Thursday, 2 May 2024
Business of the house
Standing and sessional orders
Business of the house
Standing and sessional orders
That so much of standing and sessional orders be suspended on 7, 14 and 15 May 2024 to allow:
(1) the house to meet at 9:30 am on Tuesday 14 May
(2) the matter of public importance to be omitted from the order of business for the week of Tuesday 14 May
(3) the order of business to be:
Tuesday 7 May
Question time and constituency questions
Formal business
Statements by members
Government business
Tuesday 14 May
Formal business
Statements by members
Statements on committee reports
Government business
Question time and constituency questions (2 pm)
Government business continued
Wednesday 15 May
Formal business
Members statements
Government business
Question time and constituency questions (2 pm)
Government business continued
(4) the Speaker to interrupt business under sessional order 2 at 5 pm on Wednesday 15 May.
We have a motion before this place to determine the arrangements for the delivery of the budget next Tuesday 7 May. This has been an innovation of our government, to introduce a single-day sitting where the Treasurer gets up and delivers the budget. We will lead off on the 7th with question time, then following that we will have the delivery of the budget. The opposition will have their chance to reply, and I will continue to work with the Manager of Opposition Business as the opposition determine the time at which they make that reply speech. We look forward to our Treasurer’s budget. As always, the Allan Labor government will be focused on meeting the needs of the Victorian people. We also look forward to the Shadow Treasurer’s fulsome response. I thought he spoke for 18 minutes, but I was corrected. Apparently it was only 13. Nonetheless, we look forward to hearing from the opposition spokesperson on the Treasury portfolio.
The reason for moving the delivery of the budget to a single day was to ensure that we had ample opportunities to be in our communities and to talk about the way in which our government continues to meet the needs of all Victorians, including in challenging times such as those that we are currently experiencing as we come off the back of a global pandemic. I commend this motion to the house.
James NEWBURY (Brighton) (10:09): I will only speak very, very briefly just to say thank you to the government for moving the motion. It will be an opportunity next week to consider the budget. I do note that the one difference between the year prior and this year will be that the government is forgoing their matter of public importance, and I appreciate the MPI being forgone because of the budget process. It will provide more of an opportunity for the house to debate the budget. I think that is a good thing, and I do acknowledge the government is doing that. The coalition will not be opposing the motion, and with that I will conclude my remarks.
Paul EDBROOKE (Frankston) (10:09): I am glad to hear that the opposition will not be opposing this motion. Obviously it is quite common sense. Every year the government outlines its priorities through people in this chamber approaching ministers and talking about their priorities for the budget and the financial year ahead. That then goes to an expenditure review committee, and the Treasurer announces his budget every year – so for the 2024–25 budget. This motion makes so much sense, to make it easy and efficient for that to happen. This year of course I would urge the opposition members not to rush up and take the stand and get on their soapbox. Have a read of the budget papers prior –
Members interjecting.
Paul EDBROOKE: I am just speaking the facts here – nor miss the call, as happened last time. But I support this motion.
Emma KEALY (Lowan) (10:10): I also support this motion. We all look forward to budget day and the time when the budget papers are put in our hot little hands. Sitting on the benches, we get to peel open that plastic and look through. For regional Victoria we have just got the index, the legend of how to read the map, over the top of our electorates and have actually zero allocated to our regions, which is of course what has happened in Gippsland East in previous years.
Members interjecting.
Emma KEALY: There are interesting interjections coming from across the chamber that this has never happened, and I urge members of the government to have a look over previous budgets and just see how little has been invested in regional Victoria. I understand that there may be very, very little invested in city seats as well. In fact I have heard that –
Mary-Anne Thomas interjected.
Emma KEALY: The Leader of the House has just said that I will be disappointed in this year’s budget. Sadly, I am not surprised by that. In fact the only thing that surprises me is that we would have a Labor minister actually telling me before the budget that I am going to be disappointed. It is not just me. It is all of the voters in my electorate. It is the voters who are in regional Victoria. It is the people who expect funding for the Western Highway duplication. It is people who expect funding for the National Centre for Farmer Health. It is the people who are expecting investment in our health services right across the state. It is our people who want to make sure that there is –
Mary-Anne Thomas: On a point of order, Deputy Speaker, I do note that the member for Lowan has strayed somewhat from the narrow procedural debate and is anticipating what may or may not be in the budget papers. I ask that you call her back to the procedural debate that is before us.
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: On the point of order, the debate is currently on the motion for budget day, not necessarily the budget itself. The member to continue on the motion.
Emma KEALY: We all will very much be looking through, scrawling through the pages, doing the searches for our communities for the projects that we have been fighting for and, if they are not there, of course holding the government to account for their failure once again to deliver a fair share for regional Victoria.
Paul HAMER (Box Hill) (10:13): I also rise to speak in favour of this motion. It is an important motion. It is always a very big day on the parliamentary calendar, the budget day, and it is important that we do have that day set aside. I know in the last few years it has changed around a few times – a bit earlier in May and later in May – but it is sort of a tradition to have it on the first Tuesday in May, the week before the federal budget. I am certainly looking forward to the Treasurer putting forward his 10th budget, what I am sure will again be a very well thought out and well planned Labor budget. I think it is very appropriate that, as the Leader of the House said, we then have the chance to talk to our communities immediately after that budget, in the days following budget day, to understand their responses to the budget and to speak particularly to the communities that are affected most.
Then we will return the following week, and I am looking forward to returning the following week, when we will hear the dulcet tones of the member for Sandringham. I am looking forward to his performance. I know last year there was a little bit of filibustering that needed to occur to make sure that the member for Sandringham was able to get his full allocation of time, not broken by the bells for lunchtime.
John Mullahy interjected.
Paul HAMER: That is right. The member for Glen Waverley reminds me that he did not actually use all of his allocated time. I am sure that is probably why he is not in the chamber at the moment; he is probably already preparing for the speech.
I am in anticipation of what a fantastic budget it will be. It is a good motion. It is really important to set out the procedures of the day. I am glad that the opposition will not be opposing it, and I look forward to the rest of the day.
Richard RIORDAN (Polwarth) (10:15): I rise to speak on this motion to put procedures in place for the budget next week. It is important that we do that, because this budget of course is probably going to be highlighted by the fact that it is going to be full of red lines and lots of little brackets. I think Victorians will in fact be looking forward to understanding the full extent of things such as the Minister for Health’s secret phone calls to everybody advising them to cut their budgets and pull in their belts, those sorts of phone calls that she has not put in writing and she has not put in emails but has certainly made to her various CEOs across the hospital network, saying, ‘You’ve got to find those savings.’ So it will be interesting to see in the budget –
Colin Brooks: On a point of order, Deputy Speaker, the member is nowhere near the motion.
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: The member for Polwarth has strayed somewhat from the motion at hand, and if he could come back to it, that would be appreciated.
A member interjected.
Richard RIORDAN: That is right. This side of the house certainly does not support the flagrant waste of taxpayers money that this budget will reveal. The Minister for Health is quite right; we definitely will not support the flagrant waste of budgetary finances and scarce resources that we are expecting to see in this budget.
It is an important opportunity for us to further analyse the processes of the budget. Unfortunately this budget motion probably does not allow enough time for the opposition to publicly question the government on its priorities or the way it has set about spending scarce resources for the people of Victoria. With that, we look forward to the opportunity to put forward to the people of Victoria over the next couple of weeks the dire straits, the dire conditions, that they are going to have to deal with. Certainly regional Victorians will be looking to see whether the promises around roads and other essential services are delivered.
Dylan WIGHT (Tarneit) (10:18): It gives me great pleasure this morning to rise in support of this motion to do the work and to set up the necessary procedures to make sure that budget day runs smoothly. Now, I think that we would all agree in this place, on this side of the house and on the other side of the house as well, that there is no more important day for the prosperity of Victorians than budget day. It is incredibly important that we rise here today and that we debate this motion, so that we can set up budget day to have it run smoothly, to have question time when it needs to be, to have the budget when it needs to be, because that is what is incredibly important for Victorians. Every Victorian, including my constituents of Tarneit, Hoppers Crossing and Mount Cottrell, relies on us to do that. That is why those on this side of the house are here. That is why we are here. We are here to represent our communities; we are here to advocate for the infrastructure, for the projects and for the programs that matter to them. That is fundamentally culminated in the budget, and that is why we are all here.
Once again, I speak in support of this motion. I acknowledge that the opposition benches are in support of the motion as well. I, like everybody else, cannot wait to attend here next Tuesday – very excited – to have the day run smoothly and to see all of the projects and all of the fantastic things that will be delivered not just for Tarneit but for all Victorians, for the outer west, for the growing suburbs. That is why we are here, and that is why I am in support of this motion. Once again, I rise in support of this motion and I commend it to the house.
Matthew GUY (Bulleen) (10:20): What a quizzical motion.
Members interjecting.
Matthew GUY: I am feeling the love from the government benches! I am really interested to see what will come in next week’s budget, but I am really interested, as the Shadow Minister for Public Transport, as to what Melbourne and Victorian commuters might see in this budget and what we are probably not going to see in this budget as a result. Where is the western rail duplication plan that this government announced seven years ago? Is that going to be in this budget as part of this bill? Remember the quadruplication that was going to happen to Melton?
Mary-Anne Thomas: On a point of order, Deputy Speaker, while we note the member is very much up and about this week for reasons that are quite unknown at this point, I do request that you bring him back to debating the motion at hand. He should not be discussing or pre-empting what may or may not be in the budget but indeed be confining his remarks to the narrow nature of the motion before the house.
James Newbury: Further to the point of order, Deputy Speaker, the coalition did not call out the drivel of the government speakers and their wideranging contributions –
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: Member for Brighton!
James Newbury: It has been slightly wideranging, and I put it to you that some latitude is afforded.
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: It has been slightly wider ranging than the motion, but let us all try to stay on the motion, member for Bulleen.
Matthew GUY: Thank you, Deputy Speaker; I certainly will. I raise in relation to this motion what has been in this chamber on previous budgets. It is a motion about budgets, so let us talk about budgets. That is what the motion is about, so let us talk about it. The member for Macedon may not have been here for many of those, but some of us have seen these motions before, and they have been very similar to this. So maybe the western rail duplication, which is a broken promise, might be in the budget and might be part of this motion. Maybe the Bunyip River duplication, which was not in the last one, will be in this one. It is not pre-empting, it is asking a legitimate question. Maybe the member for Macedon does not want that question asked. I could understand why: because it is a broken promise. The Murray Basin rail plan has been abandoned by this government. They can build the Suburban Rail Loop, but they will not look after regional Victoria rail, will they. Here he is, the member for Indian students.
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: Order! The member for Bulleen knows better.
Colin Brooks: On a point of order, Deputy Speaker, the motion is a narrow motion about the timing of the budget in the sitting week, not what is contained in potential budgets. The member should come back to the motion.
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: I uphold the point of order. The member for Bulleen will come to the motion.
Matthew GUY: The timing of the motion is very important, because timing is very important and the timing of this budget should be relevant for those people in Geelong who are missing out on fast rail, so they will be interested in the timing of this motion. We will also be very interested to see in this budget what Victoria’s debt figures will be, because as we know, they are more than New South Wales, Queensland and Tasmania combined. The Treasurer has presided over more debt being accumulated under his watch than any state treasurer in Australian political history. We will be very interested to see what comes in this budget next week and the timing of this motion.
My concluding comments: it is very interesting to note that the government can give it but they cannot take it. They can give out all the abuse in the world and they can give wideranging speeches, but they cannot take it. That is a government who is on its last legs. That is a government that will not be here in three years time.
Nina TAYLOR (Albert Park) (10:25): I did think this was a debate about the procedural elements of how budget day will transpire. Maybe I am wrong. Am I wrong? Am I right? I am right. I am going to focus on budget day and making sure that everyone is really clear about how that day will unfold, and I am really glad that we do have agreement. Ostensibly we do, on all sides of the chamber, have a sense of unity. It may not happen as often as we would like, but at the same time we are here to put forward and fight for our communities and to advocate very hard on their behalf.
On that front, I will say I am very much looking forward to budget day and looking forward to the Treasurer handing down the budget. I know he has been working extremely hard, as have all members on this side of the house. I am not suggesting those on the other side of the house have not; I can only speak for my colleagues. I know we have been working really hard, fighting for our communities, to make sure we can get the best possible outcome in spite of global economic circumstances, in spite of the aftermath of COVID and rising inflation. We are all working extraordinarily hard, and I know particularly the Treasurer is very mindful of making sure that we deliver in terms of protecting jobs and services for our community. This is what we are about as Labor members, so in that regard we are very much looking forward to being able to see the Treasurer hand down the budget on budget day. It will be absolutely outstanding to watch. I am really excited. I cannot wait actually. How many sleeps is that? Goodness me. I am waiting with bated breath. But I am going to try and contain my excitement, because there is a lot of good hard work to do.
Mary-Anne Thomas interjected.
Nina TAYLOR: Five sleeps. There is a lot of hard work to be done today as well to continue. This is part of that work. It is important because we are also being very transparent and up-front with communities. They know that budget will be handed down on 7 May. I think this is really important as well. I know my colleagues are going to share in the excitement, but we will get through the next five sleeps. I think we can get there. Yes, we can. We will all be here bright-eyed and bushy-tailed, we will be ready and we will be looking at the Treasurer and hanging off every word. On that note, I commend the motion to the house.
Sam GROTH (Nepean) (10:27): I rise to speak on this motion for the timing of the budget next week. I will note that the member for Box Hill said this will be a typical Labor budget. I assume that that means, just like last year with the Commonwealth Games, there will be more blown-out projects that will get moved across to contingency and hidden amongst the deep dark pages of the budget. We saw multiple billion dollars hidden last year.
When you talk about the timing of the budget, this budget could not come sooner, assuming it is going to be bad, but I would like to see a budget that actually brings some relief for our tourism sector. The Minister for Tourism, Sport and Major Events wants to go out alongside his mates at Visit Victoria and spruik that the tourism numbers in this state are fantastic, the spend is up and it is all going so well, but the facts that they continue to ignore are that, when you talk about timings, year to date, February 2024 – the first full block since COVID – compared to February 2020, we are still down half a million international visitors coming back to this state to the same time in 2020. You can spruik the numbers all you want, but the visitors just are not coming back. Visit Victoria, with their Every Bit Different campaign, has got a lot of work to do to try to get those visitors back to this state.
I want to see proper funding for that tourism sector. The government wants to spruik, like the Minister for Small Business yesterday in question time, just how fantastic small business is going. For tourism sector small businesses, June 2023 – the last financial year that we experienced – 4500 tourism businesses we were down in this state, more than 4 per cent, the highest of any state. The timing of the budget is very important, assuming that budget brings some support for that sector. That is what we want to see. I do not think it is going to come for those members of the tourism sector next week. I do not think it is going to be a budget that helps them very much. But I guess only time will tell. As the member for Albert Park said, five sleeps. You guys might think on that side of the chamber that it is going to be all nice and rosy in five days time, but I think the next five days are going to include a lot of nightmares for all Victorians.
Nick STAIKOS (Bentleigh) (10:30): I heard his serve was a lot better than that; I think we have been conned. But anyway, it is a pleasure to speak on this motion because I always enjoy budget day. I used to say budget was like Christmas Day for political types. I think the important thing about the state budget is that it is a statement of priorities of the government. If you look at all of the budgets handed down by this government, we have prioritised health and education and jobs and transport and major projects. We have prioritised the future of a growing capital city of a growing state. We have had a firm eye on the future in every budget that we have handed down. But of course we have also prioritised, throughout all of our budgets, ending the epidemic of family violence. That has been a central mission of this government. I am sure that we are going to see similar priorities laid out in the next budget. Budget day is going to be a really good day.
I remember a few shenanigans around the time of the last budget, because I not only look forward to budget day, I also look forward to the budget reply. I look forward to hearing the member for Sandringham give his budget reply. Unfortunately, I remember the day that the member for Sandringham was supposed to be giving his budget reply last time. There was a lot of time wasting in this chamber in the morning, which meant that the budget reply was delayed and delayed and delayed. I remember looking at the member for Sandringham sitting in this chamber not knowing if he were Arthur or Martha, him thinking, ‘What are my colleagues doing, delaying my budget reply?’
Members interjecting.
Nick STAIKOS: Not our Martha. That was very quick, member for Lowan. I will give you that. That was good; very nice. I will also say this: I have often wondered what it would be like to be in the wilderness opposite, because I have only experienced a budget from government. But I have to say –
Members interjecting.
Nick STAIKOS: Yes, okay member for Lowan. But I know that you guys live vicariously through us. Many a time have I been to a Labor ribbon cutting or a Labor sod turn and I have spotted a member of the opposition there, living vicariously through members of this government, wondering what it would be like to be sitting on this side of the house. I do not think they are ever going to experience it. But I am looking forward to budget day. It will be a great day – bring it on. Five more sleeps, I think you said, member for Albert Park. I am very much looking forward to it.
Danny O’BRIEN (Gippsland South) (10:33): I rise to assure the house that there is no-one in the chamber more excited than me to hear about the budget session, because from this point on, as members know, I spend the next four weeks locked down in this place.
Members interjecting.
Danny O’BRIEN: While the Leader of the House is being generous, she might like to congratulate me because it is my 10th anniversary this year. As I have said to my side, there are people who get less for murder than being on the Public Accounts and Estimates Committee for 10 years. But what I am seeing here in this debate going on today, which I do not think we have ever debated before in my time in this chamber, is the padding. What we are seeing is a couple of ministers teaching the backbench how to pad. That is what I get used to in PAEC, because the government never actually wants to answer any questions; they just pad. To the extent of when the former minister Martin Foley was here –
James Newbury interjected.
Danny O’BRIEN: The member for Brighton remembers it well. I asked him one day what the time was, and he explained how the watch worked. Seriously, he would have to have been the slowest, most boring minister we have had before PAEC, and that is saying something.
A member: Have you met Gavin Jennings?
Danny O’BRIEN: The Beard was pretty good too actually. They do this to avoid scrutiny. They have got a few on the backbench who are there on the committee as well, and there are a few who used to be on the committee and they know what to do. They know just to sit there and read the question given to them by the Premier’s private office – ‘Don’t deviate from it, because you do what you’re told’. Then if the opposition looks at any stage like they are actually getting anywhere with a question, they quickly raise a point of order. Come in spinner, member for Yan Yean, because you are one of the best at it. Take a point of order and shut down the line of questioning so that Victorians do not find out what is actually in the details of the budget. I have had the pleasure –
Mary-Anne Thomas: On a point of order, Deputy Speaker, on the topic of points of order, as much as we do enjoy the opportunity to be at PAEC with the member for Gippsland South, I do ask that you bring him back to the motion that is before the house, which as we all know is a narrow procedural motion. We do not really need a –
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: Thank you, Leader of the House. I think it was relevance, and the member had strayed somewhat from the motion and could come back.
Danny O’BRIEN: Thank you, Deputy Speaker. While I never question your interpretation of things, this is not a procedural debate; this is a debate about what the Parliament will be doing in the next couple of weeks. It is not a procedural debate. If it was a procedural debate, we would be done by now.
A member interjected.
Danny O’BRIEN: We would have had 30 minutes. The Deputy Speaker is very much aware of that. That is why I have 10 minutes to speak now. We are talking about this motion that will set out the time frames, and the time frames include the budget hearings for the Public Accounts and Estimates Committee.
I might go to another issue here, again going to timing issues. Once again we are seeing the government-controlled committee reducing scrutiny by reducing the hours for the ministers that they want to protect.
A member interjected.
Danny O’BRIEN: It is absolutely true. We had a big debate this year because the time line allocated for the Deputy Premier, the Minister for Education, has been reduced by half an hour. We have 3 hours for the Treasurer, we have 2½ hours for the Premier, but for the second-biggest portfolio spend in the budget, we have an hour and a half. We had the hapless Labor members of the committee trying to argue, ‘Oh, it’s because he’s Deputy Premier; that’s why James Merlino had 2 hours’ –
Lauren Kathage: On a point of order, Deputy Speaker, I do not think the deliberations of the committee should be discussed in the chamber.
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: The point of order is? Committee discussions.
Lauren Kathage: Relevance.
James Newbury: Further on the point of order, Deputy Speaker, there was no point of order, other than the government are embarrassed that they have just been caught.
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: The member to continue on the motion.
Danny O’BRIEN: On the motion, which sets out the structure of the budget arrangements for the next couple of weeks, including the Public Accounts and Estimates Committee. We have got half an hour less for the education minister – and this is not deliberations, this is all on the public record. We have half an hour less for the Assistant Treasurer, so we are not doing that much on the Assistant Treasurer. We have half an hour less for the Minister for Skills and TAFE. We have got 15 minutes less for the Minister for Roads and Road Safety, which I am very disappointed about. I could do 3 hours on the Minister for Roads and Road Safety given the cuts there have been in that portfolio. We have had the Minister for Local Government, the same minister, also reduced by half an hour. Apparently she does not think there is enough to talk about in that portfolio. In total this year the Public Accounts and Estimates Committee hearings will apply 3 hours less scrutiny to this government. Bearing in mind, though, 54 hours we have – like I said, you get less for murder – and more than half of it is applied to government members asking Dorothy Dixers. With the exception of perhaps Mrs McArthur in the other place, both of us having to come down from our regional electorates for this period of time, I would like to have more time to scrutinise the budget papers. Unfortunately this is the way the government does it, just like they have tried this week to shut non-government members down from even putting things on the record. We see time and again the government trying to shut us down.
This is a situation where what is being done in the budget in the next few weeks is of concern not only to all Victorians but of course to my electorate of Gippsland South. We want to see a whole range of things that we have been fighting for for a long time, such as a new Sale College – the government committed to the master plan in previous budgets, but where is the funding for a new Sale College? I must say I am not optimistic about some of these. A rebuild of Foster Primary School. Additional train services to and from Sale were promised by the government in the network development plan several years ago. As the member for Bulleen has indicated, the Regional Rail Revival was announced in 2017 as shovel ready and ready to go but has still not finished in Gippsland seven years later. We are still waiting for additional services to be announced in the budget, as reflected in the motion that we are talking about. We are waiting for new fire stations for Mirboo North and Foster. We want to see something done about kamikaze corner in Leongatha, the stage 2 of the alternative heavy vehicle route.
Colin Brooks: On a point of order, Deputy Speaker, I think you can anticipate my point of order, which is that the member is now running through his shopping list of budget items.
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: We have strayed a little again from the motion.
Danny O’BRIEN: As I indicated as I was running through the shopping list, it was related to the motion, which is when the budget is going to be delivered on 7 May. There are just two more: the Mirboo North gymnasium and local road improvements with a Toora overtaking lane, which the government has not committed to and we would like to see when the budget comes. We would also like to see a Public Accounts and Estimates Committee that can do its job and hold the government and the public service to account. I remind those opposite again: this is not just about the executive members of the Parliament, it is about holding the public service to account as well and getting the answers that Victorians deserve when the state budget is $178 billion in debt – and probably more after next week. Victorians deserve answers. They deserve the opportunity to have those questions answered.
Jackson TAYLOR (Bayswater) (10:41): It is a great pleasure to rise today to speak on the motion, an important motion that sets out the timetable for the delivering of the budget. I think it is the Treasurer’s 10th budget – fantastic – a significant milestone for a good friend of mine. I know the Treasurer has worked incredibly hard to get this budget ready – a big thanks to the Treasurer, to his office and of course to the entire department and departments across the government for working tirelessly to deliver another Labor budget. This motion talks about what the next sitting week looks like – a little different, as has been done always, to ensure proper consideration and time is given to the budget.
As we know, budgets are about priorities. This is my sixth budget as the member for Bayswater, and I am very proud to now be in my second term. I can tell you now, if you look across the electorate – and members have spoken about some items that have been funded through the budget – you see what the priorities are of this government. If you look within my local area in the outer eastern suburbs of Melbourne – the best part of the world; others can have arguments, I am sure – this government’s priorities have been health care, education, transport and delivering good local jobs where people need them.
We have delivered upgrades to schools like Templeton Primary, currently under construction, and Fairhills High – Deputy Speaker, I think you are a former alumnus – and at Wantirna College we are getting on with building a new double-court competition-grade gym. I am just enlightening the house on some of the things from budgets that the Labor government have delivered and are getting on with. What we are getting on with is making sure we are continuing to build the Education State. Like the Minister for Health reflected on previously, I am very, very proud that when it comes to health care we are upgrading the Angliss Hospital. It is much, much loved, the Angliss Hospital. It is now in its 83rd or 84th year; I remember being there for its 80th birthday. It is a beautiful hospital. A big shout-out to all the healthcare workers, who will continue to receive support and who will continue to be backed in by this Allan Labor government through another Labor budget, which the Treasurer will hand down next week. We are also building new hospitals right across the state. The budget will continue to do that hard, important work. Also –
Bridget Vallence: On a point of order, Deputy Speaker, on relevance, I note that the member on his feet is talking about hospitals, but the Maroondah Hospital was promised in 2018 and still has not had a dollar allocated to fixing it.
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: Thank you, member for Evelyn. You are straying outside the point of order. I encourage the member for Bayswater to come back to the motion, even though this has become rather broad.
Jackson TAYLOR: Absolutely. On the motion, when we talk about budgets it is important to talk about education. Just a few minutes ago my partner was texting me a few photos of my little bubba George; he is having his solids for the day. I think his favourite at the moment is pear and maybe a bit of corn. But it reminded me of one of the most important things that this government has delivered, and that our son George will be the beneficiary of, and that is three-year old kinder and a pre-prep program. That is a profound investment in the lives of young people. That is the biggest change to early years education and to education anywhere in this country. You look around the rest of Australia and everyone is copying the fine work of Victoria because they know that the first five years of life for any child are some of the most, if not the most, important years in which to give them the best start in life. My little bubba George, and everyone who has got young kids not just in this place but right across this state, will be the beneficiary of that, making sure they have got the best start in life.
Sam Groth: On a point of order, Deputy Speaker, I also have young kids, and this budget is completely ruining my kids’ future.
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: There is no point of order.
Jackson TAYLOR: Deputy Speaker, through you, I give my best to the member for Nepean’s kids. I am sure he is a fantastic father. It is always good to see him on his feet, even if they are not really points of order.
As I have said, budgets are absolutely about priorities. I am very proud to be a part of this Allan Labor government that is getting on and delivering not just for my community but for the member for Mordialloc’s community and for the member for Albert Park, the member for Pascoe Vale, the member for Kororoit and the member for Mulgrave – it is all happening. And we are delivering over there as well.
Members interjecting.
Jackson TAYLOR: Well, I am starting with the people closest to me, immediately around me, but I am sure we are absolutely getting on with delivering for Brighton, for Sandringham and for Nepean. That is because this government is delivering for all Victorians. What I will say is I have heard some of the commentary, which I hear every single year, about this government. I hear some of the commentary from those opposite, and I heard the same thing in 2018. I heard the same thing in 2022 –
James Newbury: On a point of order, Deputy Speaker, I do think we are straying. And just for context, I think the government forgot Brighton from the index last year in the budget.
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: The member to come back to the motion.
Jackson TAYLOR: I was just responding to comments from some of those opposite about this government. Yet this government keeps getting re-elected despite the protestations from some of those opposite, and that is because we are out in our communities. We are active local members, we are out there and we are delivering on priorities for communities right across this state. Whether it is in metropolitan Melbourne or whether it is in regional Victoria we are getting on and getting the job done. It is as simple as that. I am very much looking forward to the Treasurer handing down the budget next week. It will be a very thoughtful, considered budget. This motion sets about the process for making sure we have all got time to get back out there into communities and obviously have a chat to our communities about how the budget is continuing to deliver for all Victorians.
Bridget VALLENCE (Evelyn) (10:48): I rise to speak on the laughing matter that is this motion, because quite frankly this demonstrates that this tired Allan Labor government has got absolutely no legislative agenda – nothing to talk about. So what do they do? They get up in the morning and they whip out this motion, which talks about the timing and the apparent aspiration to have a smooth running for budget day. What a joke. On the timing of budget day, it is quite important. The reason that we talk about the timing of budget day – and I have suggested this might be why the Allan Labor government wants to talk about the timing of budget day on 7 May – is pertinent because we will probably find out how much more this government wants to tax Victorians and how much more debt we will be seeing. We are tracking towards $200 billion of debt under the tired Allan Labor government. Quite frankly that is devastating because it is going to be a terrible burden left to our children and grandchildren to pay back this massive debt. It is all about spending more and taxing Victorians more.
There are many Victorians who are interested in what is in the budget and who are concerned about what is going to be put down in the budget on 7 May, because we believe that in its time this tired Labor government – a decade-old Labor government – has introduced 53 new or increased taxes. We think that on 7 May, when this budget is handed down, we will see more taxes. Life will be harder under this Allan Labor government, because they spend more and tax Victorians more – that is the only way. For this government the only options available are to tax more or cut. There will be cuts in the budget. We know there will be cuts. We are already hearing widespread concern about the cuts to health care, cuts to education. That is going to be heard on 7 May when this budget is handed down. This will be a tough budget for Victorians, and quite frankly they deserve more. All we will see is more taxes. We have got 53 new or increased taxes, and there is a bit of a book going around to see how many more taxes this Allan Labor government will be increasing next week, on 7 May.
The previous member on his feet talked about having proper time to consider the budget. Yet in terms of the budget process and the Public Accounts and Estimates Committee process, this government are so worried about what questions they are going to be asked, so determined to avoid all scrutiny on the budget, that they have constrained the time allowed for questions from opposition members on the budget through the PAEC process. What are they scared of? What are they hiding? If they are going to be proud of this budget, why not open the PAEC process even more? Why not invite more questions about the budget if there is stuff to spruik? I think that they all know there is not going to be much to spruik in this budget.
Certainly the residents of the Evelyn electorate are quite worried about this. The cost-of-living crisis is front and centre of mind. And what drives cost of living? It is the inflationary impacts of this government’s big-spending agenda. They love big – they love the Big Build, the Big Housing Build. They love big spend and big debt and big taxes, which are only going to hurt Victorias more. Frankly they do not give a stuff about Victorians, and you can see that in what comes out in the budget. I know that on 7 May, when this budget is handed down, they frankly will not give a stuff about Victorians and the cost-of-living issues that they are going through right now.
We have a health crisis. People cannot get their surgery done. We have kids in my electorate who are going to school in buildings ridden with asbestos. We write to the minister, we write to the minister again and we raise questions in this Parliament, but they do not care about the children and the teachers in my community who are having to go to school in asbestos-ridden things. In 2014 the Labor Party promised Victorians that they would remove asbestos from all schools. Well, come out to the Evelyn electorate and you will find schools ridden with asbestos. They have broken that promise from 2014.
The previous member on his feet, the member for Bayswater, talked about hospitals. The Maroondah Hospital – they tried, embarrassingly, to take away the Indigenous name of that hospital and rebadge as the QE2 hospital. That was a promise in 2018. We are in 2024 and there has been nothing done on the Maroondah Hospital. That is the biggest major public hospital for the members of my community, and frankly we have no knowledge of when this hospital will even start to scope the works required to upgrade that hospital. All we know about that hospital is that the ambulances are ramping all of the time. We know paramedics are upset.
Last budget public sector wages blew out to nearly $38 billion. We will be keeping a keen eye on 7 May, next week, as to what the public sector wages bill will look like, because we know that they are cutting public service jobs but the public sector wages bill is going up. This is going to be something very important for us to look at, because it demonstrates how this government cannot manage money. They cannot manage money. They cannot manage projects – billions and billions and billions of dollars over budget on major projects. We will all see in the budget on 7 May, next week, how much more each of these projects has blown out by – billions and billions of dollars of budget blowouts. And any bets that next week all we will see in this budget will be red, red, red and more red – not because it is the red of the Labor Party but because it is the red of debt. Taxes, budget blowouts – that is what we will see in the budget next week.
My community will be desperate to see if this government cares at all about the road safety of motorists and pedestrians in my community. Will they finally, once and for all, commit to actually upgrading the dangerous intersection at Maroondah Highway and Killara Road in Coldstream? Will they actually have any care in the world for the people that live in my community and upgrade the Warburton Highway at Seville East and for the students who are forced to cross from the bus on the Warburton Highway with low visibility because this government will not spend just a few million dollars? They will spend $200 billion on the Suburban Rail Loop, a project that has no business case whatsoever. They will spend $200 billion on that. Quite frankly I do not think any of us will ever see it built in our lifetimes. It does nothing for residents in my community. An underground train line from Box Hill to Cheltenham does nothing for the people of Mooroolbark and Lilydale and beyond. What we want to see is, quite frankly, putting that money – $200 billion could go into the road upgrades to those known dangerous roads, roads where we have had multiple fatalities, roads that this Labor government has done nothing about fixing, to actually upgrade these dangerous roads in my community.
Also this government could allocate some of the money from the $200 billion inner city Suburban Rail Loop to upgrading the digital connectivity throughout the Yarra Ranges. I hear the member for Monbulk constantly trying to bag the power companies about this, but this government has done nothing. They know in the Yarra Ranges we have poor digital connectivity and poor telecommunications, that when we have bushfires or storms we are completely at risk. This government has loved the headline but does nothing on the delivery. So we would like to see the money on that.
Also, flooding – our community has been subject to a lot of flooding. The state government has a lot of responsibility when it comes to some of the state-owned drainage infrastructure. The Lilydale open drain is an example. This government does not care about even clearing the weeds, and hundreds of residents – about a thousand residents in Lilydale – get flooded every time it rains, because Melbourne Water failed to upgrade and fix and clear the drains that they are responsible for. These are the things that impact people’s everyday lives, and frankly this government should be embarrassed that it has got nothing to talk about and wants to talk about the timings of the budget on budget day.
Tim RICHARDSON (Mordialloc) (10:57): I see the look of exasperation on the Deputy Speaker’s face on the broad, wideranging contributions. I will try to keep my contributions to the motion. It is a bit ironic that those that criticise a narrow motion and time allocation give such fulsome contributions. You did see as soon as the second speaker got up there was FOMO from the member for Brighton. Did you see that? He gave a minute, and he thought, ‘Oh, I had another nine in me.’ He just thought, ‘This is nice and short and sharp,’ and the FOMO was just resonating, and that is why there have been points of order. He just wants to get back.
I have got a recommendation as a part of this motion, because I think it is important to consider the layout of the day. I think the Shadow Treasurer gives the speech on the Tuesday or the Wednesday, is it? By that time you are sort of zoning off into Public Accounts and Estimates Committee (PAEC) land. But I think the reply should be not like the chief of staff now to the Leader of the Opposition. Remember that time when they jumped up? The former member for Ripon jumped up within 15 minutes and gave a fulsome debate – more than the 6 minutes and 46 seconds that the member for Sandringham gave last budget – but it was all over the place and went on about taxes. I think it was 53, the member for Evelyn is saying now. But I have got a recommendation on the program. It is not for me to give a bit of advice on how the day should run for those opposite, but I reckon on the Tuesday there is something that they are missing, because I have been sitting here and I have seen the member for Bulleen give some fulsome contributions this week. I am telling you – hairs on the back of your neck. It is spine-tingling. You know, he has got that gravitas; he has got the roar. The lion of Bulleen is back; the bison of Bulleen is back in action. I think there is a bit of energy in this place when the member for Bulleen comes in. So I reckon the member for Sandringham, with the dulcet tones that are very nicely suited for radio –
Brad Rowswell: On a point of order, Deputy Speaker, I am very happy to share with the member for Mordialloc and any member who would like to listen to my dulcet tones, but surely, as far-ranging and wide as the debate we have put up with is, what is the relevance of the member for Mordialloc’s contribution to the motion before the chamber? What is it?
Tim RICHARDSON: On the point of order, Deputy Speaker, I was actually talking about how the program runs. I think I have been the closest to the motion we have seen so far.
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: On the point of order, the member for Mordialloc’s point is not missed, and he was actually on the motion as far as anyone else.
Tim RICHARDSON: We are not needing the indulgence of the dulcet tones of the member for Sandringham, which we have all come to enjoy. The doorstops, the pregnant pauses, the emphasis, the hands – he is the Toastmasters alumnus if you ever saw one. It gives me goosebumps. As his neighbouring electorate member I sometimes look over and go, ‘I wish. I wish I could be like the dulcet tones of Sandringham.’ But no, they get a bit rough in Mordy, but they still front up each and every day, my constituents.
On the recommendation on this motion I reckon that Tuesday would be a bit better if you gave 30 minutes to the member for Bulleen. I give credit. You could see all of us really up and about and zoned in when the member for Bulleen gave 10 minutes on the Commercial and Industrial Property Tax Reform Bill 2024. You could see us zoned in. We were really intent. Even those opposite were – we finally got a bit of a turn-up from their show. So I reckon do that on Tuesday or Wednesday, rather than the member for Sandringham reheating – I will not make that pun but he did put up a Facebook post about microwave dinners and meal prep – his speech from last year. Do not worry about it – he has been practising with his doorstops and his speeches. Get the member for Bulleen in.
We have seen some impostor syndrome issues, though, coming from the member for Malvern. We see that every now and then he has an attempt to just come through. His popularity could not be any further south unfortunately, so I do not think he will get a call-up. He will be on the back stalls. When we go on to the take-note – that is the former Treasurer – he will be at the back stalls of that.
I think there was another powerful contribution yesterday. Not to give you a bit of bayside rivalry, not to turn it up, but the member for Brighton was up and about yesterday. No-one could actually hear their own minds think because the member for Brighton was so loud and booming. I have been on the Public Accounts and Estimates Committee with the member for Brighton, and he does the work – not as much as the member for Gippsland South, I will say. Full stops and commas – give us a spell, you are not revolutionising the place. But the member for Brighton I think could give a fulsome contribution and was up and about yesterday.
The talk about PAEC is interesting, because PAEC is a big part of this work. I certainly have not done 10 years. When you volunteer to keep going back onto PAEC, you have to really check the member for Gippsland South’s priorities. He puts it up as a badge of honour, and we sort of all look sideways and go, ‘Four years is enough, mate. Ten years – what are you doing this to yourself for?’ At least the member for Brighton actually got grabs. Sometimes he would put his feet up on the desk. Sometimes he would be loud and roaring and would carry on, but the member for Gippsland South maybe needs to just come out of his shell a bit more. I know sometimes with the questions that come forward you see the exasperation of these poor PAEC members on the coalition side, because they get some of the worst questions. You can see them on the run going, ‘Is this what I’ve been dished up to work with for the next 18 minutes?’ You can see the member for Gippsland South feverishly going through it, looking across at Bev McArthur, the member in the other place – Western Victoria – and then looking at the member for Brighton and going, ‘We’re going to have to carry the team today; this is going to be a long day.’ You can see it is a challenge. Maybe it is not always about time, maybe it is about the quality of the offering, so maybe rather than everybody getting their 5 minutes of fame – they share around their questions because all the egos are so big in the room during PAEC that they have all got to have a bit of a go – maybe they can be a little more focused.
The budget is a really important opportunity. It is the 10th budget – not the 10th on PAEC – but the schedule, the program, is really important. You can feel the significance of such a moment, and it is important. The member for Sandringham will in all seriousness make an important contribution. It is a moment in time for Victorians to scrutinise where the state is at. There is a bit of political posturing and hubris and all that, but it is about the opportunities that present and the choices that are made. Sometimes that is lost in some of the discussion and debate, how important that is, but it is really the grand final of all we do. All of the work that comes forward, all of the programs that are put forward and all of the choices that are made really boil down to that speech and then the reply that is made and the seriousness with which it is taken by those opposite.
I will say that the member for Sandringham, in his contributions and the work that will be put forward and his team and his staff, is really important in that with the week and how it runs with the PAEC briefing with the Department of Treasury and Finance. If anyone is thinking, ‘Should I go in for that breakfast on that Tuesday morning?’, it is a really important session to get that from Treasury and understand, of the $90 billion-plus allocation in revenue that we put forward, the choices that are made. That has grown significantly from the first time I was in here; I think the last Baillieu–Napthine government budget was about $43 billion. It just shows the significance of the Victorian economy and how much we have grown over that time, the Victorians that we have welcomed in and the jobs that have been created throughout that time. It is a really important session and time from when the Treasurer stands up in this place, starts that debate and opens it up for members to reflect on.
You see already some of the posturing and different things that come up, but it is a really important opportunity for all of us to reflect. It will be the 10th budget for the class of 2014. I particularly give a shout-out to really close colleagues and people I love and admire: the member for Carrum, the member for Frankston and the member for Bentleigh. We have been on a journey together of seeing our communities transform over that time. We all reflect on that moment, from the times that we were first in here and how the session was run, to the great opportunity that our communities have given us to be here for our 10th budget, an opportunity to keep delivering for our communities. It is a really important thing.
For the people that tune in in budget week and that program, if you wanted to hear the weather or the wheat report on the back end of the ABC, you would ask the member for Sandringham to read it out, because it would put you into calm ASMR territory, wouldn’t it? He has the dulcet tones, the gravitas. But I think if we want the viewership through Parliament broadcasting, we need to get the tickets sold for the member for Bulleen’s presentation. I think there will be a late call-up on the Tuesday, get the speech, and the first reply is ‘Get the member for Bulleen back.’ It was Meatloaf that said ‘Two out of three ain’t bad’, right? But I am a believer. I am a believer in the member for Bulleen. I reckon he has got a third in him. I reckon he can bring it home. I know we do not have the former member for Kew anymore, who pumped him up and said, ‘You can have another crack,’ but maybe he has had a look at some internal polling and is saying, ‘You know what, I reckon I can have a dance. I reckon I can go,’ and that is why we have got him back in. That is why he is the new-age guy, the member for Bulleen, and I am the number one ticketholder for that.
Nicole WERNER (Warrandyte) (11:07): I am very much looking forward to my first budget as the new member for Warrandyte. Eight months in I am even looking forward to speaking on this motion. I appreciate that it is a procedural debate. I appreciate that in this place there are conventions, there are niceties and there are things that we do that are part of the tradition of Parliament. It was so shocking therefore to me on Tuesday, our first day back after one month’s sitting break, that in the spirit of Parliament, in the spirit of these conventions and these niceties, those opposite sought to quash and to gag and to stop us from bringing all of the motions forward from this side of Parliament. They would not even let their buddies in the Greens speak. I so appreciate, as we are talking about in the procedural debate the timing for next week’s budget, that they are so in favour of keeping to these things. It is wonderful that they have rules for themselves but not for us – so wonderful for you.
The motion that we are speaking about is setting the timing for the budget, and I am glad that we are talking about timing, because timing is something that I am very interested in. The people in my community have been waiting and waiting and waiting and wondering when is the time that you will fix Five Ways intersection in Warrandyte South. We have been left waiting time and time again. The candidate for Warrandyte from the other side made a commitment as the federal candidate for Menzies that as part of their government, if they were elected, they would fund the Five Ways intersection, but we found that to be a complete untruth. When the federal member for Menzies went to the minister for roads in the federal Parliament and asked, ‘Okay, this commitment, which you’ve made as an election commitment, when are you going to fund it?’, ‘It was actually never tabled. It was actually never raised with us, so we won’t be funding it.’ We are still waiting. The time is still there. We are still waiting for this to be fixed. I do wonder, I do ask the government, when will this time be? Will it be when there is another casualty? Will it be when there is another road incident? Will there be another call-out? Will it be that we have to wait and wait and wait?
Mathew Hilakari: On a point of order, Deputy Speaker, I too am waiting – for us to come back to the debate. I make a point of order on relevance.
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: It is not actually a procedural debate. The member for Warrandyte to proceed on the motion.
Nicole WERNER: We are speaking about timing. We are speaking about the budget; we are speaking about that happening next week. I am speaking about what I hope to see in the budget for my community, which I have been fighting for day in day out in this place. Six times I have raised it in Parliament – Five Ways intersection – and time and time again the minister for copy and paste, otherwise known as the Minister for Roads and Road Safety, will give me the same response. They advise that, ‘Due to the complex geometry and physical constraints, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. We won’t do it because it’s not one of our seats and we can’t pork-barrel in your seat.’ Well, we are still waiting. We are still waiting for Five Ways intersection to be fixed, so I will keep fighting in this place until we see it fixed, because it is a priority for my community.
Speaking of timing, there are other things that we are also waiting for. At Warrandyte CFA they are waiting for a new tanker. It is 20 years that they have been waiting for a new tanker, so I hope that in the budget next Tuesday – with the timing that we have in that time – we have a new tanker for Warrandyte CFA, which is in a bushfire-prone area and is ill-equipped to be able to fight fires. So I hope that is the time. Talking about time, well, it is also about time that we upgraded the old Andersons Creek Primary School playground, which is in dire need of financial assistance. It is about time we fixed Ringwood North Primary School’s current 200-seat stadium, which is too small for a school of 432 students. It is about time that Chirnside Park Primary School’s oval was upgraded. Funding was given to the school in 2020, and they are still waiting four years later for it to be upgraded. It is about time for Donburn Primary School – another fantastic school in my electorate – who in 2017 had a master plan come through and who are still waiting for the next stage of building classrooms. So I am looking forward to seeing that additional funding, because it is about time.
Rarely do you hear something so funny in the chamber. I know that it can get serious in this place, but we heard a very good line earlier from the member for Bayswater, who said, ‘Everyone is copying the work of Victoria.’ Is that so? Well, they are not copying our work on tourism. Victoria has fallen to third place behind Queensland for tourism. The latest visitor survey from Tourism Research Australia has confirmed that Victorian international tourism spending is at 73 per cent of prepandemic levels, compared to 96 per cent in New South Wales and 94 per cent in Queensland. They are not copying our work when it comes to keeping children safe. Despite New South Wales implementing reforms to jail child sex offenders in 2018, this week – just yesterday – the government rejected the member for Malvern’s motion to close the legal loophole allowing prison sentences for historical child sex offenders to be suspended. Would you believe it.
Dylan Wight: On a point of order, Deputy Speaker, while I am finding the contribution really amusing, I am not quite sure what the motion from the member from Malvern yesterday has to do with the budget next Tuesday. I would ask you to bring the member back to the motion at hand, as you previously have.
James Newbury: On the point of order, Deputy Speaker, the member has not been in here. To be fair, the member for Mordialloc is the only speaker who has actually spoken on the motion. This has been a very wideranging debate.
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: It has. If the member could continue on the motion, though, it would make everything easier.
Nicole WERNER: Back to the matter at hand. We are speaking about the budget next week. We are speaking about the debt that Victoria is in, and getting back to what I was saying, they are not copying our work on debt. Despite levying the highest taxes in the nation, Victoria now also has the highest state debt in the country, greater than New South Wales, Queensland and Tasmania combined. That is something we are looking forward to seeing again on Tuesday – how much more debt we will be in. $177.8 billion it is projected to be by 2027. That is what Victorians have to look forward to at the timing of the budget next Tuesday. Would you believe it.
They are not copying our work when it comes to the cost of living. Recent figures show that Victorian household disposable income suffered the biggest fall in the country, with Victorians $1100 worse off than those living in New South Wales.
Members interjecting.
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: If the members for Tarneit and Narracan would like to have a chat, they can do it outside.
Nicole WERNER: They are not copying our work when it comes to youth justice. A young person in detention-based supervision in Victoria costs $5900 per day, more than double the cost to support a young person in detention in New South Wales. They are not copying our work when it comes to dwelling approvals. Dwelling approvals fell 18.3 per cent in Victoria in July 2023, compared to falls of just 2.6 per cent in South Australia and 4.7 per cent in New South Wales. They are certainly not copying our work when it comes to business. Victoria has 7606 fewer registered businesses, compared to 11,031 more in Queensland and 8147 more in New South Wales. So, yes, thank you to the member for Bayswater – and let the tone of sarcasm be noted for Hansard – everyone is copying the work of Victoria!
I close with that. I eagerly anticipate my very first budget as the member for Warrandyte next Tuesday. I eagerly await the timing of all these projects that we are waiting for, the funding that my community is so desperately in need of. I look forward to it immensely.
Luba GRIGOROVITCH (Kororoit) (11:16): I have to say I am absolutely thrilled to speak in support of this motion. Unlike others, I will try and keep to the motion at hand. I will say it is the second budget for me as the member for Kororoit; I am very proud of that and cannot wait to see what will be on display next Tuesday.
But I do have a little confession: it is not the second budget that I am taking notice of. Like the member for Bentleigh said earlier, budget day is and always has been like Christmas Day for many of us political types. I recall going to a number of budget lock-ups and sitting there eagerly to see what was going to come out of the budget. The budget is one that provides for working people, it is one that provides for working families, it has opportunities for many Victorians, and it is one that I am sure we can all be very proud of.
I am looking forward to this budget as well because it is our Treasurer’s 10th budget. This is a man who knows what he is doing, he is in the right position, and it is something that I am excited for. As we know, the Labor Party does deliver on education, we do deliver on public transport and on roads. We deliver for working Victorians, and I am really proud to be part of this budget. I look forward to next Tuesday. As the member for Albert Park said, only five more sleeps, so bring it on.
Chris CREWTHER (Mornington) (11:18): I rise to speak on this motion on budget arrangements, and I might mention my kids later on. Budget day is such an important day next week. It is such an important day in our year. It is important not just for us but for our future, for our kids – for your kids and for my kids. Kids like those at Balcombe Grammar School in Mount Martha in my electorate who are here with us today in Parliament, and my own kids as mentioned before, Yasmin and Edward, who are eight and five. I want the best future for them, as I am sure all of you do for your kids and every Victorian kid.
I explained to the students from Balcombe Grammar School out in Queen’s Hall before the importance of this debate that they could see on the little TV screen out there. I explained the importance of budgets. They also got to come into the chamber before to hear the wonderful and fulsome contribution from the member for Gippsland South and to hear his important shopping list as well. I talked with them about the importance of having time next week to talk about what we spend money on, whether it is on schools, on hospitals, on roads and so on, and the importance of having time to talk about what our debt level is and what our taxes are. The timing of the budget is so important, and the time we have to speak on it. The contributions that we make are so important for our future, and how long we get to speak on and scrutinise the budget is important, as I said, not just for us but for everyone.
I know my community wants me to have time to speak, whether it is on matters like the much-needed Mount Eliza secondary school upgrades, the increased land taxes many are facing, which are pushing up house prices and rental prices, or the impacts – like the need to upgrade Forest and Uralla roads and much more. My community wants me to have the time next week to speak about Labor’s now over $120 billion debt, which is projected to grow to over $170 billion in a few years time. The interest on this debt is enormous. I want to ask the member for Sandringham about this. Member for Sandringham, what is the interest right now? Is it $10 million of interest per day? Is it higher? Is it $11 million of interest per day? Higher? Is it $12 million? What about $15 million? Is it up to that? Yes.
Paul Edbrooke: On a point of order, Deputy Speaker, this is neither question time nor a time for the member for Mornington to ask members of his own party questions. Bring him back to the motion, please.
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: Yes. Through the Chair, please, member for Mornington.
Chris CREWTHER: I will say, Deputy Speaker, it is very important for me to talk about the timing of the budget next week and how much time we have to contribute towards this debate, because it is very important to talk about what we are delivering in Victoria. It is very important to talk about our debt levels and the interest we are paying each day. At $15 million of interest, that is $15 million per day of hard-earned taxpayer funds. For example, over two days with these interest payments we could upgrade Mount Eliza Secondary College or many of the schools in my electorate. My community wants me to have time next week to speak about what further cuts or taxes they may be looking at, like cuts to fixing the Mount Martha landslip disaster, which was cut in last year’s budget, or like the school taxes that would have impacted parents and students at Balcombe Grammar School, who, as I mentioned, are here with us in Parliament today and who argued against that along with parents, the opposition and I. Fortunately the threshold was increased so they will not be impacted, but these are important matters that we need to have time to speak about next week.
We need sufficient time to speak, to ask questions and to scrutinise the budget. It needs scrutiny because we need to scrutinise things like the $216 billion white elephant Suburban Rail Loop, which the government are implementing despite their debt levels and despite not even having a business case for this project. But at the same time they are cutting much smaller projects like the Baxter rail project, despite the fact that my electorate has no rail services altogether. That meant $225 million was scrapped from that project by Labor because of the lack of this state Labor government’s commitment. It would have delivered more rail services for the whole peninsula, and as the member for Nepean and I can attest, it is much needed because we on the peninsula have a lack of public transport, with 82 per cent of the people on the peninsula not having access to any form of public transport.
We need time to talk about things like the Mornington police cuts as well, and cuts to other police stations across Victoria where they need more staff and more resources. In my electorate what we have seen is cuts to the reception hours.
We need time to actually ensure that we are not shut down in our debate next Tuesday like we were this Tuesday. That was a shameful exercise that we saw this week by those opposite in shutting down debate, in shutting down motions by leave before the motions even got to be discussed by those moving them. I hope that our debate on next week’s budget is not shut down before we get to make a contribution to what are very important matters in our electorate. I felt that what happened on Tuesday was very anti-democratic, but this seems to be the nature of this government. On this motion I do call on the government to enhance democracy, to enhance the ability of everyone in this place to speak about the budget and to enhance the ability to ask questions, to scrutinise the budget and to talk about the important needs not just in our electorates but for Victorians.
Martin CAMERON (Morwell) (11:24): I too rise to speak on the budget motion going on in here at the moment. As you were saying, it is a tight procedural motion, but let us have a go. On the regional side of things and especially the people down in my patch, the only motion that we seem to get via this budget motion is being bent over by the government, as we actually receive nothing in general from the Treasurer coming forward. There are a few bits and pieces down in the valley, and it is not only in my seat of Morwell; it is right around regional Victoria that we seem to be missing out on money being spent in our area. I have to go home at the end of every sitting week and explain why we have not got our roads being funded, we have not got our schools being funded and we are relentlessly trying to get in contact with ministers and the Treasurer as to why we cannot get some money spent on infrastructure down in our area.
The government seems to have not been forthright. They are not shy of shutting down our timber industry and shutting down our white paper industry, so we would like to see in the upcoming budget some measures that are going to help alleviate the issues of our timber workers and our white paper industry workers also. They have been promised packages which are unacceptable, so we hope the Treasurer stands up for regional Victoria and especially stands up for people in the seat of Morwell so they can have some certainty moving forward.
We need money for our roads. We have got a bridge in Tyers which has been half built. The government, to their credit on this one, built half a bridge that works, but when it floods it still is shut. We need to have some funding at Waterloo Road in Moe to change this thoroughfare for Moe and Newborough, as it travels across railway lines. Also at Breed Street in Traralgon we need our traffic lights put up or the infrastructure there to do that.
CFA shed upgrades – I have heard other regional members and some city members that are on the fringe talking about upgrades for the CFA. We have had Hazelwood CFA, which are coming up in a few years to their 100th year. We have asked the Treasury if they could provide some funds to make certain that their new shed will be built, coming up on their 100th year. Tyers CFA – we have asked again and again since I have been in Parliament. This is my second budget coming up, and it is interesting to hear other members that have been in for up to six. I think the member for Bayswater said that he was in his sixth budget.
Moving forward, seeing we missed out on money coming into the seat of Morwell and into Latrobe Valley, we would hope that there is a lot of money for renewable projects so we can get back up and going with our manufacturing of renewable projects down in Latrobe Valley, which would be great.
On the sporting front we heard the member for Nepean talking about some sporting issues before. Back in 2021 the Traralgon Football Netball Club was devastated by a flood that went through, and we have had relentless letters written to the Treasurer asking for certain funding. We are hoping, because the Traralgon Football Netball Club are without rooms still after the 2021 floods, that there will be some major funding there for the football netball club to move on and rebuild rooms that they can start using again. Similarly, the Churchill Football Netball Club are after funding to make sure that their rooms can be upgraded, because they are not fit for purpose. They have got female footy playing out of there now, and they also need funding for there.
But as we move forward, we wait in anticipation for Tuesday with the budget coming up. I am sure that a lot of people down in the Latrobe Valley will be looking to make sure there is adequate funding for our police down there, because at the moment we have a lot of break-ins with our youth breaking into houses and stealing cars, and also in the last few weeks we have had an uprising of youth carrying machetes and concealed weapons that have been arrested by our police officers to keep us safe. But they get pushed in to front court, and then they are put back out on bail. So we need to make sure there is ample money.
This is not just for the seat of Morwell, where I am from, and regional Victoria; it is for right across Victoria. We need to make sure that we have enough money in the budget to make sure that for these offenders who are causing grief to every single community around the state, practices can be put in place to once and for all make it stop. We need to make sure that we have got the funding there so that we can back our police and then back our judiciary system to make the right calls going forward. I know that is a really positive one. It does not matter what age you are; when you walk down the street where you live you want to be sure that you are safe and feel comfortable in your environment.
It is going to be a big budget. I am not expecting a lot, as the MP down in Morwell, for my region. As I said before, we would really like to get the roads fixed, because at the moment, with the roads in the disrepair they are in, we are having a lot of trouble getting ministers to travel down the road from Melbourne into my region and actually sit down and talk with us. We need to get the roads fixed moving forward and get the Labor ministers of the Allan government to come down and talk to our timber workers, talk to our white paper workers and talk to our workers at the new SEC so they can explain what is going on and how we are going to transition moving forward.
As members of Parliament standing up in this chamber today – we said we only have five sleeps to go until the budget comes up – we are hoping, we have our fingers crossed, that regional Victoria will not once again be forgotten, as it was last year. We will see how we go. We are not expecting a lot from the Treasurer. We wait with bated breath to see how much damage and how much more debt we have. It is time to stop the Melbourne Big Build and move it into regional Victoria. We need our fair share. We do a lot of heavy lifting around the state in regional Victoria, and all we want is our fair share moving into the budget. As I said, I look forward to sitting through budget day on Tuesday and being able to respond on behalf of my community once we have gone through the facts and figures and seen what we did and what we did not get. On Tuesday we get to see that, Acting Speaker, and I thank you for allowing me to speak today.
Wayne FARNHAM (Narracan) (11:32): I am very pleased to rise today to talk about the budget motion and what the budget will be and how it will unfold for regional Victoria. I agree with the member for Morwell that a lot of the time regional Victoria gets forgotten. We have already seen this government wind back on commitments – no worse than on the Bunyip–Longwarry line duplication, which was promised and not delivered. The worst part is that it was not even funded by the state government, it was funded by the federal government, and they could not even complete that. I took the member for Bulleen down there, and we were rushed off the site by the CFMEU. They did not want us to see anything down there. The fact of the matter is they have broken the promise on the Bunyip line duplication and the Bunyip bridge.
What is even more amazing is the neglect the CFAs have had in regional Victoria. Look at the Nar Nar Goon CFA, which was built in 1939. Ironically, the guy that ran against me, Justin Seddon, for Labor was the captain of the Nar Nar Goon fire station, and he still could not get a commitment out of the government to build a new fire station. This is important for regional Victoria because we need our CFAs to protect our communities. No wonder Justin Seddon put a Liberal cap on and decided to start handing out for the Liberal Party. What an absolute disgrace.
But our biggest concern in my area is the West Gippsland Hospital. The Liberal–National coalition have backed this ever since it was put forward by the Department of Health. They backed a new hospital in West Gippsland, and the member for Bulleen was there – I was with him – when we announced it in 2022. The Labor announcement was pretty much on the back of a Weeties packet in someone’s backyard in Warragul. Will they continue with it, and will they take all the services along with it? This is the problem my community is going to have. We firmly believe that the government will wind back on the services for the West Gippsland Hospital and they will not deliver everything that was promised. This community has been waiting for this hospital for way, way too long.
Since I was elected to this Parliament we have had 10 new taxes – 10 new taxes since I was elected in 2023. The land tax bills people are paying now are killing them. They have gone up 100, 200, 300, 500 per cent in a lot of cases. In my electorate a local constituent’s land tax bill went from $129,000 to $532,000 – over half a million dollars in land tax. Where do you think that is going to end up at the end of the day? It will end up with the people that purchase the properties. That is what is going to happen. I said it in my maiden speech: every time you create another tax or charge it will get passed down the line. It will get passed down the line again when this budget comes in and we see more taxes. Cost of living in this state is well out of control, and people are paying the price for Labor’s incompetence.
Now to the SRL – the Suburban Rail Loop – which I believe is sacrificing regional lives. If I had 1 per cent of that budget in Narracan – just 1 per cent or $2.16 billion – I could build a hospital, I could fix everything else in my electorate and I could give you $1 billion back. That is the effect that this project will have on regional Victoria. Drouin Secondary College was promised an $11.7 million upgrade that has now been delayed. Every time something goes pear-shaped with this government it hits regional Victoria, and regional Victorians are bearing the brunt of this government’s incompetence. It happens to us all the time. It has happened to my hospital, it has happened to the Longwarry–Bunyip road duplication and it has happened to Drouin Secondary College. Why don’t we sacrifice Melbourne for a change? But no, we will not. Then we come to health and the amalgamations that are going to occur with the hospitals – the amalgamations that again are going to take the local community out of their local hospitals. It is an absolute disgrace.
I look forward to the next budget. I do not think it is going to be kind to regional Victoria. I think regional Victoria is going to get screwed over again by this government, but I will have to wait and see.
Sonya KILKENNY (Carrum – Minister for Planning, Minister for the Suburbs) (11:37): I move:
That the question be now put.
James Newbury: On a point of order, Deputy Speaker, is the government putting a gag motion on its own motion on a debate that it has not been able to carry?
The DEPUTY SPEAKER: That is not a point of order. Given the length of the debate, I accept the question.
Assembly divided on Sonya Kilkenny’s motion:
Ayes (50): Juliana Addison, Jacinta Allan, Colin Brooks, Josh Bull, Ben Carroll, Anthony Cianflone, Sarah Connolly, Chris Couzens, Jordan Crugnale, Lily D’Ambrosio, Steve Dimopoulos, Paul Edbrooke, Eden Foster, Matt Fregon, Ella George, Luba Grigorovitch, Bronwyn Halfpenny, Katie Hall, Paul Hamer, Martha Haylett, Mathew Hilakari, Melissa Horne, Natalie Hutchins, Lauren Kathage, Sonya Kilkenny, Nathan Lambert, Gary Maas, Alison Marchant, Kathleen Matthews-Ward, Steve McGhie, Paul Mercurio, John Mullahy, Tim Pallas, Danny Pearson, Tim Richardson, Michaela Settle, Ros Spence, Nick Staikos, Natalie Suleyman, Meng Heang Tak, Jackson Taylor, Nina Taylor, Kat Theophanous, Mary-Anne Thomas, Emma Vulin, Iwan Walters, Vicki Ward, Dylan Wight, Gabrielle Williams, Belinda Wilson
Noes (26): Brad Battin, Jade Benham, Roma Britnell, Martin Cameron, Annabelle Cleeland, Chris Crewther, Wayne Farnham, Sam Groth, Matthew Guy, David Hodgett, Emma Kealy, Tim McCurdy, Cindy McLeish, James Newbury, Danny O’Brien, Michael O’Brien, Kim O’Keeffe, John Pesutto, Richard Riordan, Brad Rowswell, David Southwick, Bridget Vallence, Peter Walsh, Kim Wells, Nicole Werner, Jess Wilson
Sonya Kilkenny’s motion agreed to.
Motion agreed to.