Shayne Neumann (Blair, Australian Labor Party, Shadow Minister for Indigenous Affairs) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Regional Development Australia Fund was designed to stimulate regional economies and create jobs by funding important community infrastructure projects, and there is not a federal electorate around this country that has not seen the benefit of that. Certainly, when we budgeted for and announced the Regional Development Australia round 5 to improve communities around this country, I heard noises from those opposite that they might support Regional Development Australia. In fact, I remained optimistic until I read the announcement of the National Stronger Regions Fund on 29 August 2013 by those opposite before the election. Then I discovered that there will be no Regional Development Australia funding in 2013-14, none in 2014-15, and in fact only $200 million thereafter. Then I saw the fiscal impact of their budget announcements, made just a couple of days before the election: $2.5 billion was ripped out of the Regional Development Australia Fund. Then I saw the MRRT bill's explanatory memorandum: $2.7 billion was ripped out.

In my local community, we have seen funding for two important projects under round 5 ripped away—allegedly because contracts were not signed, and they had not been, but the money had been budgeted for and we had announced it. The councils had submitted projects to Regional Development Australia, to the federal government department, to get them approved, and they were approved. The Ipswich City Council was allocated $349,000 for a new hard stand at the Willowbank Raceway. This was to be a multipurpose hard stand, useful not just for viewing races but also for driver training. Also we saw $219,000 given to the Somerset Regional Council for upgrades to the very popular Lowood Pool, and the council had also put $24,200 towards that. The Ipswich City Council had also put funding towards the Willowbank hard stand, a $1.4 million project for the very popular Willowbank motorsport precinct in South-East Queensland—in fact, the most popular motorsport precinct in the state.

The coalition has ripped that funding away from my community. It is not just my community, but across the country you will see it. I know that in the electorate of Wright there was funding announced, but they have lost that funding. I know, because I used to represent large sections of that electorate. We have seen this across the country, and those opposite should hang their heads in shame, because I am sure they campaigned for those projects. None of those projects they campaigned for will be delivered, and there will be a gap in terms of regional infrastructure funding in this country of two years. It is led by the coalition. The funding should be committed and they should reverse this decision.