Alex Hawke (Mitchell, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I understand that the member for Moreton is a wonderful fiction writer and I have heard nothing tonight that would dissuade me from that view, because that was a wonderful work of fiction. I rise tonight on behalf of my electorate to speak on a theme that will be familiar to most members here, whatever their persuasion—that is, the ongoing incompetence of the New South Wales state Labor government to manage transportation in metropolitan Sydney.

It is with a great deal of difficulty that I record for the House tonight that once again the people of north-west Sydney and the outer suburbs of Sydney have been badly let down by a state Labor government that has no idea how to provide effective transport solutions for metropolitan Sydney. Many residents of my electorate and surrounding electorates, including Berowra, have been subjected to a failure concerning bus changes to the Region 4 Bus Network, operated by the private operator Hillsbus.

Last year the state Labor government announced, with much fanfare, a review of Network 4. They promised an extensive consultation period that would take into account the views and the wishes of the local residents—that is, the people using the bus routes or those who would consider using them if a proper and efficient service was available across my electorate. But after six months of waiting for a final outcome what do you think happened? The changes to Network 4 were made public with only three days notice. That is right—three days notice for commuters who travel to school or to the city and who have to use the only form of public transport that is provided within my electorate.

For those members here in the chamber tonight who are not from Sydney or who do not know or have not heard me say this before, the electorate of Mitchell is the single most car-owning electorate in the entire country. There is no higher rate of car ownership than in my electorate. But is my electorate a priority for a rail line in metropolitan Sydney? No, of course it is not. The rhetoric of the New South Wales state Labor government on climate change, on the environment and on transport solutions for Sydney is just that—rhetoric. The single highest usage of cars within the country, in my electorate, is not a priority for the state Labor government.

But perhaps that is because my electorate is a safe Liberal electorate. Is that the reason why it is not being provided with a rail line? Of course, we know that the south-west rail line has also been shelved by the New South Wales state Labor government. So it is not the case that it is simply the north-west of Sydney; it is the south-west of Sydney, the outer suburbs and the outer regions of the biggest city in Australia, that is suffering from a government that has lost control of the public finances in New South Wales.

These changes to the bus routes had a severe impact upon my constituents. With three days notice, you can imagine the parents trying to get their kids on buses to school, people attempting to get to work and the chaos that ensued across Sydney because of the lack of preparation, because of the incompetence in the handling of the changes. Once again, it was an overall reduction in services and a reduction in the quality of the service. Once again, the people of metropolitan Sydney have been short-changed by their state government.

What is another good example of New South Wales Labor and its relationship with the federal Labor Party that sits here in this chamber? Would you imagine that in the budget, with this nation building that we hear about day in, day out, there would be major infrastructure projects like the ones all across Australia that we have been hearing so much about in the biggest city in Australia with some of the most transport deprived metropolitan areas? Well, Mr Speaker, I am here to tell you tonight that Sydney received only one thing in the budget. That was $91 million to fund a study into a metro line which would duplicate an existing heavy rail line from the CBD to Parramatta. There is already a heavy rail line there. There are already bus routes available there, but the outer suburbs of our biggest city, south-west and north-west, failed because of the New South Wales state Labor government’s incompetence. So there is a study for the most transport deprived regions of Sydney.

I rise tonight to say on behalf of my electorate that it is not good enough. The state Labor government is not only failing to make adequate preparations to receive federal government money; it is failing to provide adequate bus services or other transport solutions for people within Sydney. I would like to know tonight which members here—the member for Prospect, the member for Lindsay, the member for Fowler or perhaps the member for Bennelong, who is sitting at the table—have made representations to the minister for infrastructure, because somebody needs to do so. (Time expired)