Kevin Hogan (Page, National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Infrastructure and Transport. Would the Deputy Prime Minister outline how the coalition government's record $75 billion investment in infrastructure is providing job opportunities in communities across Australia, particularly in my electorate of Page, and is he aware of any alternative approaches?

Barnaby Joyce (New England, National Party, Leader of the Nationals) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the honourable member for his question. He has put in a superb effort in the seat of Page in making sure there's substantial investment in infrastructure. It goes beyond the work he has done on smaller projects such as mobile phone towers, Bridges Renewal, Roads to Recovery and making sure the Casino saleyards are upgraded; it goes to the major projects as well. In the member's electorate we have the upgrade of Woolgoolga to Ballina, which is part of an investment in excess of $3 billion: $3.46 billion. It's well needed as well, because it builds on the work that was formerly done by Warren Truss and John Howard to make sure we have a vision for this nation, a vision of a dual carriageway road, a divided road that goes from Melbourne to north of Gympie. We're working on that all the time.

In the member's electorate we will see 2½ thousand direct jobs and 7½ thousand indirect jobs. That's 10,000 jobs due to investments that the member of Page has been part of driving forward, making sure Page is part of a vision for our nation in linking this great Pacific Highway up with the Bruce Highway and ultimately widening the pavement right up to St Lawrence. What we always see on our side is a vision that takes in regional Australia. It was great to see this morning the Regional Investment Corporation has now been voted through, a great win, and we look forward to moving that into regional towns. Obviously we want to get it into Orange, to make sure we drive that part of our regional agenda forward.

But we're always waiting for the Labor Party's view on what they're going to do in regional Australia. Maybe if we have a future by-election in Longman—I don't know why we'd have one of those!

Ms Plibersek interjecting—

It's great to see the member for Sydney giving a few election tips to the member of Longman to try to help out at a future election that will be happening there. What will be very interesting, if there is a by-election in Longman, is whether the rhetoric for Longman is anything like the rhetoric for Batman. We know in Batman we have the Left fighting against the far Left. Maybe we can replay some of that Left versus far Left in a future election in Longman. What we have to also recognise in the support of regional Australia, because I think the people of Longman need someone whom they know is absolutely entitled to sit here, is that we have to work out whether we can actually trust people. It was the member for Maribyrnong who stood here and said everything was under control. The only way that something will happen in regional Australia is if you remain on the opposition benches.