Helen Polley (Tasmania, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

Madam Acting Deputy President O'Neill, it's nice to see you in the chair. Let's put on the record the facts in relation to investment in regional Australia. After 10 very long years, Senator McKenzie—through you, Madam Acting Deputy President—is coming into this chamber and rewriting history. They have denied the Australian community, particularly those living in regional Australia, opportunities because of the rorting that they did while they were in government, and then the former minister herself comes into this chamber to try and rewrite history.

What we have in the new Albanese Labor government is a Prime Minister who understands, along with every member of ours in the House of Representatives and in this chamber, the importance of regional Australia and what it means to the Australian economy. The Prime Minister, who has in the past been a brilliant infrastructure minister, knows the value of investing. But what we will always do is make sure that all funding is accountable and transparent and will be delivered to regional Australia and the communities that need it most. It will not be delivered for the target seats that those opposite were trying to save so they could stay in government. They do not respect the Australian taxpayer. When they were in government, for the last 10 years, all they ever did was ensure that they would hold their seats to keep themselves in their big white limousines. That's what they did. If there had been a real commitment from Senator McKenzie and others on that side, they would not have been rorting the system; they would not have been promising and making commitments to car parks and train stations where there were none; they wouldn't have spent in excess of $50 million that they didn't need to spend in acquiring land in New South Wales in relation to the airport there.

So there is going to be a stark difference in how we as a government under Anthony Albanese will handle and use taxpayers' money, because we don't consider it our money, unlike the Liberals and Nationals when they were in government. We will actually deliver—