James McGrath (Queensland, Liberal National Party, Shadow Assistant Minister to the Leader of the Opposition) Share this | Hansard source

I move:

That the Senate take note of the answers given by ministers to questions without notice asked by Opposition senators today.

I would like to start by talking about infrastructure and how Labor are gutting rural, regional and remote Australia. What they're doing is terrible. Labor have got a giant vacuum cleaner over rural, regional and remote Australia and it's sucking all the money out and sending it to Marrickville. That's where the money is going.

I want to talk about some projects in Queensland because we've got some Queensland Labor senators who think they know about regional Queensland. I want to talk about some projects. Let's talk about the dam in Etheridge Shire Council at Forsayth—the Charleston Dam, which I want to be renamed the Noeline Ikin Dam, by the way. Ten million dollars went into this dam through the Building Better Regions Fund. But, according to Labor, this is a rort. That $10 million to build that dam allowed the people of Forsayth and Georgetown to have drinkable water. Until the dam was built, in summer they would get water out of the river which was dry and they would be drinking sludge. That's what Labor want regional, rural and remote Australians to drink—sludge. That is what Labor gives to regional Australians, but we deliver. That dam means there is potable water for the people of the Etheridge Shire Council.

Let's talk about Murweh Shire Council and a little place called Morven, which none of these buggers have ever been to. Morven has a population of about 100. We've put some money into some cattle yards, but they don't care about that because, according to Labor, their food comes from the fridge at Coles or Woollies or IGA or whatever organic fruit shop they happen to be going to that day. But this is so important for that community because two jobs came out of those cattle yards, and that means a pub has been rebuilt in Morven. If you go to Morven now, there is a new pub there. It's so important for the sustainability of a small rural community.

That is what the Building Better Regions Fund has done for Queensland: it is ensuring that those people who live beyond the Great Dividing Range—I declare a conflict of interest; I am one of those people, and so is Senator Davey—it means that those Queenslanders and those Australians can have the quality of life that people in the city take for granted. That's why infrastructure is so important. That's why Jane McNamara , the Mayor of Flinders Shire Council, fought like a tiger or a lion to make sure that she got millions of dollars through the Building Better Regions Fund to build a lake in Hughenden. You might think 'So what?' about a lake in Hughenden. It means that the people who live in Hughenden, which is a remote little township, have a recreational facility where people can go fishing and walk around. They can have a life. One thing COVID has shown us is the benefit of living outside the cities.

That is why this budget is such a let-down for all Australians—because of the abolition of the Building Better Regions Fund and also the partisanship that has come through the politics.

It is really interesting how Labor are happy to give $2.2 billion to Daniel Andrews to help his re-election but they are not prepared to give little grants of money to little regional communities—a little community like Wondai. That mob over there doesn't know where Wondai is. Wondai is a beautiful little community. Wondai got about $50,000 for the art gallery there. That mob over there think that they are the artistes of politics, but it is our side who stand up for regional art galleries. It is our side who understand that Elaine Maddill, who is the doyen of the Wondai Art Gallery, fought like a mother tiger to get $50,000 to rebuild the kitchen for the Wondai Art Gallery. But, according to Labor, that is a rort—that is a terrible thing.

I say to Elaine and to Jane and to the people of the Etheridge Shire Council that this side of politics will always fight for all Australians, but we will particularly fight for rural, regional and remote Australians, because we know that you are doing tough. We know that you are the engine room of the Australian economy, and we know that more money should be spent on your roads, your bridges and you dams. A damning indictment on this government is what they are not doing in relation to Urannah dam. It is a brilliant dam. It has a hydro pump and everything going for it, but that mob over there have taken the money away from it and are going to let this dam sink. That mob over there do not believe dams, because they need preferences from the pixies at the other end of the political spectrum to ensure that they get re-elected each time. Shame on Labor for that—because dams mean money and money means that we can do more for all Australians.