Ken Wyatt (Hasluck, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

I am pleased to rise tonight to speak on Appropriation Bill (No. 1) 2015-2016 and cognate bills, a day after Western Australia Day. I hold the member for Makin in high regard but I would disagree with many of his comments, because over the two proceeding periods of this parliament his government had the opportunity to remedy many of the issues he raises in this chamber. In that sense, there are matters that should have been addressed that the Abbott government is now left to clean up and address in order to develop the strong economic base this country needs.

Western Australia Day is a day to celebrate all things West Australian. We have a lot to celebrate being in WA, particularly after this budget, which has a lot in it for WA and Hasluck to celebrate. Like everyone in this House, I was here on the Tuesday night that the budget was delivered and could not wait to get back to my electorate of Hasluck to talk to people about how the budget would benefit them and our region. That Sunday I went to the Midland Markets. For those of you who are not familiar with the great state of WA and the electorate of Hasluck, Midland is located to the east of the Perth CBD and in the northern end of my electorate. Midland is home to a rapidly growing population and a strong small business community, but that is evident right across Hasluck. When I visit the Midland Markets each month I speak with a lot of the small-business operators, who consistently tell me how each day, each week could be the last for them.

It is tough out there for small businesses. That is why when I visited the Midland Markets on the Sunday after the budget, I was thrilled to have small-business owners from the region approach me and tell me that because of this budget and our Growing Jobs and Small Business package, they have renewed confidence and the ability to, in many cases, expand their capacity, which means more jobs, more businesses and a stronger local economy.

The Growing Jobs and Small Business package is unprecedented and has been welcomed by small businesses on the ground. We know that small businesses are the engine room of the economy and this is particularly true for Midland, and indeed across Hasluck. That is why the package is not just great for small businesses but for the local economy and local region. This means that Hasluck will thrive due to this coalition budget.

The Growing Jobs and Small Business package includes for small businesses with annual turnover under $2 million a 1.5 per cent tax cut for incorporated small businesses, and for unincorporated small businesses a 5 per cent tax discount, up to $1,000 a year. This means that small businesses will have more money to spend on their businesses. In addition to this, small businesses can now claim an immediate tax deduction for each and every asset purchased up to $20,000 each. A hairdresser in Midland was telling me that due to this initiative she is now able to purchase new chairs and equipment for her premises—a real impact on the ground, where it matters most. I cannot see a better way to assist small businesses to get ahead. As a result of this new investment, the hairdresser was telling me that she will consider hiring a new apprentice. These measures have flow-on effects throughout the local community. Small businesses will also be supported through depreciation write-offs.

Because we know the positive impact small business has on our local community, we want more people to take the leap of faith and start a small business. It is a risk to start small businesses and that is why we are helping start-ups by cutting red tape and making it easier to start a business, and by allowing start-ups to immediately deduct professional expenses for starting their business.

As you can probably tell by now this is a budget for the future, preparing us as a nation for the challenges ahead. In that vein, another key initiative for the future is the recent announcement that the coalition government will support the establishment of the Curtin medical school in Midland. Since my election in 2010, I have been fighting for the people of Midland to establish a university campus in their region. The eastern suburbs of Perth have been underserviced for far too long. When I was first elected it took a student in Midland over two hours on public transport and over an hour on the road to travel to the nearest university campus. This is simply unacceptable. That is why I am committed to fighting for better access to tertiary education in Midland and why I am thrilled that it is a coalition government that has delivered this to the people of Midland.

The Midland medical school will offer a five-year direct entry medical program and will select and train students to deliver better health outcomes in the regions that need it most. Sixty Commonwealth-supported medical places will begin in 2017 and will ramp up to 110 new places per year in 2022. I must acknowledge the tremendous support of the WA state government, led by Premier Colin Barnett, and Curtin University who are funding the infrastructure to host the school. Many people have worked towards this positive outcome and I must thank and acknowledge the Hon. Alyssa Hayden MLC, City of Swan, Swan Chamber of Commerce, the Hon. Christian Porter MP and the numerous stakeholders and activists on the ground that have been fighting for a university in Midland since the 1980s. The medical school is good for Western Australia and good for Hasluck.

The naysayers out there want WA to have fewer medical practitioners and GPs per capita than every other state. Having worked in the health system, I am cognisant of where the gaps are within both the urban regions of the Perth metropolitan area but, more importantly, out in rural WA where there are many doctors on 457 visas. They want us to have the highest reliance on overseas-trained doctors in the country and they want us to remain at the status quo, which is a current doctor shortage of 950 doctors. This is simply unacceptable and that is why the coalition is planning for the future, planning for the health needs of the future. The WA state government also recognises this and will fund adequate clinical training places, including internships and specialist training places—debunking the myth that there will not be training places for these new medical graduates; there will be.

Conveniently, the Midland medical school will be situated across the road from the new Midland public hospital, set to open in November this year. The students at Midland and those across Hasluck will soon have access to a new educational pathway and opportunity to study higher education that they did not have before. As I said before, this is good for WA, good for Hasluck and good for our future.

I have spoken about Midland and it would be remiss of me focus on just that area of my electorate. This budget benefits the entire region of Hasluck through the record investment in infrastructure. Deputy Speaker, if you come to Hasluck there is construction going on everywhere—construction to make our roads safer and to ease congestion in the region. The major projects in Hasluck include: $18 million for the Nicholson Road grade separation in Thornlie, with $8 million allocated in the next financial year; $612.4 million for Gateway WA Perth Airport and Freight Access or, as I like to call it, the gateway to Hasluck, with $139.5 million allocated next financial year; $36 million for the Roe Highway-Berkshire Road grade separation, with $8.2 million allocated in the 2015-16 budget; and $10 million for the Lloyd Street upgrade, which is on track to be completed at the end of this year.

Through the coalition government's nationwide infrastructure program we are creating thousands of jobs, reducing travel times and boosting economic growth. In WA overall, the government is investing $5.2 billion to 2019-20 in infrastructure, which is a record investment. They are the big projects, but many more local roads are set to benefit from the budget. Hasluck's local councils are set to benefit from the government's doubling of the Roads to Recovery program next financial year. Over $6 million is being invested in local roads.

This budget is the next step in our plan to build a stronger, more prosperous future for all Australians. Unfortunately, the legacy of the Labor government is still lingering—a legacy of debt and deficit. We are cleaning up the mess and, through the budget, we are reducing Labor's deficit from $48 billion last year to $7 billion in four years. I do not want my children or their children to be burdened with the debt of an irresponsible Labor government. That is why we need to ensure that everyone who can work is working and that welfare is used properly by those who actually need it. Welfare is not a right; it is a privilege, and I want to make sure that all of our welfare system is sustainable now and into the future. Those on the other side are no longer the working party; they are the welfare party. Such a shame.

We need to support those who can work into jobs and support those who want to work. Our new childcare subsidy will help families get into work and stay in work. Working families with incomes between $65,000 and $170,000 will be around $30 a week better off, and families earning around $65,000 or less will receive a subsidy of 85 per cent of their childcare fees up to an hourly cap. With the child care safety net, lower income families will still get access to early childhood learning even if they do not meet the activity test. In addition to this, we are also trialling new ways to support families, giving more choice and more access.

Children should be safe in the playground and should not be exposed to any unnecessary risk posed by contagious diseases. As a former health department executive, I am particularly pleased that the coalition government introduced the no jab, no pay policy. Parents who do not immunise their children will not receive childcare subsidies and family tax benefit part A supplements, with only a few exemptions. As a parent myself, I know how practical and positive these measures will be for families with young children.

This budget is responsible, measured and fair. This is evidenced in other budget measures such as pension certainty with increases twice a year, record funding for hospitals and schools, helping farmers doing it tough dealing with drought and, as I said before, support for small businesses and job seekers. We are also ensuring that we keep Australians safe through our national security and border protection measures.

Those on the other side of the House need to approach this budget in good spirit, stop playing politics and start constructively working not only to improve the budgetary fiscal position of this nation but also to support the jobs, growth and opportunity of the future.

The consistent feedback that I am getting on the ground is that this budget is what is needed. It is what will make a difference for the long-term future of our nation. Australians understand that we all need to work together, we all need to contribute to the future of this great nation and governments should get out of the way of their opportunity to succeed.

Those on the other side are out of touch with everyday Australians and the people of Hasluck. Time and time again they showed that they do not have a plan for their future; they just want to increase taxes and repeat the waste and ineptitude of the Rudd-Gillard governments. I will continue to fight for the future security of our nation and will not rest in the face of such negativity and short-sightedness from the Labor Party.

It gives me great pleasure to support the appropriation bills, and I commend the bill to the House.

See this speech in context