Sarah Henderson (Corangamite, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

It is a pleasure to continue my contribution from yesterday. I was speaking about the terrific Green Army project that we have announced for Lorne which is a very important town along the Great Ocean Road and a mecca for tourism. We will be cleaning up the Lorne St George River tramway track to the west of Point Grey. Walking tracks and adventure are so important in the Great Ocean Road region, and this project will add to the tourism assets of our great region. I commend the Great Ocean Road Coast Committee as well as volunteer organisations, such as Lornecare and Friends of Queens Park, for their preliminary work on this project.

Another wonderful project is a Green Army project in Apollo Bay, further down the Great Ocean Road and another wonderful tourist town in my seat of Corangamite. The Barham River Green Army restoration project will enhance the health of the river between Apollo Bay and the Marengo Flora Reserve. This project will include extensive weed removal and the revegetation of the banks of the Barham River. It is another very important project for the region.

In Colac the fourth Green Army project, which will be rolled out in the foreseeable future, is the preservation and enhanced works at the Barongarook Creek. Barongarook Creek forms an important part of the local river system and the project will involve doing quite a lot of work in weed removal, revegetation and the inclusion of some interpretive signage. Again, we see a great commitment by the government to the environment. We see the funding of wonderful local projects which would otherwise not be funded. Very disappointingly, of course, these were not funded by the previous Labor government. We are also building on the terrific work of the Howard government. Its successful Green Corps program, established in 1996, propagated and planted over 14 million trees, erected more than 8,000 kilometres of fencing, cleared more than 50,000 hectares of weeds and constructed or maintained more than 5,000 kilometres of walking tracks or boardwalks.

Although the Green Army program supports important local projects, to me, as the member of Corangamite, they are not the only important environmental projects we are undertaking. We have also announced a $300,000 program for a 'Solar Surf Coast'. This is a project to help fund the installation of solar panels for community groups, surf-lifesaving clubs, schools and senior citizens groups. It is a wonderful opportunity for so many communities along the Surf Coast, in my electorate, to apply for funding and to get the support they need to install solar panels. I am a big supporter of renewable energy and particularly solar energy. In a country such as ours where each home has the capacity to generate its own power—to be its own mighty power station—this project provides an important incentive for the use of renewable energy in Corangamite.

This is in stark contrast to what the previous government did to help the environment. It introduced a carbon tax, which is a tax on jobs, a tax on manufacturing and a tax on every family in my electorate of Corangamite and across the country. It is a $7.6 billion hit to the economy, costing each and every family $550 a year. Consider the damage that it has done to small business, which has not been compensated, and also to manufacturing—a $1.1 billion hit on manufacturing. I represent a very important farming district in my electorate and farmers are also adversely affected. For example, dairy farmers will be hit with a $7,000 a year impost as result of this dreadful and economically destructive tax. I say to the people of WA, Labor is leading you in a merry dance. They have no intention of looking after your interests. We are doing everything we can to abolish the dreadful carbon tax. Labor is saying one thing in WA and another thing here in Canberra. If Labor were to have its way, it would impose a carbon tax on diesel fuel, which would cripple many more small businesses, farmers and other enterprises. That could only mean one thing—job losses.

At a time when we are working so hard to give young people an opportunity to develop new skills and new experiences in the workplace, you would think there would be bipartisan support for what is a very positive initiative. But what we see in the amendment before the House today is members opposite obstructing another great idea that primarily supports young people in our community. I reflect on the youth unemployment rates in my city of Geelong. The figure for young people aged 15 to 24 is an alarming 14.3 per cent. We are delivering a program which will help young people to build pride and develop the skills that will lead them to many other opportunities. It is very disappointing to see some of the comments made by members opposite, by the Greens and even by the ACTU president, Ged Kearney, who has said:

This whole concept of the Green Army is the latest attempt by the Abbott Government to cut wages [and] cut conditions of working people in this country.

It is a pity that Ms Kearney, the Labor Party and the Greens simply do not appreciate this program. This program is creating new opportunities and a whole new pathway to employment. Her statement is frankly a load of absolute rubbish. What I would say to those opposite, to the ACTU and to the Greens is come to my region and see how destructive youth unemployment is in places like Geelong and Colac. I can tell them that this is a wonderful opportunity for so many young people and it is a particularly important part of our efforts to combat youth unemployment. We are doing something. We are giving young people a go. We are helping them to build pride in their work. We are making them feel valued and like they are part of a team, and we are helping them to move towards their next opportunity. We are also tackling important local environmental projects, which unfortunately were ignored by the Labor Party. This is a wonderfully positive scheme, a proud initiative of environment minister Greg Hunt and the coalition government, and I proudly commend this bill to the House.

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