George Christensen (Dawson, National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

In 2012 I led a convoy of Liberal-National politicians, including former deputy prime minister Warren Truss, along the entire 1,700 kilometres of the Bruce Highway, highlighting the places that needed attention most urgently. That convoy, and my 'Fix the Bruce' campaign, worked, securing record funding for the Bruce, and major projects such as the Mackay Ring Road are now under construction. But half-a-billion worth of works on stage 1 of the ring road is only the beginning; we need to close the loop on this ring road. Labor has plucked the figure of $100 million out of the air to wave around for stage 2. But the reality is we need a full and proper commitment that will deliver the benefits of the road. Connecting stage 1 to the port will alleviate more of the congestion. Dangerous, heavy trucks will be taken off local streets. The right infrastructure will make the most of the billions of dollars our regional economy pumps into the state and national governments. Both those governments must realise that, if they like it, they need to put a ring road on it. If they like the royalties, if they like the billions of dollars in revenue, if they like the thousands of jobs that our region generates then they must complete Mackay Ring Road stages 1 and 2. We need to see a commitment to stage 2 now to ensure the project doesn't stall when stage 1 is completed. I look forward to seeing the government make a commitment by 'putting a ring road on it'.