James McGrath (Queensland, Liberal National Party) Share this | Hansard source

Yes, except West End. The work that Senator Scarr has done has already been acknowledged, and I thank him for that. We've got Senator McDonald, also a new senator, who comes from the north-west of this state and now lives in Townsville. We've got Senator Canavan, who not only is the minister for northern Australia but is someone who lives in Yeppoon. We've got people who are on the ground, listening and working with all Queenslanders to progress the agenda for the development of the north. That's what this debate is about, when you look into it, and that's what this government's agenda is about: it is about the development of the north.

It is disappointing that, when the southerners talk about Queensland, about North Queensland and about Far North Queensland, it's almost like we're some form of oddity that could be held in a Victorian-era museum: 'We've discovered these Queenslanders, and they live in this pristine environment. We're going to lock them away, and they can't have anything that we've had.' It is almost this post-colonial attitude towards development of northern Australia.

I will talk about what the government has done—and I should acknowledge former senator Ian Macdonald for the work that he did over many decades in pushing the agenda for the development of the north. When the Abbott government was elected in 2013, we started to put into place a white paper on northern Australia, and there were nine priorities, which I'll touch upon shortly.

There is this unfortunate negative campaign that the Labor Party—surprise, surprise, ladies and gentlemen—are pushing about the government's agenda for the north. What we've got to remember about the Labor Party is that, when they were in power, they did very little for the north. In fact, they did nothing for the north. It is only the Liberal-National government, elected in 2013, that has started to push a serious agenda for the north. Part of that agenda is the Northern Australia Infrastructure Facility. Senator Canavan has made comments about how that facility has been proceeding. Yesterday, in responding to questions from opposition senators, he particularly commented on how they've been able to essentially change its terms to make it easier for money to flow out the door. Almost $2 billion of the $5 billion has been effectively invested in projects, locked into the financing of projects.

The Labor Party will go around and attack the government for not throwing more money around. That is an unfair accusation, but it also goes to the heart of what the Labor Party are about, because they think money solves all the problems in the world. This money is not the government's money; this money is the taxpayers' money—the money of all Australians, not just Queenslanders—that has been invested to help develop the north. We, as the government, as the guardians for the appropriate spending of taxpayers' money, wish to make sure that this money is being put into projects that will help develop the north but also achieve value for the Australian taxpayer. And that is something that we are actually very proud of. We're not going to throw money around like confetti at a wedding. We're going to make sure that the money from Australian taxpayers is invested appropriately. The Labor Party might sniff at that $2 billion, but that is $2 billion of Australian taxpayers' money that is going into projects. That is a lot of money. What is important is that it's not just about money going into projects; it's about understanding the north. It's about understanding northern Australia and Far North Queensland.

I was there only last week, Mr Acting Deputy President Brockman—and I also acknowledge your strong interest in the development of northern Australia, with your home state being Western Australia. Last week, I was fortunate to meet up with Senator McDonald and inspect the Charleston Dam. If you are excited about dams—which I am—this new dam is being built by the Etheridge Shire Council, which is based in Georgetown, and the federal government invested just under $10 million into helping the local council build this dam. It's very exciting. Go onto my Facebook page if you're excited about dams, and you'll be able to see the base of this dam. Hopefully, Mayor Warren Devlin and the council will be able to get the dam finished by March next year. What this means is that two communities—Georgetown and Forsayth—will be able to have reliable water. Previously, it was just a spike in the river. That is so important for that community. The federal government is working in partnership with the local councils up there on projects like that.

While we were there, we also went to the opening of the upgrade to the Mareeba airport. The federal government, state government and council—and I commend all three levels of government—worked together and were able to put a considerable amount of money into the redevelopment upgrade of the Mareeba airport. This is an airport, for those who do not know, that came into life during the Second World War, when it was a major air base for Allied operations in the Pacific. It is essentially a second airport. If Cairns is knocked out for whatever reason, now there is a reliable second airport in Far North Queensland. Mareeba is about an hour or so away from Cairns.

It is the federal government putting money into projects like the Mareeba airport and the Charleston Dam in Etheridge Shire which shows that, yes, there are glamorous, big, shiny projects, but it is actually the small projects that show that this government is progressing and developing our agenda for the north. It is through both these small and big projects, because there is an agenda for the north. There is a strategy for the north that came about because of the white paper on northern Australia and those nine infrastructure measures that were first outlined in that white paper.

Rather than continue—I realise everybody has had a long few days—I intend to talk further in an adjournment speech at a later time about the incredible work that this government has been doing on behalf of the taxpayers of Australia in terms of building the infrastructure in northern Australia, in particular in the Far North, North and Central Queensland. I seek leave to continue my remarks.

Leave granted; debate adjourned.