Wednesday, 29 October 2025

 Jacinta ALLAN (Bendigo East – Premier) (14:53): It was Sunday morning – I think I referenced this yesterday – when with the Minister for Transport Infrastructure, the Minister for Roads and Road Safety and the members for Tarneit, Laverton, Point Cook and Werribee I stood on the brand new Wurundjeri Way. As we looked across at the panoramic views of our vibrant CBD, we were thinking about how families will get home safer and sooner. It also reminded me of when I was at the Metro Tunnel, whether it was the State Library or Town Hall, looking at these beautiful new stations and the long platforms, thinking about how millions of Victorians will be able to save time in their day with these big, new, vital transport connections that get people to where they want to go. We see this difference for Victoria being made at any one of the new schools or TAFE campuses or indeed hospitals, like the beautiful Footscray Hospital, which will open next year. These are investments in infrastructure that are about delivering critical services that will support families across the state.

But we know that there are others who have a smaller, narrower vision for our great state of Victoria ‍– those who do not want to see these investments in these vital projects that not only create jobs during the construction but are about delivering more and stronger services in hospitals and schools, in train services, in public transport or in supporting people with those connections to where they want to go. We have seen that where we have built and invested in nine new hospitals. Some of us are reminded of the time when hospitals were being closed and nurses were being sacked. There are the TAFEs that are being opened and free TAFE, as opposed to those that had padlocks. And of course there is the record support for schools. We have a vision for Victoria that is investing in the future of our state. Those opposite are all about cuts and closures.