Michaelia Cash (WA, Liberal Party, Assistant Minister for Immigration and Border Protection) Share this | Hansard source

I thank Senator Sinodinos for his question. This government promised the Australian people that if we were elected to govern we would deliver to them the infrastructure of the 21st century, and that is exactly what we are doing. This government has made a historic investment into infrastructure of $50 billion through to 2019-20. I remind senators that our investment into infrastructure is $16.4 billion more than what those opposite promised. That is right: $16.4 billion more than what those opposite promised. Under this government, 84 projects are currently under construction right across Australia, with another 88 projects in detailed planning stages, with construction expected to commence in the near future.

In terms of major works, they include the Pacific Highway, in New South Wales, for which 60 per cent, or 397 kilometres, of the final highway length has already been duplicated, with a further 123 kilometres under construction. A total of 2,137 construction workers were on-site across the Pacific Highway at the end of last year.

Then, of course, under this government there is the Western Sydney Infrastructure Plan, where work is already underway on stage 1 of the $509 million Bringelly Road upgrade, which will support the new Western Sydney Airport at Badgerys Creek. But we do not stop there. In Queensland construction is underway on seven major projects. In Tasmania, construction has commenced on seven safety work projects along the Midland Highway. In my home state of Western Australia, construction on the first stage of works along the North West Coastal Highway commenced in January 2015. We said we would deliver on infrastructure and that is exactly what this government is doing. (Time expired)