Friday, 14 November 2025

 Evan MULHOLLAND (Northern Metropolitan) (21:27): (2123) My adjournment is to the Premier. It is something of deep, deep importance and I think goes to the heart of the decisions in this government. We have seen this week an important report from Infrastructure Victoria which goes to the needs and priorities of infrastructure across our state. One of the very important infrastructure projects it does recommend, as does my community in the northern suburbs, is the duplication of the Upfield line. Infrastructure Victoria recommends a duplication of the Upfield line and a new station at Campbellfield, as well as connecting that track with Roxburgh Park, which would give us the ability to connect these two lines, run more frequent trains, have a new station past Craigieburn at Kalkallo, have a new station at Beveridge and eventually electrify all the way to Wallan. Again, it has got costs in here of $1 billion to $2 billion by 2030 for part of the project, and around $4 billion to $5 billion for the whole project.

Another thing that is quite important is an outer metropolitan ring-road. Something that would connect the ring-road to the new intermodal terminal at Beveridge and go around the west would make Victoria a logistics hub of Australia and really be a boon for our economy. But that is all given a backdrop of the government’s decisions on the Suburban Rail Loop. A fraction of what the Suburban Rail Loop is costing – $34 billion, they say; we know it is going to be $50 billion – would deliver these kinds of services and infrastructure to my community in the north.

What I have heard and what I am seeking the Premier to clarify is that the federal government is being asked for $9 billion for the Suburban Rail Loop in the eastern suburbs. Part of those discussions is that they will cave and provide the $9 billion, but they gave them a choice of duplicating the Upfield line, doing some rail extensions or an outer metropolitan ring-road or putting it all into the Suburban Rail Loop in the eastern suburbs. These kinds of conversations in Canberra and at an NRL game in Sydney do not stay silent for long, Premier. I am seeking the action of the Premier to clarify whether this is true, that she has abandoned the northern suburbs, abandoned my community and chosen to plough $9 billion more into the Suburban Rail Loop in the eastern suburbs.