Ian Macdonald (Queensland, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

Thank you, Senator Bushby—Ford did announce their departure while Senator Carr was the minister. I only raise that to put Senator Carr's comments in perspective. I have to say there is one element of Senator Carr's speech I do agree with. I accept the minister's confirmation that on the statistics, on the figures, employment is doing okay in Australia. But I come from North Queensland. I know the impact of unemployment there. That is one of the reasons I have been so keen to support this Singapore deal and the expansion of the High Range army training field. The Singaporean taxpayer, not the Australian taxpayer, is going to pour some $2 billion-plus into upgrading this area. The government has given a commitment that the work done in upgrading the area, which will be quite substantial for a whole range of contractors, will be done by local contractors, by local businesses in the Townsville and Rockhampton region. Those businesses will employ people—they will support other small businesses in those communities that are currently struggling. That is why I have been such a strong supporter of that particular project, because it will help with the unemployed in Townsville and Rockhampton, it will help with the small businesses struggling in Townsville and Rockhampton. This proposal to expand the army base is for Australia's benefit—it is for the use of Australian defence forces in extending their training. Their training has to be changed because 3 Brigade has now become not just the light infantry brigade it was but also it now has cavalry units, and so the training area has to expand. That involves quite significant development work, and it will create jobs for Townsville's unemployed and for the small business people that I look after in the area.

I mentioned previously on another topic the proposal for the Adani coalmine and the rail line from the coal site to Abbott Point—major infrastructure projects for Australia, for my state of Queensland, that will help the Queensland budget. Dearie me, the current government we have in Queensland needs every bit of help it can get with the state budget. It is good for Australia; but, more importantly, it is good for those unemployed, those quite substantial numbers of unemployed in central and north Queensland who are there because of the downturn of the mining industry and the closure of the Queensland Nickel refinery in Townsville. There are a lot of people out of work.

So on that I agree with Senator Carr. I am desperate, as is the government I am part of, to make sure that we do whatever we can to provide real jobs for the unemployed and to help struggling small businesses. Small businesses are mums and dads who put their life savings into their business. Through no fault of their own, with the downturn of the mining industry, a lot of them are struggling to stay afloat. The Adani project and the Singapore deal, which will require expansion for Australia of Australia's training bases, will provide those jobs, that support and that lifeline for small business in the north. We as a government will do everything we can to continue to grow employment opportunities in Australia.