Anthony Albanese (Grayndler, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Infrastructure and Transport) Share this | Hansard source

by leave—I move amendments (1) and (8), as circulated in my name, together:

(1) Clause 2, page 1 (lines 7 to 9), omit the clause, substitute:

2 Commencement

(1) Each provision of this Act specified in column 1 of the table commences, or is taken to have commenced, in accordance with column 2 of the table. Any other statement in column 2 has effect according to its terms.

Note:    This table relates only to the provisions of this Act as originally enacted. It will not be amended to deal with any later amendments of this Act.

(2) Any information in column 3 of the table is not part of this Act. Information may be inserted in this column, or information in it may be edited, in any published version of this Act.

(8) Page 4 (after line 23), at the end of the Bill, add:

National Land Transport Act 2014

8 Subsection 16(1)

  Before "Commonwealth funding", insert "Subject to subsection (1A),".

9 After subsection 16(1)

  Insert:

  (1A) If an Investment Project involves capital expenditure of $100 million or more, Commonwealth funding may only be provided if the project has been evaluated by Infrastructure Australia under section 5AA of the Infrastructure Australia Act 2008.

10 After section 92

  Insert:

92A Indexation

(1) The amount referred to in subsection 16(1A) of this Act is to be indexed at the same time, and by the same amount, as the amount referred to in subsection 5A(2) of the Infrastructure Australia Act 2008.

(2) Subsection 16(1A) is taken, on and from a day of indexation, to refer to the amount as indexed on that day.

Amendment (8) is an important amendment that makes Infrastructure Australia involvement integral to the approval of Commonwealth funding for major infrastructure projects. This amendment will amend the National Land Transport Act 2014, as it has been renamed. This latter act is the funding act. It is the means by which funds for major projects are authorised to be paid to state, territories and other entities for nation building projects. This amendment makes a cost-benefit analysis by Infrastructure Australia a prerequisite to funding road, rail and intermodal projects involving capital expenditure of $100 million or more. It requires Infrastructure Australia's standard method to be used and ensures transparency via publishing of cost-benefit analyses. This ensures that the Infrastructure Australia process has real meaning and sequencing in project selection. It is consistent with Labor's approach to the Building Australia Fund, where Infrastructure Australia assessment was an essential prerequisite to the funding of projects.

Amendment (1) amends the commencement provisions of the bill to include commencement of the changes made by Labor's amendments to the National Land Transport Act 2014. At the time of drafting of these amendments, recent amendments passed by the parliament to this act had not commenced, and this is reflected in the proposed schedule. I commend the amendments to the House.

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