Melissa McIntosh (Lindsay, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Energy Affordability) Share this | Hansard source

What will the Australian public remember about the Albanese Labor government when election day comes? Broken promises. In almost every portfolio where this government has tried to deliver, it has underdelivered or, worse than that, it has made a commitment to the Australian people and then broken that promise. It has done this in my community in Lindsay; it has done this across Western Sydney; it has done this to every single Australian.

On nearly 100 occasions, the Prime Minister said that energy prices would go down by $275. In question time today, those opposite were shouting out, 'But people have gotten $300', but power bills are up $1,000 and so Australians are actually worse off under this government. They broke their promise because despite having a little bit of relief, people are still paying $1,000 more than they had been promised by the Albanese Labor government. I know that people across Western Sydney can't afford this. Small businesses, struggling to keep their doors open because of high wage prices and high energy bills, can't afford these broken promises. It's extraordinary that electricity costs have gone up by more than 30 per cent.

The cost-of-living crisis is hurting Aussie families who can't afford their energy bills, their groceries or their petrol to get to and from work. Gas, as well, is really important in the mix for Western Sydney manufacturers. Yet again, our manufacturers have been let down because gas is up 30 per cent. Manufacturers need gas to produce Aussie made products in this country. They're desperate for gas to flood into the market so they can get some relief from high prices to power their factories. They can have all the solar panels in the world but they can't use solar; they need gas.

Without affordable and reliable power, Aussie made products will go out of existence—and manufacturers have told me this—because our small manufacturers will not be able to compete with overseas competitors any longer. I had a local manufacturer—who has been in the industry, an engineer, for years—in tears because manufacturing is going offshore and he feels there is nothing he can do about it.

We have so many people in our Western Sydney community who rely on their manufacturing job, whether they be from Blacktown, Fairfield, Liverpool or Campbelltown. We want to see our manufacturers thrive and ensure our Western Sydney economy reaps the benefits of this. But it can only be done with a government that will take the energy crisis seriously. A Dutton led government would invest in nuclear to ensure reliable energy for Australians and keep renewables and gas powering our economy and households.

What about housing? There have been so many interest rate rises that have smashed Australian families, and the Albanese Labor government thinks that Australians have it so good. Labor have not done the hard yards to reduce inflation. They've increased spending, and we know a budget deficit could soon feature on the government's books if they manage to get to a budget before calling the election. Mortgage stress has risen particularly in Western Sydney, where people are so aspirational and working so hard to get ahead. Renters are feeling the pinch just as hard. A Dutton led coalition government will spend $5 billion building the infrastructure needed to get new housing developments online to boost housing numbers and help bring down the heat in the property market.

I've spoken about the Albanese Labor government's failures on energy affordability and reliability, hits to manufacturers and small businesses, the weakened economy and housing struggles. But there's another key topic on the minds of people in Western Sydney—that is, the Labor government's broken promises on infrastructure funding and projects right across Western Sydney. The Treasurer and the infrastructure minister committed to the Morrison government's infrastructure plan in the Labor government's October 2022 mini budget, but—what a surprise—Labor broke this commitment and broke promises to the Australian people that they made during the 2022 election, and decided to conduct an independent review of Western Sydney infrastructure by local experts. They also called for a review of the entirety of infrastructure funding in Australia.

Before the May 2023 budget, the Albanese Labor government received the Western Sydney report but decided to shelve it until November. This meant they were not going to be pressured publicly to fund certain projects in Western Sydney that the independent report evaluated as high priority. The budget went ahead without taking the Western Sydney report into consideration. Then the minister took away funding from vital projects, including the M7-M12 link already under construction. This is needed to connect multiple parts of Western Sydney via the motorway to the new Western Sydney International Airport, which is a Commonwealth responsibility. We want the airport to succeed. We don't want investment left behind for the airport that's going to enhance people's lives in Western Sydney and make going to the airport and all around Western Sydney easier, and we don't want the people of Western Sydney to be left behind.

Unfortunately, the minister also cut funding for the Western Sydney transport development network. The network was made up of seven roads, which are old semi-rural roads, in desperate need of upgrades; these are potholed roads. Shortly, when the airport opens, they are going to be major freight roads for an international airport. Not only is this inadequate; it puts local residents at risk, and they are very concerned about their safety. The coalition has now committed funding to one of these roads, Fifteenth Avenue, to the tune of $500 million, alongside the New South Wales government. This is important because the people of Werriwa, which is where this road is, deserve this much-needed road funding.

Austral, the community in Werriwa, is growing so fast, with tens of thousands of homes to be constructed, connecting the airport to the Liverpool CBD. The minister delaying the release of the independent report and not getting on with these projects is one in a bundle of examples of the infrastructure minister being tricky with the people of Western Sydney. Let's not forget when she refused to meet with Western Sydney residents to discuss the changed bypass to the Western Sydney Airport. She actually came to the electorate of Lindsay with the energy minister but didn't have time to go 15 minutes up the road on that day to Penrith and talk to those impacted by the change in the flight paths. We had a Senate committee hearing on flight paths in my electorate. The minister was there, up the road, but didn't appear. She would not face the people, but she's been very good at putting out midnight media releases to avoid scrutiny.

Western Sydney is really sick and tired of being hoodwinked by the Albanese Labor government, particularly this infrastructure minister. When will she visit Lindsay, Hume or Fowler—non-Labor areas—to hear community feedback about the flight paths? When will she do a press conference from her electorate office in Ballarat about Western Sydney—wait, she's already done that. That's her favourite thing to do. The minister came to Western Sydney to claim a win with investment in our regions. She tried to pull the wool over our eyes by saying her government had put new funding into Western Sydney infrastructure. That funding was set by the Morrison government. She put it on hold then ripped it away and only invested some of it back into Western Sydney, but she wanted us to be grateful. It's extraordinary.

An honourable member: We had a good infrastructure minister in the Morrison government.

A fantastic infrastructure minister in the Morrison government. Since that time, we have been completely abandoned. The Albanese Labor government has not delivered on its original commitment to infrastructure for the Western Sydney community. Infrastructure has not caught up with some of the housing developments. We have a population boom in Western Sydney. You can't have one million people arrive in Australia without providing adequate infrastructure for additional housing being built where they live. The absolute disconnect on policy from this Labor government is astounding.

The coalition has taken leadership on this very issue, wanting to reduce immigration to sustainable levels—without doing so, our infrastructure and housing crisis will get worse. Western Sydney is at the brunt of this cost-of-living crisis, which has been compounded by the utter neglect on adequate infrastructure, no real policy on housing and relying on immigration to essentially keep the economy afloat. Our community wants leadership. That's what they tell me when I'm out in Western Sydney.

It's time to remove this weak Albanese Labor government from office. A Dutton coalition government will deliver on our plan to reduce inflation, boost productivity, invest in infrastructure and get on with the job of delivering for everyday Australians that Labor has left behind.

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