health, to innovation and other advances, particularly in new industries. There are many rural and regional towns doing great things across the country to foster economic and social development in their communities. This government is committed to seeing that continue to happen, hence efforts such as the Building Better Regions program. We are committed to regional growth, long-term employment opportunities and sustainability in these communities across the states and territories of Australia.

I am a passionate supporter of regional Australia and I believe Australia's regions remain the key to unlocking our future growth and potential as a nation. Why? Because, like those generations of McVeighs and Mearas who went before me, we understand, in our case, the Darling Downs. We know its challenges, we know its successes, and, like so many others who live in regional Australia, we know there is tremendous growth potential throughout our entire nation. The government's Building Better Regions program recognises just that as well.

Rebekha Sharkie (Mayo, Nick Xenophon Team) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I'd like to join the member for Fisher in congratulating the successful applicants of round 1 of the Building Better Regions Fund. In my electorate of Mayo, two applications were successful: $202,000 is going towards a sculpture trail on Kangaroo Island, and $255,000 has been allocated to the construction of a men's shed at Victor Harbor. I have previously spoken in this House about the Victor Harbor Men's Shed, and I reiterate my support for men's sheds right across Australia. They are integral community spaces, they are places where there's a great deal of support, mateship and, indeed, love for each other, and I believe they save lives.

When I visited the Victor Harbor Men's Shed last year, I was delighted to see men, young and old, working side by side sharing their skills together—although I must say it was quite a tight squeeze in the men's shed! Thanks to the grant funding they've received, the Victor Harbor Men's Shed will be able to relocate to larger premises. They were previously operating out of the Encounter Centre—a great resource for our community—but they only had one day a week. This move will allow them to be open every day and help foster stronger relationships throughout the community. An organisation such as this is exactly the reason the Building Better Regions Fund is so valuable to regional communities. Similarly, the construction of the Kangaroo Island sculpture trail will add another great drawcard to Kangaroo Island and it will be a great boost to our economy there. The trail will show the natural vegetation of the island, the local wildlife, and include large sculptured works created from natural materials. I greatly look forward to its completion and disembarking at Penneshaw and having a good look around myself.

The Building Better Regions Fund is a genuinely good initiative. Investment in our region is so important to enable communities to grow and thrive, and I strongly support the intention of the program. That is why I'm so frustrated at the rules regulating eligibility of access to the fund being based on mapping. I have spoken on this issue previously, but it's inconceivable to me that a township such as Woodside in my electorate, with a population of just 2,000, cannot access the fund while the Gold Coast, the sixth biggest city in Australia, can. Mount Barker, the major economic centre of the Adelaide Hills, cannot access the fund. This is a town projected to have a population of 44,000 in the next 20 years, and the district population will grow to 56,000 in the same period, yet we lack so many of the essential services that a town with such a population demands because we have been such a small regional community. For example, our swimming pool is not up to competition standard—it's still in yards and feet—and it leaks into the surrounding ground. The recently announced sports hub will allow more football and soccer competitions, and that is desperately needed in our community, but what we need is Mount Barker and surrounding areas again being part of the Building Better Regions Fund.

Meanwhile, the Gold Coast is gearing up to host the Commonwealth Games next year, and it has two professional sports teams and the facilities that come with it. It is a large economic centre that receives millions of dollars each year from tourists visiting the city. I don't think you will find many who are willing to say the Gold Coast is lacking in essential services and community infrastructure. Indeed, I think you will find very few people in Australia who consider the Gold Coast a region. The minister spoke to me about my concerns and she said at the end of round 1, in July this year, she would have a review of the boundaries. As yet I have heard nothing from the minister.

South Australia is at an impasse, with our manufacturing industry closing down and unemployment rising. We must look to the next opportunity and I believe that next opportunity for South Australia is in food production and agriculture. It always has been, we just never realised it. In the Adelaide Hills these industries are crying out for major infrastructure projects to allow them to best display their talents to the world. This is why it is so important that these areas, true regional areas that rely on primary production for their prosperity, are allocated into the Building Better Regions Fund. While it is tremendous that we congratulate those who were successful in round 1, I would urge the minister to review as quickly as possible how they have drawn the boundaries for the Building Better Regions Fund, because it seems ridiculous that small towns with no public transport, small towns where you are lucky if you have one or two stores and a thousand people, where the banks have closed and everything has gone, cannot access this fund. For us not to be included and for places such as the Gold Coast to be included makes a mockery of the term 'regions'.

David Littleproud (Maranoa, National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

It is with pride that I speak to this motion today on the government's commitment to the Building Better Regions Fund. For the people of Maranoa, an electorate that covers 42 per cent of the state of Queensland, and particularly for those in rural and regional areas, this has been a boon. During the roll-out of the Building Better Regions Fund we have seen, only in the last round, an announcement of just under $5 million for a new cold storage facility in Warwick that will bring 150 new direct jobs, 138 indirect jobs and 80 jobs during construction. This is a significant investment in the community of the Southern Downs. It is also a sign of faith in rural and regional Australia. To bring more than 200 new families to a community of just over 12,000 people is a significant change in the economic make-up of that community.

We are proud to say that rural and regional Australia has a future, because if we have a strong rural and regional Australia we have a strong nation. My electorate alone, Maranoa, contributes more to the GDP per capita than Townsville, Toowoomba or the Gold Coast. That is without taking into account the three coal-fired power stations that generate more than 50 per cent of the state's electricity. That is all coming out of my electorate of Maranoa—rural and regional Australia. All this is important investment, and we can couple that with another investment out in Morven for a rail hub, worth just over $4 million, to bring cattle in from the west, to provide security for those people in rural and regional Australia who are in the cattle industry. It will also provide them with more competition, because if we can move their product then we will have competitors wanting to bring in their product. If we have got Oakey Beef wanting to secure this hub and bring cattle in on the train, rather than on trucks, it will also mean that Oakey Beef's competitors will be looking to secure supply for their abattoirs. This is a real economic boon for the people of Morven, a little town of only a couple of hundred people. This investment will bring a rail hub to Morven that will ensure we can bring in cattle from all over this nation.

The other investment we've made is a $204-million investment in aged care in Blackbutt, a little community in the South Burnett. Two hundred thousand dollars will go towards independent living for those who are disadvantaged—for those who are unable to afford to get into one of dearer aged-care facilities. In this small community, we are giving people options and choice so that they don't have to leave. They can still have their family around them and have the dignity and respect in their ageing years to be able to stay and be part of that community. It's an important investment in that community.

Previously, our government proudly invested in the rebuilding of the Waltzing Matilda Centre, which burnt down some two or three years ago. I have to call out Mayor Butch Lenton—an absolute outback legend. This is a mayor who leads. He doesn't make his community a victim; he gets on with the job. He's fought droughts; he's fought fires. The man is a leader, and he's a leader who every Australian should be proud of. In the little outback town of Winton, with just over a thousand-odd people, he is helping to rebuild the Waltzing Matilda Centre—a national iconic centre that every Australian should be proud of. It will bring new jobs to that community. Winton has nearly 50,000 visitors a year, in tourism, to the Waltzing Matilda Centre and the Age of Dinosaurs museum. It is a significant investment in that community, because we are diversifying the economic base of Winton to not only rely on agricultural but also rely on tourism—to put another pillar in that local economy. That's an important investment in that community. Ensuring 40,000 to 50,000 visitors a year go to a small town that has a population of only a thousand people is a significant investment that will ensure that community has greater resilience as we move forward. It will also ensure that we continue to look at this as an investment in rural and regional Australia.

We understand that, if we make that investment, we are the economic engine room of this nation. We understand that, if we invest in rural and regional Australia, we will continue to ensure that the whole nation's economy benefits. We are the ones who are putting the product on the boats that are empty once they bring their stuff into this country. We proudly, as a government, have sought to ensure the security of and investment in rural and regional Australia because it makes economic sense. I'm proud that this motion has been put forward. I thank the member for Fisher, Mr Wallace, for putting it forward. It's an important one for rural and regional Australia.

Joanne Ryan (Lalor, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise to object to this motion being put today on the grounds that, historically, this government has changed what was once an Australia-wide possibility to apply for Commonwealth funding for community programs, for builds, that might have created jobs and community infrastructure. In the past, under a Labor government, this was the RDAF. I note that this government left it as it was until just this last round when, mysteriously, the boundaries changed and areas of this country were cut out of applying for this grant. I stand here as the member for Lalor whose community was a recipient of this grant under this government, but not this time. We were not allowed to apply. Someone applied some maps and put some boundaries in—exclusive boundaries, I might add.

While I congratulate all the communities who did the hard work of applying for this grant, I note that in Victoria communities around Ballarat, Corangamite, Murray, Gippsland, McMillan, Flinders, Mallee, Indi and Wannon are all recipients of this round but that the electorate of Lalor was locked out of this process. I condemn this government for the changes that it made to this program, locking out communities like mine and locking out electorates like Holt, both of which are in growth corridors. We don't have to go very far to find that people living in growth corridors feel that they are doing it tough and that they are being neglected by this government. But this grant process is one area about which we can clearly say is an opportunity that we have been cut from, that our applications have been disallowed.

Looking at the electorate of Lalor, there were lots of things. In fact, our local government already had prioritised projects where they were going to seek support from this grant until those boundaries were changed and until a growth corridor, like the city of Wyndham, was locked out of this level of support. The city of Wyndham could have applied for a new station at Black Forest Road with the Regional Rail Link. They are keen on that as a major project, as an extension of a Commonwealth program under a previous Labor government. We could have applied for some support in upgrading our irrigation, which we have failed to get under this grants program and we have failed to have funded under the National Water Infrastructure Development Fund program. We could have applied for support for our catalyst sites to reset the Werribee CBD as an employment hub for locals. We could have applied for building funding for BizBuddyHub, which is a collection of microbusinesses in my community. They desperately need somewhere to set up so that they can collaborate, share costs and innovate together. There are things that we would have and could have applied for.

In fact, there were things that we were already looking at as a possibility of being part of this process, and we were locked out. One can only assume that we were locked out. When you look at who was funded this round and when you look at those boundaries, it is pretty clear that this government doesn't recognise that growth corridors might need extra support. At the rate our area is growing, it is turning into a population of 230,000 people halfway between Melbourne and Geelong. I note that, under this program, the city of Geelong is still considered to be regional, but Wyndham City has been cut from this program. For the people I represent, me coming in here today and hearing people celebrating the grants that have been provided or will be part of their future just highlights this government's lack of attention to detail and lack of attention to the growth corridors—not just the one I represent, but growth corridors around the country.

We should be remembering, as the National Growth Areas Alliance tells us, that five million Australians live in growth corridors, where LGAs and local communities are struggling to keep up with the exponential growth that's happening all the time. In my community we are building recreational facilities at a rate of knots to keep up with the growth. This program could have offered some support to the community that I represent, but this government chose to lock us out of the process and lock us out of our capacity to join the rest of Australia in building for our region.

Lisa Chesters (Bendigo, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I'm quite surprised that there's nobody else from the government side to speak on this motion, given the fact that it's their motion. They claim to be the parties that represent the regions but they are not here to speak on it. Apologies that I was late to stand to speak then; I just would have thought that they would want to speak on their own motion. Maybe it is because they realise that it's an absolute joke of a policy that the government have put forward and they are a little bit embarrassed by what has happened in their first round of the Building Better Regions Fund.

I should note that this isn't the first time a federal government has had a funding stream available for our regions to tap into. Under Labor it was called the Regional Development Australia Fund and it was a genuine commitment to work with local, state and federal governments to build the infrastructure that we need in the regions. As my friend and colleague the member for Lalor pointed out, it acknowledged all areas of the regions—like our outer metropolitan areas, with their cross-section of outer metro and regional—and the need for infrastructure in those areas. Those are areas like Werribee and parts of Western Sydney, where they are feeling the pressures of growth. These are regions, and this government is choosing to ignore them.

When the government got elected, they scrapped the Regional Development Australia Fund and the role that our RDAs played in ensuring that these areas were priority projects. The government then had the National Stronger Regions Fund. In motion after motion of the last parliament, we heard about how great that fund was. It wasn't as good as Labor's fund, but it did help deliver for places like Bendigo. We did receive funding under that grant scheme for our airport. We did receive funding for the redevelopment and the building of an aquatic centre. It was a project and a guideline that we could work with and that our region said it was able to access.

However, what we're seeing from the Building Better Regions Fund, the BBRF, is a really confusing model. There are two streams now, an infrastructure project stream and a community investment stream. For the infrastructure project stream, as we have pointed out, those successful grants have been announced. They line up with a lot of election commitments made by this government at the last election. This also highlights where they were focused. Perhaps, unfortunately for Bendigo, we didn't make the list and the cut for funding because we weren't a target seat. It's just another example of pork-barrelling by this government, particularly in the state of Victoria—funding for Gippsland, funding for Corangamite, funding for Murray, funding for Flinders, funding for McMillan, funding for Indi, funding for Mallee, funding for Wannon. Bendigo, in Victoria, is the second-biggest regional city, after Geelong, and did not get $1 of funding. It was not because our council didn't apply, not because local businesses didn't apply and not because not-for-profits didn't apply. We had a number of projects go forward but they missed out. And I ask the question: is it because the National Party and the Liberal Party didn't believe that Bendigo was worthwhile, that they just crossed over Bendigo and made very few commitments at the election?

A complaint has also come from my region about the community investment stream. Those announcements haven't been made. Perhaps that's because, in the case of the minister who's involved in making these decisions, there's a question mark over their citizenship. Perhaps the decisions have been delayed because if they made an announcement then they could be challenged. We don't know whether they've been elected and whether they should be sitting in this parliament. These are projects where, again, there are questions about the criteria for this particular stream. You could apply for amounts from $10,000 up to $10 million. How do you compare projects—$10,000 to $10 million? What are the criteria the department has to work with? We can't get access or information about this. A couple of community groups and organisations as well as local governments who've made applications under the stronger investment stream of this particular fund are saying to us that they've had no word. They applied back in March and have had no word. The events, the projects, are going ahead, and they don't know whether they've got funding from the federal government. All they get is a wall of silence.

I urge the government to go back to the model Labor had when we were in government, the Australian regional investment fund, where we worked with local government, we worked with state government, we worked with our RDAs—a model that worked in Victoria—to deliver the projects that our regions need.

Debate adjourned.