Ben Small (Forrest, Liberal Party, Shadow Assistant Minister for Electoral Matters) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

Today I rise to give voice to the farmers, transport operators and primary producers across Western Australia's South West—people left behind by failures at both the state and federal level.

Some 26 key bridges have suddenly been downgraded—some to just 11 tonnes. Eleven tonnes is not a safety limit; it is a regional blockade. It's heavier than many tractors and far below the weight of the milk tankers and livestock trucks that are essential for our food supply. Producers are being forced into long detours. There are higher fuel costs—in an already high-fuel-cost environment—lost labour hours and reduced productivity. Worse still, heavy freight is being pushed onto local roads built for families, school buses and growing suburbs. You don't improve road safety by forcing 50-tonne road trains onto local roads in school zones. While millions and billions flow into Perth vanity projects, regional producers have simply been told to find a workaround. But you can't work around higher costs, lost income and the risk of fatal accidents. The people of south-west WA do not want excuses. They want bridges that they and the businesses they depend on can actually drive on.

Police officers have our backs every day, and it's time that we had theirs. Across Australia, police officers are facing more pressure than ever before. They're being asked to do more with less, all the while navigating a system that is making an already demanding job even harder. Too often, they feel undervalued and unsupported by policies that fail to recognise the reality of frontline policing. We can and we must do more to stand with those who keep our community safe, especially as Australians have never felt less safe in their own homes.

We're calling on the Albanese Labor government to cut taxes for police by extending the fringe benefit tax concessions already available to ambulance workers and other frontline workers. It's a straightforward, commonsense reform that would lift take-home pay by putting some $5,000 a year straight into the pockets of police and would send a clear message that our police are genuinely valued. People across Forrest are telling me that they want to back our officers and stand with the thin blue line that keeps us safe each and every day. Thousands have already signed my petition to do so, because it's time that we stood up for those men and women who wear the blue uniform every day, facing unknown dangers whenever they leave home, and this is a very simple reform that would make a meaningful difference to every single police officer across our country.