Lucy Wicks (Robertson, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

The Central Coast is one of the most important and beautiful regions in the world with people who are passionate about seeing it grow and thrive. From the bustling intersections in Gosford to the tranquil beaches of Avoca, there is a unique mix of families, commuters, young people, veterans and senior Australians and more who have all made the Central Coast their home. We are proud of our region and rightly so. But under Labor, the Central Coast was a place without a vision. Only the coalition went to last year's election with a positive plan, our growth plan for the Central Coast.

When I am out doorknocking in suburbs such as Woy Woy, Niagara Park or Erina, I am reminded every day of the importance of what we are doing in government. Through this budget and through our positive plan for the Central Coast, the coalition government is working to ensure that the Central Coast is a region where people can tap into the wealth of future employment and educational opportunities that may one day be available right in our own backyard. This is a tough budget, but it is a fair budget and it is a responsible and visionary one as well. It takes real action to address Labor's legacy of debt and deficit, and we are taking responsibility to deliver this real action for the sake of future generations of Australians.

The previous government ran up five record deficits and left $123 billion in future deficits. Without policy changes, our debt would have reached $667 billion. If we want to create for the Central Coast a future of hope, reward and opportunity, we need to take action now and not put it off for our children and our grandchildren to deal with. Labor's debt is already costing about $1 billion a month in net interest payments and that is borrowed money. It is simply unsustainable and more needs to be done. Something needs to be done. To make this transformation possible, we need to start in our region with more jobs.

I am proud to say that this government have already acted on our growth plan for the Central Coast by announcing, as part of our budget measures, that 600 Commonwealth jobs will be located in Gosford CBD. This is a game-changer for the Central Coast. In our growth plan, we actually committed to 250 to 300 jobs and now we actually have doubled that. The Australian Taxation Office will make up around half this number. This is a boost for the area not only with these 600 jobs but also because it will help to drive even more activity to local cafes, local restaurants and local businesses. It is a game-changer because it will help our young unemployed people and we have an incredibly high rate of youth unemployment on the Central Coast. They will have more access to local employment opportunities. It is a game-changer because it will help our university graduates with more opportunities for pathways into great jobs locally on the Central Coast. It is a game-changer because there are 600 more opportunities for families who currently commute, leaving early in the morning and returning home to their families late at night because the job opportunities are in Sydney or Newcastle. This is a game-changer for our families on the coast as well.

I am pleased to advise that planning has already started for a purpose-built facility in the heart of our city's CBD, and this is going to boost investment and provide secondary employment through increased economic activity. It will also help create jobs in its construction phase. Gosford City Chamber of Commerce and Industry President Ali Vidler has said that the new purpose-built facility will have a huge effect on our local business community and that it is a positive leap forward for the growth of the CBD and its future. Central Coast New South Wales Business Chamber Regional Manager Daniel Farmer has described the announcement as a catalyst for growth and, in his words, a 'coup for the Central Coast'.

Gosford is also one of the suburbs to benefit from the coalition's $50 million Safer Streets program, also provided for in this year's budget. Our investment of $680,000 in Robertson will install more CCTV cameras in Gosford, Woy Woy, Umina, Ettalong Beach, Kariong and Kincumber. It is great news for local shops, because it is helping to reduce antisocial and unlawful behaviour by helping to stop it in the first place.

So we are delivering jobs, and we are enhancing security—but I know that people on the Central Coast need more. Every day I am asked by people in my electorate about what we are doing to build roads and infrastructure. I am proud to respond by saying this government is building the roads and infrastructure of the 21st century. Our Economic Action Strategy includes a record investment in infrastructure in New South Wales, which will create thousands of jobs, slash travel times and boost economic growth.

Part of this is a $405 million investment to help build NorthConnex, which will mean shorter commuting times of up to 15 minutes, reduced congestion and safer roads. Building this missing link between the M1 and the M2 has been talked about for decades, but it is only a coalition government that is actually delivering this. For people on the Central Coast—for people like my husband, Chris, who leaves early in the morning at a quarter to seven, and often does not return home to our two kids, aged three and five, until eight or eight thirty at night—and for the thousands of families who have those daily experiences, this means less time in the car and more time around the dinner table with their families.

We are also fixing accident-prone black spots. One of these, at the intersection of Langford Drive and Woy Woy Road in Kariong will receive $675,000 allocated from this year's budget. We discussed the benefit of this funding recently with the Kariong Progress Association and some local residents from Kariong, together with the Assistant Minister for Infrastructure and Regional Development, Jamie Briggs. The progress association, led by Peter Pauling, together with Kariong resident and community advocate Fiona Lloyd, have been tireless advocates for this project for more than two years. Putting the safety of their community in first place, they have been determined to see this dangerous intersection fixed. Fiona Lloyd told me that there has been a large growth in the area in terms of traffic volume and pedestrians, with a new high school, playground and childcare centre. Receiving this funding will allow Gosford City Council to work towards providing the safest solution for both pedestrians and vehicles, which will greatly improve the safety of residents in Kariong.

This is a 'contribute and build' budget. But it is also a budget that supports our community in fair and decent ways—unlike what you hear from many of the myths that Labor and the Greens are peddling at the moment. There are more than 9,000 people in my electorate on the part or maximum pension rate. I am regularly out and about, meeting with pensioners on the Central Coast. In fact, I was at the 25th birthday celebrations of the School for Seniors on the peninsula recently. There I met so many genuine, honest, loyal people who believe in the value of community, and who believe in the value of our local community. I know that from their own life experiences they also know how to ask straightforward questions. And on the issue of pensions, we have a straightforward reply. I can confidently say that the coalition are making no changes to the age pension payment in this term of government. The coalition government will continue to increase the rate of the age pension every year. In March and September it will go up every year. In September 2017 it will continue to go up by CPI. And pensioners will keep important Commonwealth concessions and benefits.

This government has made responsible, long-term decisions to ensure the age pension system is sustainable and able to meet future demand. Simply put, if we do not take these steps, the cost of the age pension system is projected to increase by 70 per cent, from almost $40 billion a year now to $68 billion a year over the next decade. Importantly, pensioners will be better off when the carbon tax is scratched. We are determined to abolish the carbon tax. It is a $550-a-year hit on families in my electorate. When the carbon tax is gone, pensioners will benefit from lower bills. My concern is that, if this toxic tax is not repealed, I may start hearing some of the same stories that I did from before the election about people in my community who were too afraid to turn the heating on in winter because they dreaded the possible cost.

The former member for Robertson, now a senator, is part of the reason the legislation is being blocked. Labor said they were terminating the carbon tax, and now they are refusing to repeal it. I ask them to listen to Australian people, to listen to the people on the Central Coast and to help us scrap this tax for good. In the meantime, the coalition government is delivering record funding for hospitals. Annual federal assistance to the states for public hospitals will actually increase by more than nine per cent every year for the next three years and by more than six per cent in the fourth year. This is a 40 per cent increase over the next four years, or more than a $5 billion a year increase in spending on hospitals. Yes, we are asking people to make a modest contribution in terms of the GP co-payment, while, at the same time, having a strong safety net. It is wrong to suggest that there is such a thing as free medicine, because it is not free for the taxpayer. The co-payment contribution that we are asking for will be capped at 10 visits a year for Commonwealth concession cardholders and for children under 16.

Importantly, the government will reinvest every dollar of savings from health reforms in the budget into a new $20 billion Medical Research Future Fund. This future fund is expected to become one of the biggest medical research funds in the world. The future possibilities from this investment are endless, but let me take one local example. Some of the bravest people I have met on the Central Coast are those with Huntington's disease. I was invited along to the monthly meeting of a support group at Niagara Park to meet with the families and patients with Huntington's. I am pleased that, as a result of our honest decision in this budget, I can tell them that Australia is investing in world-leading research on many of the challenges that we currently face in health.

Our government is also delivering visionary policy in the area of higher education in ways that have the potential to be a game-changer for the Central Coast. Our reforms are about delivering world-class universities to Australia, and I am determined to see the Central Coast become one of the hubs where the best minds in the world can embark on producing breakthroughs in every field. This budget enhances these sorts of possibilities by setting up our nation to have the right economic conditions and the best possible culture for our young people to be able to earn or learn. Graduates earn on average 75 per cent more over their lifetime than school leavers. At present, students pay on average only 40 per cent of the cost of their university education and taxpayers pay the remainder—60 per cent. Surely, it is reasonable that students who will benefit from this university education—and I personally have benefited from an outstanding university education—make a fair contribution to the cost of their education. The reforms that we outlined in the budget will provide a bedrock for the right environment for students in my electorate on the Central Coast to gain access to the best possible educational opportunities.

We are conscious of providing more opportunities for students. That is why we are extending Commonwealth support to all Australian higher education students, not just students enrolled at the established universities but also students enrolled at registered higher education institutions who are studying bachelor degree courses or diplomas. This means more choice and opportunity for students and greater competition. It is about helping students on to a stepping stone towards real advances in their education.

For students who need it most, there are also generous scholarships. Universities will need to invest $1 of every $5 of additional revenue for students from low socio-economic status backgrounds through our new Commonwealth scholarships. We have thousands of tradies on the Central Coast, many of whom are forced to travel down the M1 to get work in Sydney. This budget helps them as well, through Trade Support Loans for apprentices. Starting in July, these loans encourage more young people to take up a trade and to complete their qualification. Like the Higher Education Loan Program for university students, the Trade Support Loans will only be repayable once apprentices are earning a decent income. Coupled with the government's record education funding investment of $64.5 billion over the next four years in schools, we are delivering an education system that takes care of students from the moment they first put pen to paper.

This is a not just a budget about reducing debt and deficit so we can have a strong and prosperous economy. It is a budget that is about investing in more jobs, better infrastructure, education and health. Our government has a plan for the Central Coast that we can rightly be proud of. It is a budget that is enabling us to build together for our future, with confidence. It takes real action and real commitment to be able to deliver a budget that has been laid out to deliver a blueprint for the future, a blueprint for the Central Coast. I know that it is going to deliver real outcomes and real opportunities for what I know to be the best part of the best country in the world to live in.

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