Judith Troeth (Victoria, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

On behalf of the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Public Works, I present report No. 4 of 2010, Referrals made in October 2010. I move:

That the Senate take note of the report.

This is the first report of the new parliament and the Public Works Committee has worked hard to ensure that the proposals to which I speak, originally referred during the last parliament, were dealt with as quickly and efficiently as possible. The committee has also fully implemented its new manual of procedures which includes greater scrutiny of the confidential costings of each project.

This report addresses three works, in New South Wales and South Australia, with a total estimated cost of $155 million. In every case the committee has recommended the House of Representatives agree to the works proceeding. The works are: the proposed HMAS Penguin and Pittwater Annexe redevelopment in Mosman and Clareville, New South Wales, by the Department of Defence, at an estimated cost of $63.3 million; the proposed development and construction of housing for Defence at Largs North—also known as Bayriver—in Port Adelaide, South Australia, by Defence Housing Australia, at an estimated cost of $38.2 million; and the proposed integrated fit-out of the new leased premises for the Australian Taxation Office at 12-26 Franklin Street, Adelaide, South Australia, by the Australian Taxation Office, at an estimated cost of $54.2 million.

The HMAS Penguin redevelopment deals with a substantial proposal that will update a number of very old facilities. When we undertook the site inspection we could see that the works were needed. The Royal Australian Navy Dive School has made do with very limited space and ageing buildings and we fully support the purpose-designed accommodation for the school. We are particularly concerned about the current accommodation for the Submarine and Underwater Medicine Unit, which is entirely unsuitable and totally inadequate for its purpose. We certainly support those proposed new facilities.

In Adelaide, we looked at Defence Housing Australia, which has proposed the development of vacant land for housing, including the construction of some houses for members of the Australian Defence Force. In the report, we make particular reference to a small amount of contaminated land that remains on-site and we recommend that DHA fully remediate this small area of land as part of the project.

We have an ongoing interest in the provision of accessible housing by Defence Housing Australia and we are delighted that DHA has undertaken to build its future homes to the silver level under the new livable housing design guidelines. This will ensure that the houses are flexible and capable of easy adaptation to the needs of residents of all ages and abilities. We commend DHA for taking this important decision.

Lastly, we looked at the new fit-out for the entire Adelaide CBD staff of the Australian Taxation Office. This project will provide the ATO with a single location. The ATO is consolidating a number of properties in Australian capital cities and these new projects benefit the staff as well as the organisation. We are also pleased to see that, despite these consolidations, the ATO will not be reducing its presence in regional and rural Australia.

I thank all senators and members for their work in relation to these inquiries and I commend the report to the Senate.

Question agreed to.