Darren Chester (Gippsland, National Party, Shadow Minister for Regional Education) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Australians are at risk of being killed and injured on our roads while the Minister for Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government fails to do her job and deliver the road safety projects that were fully budgeted for by the previous government. It's become farcical. It's now taken 171 days for the minister to undertake a 90-day review of the Infrastructure Investment Program—and she still needs more time.

If you apply the same logic to other activities in life, I estimate that this minister would need probably 97 minutes to watch the 60 Minutes TV program. Watch out if she turns up for 90-second statements; she'll be after 171 seconds for a 90-second statement. I would hate to be invited around to the minister's place for dinner, because Minister King is the only person in Australia who needs 3½ minutes to cook two-minute noodles! If you see a grader or a crane or a bulldozer working on a public infrastructure project anywhere in Australia today, you can be sure this minister had absolutely nothing to do with it. After 18 months in the job, she has hit the ground reviewing and she can't even get that done on time. It's been 171 days for a 90-day review. If it wasn't so serious, this would actually be quite funny. Time is running out for this incompetent minister. Lives are being put at risk, and she is not doing her job.