Linda Burney (Barton, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

What I wanted to raise tonight has been raised today in this parliament already, and it is about social cohesion. Probably a better way to say that, in my view, is social harmony. The member for Wentworth's motion earlier today highlighted the corrosive effects of antisemitism on our social fabric. We are seeing that being played out in cities like Sydney and Melbourne and in other places as well. The corrosive effect of all forms of racism and prejudice is before us as a nation once again. These issues seem to come up periodically, be they about people from certain faiths or people who have different cultural beliefs. We as a nation confidently say Australia is a shining example of multiculturalism—and, of course, it is—but it doesn't happen by magic. It happens by hard work.

I have been very privileged to represent two of the most multicultural electorates in Australia: Barton for the past eight years and also the state seat of Canterbury for 13 years before that. I have to say that walking down the streets in Barton and Canterbury makes you feel proud. It makes you feel proud to be living in this country and proud of the generosity, and the embrace of cultures in those electorates is something to behold. Australian multiculturalism has been a success story—that is true. That's not just because of the cultures we bring to each other's lives but because we have so much joy to share.

Hurstville hosts the largest Lunar New Year celebration outside of the Sydney CBD. Last Friday night, I joined the Lunar New Year celebrations with Bayside Council at Wolli Creek on Friday night. It was an absolutely outstanding evening. There were thousands and thousands and thousands of people from all cultures enjoying and celebrating Lunar New Year. Of course, this year is the Year of the Snake. Next month, many of you would have received invitations already, I'm sure. Muslims will begin fasting for the holy month of Ramadan. Orthodox and Western Christians will begin their fast for Lent. Eid and Easter will follow, as will Passover. Tibetan New Year and Holi will also be days for celebration in the coming months. On the National Aboriginal and Islanders Day last year, schools, councils and many other organisations gathered to celebrate the oldest surviving culture on the planet. I want that point that I've just made to be a point of pride for all Australians, not just for some. It is something that we share collectively as a nation.

As I said, we share each other's joy. But we are sometimes forced to share each other's sorrow. As I said, we share each other's joy. But we are sometimes forced to share each other's sorrow. The vandalising of the Southern Sydney Synagogue in Allawah, very close to the electorate of Barton, in January was a cowardly attack. Masked vandals worked in the small hours to instil fear in the congregation, and they made the St George community feel less safe.

Racism and prejudice eat away at the threads of our social cohesion, and that point is something that we all must think very deeply about, and we all must also take responsibility for it—particularly people in this house. As I said earlier today, we need to show national leadership, to show the generosity that we are shown in our electorates.

Acts of violence and terror are the worst manifestations of this, but it manifests itself in other ways: harassment of people for the colour of their skin or the visible demonstration of their faith; Nazi salutes and hate symbols at rallies; misinformation about entire faiths or cultures or painting them with the reprehensible acts of a small minority. My constituents and people from across Australia have spoken to me of these kinds of incidents happening to them, and I have to recall that during last year's referendum debate social media gave a platform to the very worst kinds of vilification of First Nations people. And I have personally experienced that to a very, very, very severe degree.

People who wear hijabs and kippahs have experienced harassment just going about their days. The targets of these incidents are obviously the most impacted by trauma and hurt. Not just trauma and hurt from what they've experienced on that day, but trauma and hurt from the collective history of those people. It leaves a scar, a scar that never heals. On this basis alone, it is unacceptable; but we share a society where we are all hurt by racism. It makes us feel unsafe; it makes us smaller people.

I am pleased to see the second reading of the Criminal Code Amendment (Hate Crimes) Bill today. I commend the work of our ministers, special envoys and people in this parliament working with communities to maintain our social cohesion. I commend the leadership of many organisations on this. I note tomorrow night there is an interfaith gathering here in the parliament, which I intend to be part of. This is the kind of leadership that builds healthier societies. I'm proud to be a member of a government that takes racism and social cohesion seriously.

Melissa McIntosh (Lindsay, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Energy Affordability) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

What will the Australian public remember about the Albanese Labor government when election day comes? Broken promises. In almost every portfolio where this government has tried to deliver, it has underdelivered or, worse than that, it has made a commitment to the Australian people and then broken that promise. It has done this in my community in Lindsay; it has done this across Western Sydney; it has done this to every single Australian.

On nearly 100 occasions, the Prime Minister said that energy prices would go down by $275. In question time today, those opposite were shouting out, 'But people have gotten $300', but power bills are up $1,000 and so Australians are actually worse off under this government. They broke their promise because despite having a little bit of relief, people are still paying $1,000 more than they had been promised by the Albanese Labor government. I know that people across Western Sydney can't afford this. Small businesses, struggling to keep their doors open because of high wage prices and high energy bills, can't afford these broken promises. It's extraordinary that electricity costs have gone up by more than 30 per cent.

The cost-of-living crisis is hurting Aussie families who can't afford their energy bills, their groceries or their petrol to get to and from work. Gas, as well, is really important in the mix for Western Sydney manufacturers. Yet again, our manufacturers have been let down because gas is up 30 per cent. Manufacturers need gas to produce Aussie made products in this country. They're desperate for gas to flood into the market so they can get some relief from high prices to power their factories. They can have all the solar panels in the world but they can't use solar; they need gas.

Without affordable and reliable power, Aussie made products will go out of existence—and manufacturers have told me this—because our small manufacturers will not be able to compete with overseas competitors any longer. I had a local manufacturer—who has been in the industry, an engineer, for years—in tears because manufacturing is going offshore and he feels there is nothing he can do about it.

We have so many people in our Western Sydney community who rely on their manufacturing job, whether they be from Blacktown, Fairfield, Liverpool or Campbelltown. We want to see our manufacturers thrive and ensure our Western Sydney economy reaps the benefits of this. But it can only be done with a government that will take the energy crisis seriously. A Dutton led government would invest in nuclear to ensure reliable energy for Australians and keep renewables and gas powering our economy and households.

What about housing? There have been so many interest rate rises that have smashed Australian families, and the Albanese Labor government thinks that Australians have it so good. Labor have not done the hard yards to reduce inflation. They've increased spending, and we know a budget deficit could soon feature on the government's books if they manage to get to a budget before calling the election. Mortgage stress has risen particularly in Western Sydney, where people are so aspirational and working so hard to get ahead. Renters are feeling the pinch just as hard. A Dutton led coalition government will spend $5 billion building the infrastructure needed to get new housing developments online to boost housing numbers and help bring down the heat in the property market.

I've spoken about the Albanese Labor government's failures on energy affordability and reliability, hits to manufacturers and small businesses, the weakened economy and housing struggles. But there's another key topic on the minds of people in Western Sydney—that is, the Labor government's broken promises on infrastructure funding and projects right across Western Sydney. The Treasurer and the infrastructure minister committed to the Morrison government's infrastructure plan in the Labor government's October 2022 mini budget, but—what a surprise—Labor broke this commitment and broke promises to the Australian people that they made during the 2022 election, and decided to conduct an independent review of Western Sydney infrastructure by local experts. They also called for a review of the entirety of infrastructure funding in Australia.

Before the May 2023 budget, the Albanese Labor government received the Western Sydney report but decided to shelve it until November. This meant they were not going to be pressured publicly to fund certain projects in Western Sydney that the independent report evaluated as high priority. The budget went ahead without taking the Western Sydney report into consideration. Then the minister took away funding from vital projects, including the M7-M12 link already under construction. This is needed to connect multiple parts of Western Sydney via the motorway to the new Western Sydney International Airport, which is a Commonwealth responsibility. We want the airport to succeed. We don't want investment left behind for the airport that's going to enhance people's lives in Western Sydney and make going to the airport and all around Western Sydney easier, and we don't want the people of Western Sydney to be left behind.

Unfortunately, the minister also cut funding for the Western Sydney transport development network. The network was made up of seven roads, which are old semi-rural roads, in desperate need of upgrades; these are potholed roads. Shortly, when the airport opens, they are going to be major freight roads for an international airport. Not only is this inadequate; it puts local residents at risk, and they are very concerned about their safety. The coalition has now committed funding to one of these roads, Fifteenth Avenue, to the tune of $500 million, alongside the New South Wales government. This is important because the people of Werriwa, which is where this road is, deserve this much-needed road funding.

Austral, the community in Werriwa, is growing so fast, with tens of thousands of homes to be constructed, connecting the airport to the Liverpool CBD. The minister delaying the release of the independent report and not getting on with these projects is one in a bundle of examples of the infrastructure minister being tricky with the people of Western Sydney. Let's not forget when she refused to meet with Western Sydney residents to discuss the changed bypass to the Western Sydney Airport. She actually came to the electorate of Lindsay with the energy minister but didn't have time to go 15 minutes up the road on that day to Penrith and talk to those impacted by the change in the flight paths. We had a Senate committee hearing on flight paths in my electorate. The minister was there, up the road, but didn't appear. She would not face the people, but she's been very good at putting out midnight media releases to avoid scrutiny.

Western Sydney is really sick and tired of being hoodwinked by the Albanese Labor government, particularly this infrastructure minister. When will she visit Lindsay, Hume or Fowler—non-Labor areas—to hear community feedback about the flight paths? When will she do a press conference from her electorate office in Ballarat about Western Sydney—wait, she's already done that. That's her favourite thing to do. The minister came to Western Sydney to claim a win with investment in our regions. She tried to pull the wool over our eyes by saying her government had put new funding into Western Sydney infrastructure. That funding was set by the Morrison government. She put it on hold then ripped it away and only invested some of it back into Western Sydney, but she wanted us to be grateful. It's extraordinary.

An honourable member: We had a good infrastructure minister in the Morrison government.

A fantastic infrastructure minister in the Morrison government. Since that time, we have been completely abandoned. The Albanese Labor government has not delivered on its original commitment to infrastructure for the Western Sydney community. Infrastructure has not caught up with some of the housing developments. We have a population boom in Western Sydney. You can't have one million people arrive in Australia without providing adequate infrastructure for additional housing being built where they live. The absolute disconnect on policy from this Labor government is astounding.

The coalition has taken leadership on this very issue, wanting to reduce immigration to sustainable levels—without doing so, our infrastructure and housing crisis will get worse. Western Sydney is at the brunt of this cost-of-living crisis, which has been compounded by the utter neglect on adequate infrastructure, no real policy on housing and relying on immigration to essentially keep the economy afloat. Our community wants leadership. That's what they tell me when I'm out in Western Sydney.

It's time to remove this weak Albanese Labor government from office. A Dutton coalition government will deliver on our plan to reduce inflation, boost productivity, invest in infrastructure and get on with the job of delivering for everyday Australians that Labor has left behind.