Pat Conaghan (Cowper, National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question as to the Deputy Prime Minister. Will the Deputy Prime Minister update the House on how the Morrison-Joyce government is providing vital infrastructure to support regional communities and economies, 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 his question. I note so much work that he has done in making the Pacific Highway safer, and obviously, especially in its latest iteration, the work that he is doing consistently for the people of the City of Coffs Harbour with the Coffs Harbour bypass. This is a $1.8 billion project—$1.46 billion coming from the federal government. But it's not just on the big projects; it's also on the smaller projects such as the Hutch Road and the sealing of the Hatch Road, or the Macleay Valley family community centre.

In my conversations with the member for Cowper, we've also talked about projects into the future that we have to sit down and consider how we deal with, especially the road that goes between Kempsey and Wollomombi, or the Taylors Arm road, of approximately 60 km, which has had no work on it, or Spooners Avenue from Greenhill to Fredericton, where we've got to try and work out how we take that road ahead.

He also talks about alternative policies, and it's incredibly important that we clearly understand that the member for Cowper's electorate—in it is the beef industry, in it is the dairy industry. It is vitally important that people clearly understand how those industries are so imperative to the income that's earned in places like Kempsey, which is the home of Akubra hats, and these people, whether it's the Maineys and Kesbys and all those families up there, and how important they are to the beef industry.

One of the things that could completely and utterly rock the beef industry is a legislation that was brought forward that would put the impost and would put caveats on where that industry went. Now, we heard of what has been happening in Glasgow and the movements that have been made by the President of the United States and others towards a methane target by 2030 on 2020 levels—30 per cent reduction. And I'm so happy and confident that that's not a path that Australia will entertain to go by 2030, but I don't know exactly what the Labor Party's position is on this. Because this would decimate it. The member for McMahon—I'm going to quote your press conference. I was even more perturbed and less confident when I heard the member for McMahon talk about how it was a silly little debate and that of course agriculture should be included. I've got no problems with that, as long as it lifts them up and it doesn't drag them down. And his solution to methane abatement was Asparagopsis. Now, Asparagopsis—you can buy it in capsules, about 120 capsules will costs you about $50. The problem is we got close to 30 million head of cattle, and 30 million head of cattle and buying Asparagopsis—the numbers just don't work out. He said, the member for McMahon, 'Don't worry— (Time expired)