Alan Tudge (Aston, Liberal Party, Minister for Cities) Share this | Hansard source

I am very happy to speak on this MPI. I note there was not a lot of energy on that side of the House as the member for Grayndler was speaking on his MPI. It was virtual silence. I think maybe there might have been a bit more energy last Wednesday night, when the member for Grayndler was DJing for everybody. You might not have known it. He got onto the records DJing on Wednesday night, the opening song being 'What about me?' which he played trying to get the attention back onto himself.

In relation to the infrastructure spend which we're spending, we are making record investments right across this nation in great nation-building projects, in congestion-busting projects in our major capital cities. I'd like to spend most of the time in my remarks on this MPI focussing first of all on the two big capitals, Melbourne and Sydney, and discussing the major projects which we have going on there. Also then I'd like to discuss some of the other large projects and do a contrast with what the opposition have put up and what they put in place when they were last in government, when the member for Grayndler was the infrastructure minister for six whole years.

Let's start with Melbourne. The three big projects which this government has supported with real money on the table, which would be transformational for the fastest-growing city, Melbourne, are the following. Firstly, the Melbourne airport rail: $5 billion to finally connect the second busiest airport in Australia to the rail network. That's what we have done. Second is the Monash-Rowville rail. It will finally connect the largest single university campus to the rail network. 55,000 students attend that campus in Clayton. Our project, our money, $475 million worth, will connect the rail network to Monash University and then on to the Dandenong line.

Look at those two projects. Where was the member for Grayndler, with six long years as the infrastructure minister, in relation to the airport rail? He didn't do anything. That airport's been there for 50 years. He didn't do anything. Where was he in terms of connecting up the largest university campus in Australia to the rail network? He wasn't there. In relation to the third project that I mentioned—the real one—it is a project that would finally, in essence, create a ring road for Melbourne. It would connect a major freeway, with four lanes each way, from the eastern suburbs to the other side to finally connect up and create a ring road. That project is the East West Link.

Where was the Labor Party in relation to the East West Link? They spent $1.3 billion cancelling the project. Every single resident of Melbourne—particularly those in the communities of Deakin, in the communities of Menzies Creek, in my own electorate and right across the eastern suburbs of Melbourne—knows that, had that project gone ahead, by this time next year that project would have been built. It would have been completed. But in the meantime, when the member for Grayndler was the Deputy Prime Minister of the country, the Labor Party supported the cancellation of that project for six long years. They supported burning $1.3 billion to scrap that project. The good news is that, in a month's time, the Victorian people have an opportunity to vote for the East West Link. They know that if Matthew Guy becomes Premier then we will have $3 billion ready to commit towards that project to finally get it going. It could have been done by next year, but it won't be. I'd like to have a commitment from the opposition to support such a project.

Let me touch on Sydney. The two largest transformational projects in Sydney are the Western Sydney Airport and the WestConnex. Let's have a look at Western Sydney Airport. It's an enormous, groundbreaking project. Again, billions of dollars of our government's money is going into that to finally build this project.

Mr Albanese interjecting—

I look across to the member for Grayndler. He is proudly proclaiming his fantastic record. He was Deputy Prime Minister for six long years. He was the infrastructure minister for six long years. He actually supported the Western Sydney Airport. He actually supported it, but could he actually get it through his caucus? Could he get the money through cabinet? Could he make this project happen? Absolutely not. Hey, he was only Deputy Prime Minister! You can't expect him to have any weight in the cabinet when he's Deputy Prime Minister and he's Infrastructure Minister for six long years! It again falls on us to find the money, to get it done, to make the hard decisions and to get the Western Sydney Airport built. We're the ones who will actually deliver that.

Mr Laundy interjecting—

As Mr Laundy, says behind me, we will deliver this particular project, which the member for Grayndler, despite being Deputy Prime Minister for all those years, could not. The other project is the WestConnex project. It's a fantastic, groundbreaking project that will transform the traffic in Sydney right across the city. It is a game changer for that city. It will remove 4,000 trucks off Parramatta Road daily. It will deliver more than $20 billion in economic benefits for New South Wales.

I will give the member for Grayndler credit, he actually did support this project initially. But then we went into the 2016 election and the Greens started jumping up and down, so what did the member for Grayndler do before the 2016 election? He said, 'No, no. I no longer support this project.' He did actually support it, but then he said, 'No, no. I'm not going to support the project in the 2016 election.' That was because the Greens started to challenge him in his seat and so he backed away. The Leader of the Opposition, Bill Shorten, had to override his deputy leader and say, 'No, no. We will actually proceed with this particular project.' He maintained his support.

On this side of the chamber, we are the ones delivering the groundbreaking, transformational projects that the Deputy Prime Minister at the time could not deliver. Across Melbourne, we're the ones doing it. Those opposite wouldn't do it. Across Sydney, we're delivering the game-changing projects which the member for Grayndler, who was the Deputy Prime Minister for six long years, could not deliver. And you could go right across every other capital city: the M1 in Brisbane; Metronet, which we're delivering in Perth; the north-south road in Adelaide, in which we are getting on with the job and creating a huge piece of infrastructure to enable residents of Adelaide to move from the north to south; and we're getting on with the job in Darwin, in Hobart and in other cities. We are getting on with the job of delivering the national infrastructure. Look at the cross-jurisdictional pieces of infrastructure that we are doing—this wasn't being done by the member for Grayndler—such as the Inland Rail. It's $10 billion that we've put on the table, which we are delivering. Again, where was the member for Grayndler? He could have done this project. He was the Deputy Prime Minister. He couldn't get that done.

You could look at other infrastructure, outside of road and rail, such as funding for the Mobile Black Spot Program, a fantastic program. We're going to deliver 867 stations to fix up those mobile blackspots across the country. How many did the Labor Party deliver when this man here was Deputy Prime Minister? They didn't have a program. They didn't have a program at all. It was a big, fat zero.

Mr Albanese interjecting—

He raises the NBN. Again, on the NBN, we're delivering more infrastructure, which is transforming the country, to enable people to connect faster. So whether or not you're looking at roads in our big capital cities or rail in our capitals or across the country, whether or not you're looking at mobile blackspots, whether or not you're looking at NBNs, whether or not you're looking at water infrastructure and building dams, we are getting on with the job. We have a very proud record—record expenditure—making the tough decisions, which the member for Grayndler, when he was the infrastructure minister for six long years, could not do. And he'll be the same again, if he's re-elected.

See this speech in context