Transcript: Doorstop interview, Beverly Hills, NSW

Subjects: WestConnex.

DAVID COLEMAN:

Well good morning, and it’s good to be here in Beverly Hills – the site of the upgrade to the Beverly Hills interchange, the M5 and also a site where work is being conducted on the WestConnex project. Now the WestConnex project is extremely important for my electorate of Banks and among other reasons, because it results in the duplication of the M5 East tunnel. Now, there would probably nor be a person in Banks who hasn’t been stuck on the M5 East at some point in time and the fact that the M5 East tunnel is going to be duplicated, under the WestConnex project, is extremely welcome in my electorate of Banks. WestConnex is critical for our community here in Beverly Hills, Padstow, in Riverwood and in a whole range of other areas in my electorate. And it is so important that this project goes ahead. It was certainly concerning to hear that Mr Albanese had said that a Federal Labor Government would not provide to WestConnex. WestConnex needs to support by the Federal Government – it is a very important project and it is strongly supported in my community. I’ll n ow hand over to the Minister.

PAUL FLETCHER:

We thank you very much David. Well look I’m very pleased to be here with David Coleman, the hardworking Member for Banks. We’re at the site of the intersection between M5 and King Georges Rd. And there’s a $130 million upgrade project occurring here. This project alone will reduce travel time for traffic coming through the intersection by about 50 per cent. This is part of stage two of WestConnex and WestConnex is a massive $16.8 billion project which is going to dramatically improve travel times, reduce congestion and, particularly for people in western and south-western Sydney, make it easier to get around our city. Now WestConnex is supported with $3.5 billion of grant and loan funding and financing from the Commonwealth Government., from the Turnbull Government. What is very concerning is that Anthony Albanese, the man who would be the Transport and Infrastructure Minister if Labor comes to government, Anthony Albanese has said if he is Transport Minister there will not be one more federal dollar for WestConnex. Mr Albanese told a community meeting in his inner-city electorate of Grayndler just a few days ago that if he was the federal Transport and Infrastructure Minister there will be not one more federal dollar for WestConnex. Now that is very bad news for the people of western Sydney and south-western Sydney because what it means is that if there is a Shorten Labor Government, Federal Labor is going to turn its back WestConnex, it’s going to turn its back on the people of western and south-western Sydney. With Mr Albanese, the man who would be Transport and Infrastructure Minister, saying and telling a community meeting in his own inner-city electorate of Grayndler that if he becomes the Transport Minister in the Shorten Labor Government, there will be not one dollar of federal money for WestConnex. The message is very clear, if you believe that WestConnex is important for improving transport in Sydney, it’s very important to back the Turnbull Government – because the Turnbull Government is fully backing the Baird Government in NSW to deliver WestConnex.

QUESTION:

So Mr Albanese has told the ABC today that he will actually be committing to all existing funding arrangements that have been made. So he’s saying that the $2 billion grant, and the $1.5 billion loan, they’ll all be in the can and they’re all going to be paid in 2016 and he’s not intending not to pay those at all.

PAUL FLETCHER:

Let’s be very clear about the situation here. Of the $3.5 billion of Commonwealth money that is committed for WestConnex over $2 billion of that has not yet been paid. Over $2 billion has not yet gone from the Commonwealth to NSW. So if Labor wins this election, if Mr Albanese becomes the Transport and Infrastructure Minister, he will be presiding over that money. This is the man, who just a few days ago, told a community meeting in his inner-city electorate of Grayndler, that if he’s the federal Transport Minister there will be not one more dollar for WestConnex. It’s very clear that Labor is going after Greens’ votes in the inner-city – in inner-city electorates like Mr Albanese’s electorate of Grayndler and Ms Plibersek’s electorate of Sydney. And bear in mind, if Labor forms government, then Ms Plibersek will be the second most senior person in that government, Mr Albanese will also be a very senior person in that government. It’s clear that they are going after Greens’ votes in their inner-city electorates. There is a significant amount of money which has not yet been paid by the Commonwealth to NSW. If it’s Mr Albanese’s hand that has to sign the paper for that money to flow you’d have to be very worried about whether that existing federal commitment for WestConnex is still there. Can I make it absolutely clear? If the Turnbull Liberal Government is elected on July the second, we are strongly backing WestConnex, we are strongly backing the Baird Liberal Government in NSW to deliver WestConnex, which delivers such important benefits for the people of western and south-western Sydney.

QUESTION:

But he said today that he will be paying that money and that remaining amount of money will be is going to be in the can. So isn’t this just a little bit of a beat up to make him look quite bad on a topic that’s already unpopular in his electorate?

PAUL FLETCHER:

Mr Albanese has been walking two sides of street. Mr Albanese’s been saying whatever people want to hear. In his electorate, Mr Albanese has told a community meeting if he becomes the Federal Transport Minister if Labor wins the next election, there’ll be not one dollar of federal money for WestConnex. That is what Mr Albanese told a community meeting in his own electorate. This morning, he’s apparently made a claim that the money will still be there. Who knows, who can tell which position Mr Albanese and Labor are actually going to act upon if they get to government? So the important thing is this, if you think WestConnex matters, and it does. If you want to see the benefits of WestConnex for Sydney, and particularly for western and south-western Sydney, it’s very important to support the Turnbull Liberal Government because federal Labor cannot be trusted to deliver WestConnex.

QUESTION:

Beyond the $3.5 billion funding that required, should there be a federal Labor Government, what else is at risk; what further funding around the WestConnex project could be at risk?

PAUL FLETCHER:

It’s very clear, if Mr Albanese becomes the Transport Minister, he’s made it clear, not one federal dollar of funding for WestConnex. So there’s a very sharp contrast in this election for the people of western and south-western Sydney – the Turnbull Liberal Government is strongly backing the Baird Liberal Government in NSW to deliver WestConnex. There’s $3.5 billion of funding, as part of the overall $16.8 billion cost of this project. If the Turnbull Government is re-elected all of that money will flow. If Labor comes to government, you will have a Transport and Infrastructure Minister in Anthony Albanese who is on the record as saying if he’s the Transport and Infrastructure Minister not one more federal dollar for WestConnex. The choice between the two parties, at this election when it comes to WestConnex, could not be clearer. If you support WestConnex you need to support the Turnbull Liberal Government.
QUESTION:

Is it actually feasible though for those contracts to be, sort of, ripped up?

PAUL FLETCHER:

If you ask the people of Melbourne who wanted to see the East-West Link project delivered, before Victorian Labor came to government in late-2014, what they saw was the Victorian Labor Government ripping up the contracts for the East-West Link. That’s what we saw in Victoria with a Labor Government – going after Greens’ votes in inner-city seats. The risk is too great to take – if you support WestConnex, there is one party in the federal election that is strongly supporting and backing WestConnex and that is the Turnbull Liberal team.

QUESTION:

Again, he’s said that Labor won’t see a repeat of the East-West Link, you know, that commitment fell-though. He’s said that that won’t be the case on WestConnex. What’s your response to that?

PAUL FLETCHER:

If you believe that WestConnex is an important project you’ve got a choice – you’ve got one team, the Turnbull Liberal Team, which is strongly backing WestConnex and has consistently said so at every opportunity - $3.5 billion of funding. If you choose Labor, the man who will be the Transport and Infrastructure spokesman is saying different things to different people. And when a politician is not saying things consistently, if you believe this project is important, there’s only one party you can rely upon federally to deliver the project and that is the Turnbull Liberal Team. Thanks very much.