Anne Urquhart (Tasmania, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I move:

That the Senate take note of the answers given by the Minister for Veterans' Affairs (Senator Ronaldson), the Minister for Finance (Senator Cormann) and the Assistant Minister for Social Services (Senator Fifield) to questions without notice asked by Opposition senators today relating to the Enterprise Connect program, to Future of Financial Advice regulations and to the Dementia and Severe Behaviours Supplement.

I will focus on the answers from Senator Ronaldson about the government's farcical Entrepreneurs Infrastructure Program and its impact on Tasmanian businesses and Tasmanian jobs. Critically, Senator Ronaldson was not across his brief at all on the program. Senator Ronaldson would not answer any of the questions about the cuts to business advisory services in Tasmania. Senator Ronaldson could only take on notice to find out if the innovation centre in Burnie will remain open. The people of north-west Tasmania expect a guarantee from the minister and the local member in coming days, not in months, through the questions-on-notice process.

I have seen the value of the Enterprise Connect service firsthand across north-western Tasmania. Under the previous Labor government, Enterprise Connect provided small to medium enterprises and companies with access to infrastructure and services to help them navigate business challenges and grow jobs. Almost $1.4 million was provided by the previous Labor government to 104 small- to medium-income firms across Tasmania. Recipients from north-western Tasmania included Anvers confectionery, Forth Farm Produce, Joinery Products, Penguin Composites and SERS engineering. Critically, a number of these firms have accessed grants from Enterprise Connect on two, three and sometimes more occasions. This is logical. A small to medium firm faces new challenges. They of course may want to utilise Enterprise Connect's valued advisory services or infrastructure grants on a second or third occasion.

This week it was announced that 350 jobs would go at the Henty gold mine and the Mount Lyell copper mine on Tasmania's west coast. The west coast is an important part of the Mersey-Lyell region, which has already been identified as one of the most economically vulnerable in Australia. The Mount Lyell mine has been the lifeblood of Queenstown, on Tasmania's isolated west coast, since the 19th century. The Henty gold mine, some 20 kilometres north of Queenstown, will have been operational for roughly 20 years when it closes next year. I commend the leadership demonstrated by the Australian Workers Union officials Robert Flanagan and Ian Wakefield and the Tasmanian Labor leader, Bryan Green, in calling for a community-led federal-state west coast Tasmanian employment task force, to provide leadership, work with business and community and create jobs on the west coast of Tasmania. I welcome the news that the Tasmanian government has moved to establish a west coast economic working group involving the state government, West Coast Council, Copper Mines of Tasmania, the AWU and the community members.

I was in Queenstown last week and attended the Rotary Club's weekly meeting. Those present were aware of the need to diversify the local economy and were reaching out for assistance to make things happen rather than just talk about change. They were talking about expanding the aquaculture, fishing and tourism industries in particular, as well as support for new mines in the region. To make things happen requires finance, and the federal government is the only tier of government capable of providing the required assistance, whether in business advisory services like Enterprise Connect or co-investment grants like the previous Labor government's investment with the aquaculture industry in Macquarie Harbour.

I am deeply concerned by comments from the federal member for Braddon, Mr Brett Whiteley, on the mine closures. It would be natural for Mr Whiteley, as the local federal government representative, to also be on the state government's working group, but Mr Whiteley's response was simply that the challenges facing the region would be discussed at the meeting of the Prime Minister's Tasmanian Economic Council. However, this council is not due to meet until later in July, and reports are that it has a lengthy agenda, so how much time will actually be spent on specific west coast employment issues is anyone's guess. Mr Whiteley, your constituents on the west coast need your help now, not in a few weeks time.

Mr Whiteley, the federal government needs to play an active role in any working groups for employment on the west coast. Both sides of this place agree that government does have a role to play in creating jobs, and, despite Prime Minister Abbott's so-called budget emergency, the federal Liberals are providing $16 million for a tourism expansion at Cadburys chocolate factory, located next door to the world-famous MONA museum, a long, long way from the west coast of Tasmania. Mr Whiteley's stated priority upon election was 'jobs, jobs and jobs', but the people of the west coast want action, not words. (Time expired)