Rob Mitchell (McEwen, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Hansard source

As a Victorian, I have to say that it's a pleasant surprise to hear the government talking about infrastructure! I say 'surprise' because, like so much of this government's agenda, infrastructure investment has been completely missing in action. What else can explain why Victoria, which constitutes 25 per cent of the population, has received only about seven per cent of federal infrastructure funding under the Abbott-Turnbull and now Morrison governments? We've seen them announce $1 billion of funding but not seen one cent spent, because the government is all talk and no action.

The member for Forde may not be aware of this, but we Victorians know all too well that our growing communities are feeling the burden of blown-out commuter times and the lack of federal government investment in infrastructure. It only makes us less productive as workers as we spend more hours on the road, making it harder to come home and spend time with our families and participate in community life.

The government has been starving our communities of the funds we desperately need to address the massive growth of our population and the impacts on our economy and quality of life. This is the reality of what we've had to deal with over the past six years. Areas of regional Victoria, like my electorate of McEwen, are bursting at the seams with thousands of new residents escaping unaffordable city house prices and searching for a better place for their families to grow and thrive in. But instead of being met with the infrastructure they should rightly expect in new and emerging suburbs and towns, they are met with congested roads and shockingly absent federal investment in transport infrastructure. That should, and must, change.

I welcome the idea that the key to successfully addressing this congestion is an all-of-the-above approach, with, most importantly, all levels of government actually committing the funds to make it happen. I must say, though, that we're left scratching our heads about why this very sensible idea doesn't seem to translate into policy or commitments from the Morrison government. Take the vital project at the Wallan diamond interchange in the seat of McEwen, for example. It's a perfect example of government doublespeak. At the 2019 election, Labor committed to provide the funds needed to get this project over the line. It is a key priority for the Mitchell shire, VicRoads and the wider community. It sounds exactly like the sort of project that this motion is about, doesn't it? So why has the Morrison government refused to invest in this project or, for that matter, any other projects associated with addressing the needs of our region? The Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Infrastructure, Transport and Regional Development needs to answer those questions. Even my Liberal opponent at the last election agreed with Labor's position, but after the election had passed, unfortunately. What are we hearing now? We're hearing whispers that this government is thinking about ripping money from the Hume Highway and Calder Highway upgrades—projects that had bipartisan support before the election—ripping that money away from the major backbone of transport, freight and commuter movement in Victoria and the eastern states and rehashing it as part of their city deals, yet again leaving Victorians worse off.

What I would really like to see from the government, rather than self-congratulation and the headline figures, is for them to actually deliver proper infrastructure for our communities. Deliver the Wallan diamond interchange; deliver the Watson Street upgrade and the works that need to be done on the Northern Highway; and deliver the extra lanes needed on the Hume and Calder freeways. These projects are vital. Why? Because traffic is banked up along the Hume Freeway, causing massive commuter headaches and, much more importantly, presenting major safety hazards for all road users. Very few drivers motoring down the freeway would expect a traffic jam that stretches for kilometres, but that is what happens on this stretch of the Hume Freeway every day. Clearly, when you're getting traffic jams on a freeway, something has gone dramatically wrong. This is the sort of problem that not only costs us time and money but is likely to cost lives.

So while it's very good to pat yourselves on the back for a new buzz phrase, how about you actually commit the actions to match those words? It's not just a political debate. The toing and froing in the battle of ideas is deadly serious. With critical lack of federal investment in Victoria's roads our death toll has risen. I'm sure that the few sensible members on the government benches would agree that the number we're seeing is too high and that we should do everything to bring it down. That's why government support for this critical $50 million diamond interchange and $90 million dollar investment in the Northern Highway and Watson Street would be so important for communities.

So I say again to the government: don't scrap the money from the Hume Highway and rob Peter to pay Paul; invest in both projects. The time is now to act on congestion-busting infrastructure. Let's hope that it results in shovels in the ground, not buzz words and rehashing of current funding arrangements.

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