Garth Hamilton (Groom, Liberal National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I've spoken a lot, here and in the Federation Chamber, about Oakey's past and the challenges that the town has faced and overcome, but tonight I want to focus on its future. It's very hard to look past the very difficult couple of years that Oakey has been through, with PFAS; the drought, which has been ongoing; flood-mapping issues, which have caused residents significant concerns; and, as I raise quite regularly, the end of the New Acland coalmine, which is bringing to an end over 100 years of mining in the region and stripping the region of its source of wealth—the economic activity that has underwritten Oakey and the Toowoomba region for so long. But there are huge opportunities ahead for Oakey and the whole Toowoomba region. I will start with Inland Rail.

Inland Rail is a fantastic project coming right through Toowoomba. It will make us the focal point and the distribution centre for South-East Queensland, bringing wonderful produce right up from Melbourne and sending it into Brisbane, along the wonderful Warrego Highway, which this government has invested in. This will bring jobs not just during the construction of the inland rail but for years to come, as Toowoomba becomes a transport hub, sending those goods into Brisbane. We've got $5 billion worth of investment going into the Toowoomba region, heading down into the seat of Wright. It's a fantastic investment. If it duplicates what we've seen in other parts of the Inland Rail project, we'll see something like 60 or 70 per cent of that investment going locally. That means local jobs, local businesses and local futures being secured by the government's investments. Inland Rail is a project I support very strongly.

Oakey has the skills to deliver Inland Rail. At its peak, the project will demand 950 jobs, and the recently appointed design-and-construct contractors have been tasked with engaging locally and driving as much of that government investment into the local economy. I met with the contractors on the design-and-construct contract, BHQ. I'm very confident that they understand the needs of our local economy, and I'm very confident that they, too, see the opportunity of investing in local businesses and local jobs.

Beyond Inland Rail, which is a fantastic opportunity, the other great opportunity in front of Oakey is expansion into the defence industry at the Oakey Army Aviation Centre, which I visited recently. It's very clear to see that the Oakey base has potential for expansion both physically, with a large amount of greenfield space available for development, and personnel wise, with a potential for greater collaboration with allied nations. This is already going very well, with the base's collaboration with the Republic of Singapore Air Force. They currently house five Chinook helicopters at the base, and it's their intention to increase that number to 10. I stood in the control tower, looking over the base and out at the wonderful flat lands that lay in front of it to the north. There are 56 landing bases at the Oakey base. In Singapore, there are only three for the helicopters, so it's very clear to see why they choose to come to Oakey and the opportunities that they have in front of them. There's the ability for them to train individually but also, more so, with us. We can absolutely increase our strategic influence in the region. It's very important to me to see the Oakey Army Aviation Centre continue. On a personal level, I'm very happy to have seen my father-in-law complete 47 years of service to the Army, finishing off at the Oakey Army Aviation Centre, as many do, in the maintenance and care operations there for the aircraft we have on site. It's a fantastic facility.

I've written to the defence minister, Peter Dutton, asking him to keep Oakey in mind for future discussions with our regional allies. Clearly, with the current state of affairs, we see that is where we're headed. We've already invested $31 million in the 2021-22 budget to refresh facilities at Swartz Barracks, with a new health facility that will open soon, as part of a $212.5 million investment in new and upgraded health facilities at defence premises across the nation. I'm very glad to see Oakey be a part of that. The construction programs include a range of new and upgraded facilities to provide primary health care services, including dental, pharmacy, mental health, physiotherapy and allied health services as well as rehabilitation.

I'd like to say to the people of Oakey: the future is bright. There are opportunities ahead, and I'll be with you every step of the way.

House adjourned at 20:00