Susan Templeman (Macquarie, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Prime Minister.

Hon. Members:

Honourable members interjecting—

Milton Dick (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Order! The House will come to order. I want to hear the member for Macquarie in silence. The Leader of the Opposition and members on my left! I give the call to the member for Macquarie.

Susan Templeman (Macquarie, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

My question is to the Prime Minister. How is the government using federal funding in a fair and accountable way, particularly in light of revelations regarding the use of federal money for bushfire relief in New South Wales?

Anthony Albanese (Grayndler, Australian Labor Party, Prime Minister) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I thank the member for Macquarie for her question. This week, those opposite announced they will vote no to our National Reconstruction Fund—a fund that will revitalise manufacturing and create secure jobs. I don't know why they want to bring Tony Abbott back in the Senate, because they can do exactly that philosophy of voting no to everything without him here! It is a fund that will provide an enormous boost to Australian agriculture, to Australian resources, to critical minerals, to renewable energy as well as to our defence.

The NRF will operate with integrity. It will have a board that is independent—a bit like the Clean Energy Finance Corporation model they tried to abolish time and time again. It will make decisions based upon what's best for our economy, not based upon what electorate an investment is in.

They said no to this accountable economy-wide investment in the same week that we learned about the egregious rorting of bushfire relief funding by the New South Wales Liberals and Nationals. We've seen sports rorts, car park rorts, Safer Communities rorts and colour coded spreadsheets from those opposite. But this is a whole different level. This is the lowest of the low. The idea that the National Party in New South Wales, with the funds that were provided by the federal government as well as by the state government, sat down and changed the rules over who should get bushfire funding relief is beyond contempt—absolutely beyond contempt. And as Prime Minister I have been to the electorates of the member for Riverina, the member for Page, the member for Calare, the member for Barker, the member for Durack, the member for Braddon and the member for Bass, where there have been natural disasters. And we don't look at a map. We just provide support wherever it's needed.

But the idea that, on one hand, they are saying no to the National Reconstruction Fund that will provide support for our national economy, that will create jobs, particularly in regional Australia, not based upon a colour coded map but based on private sector activity that it will facilitate, but are prepared to sit down and say nothing about the rorting of this bushfire fund relief—not a peep from those opposite about this disgrace— (Time expired)

Milton Dick (Speaker) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

The Deputy Leader of the Opposition is on a warning.