David Littleproud (Maranoa, National Party, Shadow Minister for Agriculture) Share this | Hansard source

I firstly acknowledge the minister and congratulate her on her first ministerial statement on northern Australia. Northern Australia is a remarkable, resilient and dynamic part of our nation. One thing that really stands out is its sheer size. Going along that dividing line between Carnarvon in WA, across the Northern Territory, and extending to Gladstone in Central Queensland, Northern Australia is 53 per cent of our landmass yet is home to only five per cent of our people. Despite a small population, the north has always punched well above its weight. In agriculture alone, the numbers speak for themselves. With 12.5 million beef cattle, this region makes up 64 per cent of the national beef herd and 90 per cent of our live cattle exports. It also produces more than 95 per cent of our sugar, 94 per cent of our bananas and 93 per cent of our mangoes. This is a region that deserves investment. It deserves its fair share of infrastructure and deserves every opportunity to grow into the future. Every dollar of funding that goes into northern Australia goes towards building our entire nation.

When we reflect on the achievements of the federal coalition government during our time in office, what we did for northern Australia was among the most significant of those. With the change of government, it's worth reflecting on what was achieved, and so, on behalf of the coalition, I want to recognise and express our sincere thanks to the former ministers Keith Pitt, Barnaby Joyce, Senator Matt Canavan and Josh Frydenberg, as well as the former assistant minister Michelle Landry and former special envoy Senator Susan McDonald, who all served with distinction and have left a huge legacy in this part of Australia that they should be very proud of. I also want to recognise our partners in this portfolio who contributed so much: the Indigenous Reference Group, the Northern Australia Infrastructure Facility and the Cooperative Research Centre for Developing Northern Australia. Thank you for all of your knowledge and your guidance.

In government, the federal coalition made growing northern Australia its priority. We were able to deliver a nation-building future for this vast region that was underpinned by more jobs, new economic opportunities and better essential services. The north was an essential part of our record 10-year $120 billion infrastructure pipeline. The north was at the heart of our national plan to create 450,000 jobs in regional Australia over the next five years. By securing enormous amounts of federal investment, we were capitalising on the north's competitive advantages to grow agriculture, resources, critical minerals, energy, defence, manufacturing and tourism. It's as simple as this: the coalition's plan, vision and track record of delivering for northern Australia were rock-solid, and it was making a real difference.

Our government cut taxes for workers and small businesses, making it easier for them to operate. We funded almost $3.5 billion worth of major projects through the Northern Australia Infrastructure Facility. We invested in major road upgrades to the Outback Way, Central Arnhem Road, Bruce Highway, beef roads and Great Northern Highway. We established the Cooperative Research Centre for Developing Northern Australia, which is headquartered in Townsville and will plan future investments in the north. We also invested in more accessible rural and remote health services, upgraded defence facilities and created an Indigenous procurement policy, through which $5.3 billion flowed to more than 2,100 Indigenous businesses.

During our time in office, the coalition was delivering on our plan to turbocharge the north by unlocking the incredible potential that it offers. This plan for a stronger northern Australia was built on the white paper we released in 2015, with major investments including delivering $2.6 billion to develop the Northern Territory into an industrial energy powerhouse, which included major upgrades at Middle Arm and Tanami Road. Our government had committed $9.3 million to develop master plans to accelerate regions of growth to strengthen the northern Australian economy. These master plans will deliver a 20-year blueprint for economic development, with the first three master plans focusing on: the Beetaloo basin to Katherine to Darwin; Mt Isa to Townsville; and Broome to Kununurra to Darwin. Building on this strategic framework, the next priority region growth corridor was Cairns to Gladstone.

We were growing Australia's food bowl, with $1.7 billion locked-in to expand irrigated agriculture in Central and northern Australia, providing food security not just for Australia but also for our export markets. There was $1.5 billion to transform the Pilbara into a major energy hub. We made commitments of $678 million to seal a further thousand kilometres of the Outback Way, linking Winton in Queensland with Laverton in Western Australia. We were rolling out the Our North, Our Future initiative, which included $111.9 million for the Northern Australia Development Program to support business grants.

Northern Australia is crucial to the health of our biosecurity, and this was always a priority of our government. We had made more than $1 billion available for biosecurity and export programs in the 2023 budget, and during the election we committed more than $61 million to boost our northern biosecurity frontline. Under the Modern Manufacturing Strategy our government was partnering with 19 manufacturers in the north by providing over $160 million in grants to projects valued at $900 million, which was expected to create thousands of jobs.

In terms of boosting regional communications, the coalition had committed $157 million to improve mobile and broadband connectivity in northern Australia, which is in addition to the $380 million delivered under the Mobile Black Spot Program that funded more than 1,200 mobile base stations in regional, rural and remote locations around the nation.

The north is rich in resources, and as a coalition we'll always support this sector to reach its potential. We invested over $2.5 billion to support the development of our critical minerals sector through targeted loans, research and development and regional grants to accelerate projects across Western Australia, the Northern Territory and Queensland. We committed to the Beetaloo basin, with over $224 million of investments to secure development of this strategic gas basin in the heart of northern Australia. This project will create jobs, wealth and investment in local communities in the Northern Territory, further supporting our regions. Further to this we continue to develop our offshore gas potential, supporting investments like the Scarborough and Barossa projects, which provide hundreds of secure, long-term jobs for Western Australia, and the Barossa-Darwin LNG extension, securing production in Darwin for the next 20 years.

We know that securing private investment is essential to securing the future of northern Australia. That's why the coalition established the groundbreaking Northern Australia Infrastructure Facility, or NAIF. By the time we left office the NAIF had supported more than 32 investments, worth almost $3.5 billion, which are expected to generate an economic benefit of $25 billion and create over 13,000 jobs. In January this year our government was pleased to announce an extra $2 billion for the NAIF in response to the strong demand for its investment, taking it to $7 billion. The transformative projects which the NAIF is supporting include: $150 million for the expansion upgrades to Darwin, Tennant Creek and Alice Springs airports; $300 million to expand Darwin Harbour, including a new ship lift facility; and $175 million to Pembroke Resources to develop the Olive Downs Coking Coal Complex, a large steelmaking coalmine in the Bowen basin. There was $50 million to redevelop the Townsville Airport terminal.

For regional universities, there was: $142 million for James Cook University to establish a technology innovation complex and student accommodation; more than $150 million for the new Charles Darwin University city campus and upgrades for the Casuarina campus; and $76 million for northern campus upgrades to Central Queensland University. It's clear why the NAIF has been an integral part of the coalition's vision for building northern Australia. While we welcome the fact that the government will be keeping the NAIF operating, their introduction of legislation to require the NAIF to take into consideration projects' contributions to meeting Australia's emissions reduction targets is deeply concerning and has the capacity to hold up crucial nation-building projects in the north.

In office the coalition was getting on with the job of building the dams and water infrastructure that Australia needs for its future. Indeed, many of these essential projects are located in the north. However, in line with their entire approach to regional Australia, this government has chosen to decimate crucial water infrastructure in the bush by ripping them out of the budget entirely, or just kicking them down the road. Our commitment to the National Water Grid Fund was $8.9 billion because we understand the importance of this resource. That's why the coalition was proud to commit $5.4 billion to Hells Gate Dam in Queensland. This would have generated economic growth across the whole region, opened up new agricultural export opportunities and locked in long-term water security. Instead, the government will scrap it. The coalition was proud to commit $483 million for the Urannah Dam. This too will be scrapped by the government. It's a devastating blow to these communities in Central Queensland. Not content with ripping out dam projects for the north, the government has also decided to tear up the dedicated agriculture visa. Australia is 172,000 workers short from paddock to plate. The ag visa was a reform that the coalition secured not only to give our farmers access to a sustainable workforce; it would also have brought in the next generation of migrant workers to help build regional Australia, particularly in the north. When it comes to a workforce for farmers, the government needs to understand that the PALM scheme, by itself, isn't going to do the job.

In addition to these appalling actions, the government needs to explain to the beef cattle farmers of northern Australia how more they'll pay for Labor's decision to break their election promise and sign up to the Global Methane Pledge. In fact, their budget includes $80.7 million to support voluntary action by farmers to lower methane emissions. This plan doesn't stack up. This plan will force farmers to buy more-expensive food for their cattle, making farming more expensive. The result will be an increase in meat prices, which will push up food bills for families around Australia. Actions like these are neither what the people of northern Australia want nor deserve.

The previous coalition government fought hard to deliver the tremendous amount of federal funding into building critical infrastructure in the north. One such initiative was the Building Better Regions Fund, which delivered $256 million into community projects in northern Australia, including $10 million for the Rockhampton Art Gallery, $9.7 million for the redevelopment of the Royal Flying Doctor Service base in Mount Isa, $6 million to upgrade the Cable Beach foreshore in Broome, and $3.6 million for the Tiwi Islands Welcome Centre. In handing down its October budget, the government scrapped the BBRF. The government's cuts and delays to infrastructure in regional Australia amount to billions of dollars, and northern Australia will feel the impacts of this.

The $7.2 billion Energy Security and Regional Development Plan has been gutted.

The coalition committed $800 million to build the Rockhampton Ring Road. Now this Labor government has thrown it into delay and uncertainty. Those opposite need to recognise how important this project is to Central Queensland. Each day, 2,600 trucks pass through Rockhampton during peak traffic times. Local industry leaders have already invested heavily in both equipment and staff in preparation for the project to start early next year. They are outraged by this decision.

This approach is in stark contrast to our track record. In the north, it was a coalition government who delivered $1.9 billion for the Roads of Strategic Importance Initiative, committed an extra $678 million for Outback Way and secured $300 million under the Northern Australia Beef Roads Program. It was our government who invested over $10 billion for the Bruce Highway upgrade program, including $397.9 million for the Mackay Ring Road and $184 million for the Townsville Ring Road stage 5.

To conclude my statement, I want to reaffirm just how proud we as a coalition are on this side of the House about what we achieved in northern Australia during our time in government. All the funding, all the infrastructure, all the projects, all the investment, all the hard work—we put northern Australia front and centre of our efforts to build our nation and secure Australia's future. The 1.3 million Australians who live in this part of the country can be assured that we will hold this government to account for their cuts, their delays and the real consequences that these decisions will have across the north.

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