Bernie Ripoll (Oxley, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

I am very pleased to have the opportunity to move this motion here tonight and I look forward to the ideas raised by both sides of politics to help combat the very real issue of our ever-increasing urban stability problems. Australia is one of the most urbanised countries in the world, with more than four out of five Australians living in urban communities. What is more, between 2001 and 2006, our capital cities contributed 78 per cent of the nation’s economic growth. But we should be under no illusion when it comes to the monumental task that is before us. The population boom in places such as Western Australia and my home state of Queensland has seen our major centres caught out in terms of providing the necessary infrastructure to keep up with the increase in demand for resources, housing and transport—but, mind you, not without some warning.

This fact will no doubt leave the federal opposition thinking of what more could have been done over the past decade—the lost years for infrastructure—and I will be very interested in what they have to say on this motion tonight. The reality is that future planning will always be remembered as one of the great tasks not done by the previous, Howard government. They just did not want to deal with the exponential population growth and they had no plan for the future. Close to 12 years of inaction and neglect on this issue have created a number of very real and critical problems for the nation which need to be addressed as a matter of urgency. An integral part of finding the solution must lie within the re-emerging concept of strategic urban planning. But the key point is that, before you can fix a problem, you must accept that it exists and then give your attention to it.

Urban planning is an essential part of dealing with Australia’s future growth and addresses important areas such as jobs, housing infrastructure and sustainable transport. If the nation is to have an agenda for prosperity, both economic and social, we must search for long-term solutions. But we must also understand that, to achieve these goals, there needs to be a renewed focus and commitment to making this a significant policy issue across a range of key portfolios, which include transport, housing, employment participation and the environment, at a federal, state and local government level. This is important because urban planning has the potential to foster quality planning, which will create the new, sustainable communities of the future—the communities that will benefit socially, culturally and economically.

We need governments working in partnership and towards a number of sustainable goals in order to see a substantial focal shift in levels of funding for essential urban infrastructure. This is now being done. It is being done by this government and it is being done through the COAG process. That is why I applaud the Australian government’s introduction of Infrastructure Australia and the recently announced $20 billion Building Australia Fund. I also want to congratulate the Australian government on the announcement of the Major Cities Unit to fill the gap between policy frameworks, funding mechanisms and infrastructure delivery.

Today our major centres must deal with the complexity of government departments, all of which can have a direct impact on their economic, social and environmental performance. A more integrated approach is what is needed. We need to identify opportunities where federal leadership can make a difference to the prosperity of our cities and the wellbeing of their residents. In particular, we need to develop strong and productive partnerships with our major centres and Infrastructure Australia, which will be prioritising billions of dollars of investment in infrastructure around the country. The recently introduced Major Cities Unit, which operates within the infrastructure minister’s department, no doubt will be central to this relationship. I again applaud the minister for his leadership and vision in this area.

I would now like to draw the attention of the House to the Prime Minister’s address to the ALP Queensland state conference over the weekend, especially when he mentioned that advanced infrastructure was critical to building a stronger economy. This continued commitment by the Rudd government to infrastructure has already led to the establishment of the $20 billion Building Australia Fund for future infrastructure needs and the groundbreaking Infrastructure Australia body. Infrastructure Australia’s immediate task will be to audit the nation’s infrastructure shortfalls and produce an infrastructure priority list to guide billions of dollars of public and private investment properly. Its infrastructure audit will be completed early next year, providing us with a national infrastructure priority list by March 2009. Infrastructure Australia will also review the extent to which governments can better facilitate infrastructure investment, including through public-private partnerships as well as better planning and approval processes.

The task ahead of the government is considerable; I have no doubt of that. The OECD ranks Australia 20th out of 25 countries when it comes to investment in public infrastructure as a proportion of national income. For over a decade the previous government failed to act in the best interests of Australia with respect to infrastructure. This will not occur under the Rudd Labor government. This government has the policies, the projects, the vision and the initiatives that will deliver for Australia’s future planning needs. They are not based on an election cycle but on the national interest and on what is needed in our urban and major centre areas. The policies we have put forward are more than sound and I congratulate the Rudd government for putting them forward.

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