Melissa McIntosh (Lindsay, Liberal Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

One of the things I am most passionate about is local jobs for local people. Advanced manufacturing will play a large role in achieving that aspiration. Since I was elected the member for Lindsay, I have been working with industry, schools, businesses and members of our community to bring manufacturing back to Western Sydney and back to Australia. One of the first steps I made as the member for Lindsay was to form the Lindsay jobs of the future forum, which is made up of these representatives. Recently, we met to discuss the barriers that are inhibiting manufacturing from returning to Western Sydney.

I established a community-led advancing manufacturing task force whose role it is to come up with practical solutions to bring manufacturing back, to advocate for better policy and to influence policy-making. A critical part in bringing manufacturing back to Western Sydney is educating our kids in the jobs of the future. With Western Sydney International Airport, Sydney Science Park and infrastructure investment in Western Sydney, there will be many opportunities for our children to live and work locally in jobs that we haven't yet thought of. We need to be stronger in backing Australian manufacturers, and I believe Western Sydney holds the key to bringing manufacturing back to Australia.