Ben Morton (Tangney, Liberal Party) Share this | Hansard source

Consistency is important in politics. The member for Grayndler speaks of support for Infrastructure Australia, which he established, on the one hand, but when it is politically inconvenient he ignores their advice. The ALP chooses to ignore Infrastructure Australia's advice on the Perth Freight Link. In Infrastructure Australia's current Infrastructure priority list, the Perth Freight Link remains listed among the high priority projects and is the highest priority infrastructure project in Western Australia. It seems by the wording of this motion that the member chooses to ignore WA entirely. And I am disappointed that the member for Fremantle has seconded the motion, a motion that calls on the government to do nothing for Western Australia. Surely, as opposed to seconding the motion, he could have amended it to actually deliver something for WA.

Labor is ignoring the 10,000 jobs that the Perth Freight Link creates and the fact that the Perth Freight Link takes 7,000 trucks and 74,000 light vehicles off local roads each day—roads like Leach Highway, Farrington Road, South Street, Stock Road, North Lake Road and Beeliar Drive. East-west access across our city and access to Perth Airport, the Fiona Stanley Hospital, the St John of God hospital and Murdoch University would all benefit from the Perth Freight Link. Fourteen sets of traffic lights would be bypassed on Leach Highway and Stock Road.

We have to remember that the construction of Roe 8 would have impacted on only 0.49 per cent of the Beeliar Wetlands. It would save 450,000 tons of CO2 by 2031. Construction would include bridges at Roe Swamp and Horse Paddock Swamp, offset land, and power line realignment to utilise already cleared land. Despite its words on this motion, Labor wants to make our streets in WA less safe and more congested, particularly in the southern suburbs.

What do Infrastructure Australia say about the Perth Freight Link? They say:

The project aligns with Infrastructure Australia’s strategic priorities to ‘increase productivity’, ‘expand productive capacity’ and ‘build on Australia’s global competitive advantages’ through delivering a more efficient freight network.

Labor have been absolutely exposed on their infrastructure policies for WA. They want us to think that they are committed to an outer harbour, but let us look at the facts. Their own policy document says that they want to maintain Fremantle port as an operational port and they want to improve the management of truck movements to and from Fremantle port. Labor's commitment to investigate or study the outer harbour will be a rude shock to locals, who were conned into thinking that Labor would start work constructing that outer harbour. There is no such commitment to do so.

I join the member for Fremantle in welcoming the agreement to upgrade High Street between Carrington Street and the Stirling Highway. It is an upgrade of High Street between Carrington Street and the Stirling Highway; it is not just an intersection upgrade, like the member for Fremantle wants people to believe. It confirms that Fremantle port and the trucks that access it are here to stay. No-one has told the Mayor of Fremantle, Brad Pettitt, though, who says that this work may be potentially unnecessary because of the commitment to the outer harbour. Mayor Pettitt, there is no commitment to the outer harbour other than a study. I think the member for Fremantle should be very honest with the people of Fremantle about this.

I stand with the member for Fremantle in supporting the projects that he mentioned, but I wish he would support the Perth Freight Link—something that he has called ridiculous—because getting trucks and cars off our local streets is not a ridiculous project at all. A letter published in the member for Fremantle's electorate only recently states:

For Josh Wilson to call the Perth Freight Link ridiculous could send investments—both Government and private—away from Fremantle.

Why can’t Fremantle residents have faster access to Fiona Stanley Hospital, to the freeway and to the airport? Why can’t people from the South-West have faster access to Fremantle?

Why can’t we reduce pollution by building a highway that eliminates stop-start traffic lights?

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With the anti-development brigade calling the shots, the future of Fremantle doesn’t look very bright.

And I agree entirely. Why can't the people of Fremantle have better access?

The government has confirmed our commitment to build the Perth Freight Link, and I am pleased that $1.2 billion is formalised as a contingent liability for this important project. Roe 8 and Roe 9 can be built. The money is there, but the political will is not. The member for Fremantle, the member for Burt and all WA Labor members need to convince Mark McGowan to back WA infrastructure and back WA jobs. I do not know why Labor wants to put the Greens and trendy people in inner-city cafes ahead of jobs and infrastructure. That is something the member for Grayndler can explain. (Time expired)

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