Anthony Albanese (Grayndler, Australian Labor Party, Leader of the House) Share this | Hansard source

All this is outlined in the Australian National Audit Office report. It is there on the record. They knew at that stage the cost was $1.2 billion in 2007 dollars, with out-turn costs of between $1.5 billion and $1.7 billion, but they made this nothing promise that did not exist.

What you have to look at is what governments do in their budgets and what they do on the ground, not what they promise in the dying days of an election campaign, when they are walking out the door. The truth is they delivered nothing for the Hunter expressway. They delivered nothing for the people of the Hunter over 12 years. You know that it is consistent with their ideological approach, because their approach to nation-building infrastructure is that governments should get out of the way and that the market will sort it all out. That is essentially what they believe in their hearts. It is in their DNA, which is why you never hear about nation building from those opposite. The shadow Treasurer belled the cat when he said:

You know what the biggest investment in infrastructure is? Investing in people. Giving them tax cuts, helping them pay their bills everyday. Giving them a job. That’s what I call investing in infrastructure.

Those on this side of the House believe that investing in infrastructure is about allocating real money in budgets, making sure that real people are employed today so that we build the infrastructure that we need for tomorrow.

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