Bruce Billson (Dunkley, Liberal Party, Minister Assisting the Minister for Defence) Share this | Hansard source

It is a very long trip to Western Australia, but having just come back from there I can vouch for how magnificent it is. If you have troubled seas in Port Phillip Bay, seeking refuge at Fremantle is probably a suboptimal option, but an interesting thought, nonetheless. The point I am making is that this requires a partnership. The state government has to do something to stabilise the cliff face at Olivers Hill. Whatever happens, that work needs to be done.

There are road and access issues that need to be addressed and I have mentioned the appalling state of the existing boat ramp facility there for boat launching and recovery. That needs to be addressed. Why not turn that required investment into something that will be truly of advantage to the region that I represent? It is estimated that some of the employment prospects in construction alone may be as many as 350 full-time jobs over a two- to three-year period. During its operational phase, there are dozens and dozens of long-term employment opportunities in the operation of the harbour, the maintenance of facilities, hospitality, the visitor industry, recreational boating, even ferry and charter services. The economic benefits are quite significant and we should make a contribution to securing that potential, to making it real and to making it happen. I am calling on everybody to get behind the Frankston safe boat harbour project. Now is the time for it to be turned into reality. We have the prospect of making this an important additional facility for the Dunkley community, the Mornington Peninsula region and the leisure and recreational resource of Port Phillip Bay. Governments need to play a role but we need to provide a basis on which the commercial sector can be engaged to fund those personal goods—not the public benefits but the personal goods—that this facility may facilitate. (Time expired)

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