Jamie Chaffey (Parkes, National Party, Shadow Assistant Minister for Agriculture) Share this | Hansard source

Last week I rose to speak about the atrocious state of regional roads in this parliament, and I'll continue to rise to speak about this until the matter is attended to by this Albanese government. The latest move by the Albanese Labor government to cut road speed limits throughout regional Australia where there is no signpost to 70 kilometres an hour is a clear indication that they do not intend to provide the funding for councils to fix the gravel or the sealed roads in regional communities. Instead they're asking regional people to simply just drive slower. This is yet another very clear message to people who choose to live in rural, regional and remote communities that they simply don't matter to the Albanese government.

When you travel across many parts of regional Australia, such as the Parkes electorate, you often travel hundreds of kilometres to get to the next dot on the map. A trip to the supermarket in a remote area could be a trip longer than some urban Australians could contemplate taking in a full year. This means that many people who live in those areas, people who visit those areas and people who save lives and do business in those areas will not only be travelling on substandard roads but have to factor in significant extra time. This is extra time for emergency response, extra time and cost for freight and extra time to get goods to market. The Pastoralists' Association of the West Darling have said:

The long distance transportation of livestock should not be adversely impacted by inappropriately low speed limits.

They noted that more time on trucks means worse animal welfare outcomes and a danger that trucks delayed by speed limits may not be able to make delivery curfews. The Pastoralists' Association of the West Darling feel so strongly about this issue that they have said there is a real risk this move will be used as the Albanese government's 'stalking horse' to cut road funding and maintenance repairs for regional communities.

Regional Australians should not accept that the condition of their roads is going backwards and they most certainly should not accept that this is all that can be done going forward. All 20 of the local government areas in my electorate have suffered some sort of natural disaster in the last four years and, as I've said before in this place, their applications under disaster-relief funding have been treated with contempt. Almost $150 million in funding has been knocked back for the roads in the Parkes electorate. I've asked the mayors and general managers of these councils—and I know just what impact that is having.

These councils are the ones who bear the brunt of the concerns of people when they cannot use the roads and are facing being told: 'It's all good. Just drive more slowly.' Dubbo Regional Council has been knocked back $20.6 million and is expected to fix the road damage. Lachlan shire has been told it won't get $29 million. Bourke Shire Council was denied $14.9 million. Narrabri Shire Council is looking at a $21.5 million shortfall and the Gunnedah shire is missing out on $4.7 million in funding which is needed. In their submission on the matter, the Bourke Shire Council said that the council continues to be frustrated by decision-makers that are 'ignoring the lived experience of longstanding shire residents' and looking for a one-size-fits-all solution. The council called for evidence based data to support its proposal.

The Country Mayors Association of NSW have announced that rural, regional and remote councils in New South Wales are 'unilaterally opposed' to the proposal to reduce speed limits. They have said the move would increase travel times and, along with this, the sense of isolation. It would also add road freight expenses and would overburden policing resources. In short, the Country Mayors Association have said that it represents an alarming disconnect between the Australian government and the real-world experience of users of regional, remote and rural roads.

It's not good enough to tell councils whose communities have suffered natural disasters, such as watching rivers of water over the roads in their communities, that this is just what they have to put up with and live with. Expecting councils to build infrastructure with less will lead to poorer outcomes. Cheaper is not better, and it's certainly not fairer.

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