Anne Webster (Mallee, National Party, Shadow Minister for Regional Development, Local Government and Territories) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I move:

That this House:

(1) condemns the Government's lack of transparency in its proposal to slash default regional road speed limits from 100 kilometres per hour to as low as 70 kilometres per hour, including its attempt to quietly progress the policy without proper public scrutiny;

(2) notes that the Government was forced, at the eleventh hour, to extend its abysmally short 28-day consultation period only after strong intervention from the Opposition;

(3) warns that the Government's proposal is a lazy, damaging approach that will slow regional Australia to a crawl, and drive up freight times and costs for farmers, transport operators and small businesses;

(4) highlights that instead of fixing the roads by funding maintenance for line-marking, road shoulders, rumble strips and pothole repairs, the Government is cutting the Local Roads and Community Infrastructure program from 1 July next year; and

(5) calls on the Government to commit to consultation and genuine road safety improvements that protect lives without crippling regional productivity and national supply chains.

I rise today to speak on an issue that strikes at the very heart of regional Australia: our roads, our livelihoods and our way of life. The Albanese Labor government has quietly launched a proposal to slash the default speed limit on regional roads from 100 kilometres per hour to as low as 70 kilometres. Let me be clear: this is not a road safety initiative. It is lazy, shortsighted policy that punishes regional Australians for the government's failure to maintain our rural roads.

This proposal was buried in a consultation process that began on 29 September without a press release, without public engagement and with an abysmally short 28-day window for feedback. It was only after strong pressure from the coalition that the government reluctantly extended the consultation to the standard 42 days. Even then, the extension was made quietly with no announcement—just a subtle change on the departmental website. This is not how good policy is made. This is not how you treat Australian people who are keeping our country moving.

Let's be honest about what this proposal really means. It means longer travel times for families trying to get their kids to school, to sport or to the doctor. It means longer travel times and higher freight costs for farmers and small businesses already doing it tough. It means regional tourism takes another hit, as visitors are deterred by longer and slower journeys. And for what? Because the government can't be bothered to fix rural roads. Instead of investing in proper maintenance—line marking, road shoulders, rumble strips, pothole repairs—Labor's solution is to simply slow everyone down. It's a bandaid on a gaping word. It's the easy way out.

While the government claims this is about safety, the truth is more ideological. Deep in the detail of the consultation documents, the true motivations for this proposal are revealed: reducing fuel consumption and—guess what—cutting emissions. Now I ask, since when did slowing down regional Australia become foundational to Australia's climate policy? It's clear that Minister Bowen's fingerprints are all over this. Having failed to meet his own unattainable emissions targets, he's now looking for shortcuts, literally. But regional Australians should not be made the scapegoats of Labor's desperate scramble to fudge the numbers. This is not just about speed limits; it's about priorities. And Labor's priorities are clearly to cut funding to the regions, shifting responsibility from their own emission reduction failings, increasing our road toll on their own watch and then hoping no-one notices.

Let's look at the facts. The government has cut the Local Roads and Community Infrastructure Program from July next year. They've cut Commonwealth funding for regional road projects from 80 per cent to 50 per cent. They've scrapped the Roads of Strategic Importance program. Across the nation, more than $30 billion in infrastructure projects have been cancelled, delayed or cut. In New South Wales alone, nearly $6 billion is gone. In Victoria, it's $5.5 billion. In Queensland, it's almost $3 billion. And the list goes on. Regional Australians are not asking for much. They're asking for safe roads. They're asking for fair funding. They're asking to be heard. We do not want to see a single life lost on our roads, but reducing speed limits without fixing roads is not the answer. It's a lazy substitute for real investment and real leadership.

So today I call on the government to abandon this misguided proposal. I urge every transport operator, every farmer, every small-business owner and regional council to make their voices heard before the consultation closes on 10 November. We are sending a clear message: regional Australians want and deserve safer roads, not slower roads. We want real solutions, not ideological shortcuts. And, above all, we want a government that listens, invests and respects the people who keep this country running.

Meryl Swanson (Paterson, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Is the motion seconded?

Pat Conaghan (Cowper, National Party, Shadow Assistant Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I second the motion and reserve my right to speak.

Rob Mitchell (McEwen, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

You won't find much more hypocrisy in this place than when listening to the Nationals complaining about road funding. I say this in absolute honesty. We've just heard five minutes of whining and complaining about something that was actually done by them. In 2018, the then deputy prime minister, Michael McCormack, the member for Riverina, had this specific plan laid out; as part of the National Road Safety Action Plan there was a commitment to lower speed limits. That comes on top of the fact that you would have thought a member from Victoria would have stood up during those nine years and complained about Victoria only getting seven per cent of the infrastructure spend nationally. But, no, there was absolute silence. It was okay to build a backlog of potholes and road repairs with no investment in Victoria because they were in government. Now, suddenly, it's: 'Oh, look at this. It's a big problem.'

You can't expect all this backlog to be fixed in five years. But what you can expect is a government to be out there working for rural and regional Australians, and that is why there are more Labor MPs in rural and regional seats than the National Party—because we got rid of those that sit around and do nothing. We got rid of those who just enjoy themselves here, creating havoc and delivering nothing. We saw more press releases on every single road project in Victoria than we did shovels or action. The number of times they went to an election promising to fund this and to fund that and to do all these things for rural and regional Australia—they didn't do a thing. The National Party is the absolute most disgraceful party you can think of for rural and regional Victoria.

When you look at every one of their seats, they have problems with education, with health and with jobs. The one consistency is re-voting in Nationals. That's why they are down to four per cent of the national vote—because they do not deliver. They're just a little tail on the back of the coalition dog, and all they do is wag and deliver nothing.

I look forward to the member for Riverina coming in and talking about how he looked at the Watson Street ramps as being so important in rural and regional Victoria. He promised it. He wanted to get behind it. But, of course, the knifings saw him removed for the member for New England—now the One Nation member for New England, I think. They saw that gone.

We saw him go to the election under the Urban Congestion Fund, the car park rorts fund, promising to build car parks in specific areas. A little known fact is that the three car parks they promised were already built. All they did was give money to Victoria to cover the work that was already done.

Then they promised to build new lanes on the Hume Freeway, and what did we get? We got a $50 million announcement with big fanfare. They even sent one of the National MPs down—that was the first time he'd been down to the Hume Freeway to see what was going on—promising $50 million for a new lane on the freeway. We know it was a zombie promise. If they think they can deliver 23 kilometres of dual road for $50 million, they have rocks in their heads. It wasn't going to happen, and they didn't deliver a single thing. They went to that election and the 2022 election lying to the people of McEwen, Nicholls and Indi about getting these things fix. They never delivered a thing.

What have we done? We have doubled the funding to Roads to Recovery. Since coming to government, Roads to Recovery has gone from $500 million to $1 billion this year. It's worth noting that, when we formed government in 2002, we learned that the coalition government, again through the sneakiness and the mischievous work of those opposite, had frozen maintenance to highways all the way back to 2013. That was the contribution the coalition government made towards essential maintenance on the highways that we all rely on. So what we've got is an absolute joke put up here by the member for Mallee about road funding and needing maintenance for potholes and all these other things. But, of course, the member didn't get up and say, 'Look, I was part of a government that froze that funding 10 years ago and caused backlogs for years and years.' It is a bit like the electricity bills. Those opposite complain about electricity bills but never once have you heard them get up and say, 'We are so sorry that we hid the price rises from the Australian public.' It is simply part of their DNA to be disrespectful to the Australian people by sneakily hiding price rises, because they did not want to go to an election and face the fact they had done nothing. This is an absolute failure of a government and that's why we're sitting where we are today. On every single measure on road funding, you can see our government has been delivering. We've delivered more roads, more road funding and more project results in three years than those opposite could muster up press releases in nine. It is an absolute joke, and, seriously, the member should apologise.

Pat Conaghan (Cowper, National Party, Shadow Assistant Treasurer) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I had the privilege of being the chair of the road safety committee back in 2019-20. Further to that, I had the privilege of actually going to the third international road safety convention. There were representatives of countries from all around the world concentrating on how we reduce the significant road toll in every single country around the world. We know that in Australia alone last year there were around 1,200 deaths. Despite the efforts of governments, despite the efforts of councils, despite the efforts of agencies in the sector, nothing seems to budge.

There was a common thread and a shared international philosophy across four areas: first, people make predictable mistakes that can lead to road crashes; second, the human body has a limited physical ability to tolerate crash forces before harm occurs; third—this is the big one—a shared responsibility exists among those who fund, plan, design, build, manage and use roads and vehicles to prevent crashes that result in serious injury or death; and finally, all parts of the system must be strengthened to multiply their effects so, if one part fails, road users are still protected.

I'll go back to the third area: shared responsibility exists among those who fund—government, plan—government and design—government. We are now seeing that one part has failed—that is, the Labor government's funding to our regions to fix our roads. While the last speaker might have said, 'We're spending this much here and that much there,' the government is not spending it in our electorates, not spending it in Nationals electorates. I know because I go and speak to my mayors, the councils and the councillors, and I speak to our people who use those roads.

Imagine the outcry. Deputy Speaker Swanson, I would imagine you're getting the same outcry in your electorate. Our people are being told—victim shamed—'Your speed limits are going to be reduced from 100 kilometres an hour down to 70 kilometres an hour because you can't be trusted to drive on the same road you've been driving on for 30, 40, 50 years. You are too irresponsible to drive on that road, so we are going to reduce it to take care of you.' That is not the issue. We need to be respected in the regions. We need to be able to make our own decisions. This consultation—thanks for extending it by 28 days, Labor—is an affront. It is offensive to regional and rural people to say that they are too irresponsible to use the roads in their current state. Well, fix their state! Fix the roads! Come into our communities, Labor, and fund our roads. It is a little bit like Crocodile Dundee. Remember? He pulls out a knife, and Crocodile Dundee goes: 'That's not a knife. That's a knife!' Well, we've now got the same competition: 'That's not a pothole. That's a pothole!' That's what our communities are facing.

It is an affront to all those intelligent drivers in the regions—all those farmers, truck drivers and tradies, who know those roads like the back of their hands—to be told: 'We're going to go out and consult, and we're going to protect you from yourselves.' Well, Labor, you're out of touch. You say that the Nationals are out of touch. We know our people. You are out of touch with your electorates and our electorates and the crossbench electorates if you think you can walk into our communities and reduce the speed limit from 100 down to 70. We will not cop it. Fix the roads!

Fiona Phillips (Gilmore, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I love to talk about regional roads because I know how important roads are to people in my regional community. Everybody is talking about roads, even Cliff Hofman, who is a year 7 student at Bombaderry High School. Cliff won the Raise Our Voice competition in Gilmore, and last week I read out Cliff's speech in the Australian parliament. And you guessed it: Cliff's topic was about potholes and how he wants the local roads in the Shoalhaven to be fixed. I couldn't agree more with Cliff. That's why, after a decade of neglect by the former coalition government, the Albanese Labor government is delivering record investment funding for regional roads.

Since coming to government, we've doubled the Roads to Recovery Program from $500 million to $1 billion. This has already been baked into the budget and will remain at a high level into the future. This is a significant change which will provide more funding to local councils. I know that, in Gilmore, the Shoalhaven, Eurobodalla and Kiama councils rely on this funding—and now it's increased funding—to help fix local roads.

What I like about the Roads to Recovery Program is that councils determine which local roads are to be funded under the program, and there are some beautiful and important roads that have been fixed and are set to be fixed into the future. Just last week Eurobodalla council staff sent me their list of roads for 2025-26, and I can say it is an extensive list of local roads that is benefiting from this program. Well done, Eurobodalla council. I know locals in the Eurobodalla shire will be eagerly awaiting and thankful for those local roads being fixed with additional funds.

Despite writing to Shoalhaven City Council in July this year, requesting to be provided with regular updates on the $40 million Shoalhaven local roads package—funding that I secured as an election commitment and delivered in the October 2022 federal budget—I remain disappointed that Shoalhaven City Council has not provided me with that information. I am bemused by how something so simple, to provide simple information direct to me and the public in a regular and transparent way, can be so difficult. I know constituents in Gilmore would like a simple description of each of the six roads to be fixed and the estimated timelines for each road and intersection to be fixed. It's not that hard. We pay our rates and taxes.

The good news is we've also significantly increased funding for the Black Spots Program. This is a great program, which we've increased from $110 million to $150 million annually, supporting more life-saving road improvements across the country. All local councils in Gilmore have benefited from this program, and it's great to see more local roads being fixed under the Black Spots Program thanks to extra funding from the Albanese Labor government. The Local Roads and Community Infrastructure Program is also a fabulous federally funded program that helps local councils with projects such as roads, community halls, parks and sports facilities, bike paths and playgrounds, and it's terrific to see lots of great road and community infrastructure projects being funded in Gilmore under this program.

When it comes to the larger road infrastructure projects, which I have been fighting for, they are either in construction or finally progressing well. I'm proud to be part of the Albanese Labor government that is getting on with these important regional road projects. You can't miss the construction progress on the Jervis Bay flyover, which now has the concrete girders in place to support the new bridge. Pleasingly the new bridge is set to be open by mid next year, making the intersection safer, with the project set for full completion in 2027. This was made possible with $100 million in federal funding.

The Milton Ulladulla bypass is progressing well, with $752 million in federal funding. The Princes Highway duplication between the Jervis Bay turn-off and Tomerong is also progressing well, with $400 million in federal funding. And the Nowra bypass, after a decade of inaction from the Liberals, is in the early planning stage, with $97 million in federal funding. Whether it's providing more funding to help local councils with local roads or funding major roads projects, we're getting on with the job of fixing our regional roads.

Jamie Chaffey (Parkes, National Party, Shadow Assistant Minister for Agriculture) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Last week I rose to speak about the atrocious state of regional roads in this parliament, and I'll continue to rise to speak about this until the matter is attended to by this Albanese government. The latest move by the Albanese Labor government to cut road speed limits throughout regional Australia where there is no signpost to 70 kilometres an hour is a clear indication that they do not intend to provide the funding for councils to fix the gravel or the sealed roads in regional communities. Instead they're asking regional people to simply just drive slower. This is yet another very clear message to people who choose to live in rural, regional and remote communities that they simply don't matter to the Albanese government.

When you travel across many parts of regional Australia, such as the Parkes electorate, you often travel hundreds of kilometres to get to the next dot on the map. A trip to the supermarket in a remote area could be a trip longer than some urban Australians could contemplate taking in a full year. This means that many people who live in those areas, people who visit those areas and people who save lives and do business in those areas will not only be travelling on substandard roads but have to factor in significant extra time. This is extra time for emergency response, extra time and cost for freight and extra time to get goods to market. The Pastoralists' Association of the West Darling have said:

The long distance transportation of livestock should not be adversely impacted by inappropriately low speed limits.

They noted that more time on trucks means worse animal welfare outcomes and a danger that trucks delayed by speed limits may not be able to make delivery curfews. The Pastoralists' Association of the West Darling feel so strongly about this issue that they have said there is a real risk this move will be used as the Albanese government's 'stalking horse' to cut road funding and maintenance repairs for regional communities.

Regional Australians should not accept that the condition of their roads is going backwards and they most certainly should not accept that this is all that can be done going forward. All 20 of the local government areas in my electorate have suffered some sort of natural disaster in the last four years and, as I've said before in this place, their applications under disaster-relief funding have been treated with contempt. Almost $150 million in funding has been knocked back for the roads in the Parkes electorate. I've asked the mayors and general managers of these councils—and I know just what impact that is having.

These councils are the ones who bear the brunt of the concerns of people when they cannot use the roads and are facing being told: 'It's all good. Just drive more slowly.' Dubbo Regional Council has been knocked back $20.6 million and is expected to fix the road damage. Lachlan shire has been told it won't get $29 million. Bourke Shire Council was denied $14.9 million. Narrabri Shire Council is looking at a $21.5 million shortfall and the Gunnedah shire is missing out on $4.7 million in funding which is needed. In their submission on the matter, the Bourke Shire Council said that the council continues to be frustrated by decision-makers that are 'ignoring the lived experience of longstanding shire residents' and looking for a one-size-fits-all solution. The council called for evidence based data to support its proposal.

The Country Mayors Association of NSW have announced that rural, regional and remote councils in New South Wales are 'unilaterally opposed' to the proposal to reduce speed limits. They have said the move would increase travel times and, along with this, the sense of isolation. It would also add road freight expenses and would overburden policing resources. In short, the Country Mayors Association have said that it represents an alarming disconnect between the Australian government and the real-world experience of users of regional, remote and rural roads.

It's not good enough to tell councils whose communities have suffered natural disasters, such as watching rivers of water over the roads in their communities, that this is just what they have to put up with and live with. Expecting councils to build infrastructure with less will lead to poorer outcomes. Cheaper is not better, and it's certainly not fairer.

Anne Urquhart (Braddon, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

After a decade of neglect and underinvestment by the former coalition government, the Albanese Labor government is delivering record infrastructure investment to rebuild our regions and make our roads safer for all Australians. We're not just talking about change; we're actually delivering it. We understand that safe, reliable infrastructure is the backbone of thriving communities. That's why the Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, Communications, Sport and the Arts is undertaking a comprehensive consultation process, engaging with road safety experts, industry leaders, local governments and, of course, everyday Australians. We've committed to a 10-year infrastructure investment pipeline that exceeds $120 billion, the largest and most sustainable infrastructure investment in our nation's history. This pipeline supports a program of nationally significant transport infrastructure projects across each state and territory, with a strong focus on regional Australia. As part of the 2025-26 budget, we allocated $8.6 billion under the infrastructure investment pipeline towards 22 new major projects that will directly benefit regional communities.

In Tasmania, we are investing $2.3 billion over the next decade to deliver transformative infrastructure upgrades across the state. This includes $628.8 million for the new Bridgewater Bridge, which officially opened in June 2025 and is already improving travel times and safety for thousands of Tasmanians who travel that every day, and $363.2 million for upgrades to the East and West Tamar highways, the Bass Highway and the Ridgley Highway.

When I talk about highways, I also talk about these roads that are in regional Tasmania. Many of them are in the area that I represent. There is $150 million to duplicate the Tasman Highway causeways, easing congestion and improving safety; $100 million for safety improvements to the iconic Great Eastern Drive; $82 million to expand the bulk minerals export facility at the Burnie port, supporting regional export and jobs; $80 million for bridge and road pavement replacements across the state; and $80 million for safety upgrades to the Lyell Highway, a vital route for those commuting to the west coast communities. In addition, the 2025-26 budget committed a further $345.2 million to seven new projects, which include improvements to the Ridgley Highway, another corridor to the west coast of Tasmania.

We're also backing Braddon's communities and industries by increasing support through the Tasmanian Freight Equalisation Scheme, our highway to the mainland. The Albanese Labor government has boosted TFES assistance by 25 per cent, delivering additional funding over the next two years. This targeted investment will help reduce freight costs for local producers, manufacturers and exporters, making it easier for Braddon businesses to compete, to grow and to create jobs.

In the electorate of Braddon, which I represent, we're seeing real results on the ground. Under phase 4 of the Local Roads and Community Infrastructure Program, eight local councils in Braddon received over $4 million to deliver priority road and community infrastructure projects: Central Coast Council, nearly $800,000; Circular Head Council, over $800,000; the city of Burnie, almost $500,000; Devonport City Council, over $500,000; King Island Council, over $400,000; Latrobe Council, over $300,000; Waratah-Wynyard Council, over $500,000; and the West Coast Council, over 300,000. These are rural, regional and remote areas in north-west Tasmania. Through the Black Spots Program, we're delivering $685,000 to improve dangerous intersections in Braddon and, under the Better Active Transport grant program, we're funding $1.27 million for stages 3 and 4 of the Spreyton connector in Devonport and $192,000 for the Wynyard to Smithton shared user trail feasibility study, supporting active transport and tourism.

Across the country, we are delivering for regional Australia. We have increased the Black Spot Program to $150 million annually, and created the Safer Local Roads and Infrastructure Program with $200 million per year to improve safety and productivity on local roads. We're investing in safer roads, stronger communities and a better future for Tasmanians and for regional Australia. We're listening to locals and delivering on our commitments.

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

I rise today to speak on behalf of the people of Capricornia and regional Australians right across this nation. People are tired of being punished for living beyond the city limits. The Albanese Labor government's plan to slash default regional road speed limits to as low as 70 kilometres an hour is nothing short of lazy, short-sighted and damaging to regional Australia. Let's call this proposal what it really is: a Labor short cut dressed up as road safety.

Instead of repairing our roads, they want to reduce our speed. Labor's own proposal would see speed limits reduced on dirt, gravel or sealed roads that are in poor condition, and that says it all. They are admitting that our roads are in disrepair. They are admitting that the system is failing. But rather than fund maintenance, fix the potholes, reseal the shoulders, repaint the lines and install proper safety features, Labor's answer is simply to tell Australians to drive slower. That is not leadership; that is laziness. It is the latest chapter in the pattern of lazy Labor, a party that wraps everything in red, green and black tape, that prefers slogans to substance.

When the government first floated this plan, they gave Australians just 28 days to respond—a completely inadequate timeframe. Only after pressure from the coalition did they extend that consultation period. That's not transparency, that's panic. This policy will have real-world consequences. It will slow regional Australia to a crawl. For farmers, truckies, tradies and small business operators, time is money. For every extra 30 or 40 minutes added to a delivery, there are higher freight costs, longer work days and less productivity. That translates directly into high prices for consumers and smaller profits for local operators already battling cost-of-living pressures.

Let's talk about the economic impacts. Poor road conditions already drive up fuel consumption and wear and tear on vehicles. Slowing traffic on top of that just compounds the problem. The result? Increased vehicle operating costs, higher transport times and reduce competitiveness for regional businesses. It also weakens our national supply chains. Fewer goods move at a slower pace for higher prices, and that flows from the farm gate to the supermarket shelf. You can't keep the nation's economy healthy when you're putting the brakes on its regions. Instead of addressing the root cause of road trauma, which is unsafe, unfunded infrastructure, Labor are taking the easy way out.

And let's not forget the human cost. Every minute added to a school bus run or medical appointment is time away from family, work and community. In the bush, distance already defines our lives. Labor's policy makes that distance even greater and our communities even smaller. And at the same time as they talk about road safety, they are cutting the Local Roads and Community Infrastructure Program—the very program councils rely on to maintain safe and efficient local roads. Councils like Isaac in Capricornia want to upgrade roads to a safe standard, delivering projects like the Phillips Creek Bridge Replacement Project that improves the safety and load capacity of the bridge and improves flood resilience. Cutting the Local Roads and Community Infrastructure Program will see transformational regional programs like this dry up. The truth is real road safety comes from investment, not inaction.

Meanwhile, roads like Marlborough Road are under much more pressure because of Labor's reckless rush to renewables. The added heavy-vehicle traffic associated with the construction of phase 2 of the Clarke Creek Wind Farm means these roads cannot cope. Actually, if Labor can't stump up the funding needed for Marlborough Road, perhaps Twiggy Forrest could improve the very roads his companies are using. Let's be clear: slower speed limits mean more pain for the regions. Labor's slow speed limits will mean longer trips to school, to hospitals, to market. It means greater isolation for our elderly, higher costs for our farmers and more frustration for every person who drives to earn a living.

Can you imagine the outcry if city commuters were told their morning drive to work would take 40 per cent longer? If the Labor latte sippers had to wait for their morning oat milk flat white, they wouldn't cope. But, honestly, I shouldn't joke. That's exactly what regional Australians have been told to accept—that their time, their productivity, their way of life are worth less. Well, they're not.

I say to the minister, get on with funding rural road repairs. Don't cripple our regions with another knee-jerk policy cooked up in Canberra. Let's build safer, stronger, efficient regional roads. Let's deliver proper consultation, real investment and safety improvements that protect lives, because regional Australia needs a fair go and safe roads, and a government willing to do the hard work to deliver both.

Meryl Swanson (Paterson, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I rise to speak on this motion moved by the member for Mallee and, I must say, it is disappointing to see yet another attempt by those opposite to play politics with the safety of regional Australians.

After a decade of neglect by the former coalition government, the member opposite and her colleagues are now trying to deliberately mislead the people of regional and rural Australia about what is really going on here. Let's be absolutely clear: the idea of reviewing speed limits on high-risk regional roads did not start with this government. It was, in fact, a coalition commitment.

As part of the National Road Safety Action Plan 2018-2020, the then deputy prime minister, Michael McCormack, made it priority action No. 1 to review speed limits on high-risk regional roads. So let's be clear: the coalition kicked this off. In May 2018, the former coalition government, together with state and territory transport and infrastructure ministers, released a communique explicitly calling for speed reviews as part of their forward work. So it is a bit rich for the Nationals to come in here now, feign outrage and campaign against their own policy.

The Albanese Labor government is putting their policy out for consultation, transparently, openly and with proper community engagement. No decision has been made. No speed limits have been changed. What we are doing is seeking for Australians to have their say on how we can make our roads safer.

Now, while those opposite are busy running scare campaigns, the Albanese Labor government is actually getting on with the job of investing in safer, stronger regional roads. You might say we're proceeding with purpose. After a decade of neglect by the former coalition government, we're delivering record investment in regional infrastructure, and we are making regional roads safer.

Since coming into government, we've doubled the Roads to Recovery Program from $500 million to $1 billion—with a B—per year. This isn't a one-off boost. It's baked into the budget and will remain at that higher level into the future. We've increased the Black Spots Program to $150 million per year, targeting dangerous crash sites across regional and rural Australia. And we've created the Safer Local Roads and Infrastructure Program, providing $200 million per year to help local councils deliver the bigger road and bridge projects that make real differences in our communities.

It's also worth noting that, when Labor formed government in 2022, we discovered that the former coalition government had frozen highway maintenance funding all the way back in 2013, cutting support for the basic upkeep of the very roads country people rely on. We've reversed that Liberal freeze, ensuring that state governments have the resources they need to maintain and repair our national highways, fixing potholes, resurfacing and keeping our roads safer for everyone.

In my own electorate of Paterson, I have seen this funding in action. The M1 Pacific Motorway extension to Raymond Terrace was stalled for years—dare I say, decades—by the former coalition government. A vital piece of national infrastructure, they talked about it for years, they made announcement after announcement, they tried to pave the pavement in press releases, but failed to actually get the work started. This is a project that my community has been crying out for, and finally we are fixing this bottleneck. Since coming to government, we have fast-tracked the project, we have secured the funding and we are building it right now. To those people who'll be driving that way at Christmas: I know it's still a hold-up, but by golly the infrastructure is incredible. We're spending billions. We're fixing that last choke point between Sydney and Brisbane. I've been on site. I've met the workers, the engineers and the local contractors who are seeing this project finally come to life. It's creating jobs, improving safety and delivering the modern infrastructure that the people of the Hunter—and those who travel through it—richly deserve.

Today, we've just announced another lane opening in the Hexham Straight. This is exactly what the people of Australia need: safer, better roads.

Colin Boyce (Flynn, Liberal National Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

There being no further speakers, the debate is adjourned and the resumption of the debate will be made an order of the day for the next day of sitting.