Richard Colbeck (Tasmania, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I move:

That the Senate take note of the answers given by ministers to questions without notice asked by Opposition senators today.

Six months into the term of this new government, the Australian people are seeing that what was said before the election doesn't necessarily apply after the election and also that the Labor Party continue to cynically and politically use their governance in their relationships with the states. We've heard about the ring road and suburban rail project in Victoria and the allocation of $2.2 billion to that project. The Victorian Auditor-General questioned its viability, but it continues to be there. It's quite extraordinary that the current Minister for Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government, Catherine King, said that, if it doesn't stack up through the Infrastructure Australia process, they'll just send it back until it does stack up. How is that good process? When Tasmania asked for some support for a stadium to support the AFL licence that's coming our way, which is great news, the Prime Minister said that he wanted to see a business plan. When New South Wales was looking for support for infrastructure projects, there were significant cuts to infrastructure projects in New South Wales or they were phased out beyond the budget estimates.

But when Victoria wants a project to suit its election time line, even though the project has questionable economics, $2.2 billion of Australian taxpayers' money is funnelled into that in support of it. There's money funnelled into that. When Tasmania wants to see a stadium built to support an AFL side, that's too bad. But $2.2 billion can be found to suit the political purposes of the Victorian Labor Party for their election campaign.

We're seeing that in relation to the cost of living. Before the election, no end of now government ministers—then opposition ministers—were out there in the public arena talking about how they would be working to support Australians with the cost of living. In fact, the now Treasurer said on Sky Agenda on 1 May, 'That means under Labor you'll have a government which cares about cost of living and has plans to deal with it.' What we're actually seeing is that there was no plan, and there is no plan. That's been demonstrated by the cost-of-living pressures that we're seeing now. The budget admits that electricity prices will go up by in excess of 50 per cent and that gas prices will go up by in excess of 35 per cent.

Australians are coming to realise that they were sold a pup before the election with all the commitments that were made around the cost of living. In fact, as the opposition leader said in his address in reply to the budget, 'Everything is going up except your wages.' The government are now admitting that—they're crab walking away from all of their promises. They're seeking to redefine their promises, or they're doing what they've done all along, which is blame somebody else: 'It's somebody else's fault; it's somebody else's problem.' What's very, very clear is that Labor don't have a plan. They never had a plan, despite saying dozens and dozens of times in the lead up to the election that they did. Australians are realising now that just because Labor said it doesn't mean it was so.

So the cost of living continues to go up, the cost of your gas and electricity bills are continuing to go up, your tax payments are going up, government spending is going up and real wages are forecast to go down. This government made commitment after commitment to support Australians. They said that they would be with them all the way, that they would be beside Australians in dealing with the challenges of the cost of living and that they would support Australians to do that. What has become very apparent is that Australians are now on their own. Labor has no answers—it's crab walking away from its commitments—and Australians are going to have to deal with these problems on their own.

Nita Green (Queensland, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

It's very clear from the questions asked by the opposition and even the Greens today that there's a Victorian election on the horizon. That's a focus for those parties. But, on this side of the chamber, we are focused on delivering cost-of-living relief and higher wages for Australians. That is what we are getting on with this week in parliament. We certainly have a desire to work with state governments. We know, from the answers given by our ministers today, that we are keen to make sure that, no matter which state we're talking about, we are working with states to deliver infrastructure projects—a foreign concept to those over there, who made a sport out of picking sides with state governments and fighting state governments in the last term. But we are interested in working together to deliver jobs and to deliver infrastructure.

It's pretty rich for those opposite to come in here and talk about infrastructure funding and decision-making, because we know that they are the party of the colour coded spreadsheet. Whether it was car park rorts, safety rorts, building rorts or sports rorts, there wasn't a fund that the former government didn't try to rort, using taxpayers' money as Liberal Party money. So we're not going to sit here and cop debate from the other side about decisions on infrastructure funding. We are delivering our election commitments, and we are going to be funding infrastructure and delivering integrity to infrastructure funding. That means funding projects that deliver value for money and jobs for Australians.

In Queensland alone, we are delivering $18.5 billion in infrastructure funding. Before those over there protest about the delivery of that funding, can I say that over half of that investment is in regional Queensland. I couldn't be prouder of the infrastructure commitments that we are delivering. We're doing that in conjunction with the state government because we're working together. In most places, all three levels of government are coming together to deliver these projects.

Those on the opposite side of the chamber have come in here today and accused our government of walking away from promises on cost-of-living relief. I can assure you that we are not doing that at all. We are delivering cost-of-living relief, whether it's cheaper child care or cheaper medicines, but, more importantly, we are also working very hard to deliver real pay rises to hardworking Australians. The party over there is lecturing us about wage growth in high inflation when we know that the Liberal and National parties were the parties of low wages. Literally, in a submission to the Fair Work Commission, they argued the benefit of keeping wages low for low-wage workers. They had a deliberate design feature in their approach to wage growth that tried to keep wages low. And it worked—the facts speak for themselves.

After 10 years, we saw stagnant wages and low wages that didn't keep up with the cost of living. Stagnant wages have an impact on the everyday cost of living and on families and the food that they can put on the table, but they also have an impact on our economy. There's a reason that the economy went backwards under this mob. It's because they refused to understand that lifting wages lifts the economy. We've got a broken bargaining system, and it is clear from every side of this debate, whether it's workers, unions or businesses. It's really hard for those over there to hear those quotes from small and large businesses who acknowledge that the bargaining system is broken and needs to be fixed.

I remind those opposite who raised concerns in their questions today and hopefully will raise them in their speeches in this debate to take note of answers given in question time that, if you are concerned about the wages of Australia's lowest paid workers and making sure that people can keep up with the cost of living, there's a very simple thing that you can do this week or next week in parliament. You can come in here and vote for our secure jobs and better pay bill because it is a bill that will deliver a fairer system, better wages and a better bargaining system. If you want to do that, you can join us in supporting workers—childcare workers, aged-care workers and workers throughout the economy. You stood there and thanked them during the pandemic for all the hard work that they did. Now you've got a chance to thank them by making sure that they have a pay rise that delivers on cost of living. You can do that next week in the Senate.

Ross Cadell (NSW, National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

We heard questions and answers today in the chamber around the funding of the $2.2 billion Suburban Rail Loop. The recent estimates were my first estimates—I'm new here—and I learned about 'reprofiling' budgets, money and what we're going to invest.

My first lesson! We have to take on faith the money that we're looking at in the budget. It's not printed and it's not written, but it's there. It's like a bitcoin transaction—it is on faith and it can disappear just as quickly. It can leave thousands of people without jobs or money, and that is what we're finding.

But we do find this $2.2 billion for the Suburban Rail Loop in the budget for 2024-25, and we see $1.4 billion coming from Health. In the question on the $2.2 billion, we said the Victorian Auditor-General found that the Victorian government:

… did not demonstrate the economic rationale for the entire project, and they have told us that they have no plans to do so.

Let's not assume that $2.2 billion builds the Suburban Rail Loop. It will cost up to $130 billion to build the Suburban Rail Loop. What is that $2.2 billion for? Is that the down-payment on a loan fee for belt and road? Is that what it is? What does this do in 2024-25?

We saw that on the Newcastle-Sydney higher speed rail promise of the government, where they put $500 million towards establishing a planning committee and buying property, but no rails or sleepers would be laid and no trains would be bought. Again, it is just money for nothing. People won't get from Newcastle to Sydney faster, people won't get around Melbourne faster, but they've put that money there to hang the hope out, and the profiling will take care of the rest.

When we talk about prices rising and the cost of living, we always hear about the Ukraine situation and the price of gas, fuel and coal. But the majority of Australian coal-fired power plants have fixed-term contracts on their coal at about $100 a tonne; they haven't risen. A coal truck doesn't go from the mine to Ukraine, via the Donbas, then back to Australia to aid coal-fired power producers. Our gas doesn't get shipped overseas via the Caucasus and back to Australia. And no wind turbine or solar panel runs its wiring through the Ukraine back to Australia. They have put price pressure on, but that doesn't cover all the cost of living. Domestic promises and lack of policy are driving people's costs higher.

When you look at the opportunity cost of all this, that $2.2 billion again could have gone to ease things. I'm sure the rigorous processes that this government claims were on that $2.2 billion for the Suburban Rail Loop took a shorter period than it takes to get an ambulance in Melbourne nowadays. People spend hours waiting. Last night, they were talking about a child who waited an hour and a half. They were put on hold while they waited to get an ambulance. What could that $2.2 billion have done for those people down there? What could it have done for cost of living at home? What could it do in so many ways? It appears people can't buy energy anymore. But is there a fear that that $2 billion can try and buy an election?

Remember, this was an election that was meant to be easily done. This was an election that was going to be a walk in the park. But, through all the fog and mirrors and everything that's going on, it's becoming a tussle. It is not an own-goal. It's not another Premier Dan Andrews cakewalk. This will be close, because the people of Australia have had enough of pushing or reprofiling projects to the never-never and the promising of bits of money that will never see a project. They've had enough of seeing interest rates go up eight times since this government was elected. They've had enough of seeing energy prices predicted to go up 53 per cent and then 30 per cent.

The people of Victoria and the people of Australia want to see action. We hear you point the finger at anything we did in the last decade. And I get it. We don't have power anymore. But we've had a budget. There was an opportunity—not to do everything, but to do more. It hasn't done it. All it has done is to come up with things that were promised. It was not researched properly. It's not going to help people in the areas they need right now. And we need to do better. There needs to be another thing that comes in shortly to help people with the cost of living. We need to re-look at this Suburban Rail Loop and give people the things they need, like money for health and for living. And that's what we should be focusing on.

Karen Grogan (SA, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

It was interesting to sit here and listen to Senator Fawcett blaming the Labor government for the stagnated wages and the challenges we have in cost-of-living pressures in Australia at the moment. Seriously? You spent nine years in government presiding over these things, with an absolutely dedicated policy of suppressing wages—and you have been really clear about that—and you want to blame us? You want to blame the Labor government, after six months, for those pressures? That is just absolutely ridiculous!

So let's be really clear. In six short months we have moved to work on cheaper child care. We have a bill in front of us. We have increased renewable energy and we have a plan for our electricity system into the future that is going to make a difference and is going to improve how we can utilise renewable energy in this country. We have introduced the free TAFE places, to address the skills shortages that we have been stuck with for years now and that are only getting worse. We're also bringing in extra university places to address those same skills shortages. And, as we heard earlier from Senator Gallagher, there has been $32 billion in increased payments, including into the age pension. All of these things are to address cost-of-living pressures and the employment pressures that we have—the skills gap et cetera.

We have also increased the minimum wage—well, we didn't, but we supported and encouraged that occurring. Now we're on the verge of the secure jobs, better pay bill, which will make a difference if those in this chamber will pass it—if they will get behind having wages moving so that people are not struggling under the stagnated wages we saw while they opposition were in government for nine very, very long years. So we are taking action and we are going to make a difference.

The problems we're facing with the secure jobs, better pay bill are, in the main, ones of ideology. I am honoured to sit on the Education and Employment Legislation Committee, which is looking at this bill. Our inquiry has had five days of hearings. Just to be clear, that's more public hearings than for any other workplace relations related bill since the introduction of the Fair Work Act. The committee has heard from employers, unions, the community and small business, and from workers, not-for-profit organisations, the Department of Employment and Workplace Relations and the Fair Work Commission, to ensure that each member of the committee has had a chance to unpack the bill and explore the issues. And that is exactly what has happened.

One of the things we're commonly hearing now is that small business are going to struggle and suffer. We're hearing all sorts of outlandish claims about there being strikes from coast to coast. I think that was the comment from Senator Cash. There is nothing in these bills that would see that happen in any environment, but certainly not in the small business area. Even when there was 60 per cent union density, it was never in small business. Small business has never had deep unionisation, and there's nothing in these bills that will change that.

When we go to the other end of the scale, we have the big end of town coming to talk to us, particularly in some of those areas where they're never going to see any impacts from this. Their businesses are in a situation where they have wages settled—they've been bargaining and everything is going nicely. This bill isn't going to change that. This bill is going to get wages moving. It is going to address some of the significant cost-of-living pressures that we in this country are facing, and it is going to give a fair go to workers, not just allow the employers, big or medium, without any morals to keep moving to a low-wage environment. This is about everyone having a go, from the businesses to the employees— (Time expired)

Matt O'Sullivan (WA, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise to take note of the first two questions that were asked by the coalition in question time today. I note that they were about the suburban rail project. I don't think any of the contributions of the Labor senators on this take-note motion have made even a glancing reference to those particular questions. I could have taken a point of order on that, Mr Deputy President. I didn't, because I thought it would be interesting to see whether they would continue to avoid the point made in those questions. Of course, that point is all about integrity, transparency and sound economic management.

The Andrews Labor government's Suburban Rail Loop is just another example of the government's failed budget and their utter hypocrisy. Whenever Labor are in political trouble they look to rail to haul them out of a fix. They're at it again. The Suburban Rail Loop's estimated spend of $125 million is the price tag of just two legs of the project, and it won't even be completed by 2050. Yet the Prime Minister had to step in and help out his old mate the Victorian Premier. The federal government committed to a $2.2 billion spend in the October budget, almost a quarter of their infrastructure spend. This is pork-barrelling at its absolute finest.

As usual, Labor are putting their priorities over Australians' priorities. Never mind the cost-of-living crisis, the energy crisis and out-of-control inflation that we're experiencing right now in this country, Labor is happy to scrap excellent programs such as the Building Better Regions Fund. But, of course, that is only so that they can afford to commit to a project that hasn't even had its business case approved by Infrastructure Australia. As reported by the Australian Financial Review:

… Victoria's Auditor-General has criticised the Andrews government's 400 page business case—which it declined to submit to Infrastructure Australia—for failing to demonstrate that the economic costs and benefits of the project justify the investment.

In my home state of Western Australia Premier Mark McGowan's signature Metronet project, which he committed to at the 2017 election, it is also facing major cost blowouts and significant delays. Senator Brockman, who is here, knows about the delays that have been experienced right across the Metronet project. What we're seeing is that the Albanese Labor government has ripped out $1.2 billion from the budget that had been earmarked for a very important project, which was determined by Infrastructure Australia to be one of the key infrastructure projects for the driving of productivity in my home state of Western Australia, and that was the Roe 8, Roe 9 project and the freight link that was earmarked in the budget for quite some time. It was waiting for a government in Western Australia to commit to it, but sadly that has not happened. In fact, they've ripped it out of the budget, and it's no longer available for a government in Western Australia to choose to build. Instead, we have these ridiculous projects up and down Leach Highway that are not actually resolving the traffic congestion and, importantly, taking heavy freight off suburban streets. Roe 8 and 9 would have created a thoroughfare for heavy freight on large trucks.

In Victoria, obviously, the election will be held this Saturday, and the Victorian people have a big decision to make about who will lead them. What we see is that federal Labor is doing everything it can to help to protect the Victorian Premier and make sure that he wins back government. We know that the only real way that that state can move past the situation that they find themselves in and that was exacerbated during the COVID period is by having a Liberal government elected there. A Liberal government would help them to fix their budget mess and help them to fix their infrastructure projects.

Question agreed to.