TRANSCRIPT: Wagga Wagga Doorstop Interview, 30 May 2019
E&OE
Subjects: Federal election result; infrastructure policy and projects
MICHAEL MCCORMACK:
Well I’m pleased and delighted to be elected- re-elected as the Federal Member for Riverina. I’m very humbled and privileged to hold this position. Again, I acknowledge those who stood for the seat, Michael Bayles for the Greens, Mark Jeffreson for Labor and Richard Foley for the United Australia Party. They took part in the election to help the voters have choice. They took part to help the voters have options. And people of the Riverina, indeed people right around Australia, you need to have those options, need to have that choice. It’s called democracy and I congratulate them and I wish them all the very best for the future. But I say again, I’m delighted and humbled and privileged to be re-elected as the Member for Riverina. It’s a great honour. This is the very best seat in Australia. The people of the Riverina are the finest in all of Australia, and I’m absolutely humbled to be once again their representative. I will work hard always to make sure that they get their fair share of delivery, to make sure they get their fair share of services, of infrastructure.
Again, I’m delighted to be returned as the Nationals Leader and therefore the Deputy Prime Minister and serving the Parliament in the capacity of Minister for Infrastructure, Transport and Regional Development. It gives me a unique opportunity to be able to certainly deliver for the people who live in regional Australia. Those people for whom they know that country, coastal, remote, rural and regional Australia is a fantastic place in which to live, work and invest. To raise a family. To be their best selves. I’ll always fight fiercely for the people of the Riverina and certainly those right throughout regional Australia. Regional Australia needs strong support, and I’m so delighted that the Nationals returned all our 16 lower house seats to help form government with the Liberals because I know that a Liberal-Nationals government is going to be the best for lower taxes. To be the best for more jobs. And we will continue to fight hard and to serve the people in the national interest.
JOURNALIST:
We heard more than 3000 votes are yet to be taken into account. I guess how good is it to hold this seat by such a safe margin?
MICHAEL MCCORMACK:
Well, if only I could send some of those votes – if they are in fact going to be Coalition votes – Macquarie’s way. It’s one of those things where look, it’s humbling to receive the most votes in any contest I guess. In certainly in the Riverina, but I don’t take anything for granted. I acknowledge that there’s a lot of work to do, and I acknowledge that I will work hard for the people of the Riverina always. That’s my commitment to the Riverina, always has been. I’m delighted to be back for a fourth term, appreciating the fact that we are in government which makes it even more special. The fact that many pundits wrote us off. The polls never had us in consideration. Many in the media thought we were gone. And indeed, one of the betting agencies even paid out on Labor, and when I was asked about that I said well a fool and their money are easily parted and it proved true. The fact is, we defied the critics.
The fact is people, as Scott Morrison called them, the quiet Australians – I call them Mr and Mrs Average – those people, who are ordinary everyday Australians, who are just trying to get their kids to school, trying to get their bills paid, just getting on with life. They’re the ones who aren’t on Twitter. They’re the ones who aren’t on social media, belting things up- belting the government up every other day of the week. But they’re the ones who spoke with their ballot papers. They’re the ones who wanted us re-elected for another term and we will make sure that we return and make sure that their faith is paid off for them. We will make absolutely certain that we will be a good government for and on behalf of all of those people, but particularly those for me in regional Australia who have once again placed their faith in The National Party to deliver. We will.
JOURNALIST:
With all of the formalities out of the way, I guess, Nationals’ leadership, Cabinet all sworn in, what’s the number one agenda here in the Riverina?
MICHAEL MCCORMACK:
Oh well, to make sure that we continue to monitor the drought. And we’ve already provided $7.2 billion of assistance right throughout Australia. But the Riverina is still hurting and those affects from the drought, even if it rained for the next 40 days and 40 nights, are still going to be felt. And not just by farmers but also for rural small business. They’re still going to feel the effects of the drought long after it’s rained and hopefully the crops for this winter are up. And so we need to continue to monitor that, of course. There’s a lot of infrastructure that we’re rolling out to- central business districts upgrades for Cowra, for Forbes, for Parkes. We’ve got the $100 million Parkes Bypass, which was announced during the election campaign. Of course, the PCYC, I want to see work started on that midyear. That’s going to be an important infrastructure investment for the young people of Wagga Wagga. But right throughout the region, there has been infrastructure promised, infrastructure started, and I want to make sure that that’s delivered.
JOURNALIST:
What about Ed Husic stepping aside for Kristina Keneally to rise to the Labor front-bench?
MICHAEL MCCORMACK:
Well, that’s entirely a matter for Labor. But Ed Husic is a very good person. I rang him last night to wish him all the very best. I’ve known Ed. We entered Parliament together in 2010, and he’s somebody who I think will take a big part in the future of Australian politics. And yes, well, it’s not his turn now and he’s stepped aside for Kristina Keneally. Yeah no, that’s entirely a matter for Labor. The fact is we’re concentrating on being a good government and getting on with- we’ve sworn in our ministry. Our ministers are committed to making sure that they serve the best interests of job seekers, the best interests of people in business, the best interests of families, the best interests of all Australians. That’s what I’m concentrating and focusing on.
JOURNALIST:
Is it refreshing to see, I guess, after months of scrutiny in terms of the Coalition and factions within the Coalition, that I guess we’re seeing this in the Labor Party now between the left and right of their party?
MICHAEL MCCORMACK:
Well, I think what Australians are yearning for and what I certainly heard loud and clearly during the election campaign was people want stability. People want stability in politics. They’re busy with their daily lives. They’re busy with getting on with making sure that they meet their bills and meet their payments and get their kids to school and doing all the everyday ordinary things that good Australians do. What they want to see in Canberra, what they want to see in Macquarie Street, in Spring Street in Melbourne, is just politicians doing their job. And if Labor wants to eat themselves from inside, well, that’s entirely a matter for Labor. I know that we’ve got a united team, united Liberal-Nationals team, governing for the best interests of all Australians. That’s what we’re focusing on.
JOURNALIST:
Mr McCormack, a couple of local infrastructure issues, if you could put your ministerial hat on: Brindabella Road upgrade and the Barton Highway, where are we at with those?
MICHAEL MCCORMACK:
Well, late last year I announced another $100 million for the next stage of duplication of the Barton Highway to Murrumbateman and certainly, I know there’s- having travelled that route many, many times in recent weeks and thankfully I’ll be doing it for the next three years as well. I know it’s an important road and I know it’s a road that is a black-spot and we’re getting on and we’re going to duplicate the road. There’s funding there for the next stage of that duplication process.
Brindabella, I’m actually meeting with the new Roads Minister Paul Toole this afternoon and looking forward to making sure that we see what the priorities the New South Wales Government has. So the Roads Minister Paul Toole and I are meeting in Sydney this afternoon, looking forward to discussing with him the New South Wales options for not just roads but all sorts of infrastructure. And I want to make sure that if the New South Wales Government sees it as a priority then we will, absolutely committed to making sure- we’ve got $100 billion of infrastructure right across the nation. And Brindabella, of course, is one of those many projects that has been on the drawing board, been on the talking about for many, many years. And I know the people there see that as an opportunity to open up the Snowy Mountains, to open up great opportunities between Canberra and Tumut. I get that. I understand that. But it has to be placed on a priority list by New South Wales. And if and when it is, the Federal Government is more than willing to look at it. And we pay the infrastructure, particularly for roads, at an 80-20 split. Had Labor been elected, it was only ever going to be a 50-50 split for regional roads. We’re always committed to 80-20. So there’s the options on the table and the opportunities on the table for the New South Wales Liberal-Nationals Government to prioritise whatever roads they seek and see fit and we’ll certainly look at those proposals. Thank you very much.