TRANSCRIPT: Press conference with Ken O’Dowd MP, Member for Flynn Port of Gladstone, 19 November 2018

E&OE

Subjects: Water infrastructure announcements; embassy in Israel; Australia’s relationship with China; housing prices; agricultural investment; project announcements in Emerald; trade talks with Mike Pence; APEC Summit.

KEN O’DOWD:  

I have the Acting Prime Minister with me this morning. I welcome him to Gladstone. We’ve just come in from Emerald where we made some important announcements out there. Michael is here today to make a big announcement on water infrastructure but firstly, as far as Flynn is concerned, we have a good announcement for the North and South Burnett, to the south of here of course, in the Wondai and Kingaroy area where we’ve got $2 million, a million dollars for each North and South Burnett for them to conduct their water feasibility studies.

Now that will then lead into water infrastructure in that area once the feasibility studies have been completed. We’re pretty excited about that because we’ve been working for some months now and it has finally come to fruition with Michael coming up with this $2 million for the North and South of Burnett. I’ve already had contact from those mayors in the North and South Burnett shires who welcome the announcement wholeheartedly because this is something they need. The farming land is there, what we need is water. But without that any further ado, over to you Michael.

MICHAEL MCCORMACK:

Thank you Ken. It’s great to be in Gladstone. It's great to be here at the Port of Gladstone, the harbour where so much industry and commerce occurs. It’s great to be in the seat of Flynn in Central Queensland. I spent yesterday with Ken talking about water infrastructure in that particular area of Emerald, about Fairbairn Dam, and we've invested $3 million in Fairbairn Dam’s modernisation. It hasn't been upgraded or updated since 1972 but with a $3 million Federal Government investment on top of additional investment totalling $8.3 million - so we’re bringing it up to $11.8 million - that's going to see an additional almost 200 jobs created and 6,500 megalitres’ additional water storage capacity for irrigated agriculture. If we can create nearly 200 jobs with a $3 million investment, imagine what we could do with a $500 million investment.

That’s what I'm announcing today: the National Water Infrastructure Development Fund being the beneficiary of an additional half-a-billion-dollars. That will create new pipelines, new dams, to drought-proof regional Australia, to make sure that we have the flood mitigation for regional Australia. This is a significant historic announcement. This is a significant historic investment in regional Australia, making sure that we've got the water when we need it. Of course we're undergoing at the moment one of the worst droughts in history but with the right water storage capacity in future this can drought-proof those areas when it is going to be dry. We all know that we live in a country of droughts and flooding rains. We all know that prolonged dry spells are followed by flooding rains. When those flooding rains come, we need to be able to store the water for when it is dry. We need to be able to store the water to protect communities from those floods and so this half a billion dollars going towards drought-proofing Australia is going to be so significant.

Building more dams: we're not afraid, the Liberals and Nationals, to build more dams. We're not afraid to put the pipelines in that we need. We don't say one thing when we're in Gladstone and another thing where we’re in inner city seats. We want to build dams. Scott Morrison, the Prime Minister, is right behind this particular announcement. We have had discussions from the moment he became the Leader of the Liberal Party and then of course the Prime Minister about building more water infrastructure. He's committed to it. I'm committed to it. The Liberals and Nationals are committed to it. This is an exciting announcement today, particularly for regional Australia, exciting to build on industry and commerce and job opportunities, and that's why we're doing it.

QUESTION:

Are there any particular projects you've got in mind when you announce this?

MICHAEL MCCORMACK:

There’s Emu Swamp in Maranoa. That's one particular project that I'm sure they're doing the business case for now, that they've discussed with me as to how they can bring it forward. We announced recently Rookwood Weir. We announced $176.1 million for that particular project. I’m sure Ken O’Dowd here has got projects that he will bring forward. There are exciting projects for water storage capacity right around our nation. We want to work with willing State Governments. We want to work with Local Governments. We want to work with industry stakeholders to bring forward projects, to do business cases and to make sure that we can get them built.

QUESTION:

We saw with Rookwood that it was an arrangement between State and Federal Government. Is that going to be the way forward for all the projects that access this fund?

MICHAEL MCCORMACK:

Not necessarily all the projects but we're willing to work with the willing State Governments whether it's Queensland or whichever State Government or Territory Government for that matter. We want to work with willing partners to build dams and we will do that.

QUESTION:

Is this wholly new money?

MICHAEL MCCORMACK:

It’s wholly new money: $500 million of wholly new money. That's what you can do when you've got a strong economy. That’s what you can do to build on it and make an even stronger economy. We want to make sure that we grow more food and fibre. You can do that when you just add water. You can do that. You can get that food and fibre. Australian farmers are the best environmentalists, best farmers in the world. This is going to give them the ability and the potential to grow more food and fibre and we can then export it to the world.

QUESTION:        

And to just ask you about the Burnett water study, what sort of infrastructure do you imagine that will be investigating?

MICHAEL MCCORMACK:

We’ll be talking to key industry stakeholders as to how we can get that up but as you heard from Ken O’Dowd this morning it’s an important project for his area. If you like I might get him to give you some more details about it. But it's an important water infrastructure project. It's important for South and North Burnett. It’s important for the electorate of Flynn. I’ll get Ken to just add some more details if you like.

KEN O’DOWD:

In North and South Burnett, we’ve got the Boondooma Dam that we could possibly look at putting extra height on the wall. We can look at a new weir at Cooranga which is south of Mundubbera. Claude Wharton Weir at Gayndah, that’s another avenue. The farmers at Coalstoun Lakes have very rich farming land. They want to see water and we’ve got 100,000 megs sitting in the Paradise Dam unallocated and unused. We want to find a use for that and a pipeline to places like Biggenden and Coalstoun Lakes is well on the agenda. But the study we’re going to do will flesh out all those different points, where are we best placed to put the water infrastructure. We’re going to hold back Burnett River, the creeks in the area so we’ve got water for later on to cover us for these drought times.

QUESTION:

Acting Prime Minister, there’s been some ministers expressing personal views about Australia's embassy and whether it should be in Israel. What are your views?

MICHAEL MCCORMACK:

It's under consideration and we’ll have more to say about that in the future.

QUESTION:

Is Australia jeopardising its relationship with China with all of its defence and diplomatic action with the US in the Pacific?

MICHAEL MCCORMACK:

No. China’s our largest trading partner. We'll continue to have good relations with China.

QUESTION:

And there are warnings that Australia could be tipped to be heading into recession if house prices keep falling. What does your Government plan to do to prevent that from happening?

MICHAEL MCCORMACK:

I can guarantee we’ll go into recession if Bill Shorten ever becomes Prime Minister. Under Josh Frydenberg’s very careful and considered stewardship of the Treasury portfolio and Scott Morrison as Prime Minister, we're going nicely, the markets are good, we're building agriculture with this announcement today, we're building economic capacity, we're spending our money wisely, we're making sure that we get maximum value out of every taxpayer dollar and we're heading back to balance. The only way we'll go into recession is for the Australian voters to put Bill Shorten in the Lodge. That's one quick way to go to recession.

QUESTION:

How does investing half a billion dollars in agriculture ensure that things of the broader economic scale in Australia head in the right direction?

MICHAEL MCCORMACK:

You probably shouldn't ask me that question. You probably should ask an irrigation farmer. You probably should ask somebody in regional Australia. They'd be best placed to tell you that you add water, you add jobs,  you add dollars to their regional communities. They're the ones who want this. We've listened. We’re now delivering.

QUESTION:

Can you talk us through your announcement in Emerald yesterday?

MICHAEL MCCORMACK:

We invested $3 million for the modernisation of Fairbairn Dam. It's an important water infrastructure storage. We're going to increase the size of the dam, increase the abutments to the dam and make sure that the spillway operates the way it needs to.

We also announced a $2.9 million for an inland port near Emerald. That's a really important project for rail and road, making sure that we get the logistics right. There's more work to be done there but the proponent of that, Alan Stent-Smith, in conjunction with GrainCorp, the local Central Highlands Regional Council and the Federal Government, have united to make sure that we construct this intermodal. Intermodals are so important. You get the freight task right, get trucks off the road, get more mining wealth and food and fibre onto rail and you get it to port quicker and get it to markets faster.

QUESTION:

There was a bit of criticism during your regional tour here a couple of weeks ago that you guys were bypassing regional towns. Do you think your trip on the weekend goes against that?

MICHAEL MCCORMACK:

I've spent a lot of time in Queensland since becoming the Deputy Prime Minister. I only joined the ScoMo bus tour for one day. I was in Rockhampton with Michelle Landry - what an outstanding member she is - and we were announcing things; we were talking to people but mainly we were listening to them. Queensland is a large state. You can't get to every regional centre in one week on a bus, even on a plane. But by crikey, you can when you spend as much time as I do getting out and about, with Emerald yesterday and Gladstone here today. I spend a lot of time in Queensland. I will continue to do that leading up to the election, listening to members in the Flynn electorate whether they’re branch members, whether they're general, ordinary everyday Australians who want a fairer and a better deal for their towns, their communities - that's what the Liberals and Nationals are all about. Ken O’Dowd is doing a fantastic job at representing those people. It's always great to be in his electorate and to listen to a practical, down to earth, salt of the earth, sort of person as Ken O’Dowd. He makes such a difference when he goes to Canberra and he’ll continue to do that.

QUESTION:

Is today’s announcement an attempt at sweetening before the election?

MICHAEL MCCORMACK:

No. What it is it's an investment in regional Australia, not for today, not for next year but for the future going forward. This is an investment that has been strongly desired. It's building on the money that we've already spent on national water infrastructure. We're getting on with the job of delivering and building; and let me tell you if Labor gets into power, this will be the first thing they cut. Mark my words, this will be the first thing Labor cuts. They don't like water. They don’t like dams. They might say they do. They might say one thing when they're in Gladstone, they say a completely different thing - Bill Shorten changes his language when he goes to Melbourne - but you know what? He gets caught out. He gets caught out because you can't say one thing in Queensland and another thing when you're in inner city suburban areas of Melbourne.

QUESTION:

Why was this announcement made in the Flynn region rather than Burnett?

MICHAEL MCCORMACK:

Well, just look around me. This is a place of industry and commerce. The port here at Gladstone is very, very busy and we want to make it even busier. We want to make sure that this port has more ships taking out the best, the very best, food and fibre that this nation, that this region, can produce. By adding water infrastructure money we’ll do just that: half a billion dollars, making sure that we can increase already what we're doing as far as growing food and fibre. Gladstone’s one of the best places to do just that.

QUESTION:

Just on another note: What were the nature of your trade discussions with Mike Pence over the weekend?

MICHAEL MCCORMACK:

We discussed the importance of the US’ diplomatic ties in the Indo-Pacific. We talked about the strong relationship we have with the US, a $64 billion two-way trade relationship with the US. We talked about security, yes, and we talked about all the things that are common between our two nations. There’s no greater friend to Australia than the US and of course, we strengthened those ties over the weekend with APEC. The Prime Minister and Mike Pence sat down and had a very good bilateral and I’m looking forward to catching with the Prime Minister tomorrow in Sydney to discuss how we can even further strengthen that relationship.

QUESTION:

Was APEC a success even though there was no agreement signed at the end?

MICHAEL MCCORMACK:

Of course it was a success and it’s always a success when Australia's involved with our near neighbours, our partners, our partners in trade, our partners in commerce and our partners in national security. It was a success and Scott Morrison showed what a statesman he is; showed what a great diplomat he is. He's doing an outstanding job as Prime Minister.

QUESTION:

Some experts are saying that it's warning of a dangerous future if there’s no agreement at APEC. What are your thoughts on that?

MICHAEL MCCORMACK:

I say again, it was a successful summit. It was great to have Mike Pence here. Great that the Prime Minister was able to talk about the  things that are important to us on the world stage and we look forward to seeing what comes.

Shane Manning