Damian Drum (Nicholls, National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Deputy Prime Minister. Will the Deputy Prime Minister update the House on how the Morrison-Joyce government is delivering both significant national infrastructure and local projects supporting our communities and regional economies? How will this benefit my home state of Victoria, and is the Deputy Prime Minister aware of any alternative policies?

Barnaby Joyce (New England, National Party, Leader of the Nationals) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the honourable member for Nicholls for his question. I note the heritage of the area of Nicholls, which was the home of Black Jack McEwen. Back in 1934 he entered parliament and had a long and distinguished career. Like the member for Nicholls—both at a state and federal level he's had a long and distinguished career. I know and we all hope that the delivery he's achieved for the people of Nicholls continues.

It's continued in a range of ways. He has been absolutely instrumental, within the Nationals, in driving for the Inland Rail, which was going through the member for Nicholls' seat and was incredibly important for places such as the stone-fruit produces in the member for Nicholls' seat or the dairy producers in the member for Nicholls' seat or the industry and the benefits they've got from further construction in the member for Nicholls' seat. When it's concluded it will ease congestion, removing 200,000 truck movements each year. It will reduce carbon emissions by 750,000 tonnes each year. One Inland Rail train carries the equivalent of 110 B-double trucks. This is the sort of thing, this is the sort of inspiration, this is the sort of development, which is so important—in achieving a task that we are smart enough to put the investments into, the things that achieve a task and also advance the lives of regional people.

The member for Nicholls has not only been a great champion for the big projects; he's also been a great champion for the smaller projects. In the Shepparton city council Maude Street Mall redevelopment, part of the social infrastructure, he was absolutely at the forefront of that, working with Mayor Kim O'Keeffe. He also was instrumental, especially, in the Echuca-Moama Bridge. That was a massive project. With the member for Riverina they drove forward on that massive project—with $320 million for that project. That's not the sort of development you get if you're relying on people who, basically, when you take away Lingiari, only represent about 150,000 square kilometres of this nation while we represent over five million square kilometres of this nation.

He talks about alternative policies. This is very important because one of his greatest concerns, I imagine, especially around the stone-fruit growers and the dairy farmers, is if legislation came in, further laws, that restricted their capacity, that imposed on their lives, that restricted their freedoms and their capacity to grow. And there's only side of the chamber talking about bringing in the legislation—in fact, it's the only thing we know they're bringing in; we don't know about anything else. It is the Labor Party that's going to bring in the legislation, because they just don't believe in the ingenuity and they don't believe in the freedoms of the individual. They believe that what resides with the member for Grayndler is the capacity to look after the people in Shepparton with legislation, laws and penalties.

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

The Deputy Prime Minister's time has concluded.