Michelle Landry (Capricornia, National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Today seems like a perfect opportunity to update the House on the progress, or lack thereof, of the nation's most important water infrastructure project: the Rookwood Weir. Rookwood Weir is an exciting project that promises to deliver on the federal government's jobs and growth agenda and provide water security to Rockhampton, Gladstone and the Capricorn Coast. Rookwood will employ between 200 and 400 people through its two-year construction and will create over 2,000 jobs through the economic development of the region that is made possible by having more water for various industries, especially agriculture.

This is such a vital project for my electorate of Capricornia and for the electorate of Flynn. While we at a federal level have lobbied and delivered for Central Queensland, the Labor state government continues to drag the chain. It is now more than eight weeks since the Prime Minster and Deputy Prime Minister visited Rockhampton to announce the federal government's increase of capital funding to $176 million. This means all funds required to build Rookwood are now on the table. You might ask: why has construction not started? Well, it is a question I'd like answers to as well. The time has come for the Palaszczuk government to stop hiding behind an operating cost cash grab and start building what they promised to. Surely a government that can throw billions at the Cross River Rail in Brisbane can start construction on a $352 million project that they have already committed to. It's time for the Queensland Labor government to get on with the job and deliver what we have all committed to. (Time expired)