Mitch Fifield (Victoria, Liberal Party, Assistant Minister for Social Services) Share this | Hansard source

Since coming to office, the coalition has done more to protect Australia's Great Barrier Reef than any government before it, including the previous Labor-Greens administration. The ideology of the Greens would see all development of any kind brought to a standstill. The Queensland resource sector is merely their first target. The government is aware of the Queensland government seeking to co-invest in critical resource sector infrastructure and create approximately 28,000 jobs. This is a perfectly normal and responsible approach to encouraging investment and stimulating long-term economic growth. The Australian government is not currently investing public money in the development of these assets. The Greens have been calling for an end to the disposal of dredge in the Great Barrier Reef waters ever since the coalition took office. Now they are complaining about on-land disposal. One has to ask: where it will end?