Bridget McKenzie (Victoria, National Party, Minister for Regional Services) Share this | Hansard source

Thank you very much for the question, Senator O'Sullivan. I recognise your longstanding interest in this area. Under the economic stewardship of the coalition, the economy has grown by 3.4 per cent through the past year. That is the best since the mining boom, and the peak of the mining boom in 2005. With it comes better jobs, and the Liberal-National party have created more than one million jobs in five years. However, we recognise that there is more to do. Good economic management helps small businesses grow. Small businesses are those great employees, those wonderful businesses that get behind our nation and our regions. That's why we're investing in inland rail to take advantage of our new trade opportunities, like those that will be created under the TPP-11. The 1,700-kilometre rail line is set to deliver jobs, cash flow and new export earnings for regional Australia. As the Prime Minister said yesterday, 'We're in the business of making small businesses—small family businesses—larger businesses.' Inland rail will help regional businesses to link up with our export markets and allow their high-quality products to reach far across the globe. By growing our economy through the trade deals and backing regional businesses, we're growing the economy and creating even more jobs.

But we're not just stopping at rail. I note that Senator Canavan mentioned earlier a $3.5 billion commitment to Roads of Strategic Importance. It's an important component of our $75 billion infrastructure investment pipeline. This program is supporting improvements in key corridors throughout key regional freight and visitor economy routes and better connecting communities. The Roads of Strategic Importance initiative will deliver rolling packages over a 10-year period. We've already shown our commitment under Roads of Strategic Importance with $400 million for the Bass Highway in Tasmania, $100 million to improve the Barton Highway and $220 million for the Bindoon Bypass in WA. We're building the infrastructure for a truly connected regional Australia.