Sid Sidebottom (Braddon, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

And of course you, Don. The first Rudd Labor budget delivered on additional significant health and transport infrastructure funding, some of which is in my region and which I will highlight in a moment. I note that in terms of general revenue assistance, Tasmania in 2008-09 will receive over $1.7 billion in GST payments from the Commonwealth and that these payments are expected to grow to close to $2 billion by 2011-12.

While I am at it, I would like to congratulate the new Premier of Tasmania, David Bartlett, and the new Deputy Premier of Tasmania, Lara Giddings. They are two very capable, energetic, innovative, visionary younger generation leaders. I think they reflect what is going to happen throughout the rest of Australia in terms of a new generation of leaders. I really encourage them and I look forward to working with them as I have in the past and certainly will in the future. I also acknowledge the great work that the former Premier, Paul Lennon, did for our state, most particularly when he was working with David Crean and the late Jim Bacon. They were an excellent triumvirate. Tassie, I must say, has come out of the doldrums and into the 21st century and is now a state that has a terrific future. Under the new government I think that future will be assured.

In regard to specific purposes payments, now that you ask, Don, in 2008-09, Tasmania will receive estimated payments totalling $864 million and that includes $694 million in payments directly to the Tasmanian government.

I would now like to highlight some of the specific commitments to my electorate as outlined in this first budget. I do so for a number of reasons: firstly, to put these commitments or projects on the public record as they are so often lost in the broad media sweep of the more generic budget programs that we hear about, think about and lobby for; secondly, to acknowledge the hard work of the many individuals, organisations and local government bodies who lobbied to secure projects on behalf of their communities; and, thirdly, to demonstrate how national policies in relation to a whole raft of areas in our daily lives can be localised and made more real. Every one of the projects committed to in this budget will benefit my region. Finally—and for some perhaps, surprisingly—these projects are a first-up, up-front fulfilment of our election promises.

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