FEDERAL Agriculture and Water Resources Minister Barnaby Joyce says the federal budget will show the Coalition government is “not joking” about delivering on funding to start constructing the inland rail project.
The National Farmers’ Federation (NFF) has cited at least $1 billion as the minimum commitment that must be delivered in today’s budget, over the forward estimates, to fund the next phase of the long-heralded Brisbane to Melbourne inland rail link.
Transport Minister Darren Chester has declined to say what the actual number will be or the potential mix of government grant funding and potential loan facilities as a means of attracting private investments to assist construction of the $10b project.
However, Mr Chester said last week the government was on track to expand its commitment for the important rail link that farmers hope will curtail the growing costs of delivering produce to market in bulk and containers; especially rapidly expanding export destinations in Asia.
“I can’t speculate on the exact details of what will be in the budget for the Melbourne to Brisbane inland rail but the government has made it very clear that it’s keen to build the project and the Prime Minister expects construction to start this year,” Mr Chester said last week.
“We’ve already allocated $894 million for some of the preliminary works but it’s obviously going to take a lot more than that to get the inland rail built and I’m very cognisant of the fact we’re at a critical stage in the project’s development.”
The NFF’s budget submission also recommended the federal government commit funds to investigate an agricultural freight precinct as part of the construction of the Western Sydney airport at Badgery’s Creek
With the budget in focus today as a litmus test of those demands, Mr Joyce said the inland rail was an important and “big project” that the Nationals had been fighting for, for many years.
“This has been a discussion piece for years and I want to make absolutely certain that we see it through and we see it completed and that we put a substantial investment in this project,” he said.
“People will see with the investment that we’re not joking and we’re doing this.
“It will be something that builds a corridor of commerce as I’ve always said between Melbourne and Brisbane, which gives opportunity to western towns like Dubbo, Narrabri, Moree and Goondiwindi and Albury.
“It gives capacity to start competing on a more reasonable basis with the bulk movement of product from the US, Canada, Europe and Ukraine that have been getting ahead of us.
“I’ve made it one of my key objectives and I think I brought it up in my maiden speech that I want to make absolutely certain that this thing actually happens.
“This has been one of the key issues for the Nationals and it has to move from being a discussion piece to delivery and that’s what’s going to happen.”
While not committing to any details of budget funding allocations or potential financing mechanisms, Mr Joyce said he was sure there would be capacity to do both, and attract private sector funding alongside government grants, to build the rail line over the next seven or eight years.
But he said the inland rail “is going to happen”.
“There are two major infrastructure projects – Badgery’s Creek and the inland rail - and they’re both going to happen,” he said.
Mr Joyce said the Regional Investment Corporation (RIC) which aims to streamline drought support loans to farmers and water infrastructure loans, by setting up a federal agency to bypass state bureaucracies, would also be delivered.
“We made an election promise and we keep our promises,” he said.
“This is a bank for the purpose of looking after regional people so we can deliver concessional loans in a more effective way and has the capacity in the future to expand its ambit, in how it works.
“We’ve seen what this government has delivered like the inland rail, the Regional Investment Corporation, a dam’s policy, mobile phone towers and country of origin labelling.
“For rural and regional Australia this has been a very effective government; there’s no doubt about that.
“At the next election everyone will think about things like 700 new and upgraded mobile phones towners, the inland rail being built, dams starting to be built in places like Tasmania and they will see infrastructure.
“But they’ll still be waiting for an agricultural policy or vision from Labor.
“We hear Labor party commentary on our policy but we never actually hear about their policy.”
The NFF’s 2017-18 budget wish list has also called for the continuation of farm asset write offs of under $20,000 and the same for farm fencing, water facilities and fodder storage.
The peak farm lobby group has also called for $60 million per year for the Mobile Black Spot Program; $5 million for digital technical support in rural areas; $290,000 for an analysis of labour market needs; and $30 million to cover first year of revised seasonal worker program.
FEDERAL Treasurer Scott Morrison said budgets are all about choices and this one would be about “making the right choices to secure the better days that are ahead”.
“It’s based on the principles of fairness, of security and of opportunity,” he said.
“The choices to ensure that we grow our economy for more and better paid jobs.
“The choice to ensure that we guarantee the services that Australians rely on.
“The choice to ensure that we put downward pressure on rising costs of living, and as always the choice to ensure that the government lives within its means.
“These are the right choices to secure the better days ahead.”
“The government has put together a practical budget, which deals with both the fiscal challenges - obviously that’s the job of the budget - but we equally need to deal with the nation’s challenges.
“What we have to do is continue to get debt under control.”
Shadow Treasurer Chris Bowen said under the current government there had been four years of missteps, missed opportunities, false starts, ‘lifters and leaners’ through now to ‘good debt and bad debts’ and ‘the good times are here’.
He said “we get all the clichés, all the corny sayings” but Australia really needed a plan for its future and “only the Shorten Labor Party is capable of providing that vision”.
Labor Shadow Infrastructure Minister Anthony Albanese said budget day would not be a happy day for all those concerned with infrastructure and nation building.
“What we are seeing is the centrepiece of this government’s infrastructure strategy is a flawed solution,” he said.
“The establishment of the so-called Infrastructure Financing Unit, or Infrastructure Financing Facility, whatever they call it, in the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet, is looking for a solution for a problem that doesn’t exist.
“The problem in this country isn’t an availability of capital.
“We have almost $2 trillion of funds in superannuation. For projects that stack up financing is available.
“That’s why the government, repeating its flawed strategy over the North Australia Infrastructure Fund and other funds where they established this loan facility and then nothing actually happened because if a project stacks up, private financing is available.
Mr Albanese said the government had failed to understand a pipeline of projects and strategy was needed to boost productivity and nation building across the country.
He said having one or two good projects with equity injections for construction like the inland rail and Western Sydney airport “doesn't stop the fact that there is infrastructure investment required right around the nation”.