Julie Collins (Franklin, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Regional Development and Local Government) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Tasmanians are pretty used to being left off the map, but I think we thought our Tasmanian Liberal senators and our state government might have a bit more influence in Canberra than they actually do, because Tuesday night's budget speech not only had not one mention of Tasmania, or of any project in Tasmania, but pretty much left Tassie off the map again. Tasmanians are pretty cranky about this. In fact, the Murdoch press itself is talking about Tassie being left off the map. There is a double page spread today, and there was a double page spread yesterday, about how badly Tasmania has done under this Liberal government, and Tasmanians are fed up with it. Indeed, Tasmanians are very annoyed that our Liberal premier went out and said that he would get the more than $2 billion worth of cuts to our hospitals and our schools reversed. This budget locks in those cuts. Those cuts to our hospitals, and most of the cuts to our schools, are still there, and Tasmanians are not happy.

There are a whole range of important projects in Tasmania that are ready to go. In fact, they are on Infrastructure Australia's priority list. Did they get a mention? Did they get any funding? No, they did not. In fact, the only infrastructure spending that is happening in Tasmania is that which was announced in the 2013 budget by Labor. There have been no new investments in Tasmania from this Liberal government bar one, which is one we campaigned for, that we announced in the lead-up to the last election campaign. The Liberal Party were dragged kicking and screaming to match it—and they did that in the last week. They do not want to support Tasmanians. Tasmanians are sick of it, and they are sick of the lack of influence—

Honourable Member:

An honourable member interjecting—

Julie Collins (Franklin, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Regional Development and Local Government) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

It is interesting that you bring up the GST, because Tasmanians are really angry about this review into GST distribution—really angry, indeed. Tasmania stands to lose billions of dollars. Our Liberal senators obviously did not lobby for Tasmania in this regard, and they only came out after the review was announced to say, 'We'll stick up for Tasmania.' They did not do the lobbying beforehand. The AFP have been cut at Hobart Airport. We called on the AFP to be restored at Hobart Airport just last week, and we had a Liberal come out and say, 'I'll stand up for it,' but there is no restoration of the AFP at Hobart Airport. Liberal senators here in Canberra have no influence. Tasmanians are sick of that, and sadly our state will continue to lose out because our Liberal senators are not prepared to stand up for our state.

Lucy Wicks (Robertson, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise to commend the 2017-18 budget. It is a plan that delivers fairness, opportunity and security for all Australians and it is a major boost to my electorate of Robertson on the Central Coast. In this budget we have a further $12½ million for the new Central Coast Medical School and Medical Research Institute so it can attract and retain world-leading health professionals in Gosford. This takes our government's total commitment to $45 million, with the University of Newcastle and the New South Wales government each contributing an additional $20 million on top of this towards that project. Vice-chancellor Professor Caroline McMillen said that the medical school will create outstanding new opportunities for the region, linking the world's best medical education and research to the coast. Central Coast Council administrator Ian Reynolds said that this extra funding will enhance the reputation of Gosford as a leader in innovation and medical research and education and will have huge flow-on effects to our local economy.

I also wish to advise the House that the coalition is taking action on the serious issue of GP shortages on the peninsula. Around $100,000 has been made available this week to help get more local doctors for people living in suburbs like Woy Woy, Umina Beach, Ettalong, Blackwall, Booker Bay, Pearl Beach and Patonga. A new expert working group convened by the local primary health network will identify both short-term solutions and longer term strategies to recruit and retain GPs in the area. Just recently we held a major community forum at Umina Beach with the Assistant Minister for Health, Dr David Gillespie, who has worked tirelessly with me on this issue. Members of our community have described this issue as being a crisis, to the extent that one respected GP who recently retired left around 1,200 patients without a family doctor. This funding will tackle the problem head-on and comes after the government has listened closely to the needs of our community, doctors, practice managers, GP recruitment agencies and representatives from the Rural Doctors Network, Aboriginal and community health, and the PHN. In fact, our local PHN chief executive, Richard Nankervis, welcomed the announcement, saying it was about patients receiving the right care at the right place at the right time.

This budget will also see funding committed to a range of other important projects, including more than $7.2 million for Central Coast Council to upgrade local roads, including: Ryans Road at Umina Beach; Oceano Street at Copacabana; Murray Street and Davis Street at Booker Bay; and the intersection of Langford Drive and Woy Woy Road at Kariong. This goes hand in hand with other major projects we are delivering, including: $10 million for the Regional Performing Arts Centre in Gosford; upgrades to Somersby Industrial Park, Banjo's Skatepark, Terrigal Trojans clubhouse and McEvoy Oval at Umina Beach; $12 million towards delivering continuous mobile coverage on trains between Wyong and Hornsby; better mobile coverage in Spencer, Killcare and Wendoree Park; and $7 million towards a new community learning hub and library in Gosford. This is about making the right choices to secure better days ahead. (Time expired)

Sharon Claydon (Newcastle, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise today to also talk on the budget that was released last Tuesday night, and in particular I want to look at its impacts for the city of Newcastle and also for Australian women. Indeed, I have just come from Labor's launch of the women's budget statement 2017. This is a commitment that Labor has made because, despite the fact that Australia was a pioneer of gendered analysis of budgets, with the election of the Abbott Liberal government in 2013 the commitment to produce a women's budget statement was dropped, ending a 30-year tradition. The current Prime Minister has likewise failed to produce an Australian women's budget statement to accompany the budget last Tuesday night, which means that we now have no systematic analysis of the differential impacts of government collection of taxes and the distribution of those moneys on men and women in our society. Any government that seeks to pretend that budgets are somehow gender-neutral documents, or indeed that government policies are gender neutral, is having itself on, and Australian women in particular will know from past experience that budgets do have a differential impact for them.

It is a great shame that since the Liberals came to power in 2013 Australia has slipped from the 19th position to 46th place on the Global gender gap report. That should be an issue that concerns each and every one of us in this House, because if Australian women do not have an equal share in our social, economic and political life in this country then that is to the detriment of our nation as a whole. I implore people to look at Labor's women's budget statement—this is the first cut on that analysis; there will be more to come—and to continue and join with us in a conversation around how we achieve gender equity in Australia. So join in Labor's conversation about setting the agenda. I look forward to having those conversations with Australian women across the country.

For Newcastle also, this was a budget that was full of disappointment. There is no money there to look at the development of the Glendale Interchange, the most major piece of infrastructure that is needed in our region. There is universal agreement from all our councils and our members of parliament that this is a project that has capacity to unlock 10,000 jobs, and that is what the men and women of Newcastle need most of all: good, secure, well-paying jobs. (Time expired)