Murray Watt (Queensland, Australian Labor Party) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I've spoken in this chamber on a number of occasions of how sick and tired Gold Coast residents are of the LNP representation they've been getting, or not getting, for many years now. The Gold Coast is Queensland's second biggest city. It is Australia's sixth biggest city, but unfortunately it has been grossly let down by the LNP, who currently hold every state and federal seat. Now, you would think that an area that has consistently returned members of one political party would be recognised and rewarded by that political party, but unfortunately the Gold Coast has had its interests ignored and has been taken for granted by the LNP year after year.

Now, there is no better example of the Gold Coast being taken for granted by the LNP than when it comes to the M1, the highway between Brisbane and the Gold Coast that literally tens of thousands of motorists use every single day, going to and from Brisbane and going further afield. Everyone who drives on the M1 understands the magnitude of the problem that exists there. I am personally caught in traffic there on regular occasions; my staff are as well. Many people I know—businesses and residents from the Gold Coast—spend far too much time sitting on that highway.

What have the different parties done to deal with this problem? Despite Labor not currently holding any seats on the Gold Coast at a state or federal level, Labor has actually come through for the Gold Coast and has come through on the M1. Just in this last term, the Palaszczuk government has funded upgrades to the M1 in two different spots to the tune of $424 million. That money has been locked away in the state budget. Contracts have been signed to start at least one of those two upgrades and work is going to be progressing before too long. So the job is underway. In addition to that, during this state election campaign the Palaszczuk government has committed another $206 million towards a further upgrade of the M1 closer to the New South Wales border. Putting that together, those three different upgrades will mean that Gold Coast motorists travelling on the M1 will have at least six lanes between Brisbane and the New South Wales border. That will make a real difference to Gold Coast residents and businesses in years ahead.

Now, let's look at that record of Labor, which has not a single seat on the Gold Coast at a state or federal level but has delivered hundreds of millions of dollars to upgrade that highway, and compare it with that of the LNP, which currently holds every state and federal seat on the Gold Coast. Let me take some time to tell you about the dollars and the commitments they have made to fix the M1: nothing. They have done nothing. They have every state and federal seat there and they have done absolutely nothing to upgrade the major highway between Brisbane and the Gold Coast. In fact, they've actually done worse than nothing. The last time they were in government, when Tim Nicholls was the Treasurer, the aspiring LNP Premier, he did not spend a single dollar on upgrading the M1. What did all of those Gold Coast LNP members actually do when they were in state parliament last time with Tim Nicholls? Did they not do anything to get any dollars? They certainly didn't manage to get a single dollar spent on that highway by their own Treasurer. Tim Nicholls actually made cuts to road funding across Queensland. He didn't spend a dollar on the M1 and actually cut funding to improve roads around Queensland. He actually went even further and removed the idea of a second M1 from all of the main roads department's planning documents, which would have actually led to planning going ahead for a second M1. So, nothing at all done; no dollars; cuts to funding; and removing the corridor.

Now, let's not even start talking about the federal LNP and the fight that had to be had with them to get fair funding for the M1. The state LNP, in the context of a state election campaign, have finally discovered that the M1 is a problem for Gold Coast motorists, and they're running around now committing to build a second M1, what has been dubbed the M2. What we don't know is how they're going to pay for it. They say it will cost only $500 million and they say they've got half the money from the federal government, but we haven't got a federal government committing to it yet. The only way to pay for this and the $2.5 billion it will cost is to impose a toll on Gold Coast motorists. That is not what we need.