George Christensen (Dawson, National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Infrastructure, Transport and Regional Development. Will the Deputy Prime Minister please inform the House of how the Morrison-McCormack government is delivering essential infrastructure for Australians living in regional communities?

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

The member for Dawson fully understands the value of water and what a difference it makes to regional communities—how important, how integral it is to making those regional communities grow. Indeed, in last year's budget we added an extra $2 billion to the National Water Infrastructure Development Fund. Our commitment currently stands at $3½ billion to build dams, to build pipelines, to build weirs right across the country, to build on the National Water Grid's work. Water infrastructure and water security connects, links and empowers regional Australians like nothing else, and we have already committed more than $1.7 billion to co-fund the construction of more than 20 water infrastructure projects with a total construction value of more than $2.7 billion. That's going to create opportunities. That's going to create jobs in regional Australia.

It is unlocking the potential of agriculture. You only have to listen to the Minister for Agriculture talking about how water grows the food and fibre worth of our nation—to indeed create more jobs and to create more trade. We've already completed six projects, which are now operating, since the water grid was established in October 2019, and we have another two projects nearing completion. We are investing in the 10-year pipeline of infrastructure development—water projects—through feasibility studies and through detailed business cases. We are getting on with the job.

In the member's great state of Queensland there are unlimited opportunities to develop new water infrastructure, and we're looking at each and every one of them. In his electorate and that of the member for Capricornia, the Urannah Dam project is well advanced, and we've put $10 million for the detailed business case towards just that. Andrew Willcox, the mayor of Whitsunday Regional Council, said about Urannah:

I have always said to make magic happen, you just add water, and this project will create employment magic with over 1000 jobs during construction and more than 600 permanent jobs when operational. Urannah Dam will provide a fantastic boost for our agriculture and mining industries and be a real catalyst project for our region.

We've committed to the construction of Big Rocks Weir, near Charters Towers. We're progressed on the detailed business cases for Hughenden and Hells Gates in North Queensland, and there is $352 million towards Rookwood Weir. It's under construction in the electorates of the member for Flynn and the member for Capricornia. And there is $84 million—I know the member for Maranoa is very excited about this—for the Emu Swamp Dam near Stanthorpe in Maranoa, which is in the final planning stages. We're getting on with the job before the construction commences. These projects are creating opportunity, they're creating hope and they're going to be build regional Australia like nothing else.