Julia Gillard (Lalor, Australian Labor Party, Deputy Prime Minister) Share this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Moreton for his question. I know that he understands the importance of investing in infrastructure for his local community and for supporting jobs. I know that he, in his local electorate, would be welcoming the 118 projects representing $34.8 million of investment. These projects include 95 projects under the Building the Education Revolution in 38 schools at a total of $23.5 million of investment—investment supported by this side of the House and opposed by the Liberal Party.

Our investments in education, in jobs today and in the infrastructure we need for tomorrow, are of course investments in schools but they are also investments beyond schools. So far this government has committed $5.1 billion in infrastructure for tertiary education and research. This includes an investment of $4.065 billion from the Education Investment Fund. As part of this investment in jobs today and in the education infrastructure we need for tomorrow, the government announced a range of successful projects as parts of rounds 1 and 2 of the Education Investment Fund rounds of investment. The Education Investment Fund round 1 contained $580 million for 11 successful projects at universities across the nation and the EIF round 2 announced funding of $934 million for 31 successful projects that will improve the tertiary sector and develop our education infrastructure and research capacity.

Just describing one of these projects I think may assist the opposition because it may make clear to them two concepts they appear to be struggling with. Concept No. 1: if the government steps forward to do investment in infrastructure it can be joined by others who want to partner in that infrastructure development. It is clear from the questions being asked by the opposition today that that concept has completely eluded them. Concept No. 2: if you are investing in infrastructure then you are supporting jobs in construction, but if you are investing in infrastructure you can also be supporting jobs for the long term. Let me explain this for the opposition around a particular project and hopefully they will manage to cotton on.

Let us look at the University of Sydney’s Centre for Obesity, Diabetes and Cardiovascular Disease—obviously, a research centre looking at some of the biggest killers of Australians, some of our biggest health challenges. The opposition might want to note and have a little think about this. The University of Sydney, to develop that centre, received a $95 million grant through the Education Investment Fund, but it leveraged additional funding, having received that grant, so the cost of the project is $385 million in total.

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