Mike Freelander (Macarthur, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Macarthur is a really wonderful place to live, work and learn. We're a diverse community and we're experiencing rapid growth and a lot of change. In recent years large parcels of our previously vast agricultural lands have been transformed into some of Sydney's newer suburbs with names like Oran Park, Gregory Hills and Willowdale. We have rapid change and rapid growth, which bring plenty of challenges—challenges that I've consistently spoken about in this chamber and pleaded with the state and federal coalition governments to address. In order to ensure these changes are sustainable, we must heavily invest in infrastructure and services that my community so desperately needs. It's not uncommon for a resident of Macarthur to commute over two hours each way every day to get to and from work. It's not uncommon for a resident of Macarthur to pay hundreds, even thousands, of dollars every year to drive on old and extortionate toll roads. It's not uncommon for young families to have limited time together because of such long commutes.

Macarthur is, unfortunately, experiencing some of the highest levels of mortgage stress and rental stress in the country. Increasingly, people are finding it harder and harder to make ends meet. I love my community. I've worked with the families in my community for almost 40 years, and I want to provide a voice for them. If our region's growth and change are to be sustainable, government policies must prioritise improving economic opportunity for residents across Macarthur. Local residents should not be made to spend hours of valuable family time commuting every day. We need local work and local jobs. I want our community to have access to secure and stable jobs within our community. I've spoken numerous times about how the new Western Sydney airport could serve as a catalyst for job creation in south-western Sydney if it's properly managed. But it's not being properly managed. We don't have a rail link to the new airport from my electorate. I've made no secret of the fact that there is already a corridor preserved for this rail link, but nothing has been done about it. We need a passenger line to the new airport. We need a transport line for goods to be exported through the new airport. We must have government funding to do this. We desperately need this rail line. It's not really fair that those from the north get their rail line, but we don't get ours. Parts of Macarthur are presently receiving very poor mobile phone coverage, very poor internet, very poor services from state and federal governments. Surely, it's a no-brainer, when you're rapidly expanding communities, that you provide the services for them.

Unfortunately, in areas like housing affordability, government policy could institute change, but it doesn't. We must improve housing affordability for our young families. I would also like to see some of our local schools upgraded. Recently, I ran a campaign for a special school in our community, Passfield Park School, that was literally falling down—leaking roofs covered in mould, no facilities for wheelchair-bound students to move within the school—and it was only after this that the state government actually bulldozed the school to build a new one. Many of our other schools are old. They lack infrastructure and they lack proper support. It's time for change. I'd like to see upgrades of many of our local schools.

Local projects supporting local jobs are also very important, and part of that includes education. I'd like to see vocational education centres in all of our high schools. It frustrates me no end to see the coalition government pork-barrelling in other electorates, with millions of dollars spent in suburbs on the North Shore for parks and pools but nothing for my electorate, one of the most disadvantaged electorates in the country. There's ample need in Macarthur, but it's not being serviced by state and federal coalition governments.

Macarthur is a region of endless opportunity. It has wonderful people. We're increasingly multicultural. We're a highly educated community. Our local industries are some of the most innovative in Australia. Recently, I took the opposition leader to see Deco Group, who produce coatings and membranes in a really scientifically advanced way. They are desperately calling out for infrastructure and support for their industry. A little understanding and some desperately needed investment in long-overdue infrastructure projects from government are very important. The present government is not doing enough for my rapidly expanding electorate. (Time expired)