Steven Ciobo (Moncrieff, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Small Business, the Service Economy and Tourism) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise to hold the Rudd Labor government accountable not only for their lack of investment in Gold Coast infrastructure but, more importantly, for the fact that Labor’s candidates on the Gold Coast prior to the last federal election made a whole bunch of election promises that Labor are now walking away from.

I have with me a photocopy of the front page of the Gold Coast Weekend Bulletin of 24-25 March 2007 noting how the Labor Party endorsed a local councillor. It reads:

Councillor Sarroff—

who was the Labor Party candidate in the seat of McPherson—

said he agreed to run on the Labor ticket only after Mr Rudd promised a $2 billion infrastructure upgrade for the Gold Coast.

That is what he said on behalf of the Labor Party on the weekend of 24-25 March 2007—that the Labor Party was committed to a $2 billion infrastructure upgrade on the Gold Coast.

Further, on 15 May 2007, on local FM radio station Hot Tomato, Eddy Sarroff was again very big on behalf of the Labor Party, making all sorts of promises. He said with respect to Gold Coast light rail, public transport and traffic infrastructure:

I think it’s time to take this issue seriously. The Liberals have had a long time to come up with the money. In the meantime, the community is being caught in gridlock. I think we deserve to get our fair share of funding. Peter Costello won’t give it to us. I’m pretty sure Kevin Rudd and his team will.

In fact, we know from Councillor Sarroff that the Labor Party committed $2 billion to upgrading infrastructure on the Gold Coast. The Labor Party, at this point in time, stands accused of saying one thing prior to the election in order to get elected and then saying another after the election. I think the time has come for this Rudd Labor government either to say that Eddy Sarroff, on behalf of the Labor Party, was telling little porky pies when it came to the last federal election or to put its money where its mouth is. We know from that same weekend article that ‘Before accepting his preselection for McPherson, Councillor Sarroff secured’—and I use the word here from the Bulletin‘a commitment from Mr Rudd for a $2 billion infrastructure upgrade.’ He said:

I have given Kevin Rudd my shopping list and he has made it very clear that he will deliver on my agenda.

We are waiting for $2 billion for the Gold Coast. We are waiting for the Rudd government to honour its promise, a promise made by a Labor candidate on the Gold Coast, a promise that the Labor candidate said Kevin Rudd committed to. It is time that this Labor government and this Prime Minister stood up and made it very clear where the Labor Party stands when it comes to $2 billion of infrastructure for the Gold Coast. We will not stand idly by, and I certainly will not stand idly by, while Labor candidates say anything to get elected and then walk away from it later on.