Julian Simmonds (Ryan, Liberal National Party) Share this | Hansard source

and I hear them interjecting now such is their enthusiasm for it. They are so keen to keep more of your money, because they think they know how to spend it better than you do. They think that you are best to earn the money and then they are best placed to spend it on your behalf and on behalf of your families, and we fundamentally disagree with that proposition. Already over 75,000 people in Ryan have benefited from the tax cuts delivered by this government, and this next tax cut will again see them rewarded for their hard work.

Throughout COVID, the Morrison government's JobKeeper payment supported 6,100 businesses in our local area as well as supported more than 25,000 employees in the Ryan electorate. JobKeeper meant businesses could stay open and keep their employees connected to their business as they went through tough times. For employers and employees, JobKeeper has literally saved livelihoods. It's saved decades of hard-fought gains and work to create a business, to create a position and to create jobs. It has saved those jobs.

JobKeeper was always meant to be a temporary measure, and we've seen from JobKeeper being removed that none of the dire propositions that Labor MPs put forward—and there were plenty of them, including from the shadow Treasurer and the Leader of the Opposition—that the sky would fall in on the heads of Australians. That hasn't come to pass. That is, again, the fundamental danger and difference between us and the Labor Party. The fundamental danger of the Labor Party is that when it comes to a crisis, when it comes to things like COVID and the GFC, they would like to spend forever. We, on the other hand, would like to see targeted spending that does enormous good. JobKeeper has done that. It has achieved its aim, and we have seen from its withdrawal that the labour market is stronger than ever, with more jobs in the workplaces of Australia now than there were prior to the pandemic.

Although JobKeeper is finished, we're continuing to back local businesses. We're continuing the tax incentives that have allowed over 20,000 businesses in Ryan to write off the full value of eligible assets—for instance, a local cafe purchasing a new coffee machine or point-of-sale system. We are backing local businesses to create jobs and to continue to keep the economy firing. I've visited many of the local businesses that are taking advantage of the instant asset write-off. After a period of significant struggle, where they were unsure if they would even continue to exist, it has been amazing to see the transition in the minds and the ability of those small-business owners. They've shifted from survival mode, due to the insecurity of not knowing whether or not they would be around in the next couple of months, to now investing in creating jobs, because of the policies that this government has put in place to support them.

I also want to talk about the fact that every working parent understands what it is like to try to fit the costs of child care into the weekly family budget. We want to encourage families with young children to get back into the workforce, if that's the choice that they want to make. It is a significant cost, and it's one that the Morrison government is conscious of when we think about how we can reduce the cost of living for Australian families. We're increasing funding for kindies in Ryan and making child care more affordable and accessible. We're increasing the childcare subsidy for families with more than one child—and up to five—in childcare and removing the $10,560 cap on the childcare subsidy. These measures will help 250,000 Australian families, including 1,500 in my own community. This has been one of the most well-received measures of the recent budget, I have found. The families in my local community are particularly appreciative of the fact that we are working hard to reduce their cost of living and the cost of childcare.

I want to talk about my passion, and that is infrastructure for my area. Every resident in the Ryan electorate knows what it is like to be stuck in traffic, and they have been let down for decades by previous Labor governments, particular at the state level, when it comes to investing in roads. Quite simply, the Queensland Labor government's cupboard is bare after years of inappropriate spending. If it were not for the federal government doing the heavy lifting, we simply wouldn't have the investment in the roads and infrastructure in Queensland that we need.

I heard the member for Lilley's contribution, just before mine, where she tried to paint what I think was an inaccurate picture of infrastructure spending into Queensland by this federal government. The reality is it is significant. A significant proportion of the $100 billion infrastructure pipeline has gone into Queensland, including in my own electorate, which I will detail. She also neglected to mention the fact that we are the only state—and in fact Brisbane is the only city—in Australia to have a commitment from the federal government to fund 50 per cent of the infrastructure for an Olympic bid. There is billions waiting to be unlocked as part of that bid process. She spoke a little bit about the Metro project, which has got $500 million worth of spending from this federal government. Again, the member for Lilley neglected to mention the fact that this large infrastructure project—the largest infrastructure project occurring in the city of Brisbane, at over $1 billion—is entirely funded by Liberal and Nation Party governments, at the council level and at the federal level, with not a single brass razoo from the Queensland Labor government.

The Queensland Labor government has primary carriage of providing public transport in the city of Brisbane, but it is so broke and so unable to manage its spending priorities that it has not been able to put a single dollar towards it. Both the Brisbane City Council and the federal government, neither of whom have primary responsibility for providing public transport in Brisbane, have had to come up with the full funding of that $1 billion. We're happy to do so because the reality is that if we didn't it just wouldn't happen, and it would be Brisbane residents who would suffer. It's important to point out that it is in fact the LNP and the Morrison government that are doing the heavy lifting when it comes to infrastructure in Queensland, nowhere more so than in the electorate of Ryan.

At the last election I made a commitment to help fix local roads and to get federal funding to do so. We in the government want to get residents home to their families sooner and safer. We want them spending more time with their families, less time sitting in congestion, and we are getting on with the job of doing it. In just the last two years, $230 million has been poured into the electorate of Ryan, specifically to help upgrade and fix local roads and reduce congestion at notorious bottlenecks. That includes the key bottleneck at Indooroopilly roundabout, where during the last election I secured $50 million in federal funding that has been matched by the Brisbane City Council, so this is $100 million local intersection project. It is a three-lane roundabout. You would not get a traffic engineer in Australia who would sign off on a three-lane traffic roundabout anymore, such is their danger, but this has been a historical oddity that needed to be removed so that we could increase safety and reduce congestion. The $100 million between the Brisbane City Council and the Morrison government is getting the job done.

As soon as the 2019 federal election was over, having made that commitment of $50 million towards that project, we saw Brisbane City Council kick into gear. They undertook different designs. They put two different designs out to consultation with the community, and the community has chosen the design. They finished the detailed design of the residents' choice and they are about to begin work on site. That is how quickly a LNP government, federal and council, can work together to get it done.

Unfortunately, it contrasts very differently with the experience that we have had with the Labor state government, where, again, we have put $12.5 million towards a project to remove a roundabout at Kenmore, to reduce congestion and improve safety. Despite making that funding commitment two years ago and having the money sitting there in the budget ready to go, it has taken two years for the Queensland Labor government to even produce a concept design, which they thankfully are now doing consultation on. But it is a little more than a concept design. Two years it took them. It took us 1½ years just to get them to match the funding commitment but it took us two years just to get a concept design. I would love for that project to go a lot quicker for our local community. I commit to you that I will continue to, to be frank, to bash Mark Bailey around the head at every public opportunity I get, to try and get them moving on behalf of our local community.

We have also put $10 million into doing a scoping study for the Metroad 5. Anybody who travels through Baden-Auchenflower part of our electorate and Toowong, knows the trouble of the Metroad 5. The $10 million will go towards looking at how we upgrade this for the future. We hope to make further commitments on that shortly. We have $112 million to upgrade to the Centenary Bridge, another local chokepoint that anyone using the Western and Centenary freeways will know very well. The $112 million is, again, specifically targeted to a road that is entirely the responsibility of the Queensland Labor government but without the federal funding input that I have secured for the local area, it simply would not have occurred. It simply would not have started. It has been on their books for over a decade and they had no intention of starting it. It is because of the federal government's commitment of $112 million that we are now seeing significant movement on this project.

We are building retaining walls along School Road at the Gap. We are upgrading the Gretchen Circuit bridge which is another chokepoint for local residents that has needed to be done for some time. I would like to thank Councillor Steve Toomey for his contribution to that project as well. We are also fixing local blackspots in Sir Fred Schonell Drive and Coldridge Street in St Lucia, which is the entrance to UQ. I was lucky to have the Deputy Prime Minister out there to see that project firsthand and see that we are putting the infrastructure money to good use.

Also to the seniors of Ryan, who have made a significant contribution to our community, there is plenty in the 2021 budget for them as well. They deserve to be supported. Whether they are planning on retirement, whether they have already retired or whether they are looking at aged care, the Morrison government will be there to support them. For those preparing for retirement, we are allowing Australians over 62 contribute up to $300,000 to their super if they downsize their home. We have put a record investment into aged care, with $17.7 billion committed to improve our aged-care system as well.

It is clear from the measures contained in the 2021 budget that the Morrison government has had the backs of Australians throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, and us all working together has put us in the miraculous place we are. The 2021 Morrison government budget has the back of Australians. It will continue to support them and lock in that economic recovery.

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