Bob Brown (Tasmania, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I move:

That the Senate—

(a)

notes:

(i)

the community opposition to 24 hour operations at Canberra airport, and

(ii)

the current effective operation of curfews in Sydney, Coolangatta, Essendon and Adelaide; and

(b)

calls on the Government to implement a curfew at Canberra airport.

Question put.

Gary Humphries (ACT, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

by leave—The coalition and the ACT Liberals do not support the imposition of a blanket curfew on Canberra airport. We are looking at ways to address the concerns of the curfew lobby but do not feel that there is any need to pursue a course that would threaten the economic development of Canberra and Australia as a whole. Canberra airport is the only airport between Brisbane and Melbourne that is currently curfew free, and maintaining that is important to the national infrastructure suite. Noise abatement measures already apply to Canberra and Queanbeyan. Due to wise planning there are no dense urban areas close to the airport, as there are in places such as Sydney, Melbourne and Adelaide. The coalition does not feel that this motion would contribute anything towards the protection of residents and feels that it has much more to do with the ACT election this coming Saturday.

Bob Brown (Tasmania, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

by leave—As the Senate will be aware, I have pursued this matter for some time and it was logical to have the motion to follow it up. Senator Humphries did not say how he was going to address what he called ‘the curfew lobby’, who are residents in the ACT who are very concerned about the potential expansion of this airport to become an international hub, to use the developer’s own words, for cargo transport into Australia, certainly south-east Australia. One can understand what a potential nightmare that would be for the people who are living under the flight trajectory or near the airport. It does require, if the curfew is not going to be addressed, that Senator Humphries and the opposition give concrete expression to their concern for the lobby, but there has been none of that here today. There should have been support.

Stephen Conroy (Victoria, Australian Labor Party, Deputy Leader of the Government in the Senate) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

He’s the single largest donor to the ACT Liberal Party, the bloke who runs the airport! Give us a break!

Gary Humphries (ACT, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Senator Humphries interjecting—

Bob Brown (Tasmania, Australian Greens) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I will just finish. For the senator interjecting, the very argument that Senator Humphries used that this is the only airport between Melbourne and Brisbane without a curfew speaks for itself. Canberra residents should get the same protection as the residents of the other cities, which are protected.