Graham Perrett (Moreton, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Assistant Minister for Education and Training) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Deputy Prime Minister: When will work start on removing the dangerous level crossing—

Tony Smith (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Will the member for Moreton pause. Look, I'm being sort of interjected on. Can I just say to the government particularly, all I can do, if the government don't jump, is call the person who jumps. Or, if two people jump, the standing orders make it very clear—65CA: call the person who, in my opinion, jumped first. On this occasion the member for Moreton had no competition. The member for Moreton.

Graham Perrett (Moreton, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Assistant Minister for Education and Training) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Who's running the show over there?

Mr Morrison interjecting—

Tony Smith (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

No, no. I'll say to the Prime Minister—

Mr Morrison interjecting—

I'm going to address this point because it is causing some confusion. I'm not party to any arrangements that occur. I'm only aware of existing arrangements, and that is with respect to the Independents' first question which the then Leader of the House enshrined in Hansard after, I understand, speaking with all parties. If the government, the opposition and the Independents want to change the arrangements, that's their business. I have to operate under the standing orders, and I can only call someone who's jumped. That's all I can do. I can't be randomly asking people to jump. So, the member for Moreton has the call.

Mr Katter interjecting—

No, you can't take a point of order, the member for Kennedy, because you did not jump and the member for—

Bob Katter (Kennedy, Katter's Australian Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I'm not complaining about that.

Tony Smith (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

All right: I'll say to the member for Kennedy, I'll hear his point of order.

Bob Katter (Kennedy, Katter's Australian Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I was advised that I would not have the—

Tony Smith (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I haven't called you yet. I will hear from the member for Kennedy what his point of order is.

Bob Katter (Kennedy, Katter's Australian Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Mr Speaker, I was advised that I wasn't on today. That was the only reason I didn't jump, so there's obviously been a mistake made. I'm sorry.

Tony Smith (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Kennedy. The member for Moreton has the call.

Graham Perrett (Moreton, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Assistant Minister for Education and Training) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Deputy Prime Minister. When will work start on removing the dangerous level crossing on Boundary Street in Coopers Plain in Moreton?

Michael McCormack (Riverina, National Party, Leader of the Nationals) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Well, the member will be pleased—given the fact that you gave me leeway last time—that in Moreton, 72,628 people, in the electorate of the member who asked the question, are going to be getting tax relief.

Tony Smith (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Deputy Prime Minister, I've made this point twice now.

An honourable member: You're tenacious, brother!

Michael McCormack (Riverina, National Party, Leader of the Nationals) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I try!

Tony Smith (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I don't want to be at all confusing about this. On that question, when he talks about taxation, he's on a different topic and it's entirely irrelevant. I spend a lot of time deciding what's directly relevant, but that's one of the easiest ones I've had today.

Michael McCormack (Riverina, National Party, Leader of the Nationals) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thought you gave me a bit of leeway, but that is fair enough, Mr Speaker. In 2010, Labor promised to fix Orrong Road but never did it. That's typical of Labor because they often promised and never did it—made a lot of promises, went to elections making a lot of commitments, never, ever kept them. The member for Moreton will be pleased to know, though, that $500 million is being spent on the M1 motorway, Eight Mile Plains to Daisy Hill. He'll be very pleased to know that the Ipswich Motorway—Rocklea to Darra—$200 million. We're spending—are you going to make up your mind who wants to stand up?

Tony Smith (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I don't need to hear a point of order. Look, I've said twice now to the Deputy Prime Minister: he needs to confine himself to the policy topic. If he's talking about infrastructure, I'm being very generous in allowing that policy topic to be confined to the electorate. It was a very specific question. I'm out of patience on it. He can do what he did in the first couple of answers where I defended his right to do it. If he's going to stray and ask for extra leeway, what he's asking for is for me to ignore the practice, and I'm not going to do that. The Deputy Prime Minister has the call.

Michael McCormack (Riverina, National Party, Leader of the Nationals) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

And this is infrastructure in the member for Moreton's electorate, Mr Speaker. Interchange at Mains and Kessels Roads—$210 million. These road upgrades are helping in the member for Moreton's electorate. We want to get people home sooner and safer, whether they are travellers who are getting home to their families—

Tony Smith (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The member for Moreton on a point of order.

Graham Perrett (Moreton, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Assistant Minister for Education and Training) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

On relevance: this is a dangerous level crossing in my electorate. This has nothing to do with infrastructure already built or out on the edge of my electorate. This is in the middle of my electorate.

Tony Smith (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I say to the member for Moreton to resume his seat. He should have listened to how I ruled on the earlier points of order. The Deputy Prime Minister, provided he's confining himself to your electorate, I think is in order. It's certainly what I have allowed today.

Michael McCormack (Riverina, National Party, Leader of the Nationals) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

That's why we're spending record amounts of money on black spot funding, record amounts of money on level crossings, record amounts of money on bridge replacements and record amounts of money on the Roads to Recovery program. More than 500 councils right across the country are getting an extra 25 per cent for Roads to Recovery. I'd be happy to come to the member for Moreton's electorate and look at the particular crossing to which he refers, because we are making sure, whether it's urban or regional, we're busting congestion. Particularly in urban areas, we're spending $4 billion on busting through congestion. I appreciate that it is a 10-year build. It's a 10-year build of $100 billion.

Opposition members interjecting—

The members opposite can cry out all they like, because when they were in government, they didn't spend anywhere near the level to which we are spending on congestion-busting infrastructure. Whether it's road, whether it's rail, whether it's airports or whether it's seaports, we're getting on with building our future and building a better Australia.