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

The federal budget delivered by the Treasurer last night was carefully formulated to promote Australia's economic recovery, create jobs, provide families with the support services they need and build for the future. At a local level, the budget delivers for the residents of Perth's rapidly growing northern suburbs, with major federal infrastructure funding for roads, the northern suburbs railway and community buildings. To support our infrastructure needs, I am pleased to inform the House that the Commonwealth Grants Commission recently announced that the state of Western Australia will receive a GST payment of approximately $5.3 billion in 2021-22. This figure is $629 million more than anticipated in last year's budget. This increased revenue reflects the strength of our economic recovery, enabling the WA state government to fund projects around Moore. A fact that is often overlooked by our state members is that, ultimately, much of the infrastructure committed to during the recent WA state election by the McGowan government is federally funded through this distribution. My home state of Western Australia will receive $1.6 billion for projects designed to ease congestion, connect communities and improve road safety. This investment will support the national economic recovery in the short term and boost productivity in the long term.

With one in five residents aged over 60 in Moore, a record investment in aged care will assist approximately 18,877 senior Australians living in my electorate. This investment will provide more healthcare places and more funding for residential aged-care facilities while equipping regulators to monitor and enforce standards of care. I am pleased to report that leading aged-care providers are developing modern aged-care facilities, currently in the planning phase, and are about to commence construction in suburbs including Joondalup, Currambine and Kinross. This will increase the supply of modern, purpose-built aged-care accommodation available locally, helping to shorten the long waiting lists.

We are fortunate to have a range of quality schools in our suburbs, both public and private, many of which are having their facilities upgraded and are delivering excellent outcomes for our younger generation. Funding for preschool and public schools in Moore continues to increase as part of the Quality Schools package, placing importance on the education system. For young families, child care is now more affordable and accessible in this budget, directly benefiting 1,320 families in Moore, allowing parents to return to the workforce, contributing their skills and boosting productivity.

Hospitals, Medicare, mental health and disability support services will always be guaranteed under the Morrison government. Construction work on a major $256 million upgrade of Joondalup hospital is about to commence. The government has committed to fund essential medications recommended by medical experts, putting lifesaving treatment within the reach of everyone. Over the last year, more than 1.6 million low-cost, subsidised prescriptions have been filled for residents in my electorate under the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme in an effort to return more of their hard-earned wages to their bank accounts to spend according to their choice.

Approximately 58,300 taxpayers of Moore will benefit from tax relief of up to $2,745 this year. This is as a result of extending the low- and middle-income tax offset and to bring forward stage 2 of the tax relief plan carried out by the Morrison government. The tax relief plan has already benefited 69,800 people in my electorate. The HomeBuilder program has assisted owner-occupiers with grants of $25,000 to build new homes and to renovate existing homes. The program has received 17,752 applications in WA and has backed over 36,000 jobs in the construction industry, creating steady work for local tradespersons and subcontractors. This budget will ensure that we come back even stronger, securing Australia's economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Brendan O'Connor (Gorton, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Foreign Affairs (House)) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

What we see with this budget is a marketing exercise, with little genuine reform. After eight long years this government has provided the Australian people with countless examples of mismanagement. Nowhere is this more evident than in the Defence portfolio.

This year's budget was light on detail when it comes to the Defence portfolio. This is a government where secrecy reigns and transparency barely exists. We hear the government talk tough on defence, with the Prime Minister walking red carpets and waving from defence aircraft. What we hear is rhetoric and re-announcements, with little information on what's happening to build defence capability. How much defence expenditure is based on the $40 billion blowout on the Future Submarine program? How much is based on the $10 billion blowout on frigates? How much is based on previously announced funding, such as the $747 million infrastructure package for the Northern Territory?

We know this NT package was announced two years ago, except now it's costing half a billion dollars more. Why? That is not explained. We know with this Prime Minister that it's all about the announcement, never the delivery. After six defence ministers in eight years, there has been mismanagement and waste at the expense of our troops. Labor fully supports our ADF having the capabilities they require. We want to see our troops resourced with assets and technology that are fit for purpose. We want to see a commitment to local industry content in our defence manufacturing. We also want to see our veterans treated with the respect they deserve, with a properly resourced Department of Veterans' Affairs and, most importantly, a royal commission into our national shame that is the tragedy of veteran suicides. We welcome the funding in the budget for a royal commission into defence and veteran suicides, but the truth is that the government came to it kicking and screaming after Labor called for the royal commission in 2019. We want to see the terms of reference and we want to see the composition of the commission before we're satisfied, but we support the funding.

Labor has also been committed to defence spending being at a minimum of two per cent of GDP since 2013, and we're pleased the government agrees. However, what we know about defence spending is that it's never just about quantum; it's about value for money, delivery and ensuring that the contracts we enter into for the assets our Defence Force requires are implemented properly. Sadly, this government has a history of waste and delay, and we'll be holding them to account by using the parliament and Senate estimates to assess whether what's promised in the budget will in fact be delivered.

A recent example of mismanaged assets is the $1.6 billion battle management system, with reports that security risks have caused Defence to abandon this system with no replacement in sight. If this is true, it would force our troops to use paper maps and pencils. What are the government doing about that? They need to account for the reports in our media about such an important battle management system. We need to know. Labor expects our troops to be able to access the technology they need to do their job properly to keep Australians safe. If there are concerns with the current system, the government needs to ensure there is no capability gap if a replacement system is to be found.

We say to the government in relation to these matters that they need to do better. They need to be upfront about what's happening with the largest defence asset contracts in our history. We need to know what's in store for the Future Submarine program. We need to know whether there's going to be a life extension for the Collins class submarines. We need to know the location of the work that's going to be undertaken, because many of these things are still up in the air, providing no certainty for defence industry, no certainty for Defence and, most importantly, no certainty for our defence personnel. That is the test that this government will ultimately be judged by—whether, regardless of its rhetoric and regardless of its posturing, it delivers the defence capability that this country needs to keep its citizens safe.