Julie Collins
Franklin · Australian Labor Party · Australia
“The government has undertaken broad industry consultation, including engagement with industry bodies to seek feedback on the proposed changes to the wine act.”
“The changes will allow ABARES to confidentially disclose personal information to third-party providers to assist ABARES in performing its function of conducting critical annual agricultural surveys—that is, ABARES could provide the contact details of survey participants to mailing companies to enable those companies to send survey approac…”
“The bill will amend two acts: The amendments to the Wine Act will enable Wine Australia to conduct or coordinate surveys of the grape industry or wine industry to support the operation of the Wine Act, or the Competition and Consumer Act 2010 in relation to the grape industry or wine industry.”
“Together, these amendments strengthen operational effectiveness at the border, improve regulatory decision-making and support better engagement with industry, while maintaining Australia's uncompromising biosecurity standards. The bill also makes a minor and technical amendment to the Biosecurity Act, to remove the use of a defined term.”
“I move: That this bill be now read a second time. Australia's biosecurity system plays a critical role in protecting our environment, world-class agricultural and animal production sectors, economy, and way of life.”
“The measures in the bill relating to the collection and disclosure of certain information will modernise and strengthen the Wine Act, while ensuring that protected information is afforded appropriate safeguards.”
The complete record
Every one of 186 lines we hold for Julie Collins, in date order, each linked to its source. Free to read, in full, without an account. Page 3 of 4.
“It's been terrific to go around to some of the places that have some of our protected species—particularly Raptor Refuge, which has Australia's largest bird of prey, the wedgetail eagle—and to see it upgrade its facilities. It'll be able to do additional biosecurity to protect some of these really precious native species and make sure that, if we do get bird flu, we're able to have that protection. What my speech here today shows is that we're investing in Tasmania and its local infrastructure. We're investing in my electorate, where it's greatly needed, because it had been abandoned by those opposite when they were in government. It's terrific to be able to do that and to also provide that cost-of-living support that I know is so important to so many Tasmanians.”
“Working with the Tasmanian state government, who are also providing in-kind support, we're hoping to get this childcare centre close to the local district school on the island. That will encourage locals to stay, letting them live and work on the island. At the moment it's a bit difficult for them; there are no childcare places on the island at all. This will be very significant for them, and we continue to do that work with the Tasmanian state government. We also have been investing in Tasmania to get us ready for the possibility of the H5 bird flu, and I'm really pleased to be able to do this as the agriculture minister.”
“We're also, of course, investing in new childcare centres in Tasmania. Tasmania has some of the worst waiting lists in the country for childcare access, and certainly something that I get everywhere I go is the lack of childcare places. We have been working with the Tasmanian state government—again, a Liberal state government who also understand how important it is that we actually get these childcare centres up. There will be $5 million towards a new childcare centre in Huonville. There will also be some funding from the Tasmanian state government, and obviously they are also looking at whether or not they can provide some land. There is $3½ million towards a new childcare centre on Bruny Island in my electorate. This has been needed for some time.”
“They've got a lot of work to do in my electorate—hundreds of millions of dollars worth of infrastructure that needs to be provided and hurried along in my electorate. At the last election, I was also really pleased with Red and Yellow Day. I note my colleague here who has been heavily involved in lifesaving. We have been able to secure upgrades to two surf lifesaving clubs in my electorate. These are very significant and growing clubs in my electorate, and I have been working with them for some time. I know that they're very excited to be able to get these surf club upgrades. The Clifton Beach Surf Life Saving Club will be getting $980,000, and the Kingston Beach Surf Life Saving Club is getting $910,000. It is really fantastic that they were able to get that. I know that this will have a great impact in those local communities.”
“Then, of course, there's $60 million for the upgrade to the Channel Highway in my electorate and also south of my electorate. This is the duplication of the Kingston bypass, which was actually the first piece of major infrastructure that I opened as the federal member quite some time ago. I think it must have been way back in around 2010, so quite a long time ago now. To see us now providing the money for the duplication shows just how much this area in my electorate has grown. It's still one of the fastest-growing municipalities in Tasmania, and I know that people along the Channel Highway from Algona Road in Kingston certainly want to see this highway upgraded as well. Again, the Tasmanian state government has to get on with that job.”
“I have in my entire time in this parliament been calling for significant safety upgrades to be done to this bridge, and I'm really pleased that $65 million has been provided by the federal government and, indeed, that the Tasmanian state government now have done some further design work. Some of this preparatory work has been underway over the summer. I obviously would like to see this work completed, but I understand it's a busy bridge and it needs to be done in a way that deals with the issue of it also being the busiest piece of infrastructure in Tasmania each and every day with traffic movements. I know that this is a complicated project, but these safety upgrades are really critical, and I don't think there's anybody in Hobart that doesn't want to see them done and done as quickly as they can be achieved.”
“This is also a really critical part of my electorate because it does take, again, a lot of produce. It takes a lot of aquaculture—so salmon—and a lot of forestry, and it is really important that this road receive these important upgrades. We've also been waiting for a really significant upgrade to the Tasman Bridge. The Tasman Bridge links Hobart's eastern and western shores. The eastern shore is the sunnier side, I say. It's where I live. Two degrees warmer—that's what I tell everybody. And it's true. If you're ever down in Hobart, the eastern shore is the place to go. And there is the Tasman Bridge upgrade. These are significant safety upgrades. These are safety upgrades to make sure that we can protect people. This bridge, unfortunately, has been a suicide hot spot.”
“This will mean that we can work with airlines and we can actually get direct flights out of Tasmania—hopefully, into Asia. We currently now have seasonal flights direct into New Zealand. To have some international options direct from my hometown is huge for Tasmanians, but it's also really important, particularly for our primary producers, to get out some of our great Tasmanian produce direct to some of those Asian markets. I know that, if and when that happens, it will be because of the investments that we have made strategically into the Hobart Airport upgrade. There have also been some very serious accidents on the Huon Highway in the south of my electorate, and our government is providing $40 million to the Tasmanian state government to do some work for some upgrades on that highway.”
“The roundabout will be removed and there will be signals put in place, but there is also a whole heap of other work—on and off ramps on the Tasman Highway to take pressure off that intersection as well, to give people more options. It is really important that this work gets done and gets done quickly. It will save lives, it will improve productivity and it will also remove a lot of headaches, particularly for young families—for parents picking up kids from schools in that area—and for tradies going to Bunnings on their way home. It's a very busy area in my electorate, so this work does need to be done with some haste. It was also terrific to open the Hobart airport upgrades. Our government invested $60 million, and that means that Hobart airport in Tassie can now take wide-body aircraft for the first time.”
“The Mornington roundabout has to be one of the worst roundabouts in southern Tasmania. I have been talking to the state minister, a Liberal minister, who fully understands how difficult this is. Sadly, we have seen lives lost at this intersection of two very significant highways, with a roundabout in the middle and a whole range of other arterial roads. It's terrific that that funding is there, but I am concerned about the Tasmanian state government and the minister—how long this is taking to get progress. I have spoken to the minister repeatedly. I've also spoken to the local mayor and the council about how we can all work together to get this going and get the upgrades that are required.”
“It's been very difficult because the area is growing, and space on the ground has been really difficult to get. So I'm appreciative that that is up and running and now providing a terrific service to young people in my electorate. A Medicare mental health centre is also going to be up and running soon, and for the first time Tasmania is going to get an early psychosis centre for young people with severe mental ill-health. We haven't got one of those. We're the only state or territory in the country that doesn't. This will be really well received in my home state of Tasmania, to help some of our young people who are just surviving and living with the challenges of severe mental ill-health. It's terrific that we've been able to do that. We have also been investing in local infrastructure.”
“Since that time I've talked in here about some the investments that we have made in my electorate. I'm pleased to say the Kingston urgent care clinic has now been open for a week—actually two weeks, I think, now. I'm already getting some lovely emails from local residents who have utilised the clinic and the clinic's services. Of course, we'd rather people didn't need an urgent care clinic, but it's been desperately needed in my electorate, and it's terrific to hear that people are able to utilise that. I also had the privilege of opening up a headspace in my electorate late last year, before Christmas, for the young people in my community. I had long been advocating for a headspace, and it's terrific to see the service up and running. It has taken quite a long time to find the right premises.”
“What a difference that makes to young families. It will encourage young people to have children, and they'll be able to pay their bills at the same time. We know how important that has been. I also want to talk a little bit about the paid prac and how important that is to, in particular, get people into the health services areas where we need those professionals. Paid prac is making a big difference, from talking to some of the students who are completing university and need to go into a placement. Some of them are telling me that, without the paid prac, they wouldn't have been able to transfer their qualification into working in the health system, so that is terrific news indeed. In terms of my own electorate, the great people of Franklin gave me the privilege of returning me to this place at the last election.”
“They're also critical in terms of the transition, when it comes, to cleaner energy and in our economy and making sure that we have that clean energy. I've also been chatting to some people who have been taking advantage of the five per cent home deposit scheme and the expansion of that—young people who are getting into the housing market for the first time. But even some people that I know quite well, family members, are saying that, for the first time, they'll be able to get into the housing market because of our decision to expand that program. So I know that that's also been well received. On paid parental leave—we heard from our Minister for Social Services today—we're also getting that expanded. It's currently 24 weeks. We're expanding it to 26, and we're going to pay superannuation on it.”
“That has resulted in people who rely on the minimum wage now being $9,000 a year better off than they were when we came to office. We know that people on the minimum wage are still doing it tough, but this is certainly making a big difference for them. The $10,000 for apprentices was also really warmly received, particularly with the shortage of tradies that we have and on making sure that our apprentices complete and the difference that that can make. When you talk about free TAFE and when you talk about the 10K for apprentices—there are certainly a lot of skills that we need in that area to build the homes that we need for Australians. Given the fact that we haven't built enough homes over the last 20 to 30 years and we need to build more homes more quickly, these tradies are going to be critical.”
“Whether it be the cattle farmers from across the country, people in my electorate or students who have just recently left school and are in the jobs market, that HECS debt cut has really made a difference to so many people. Home batteries is another area where we're helping people out with the cost of living. There's been particularly strong uptake in my electorate in Tassie. Certainly I know that many Tasmanians are getting a combination of solar panels and batteries to reduce their energy bills in the future. There are also a lot of low-paid workers in my electorate in both aged care and child care who are very appreciative of the work that our government has done in relation to providing additional wages, including making sure that people on the minimum wage don't go backwards and that they are able to keep up with inflation.”
“That builds on the tax cuts and the reshaping of the tax cuts that we've provided. I am also speaking to students about the HECS debt cut. Even today, I met with some cattle leaders in my office, who came to talk to me about the cattle industry. They were talking about how we get people involved in the agriculture industry in the future. We had a bit of a chat about education and the additional funds we're putting into school education with our additional funding being provided to the states for free TAFE, where agriculture is going incredibly well, and how many people are taking up agriculture. The discussion, though, was also about how grateful they were to receive their HECS cuts and how much of a difference that is making to them.”
“It's an extraordinary cost-of-living measure for those people who require regular, or irregular, medications that are really expensive. I know that I get lots of thankyous from people in my electorate when I go out and have a chat to them about how much impact cheaper medicines is having. It's particularly terrific when you have a chat to a pharmacist about how many more people are able to fill those scripts and are not making some of those really tough decisions about whether or not they can afford to fill their script or do some other things that are essential and necessary. The cheaper medicines policy, I think, has gone down incredibly well in my local electorate and around Tasmania. Of course, many people are looking forward to their tax cuts on 1 July this year and next year.”
“Whilst we have good news on the economy with our national accounts coming out today, our government has been diligently making sure that we're doing what we can to help Australians who have been doing it tough whilst also putting that downward pressure on inflation. It's a privilege to speak on these appropriation bills—the Appropriation Bill (No. 3) 2025-2026, the Appropriation Bill (No. 4) 2025-2026 and the Appropriation (Parliamentary Departments) Bill (No. 2) 2025-2026. One of the things that we've been doing to help with the cost of living for Australians and Tasmanians, particularly in my electorate, has been cheaper medicines, which has been extremely well received. When we came to office in 2022 some people were paying $42 a script. That's now down to $25 on the PBS.”
“They mismanaged our international relations. We all remember what they did with our largest international relations in terms of $20 billion of trade. Instead of saying, 'Well done,' to our farmers, the coalition are jeopardising the success of our $100 billion agriculture industry.”
“When we came to government, the agriculture sector was worth $88 billion, but, under our government, its value has jumped 15 per cent. There's more demand than ever for our world-class fibre and our world-class food, with our ag, fisheries and forestry exports forecast to reach a record high of $85 billion this financial year. We recognise the significant benefits of free and fair trade for our farmers and our producers. Indeed, one in four jobs in Australia relies on this trade. That's why we've got on with the job. We're delivering more opportunities for our farmers, and our agriculture trade is now the most diversified it has ever been, with over 250 market improvements that we have made as a government. Of course, that wasn't what we inherited from those opposite. We had underfunded biosecurity.”
“This is a testament to the hard work, resilience and skill of Australian farmers and the work done hand in hand with our government. As the president of the National Farmers' Federation, Hamish McIntyre, said today, this is a landmark moment that belongs to farmers but could not have been achieved without strong collaboration. It shows that agriculture is an industry worth backing. We agree with the National Farmers' Federation there. That's exactly what our government has been doing from day one: we are backing our farmers and our primary producers. We are backing them to succeed, despite the challenging weather conditions that I spoke about earlier and, of course, the floods and the drought that some farmers are experiencing in parts of the country—and, of course, the ongoing global uncertainty.”
“I want to thank the terrific member for Bendigo. I really appreciate her taking me around her electorate, where we met with some farmers who'd been devastated by the bushfires earlier this year and who had actually lost everything. I know she's been a real champion for our farmers and primary producers. It was terrific to stand alongside our assistant minister and, indeed, the National Farmers' Federation this morning, when we celebrated Australia's farm-gate production value being on track to exceed $100 billion this financial year. This forecast, released today by ABARES, shows our agriculture industry will reach this extraordinary result four years ahead of the National Farmers' Federation's ambitious target of 2030—four years ahead and $100 billion of this industry target.”
“I thank the member for Clark for that question. As the member for Clark would be aware, the APVMA is an independent body and is responsible for the decisions around the emergency listing and use of florfenicol in Tasmanian waters. He would also know that it's the Tasmanian government's responsibility to manage its waterways. The APVMA has made a call that it may remove the emergency listing, and it is basing that decision, as it based its original decision, on new available evidence and science. And I remind him that it's an independent statutory authority.”
“That is a very significant increase—more than 5.4 per cent—in bulk-billing appointments for GPs in Tasmania. Obviously we want to see more of these. To the practices and the doctors in Tasmania, my message would be: How come you can bulk-bill in the middle of Sydney and you can't do it in Hobart? You should be able to do it in Hobart, and I want to see more bulk-billing practices in Franklin and across the state of Tasmania. That would be my big message. To the people of Franklin: we are investing in your health services. We know that we inherited a bit of a mess from those opposite, and we've been investing and investing, opening services and, importantly, training and providing staff with our significant investments in making sure that we have enough health professionals to provide the services Tasmanians need.”
“This is a headspace that I committed to, and I'm really pleased that it's up and operating. It is an interim location, but these are really important mental health services for my community. The Medicare mental health service should soon be up and running as well. That is an adult headspace, essentially, for others in our community, and we expect that also to be getting underway. This is really good news for people in my electorate. And of course a large investment in bulk-billing is having a big impact in Tasmania. Tasmania was behind the other states and territories when it came to bulk-billing. Our bulk-billing rate was much lower, thanks to the former government and their cuts to Medicare. I'm pleased to say that the number of fully bulk-billing clinics in Tasmania has gone from just 25 statewide up to 59.”
“I think what's important about these urgent care clinics is that the data and the responses from those patients they're seeing says that around half of those people would have gone to the emergency department at the Royal Hobart Hospital, and we know that the Royal Hobart Hospital is under increasing pressure. Our government has provided the Tasmanian state government with $750 million just this financial year for public hospitals in Tasmania, and I'm pleased to say that as part of the new Health and Hospitals Funding Agreement we are now getting an extra $700 million into hospitals in Tasmania, thanks to the Albanese Labor government. We also of course have been investing in more mental health services; headspace opened just before Christmas in my electorate.”
“I rise to talk about the impact of Labor's health investments, particularly in my electorate of Franklin and home state of Tasmania. Certainly we can see already the impact these investments are having, particularly our urgent care clinics. We've now had more than 140,000 visits to the urgent care clinics, and I'm pleased to say that the urgent care clinic in Kingston in my electorate will soon be opening, in coming weeks. I know that many people in the south of my electorate are really looking forward to that urgent care clinic. The two urgent care clinics in Hobart are also going incredibly well in terms of the number of people they've been able to see.”
“If they can't manage their own internal relationships in opposition, let alone Australia's international relationships during government, how are they fit to govern again? Our farmers and our producers deserve so much better, which is why on this side of the House we will continue securing more trade opportunities for our farmers. While those on that side of the House focus their attention on who's on the menu, we're getting on with what's on the menu—and the Albanese Labor government will continue to support our farmers.”
“This agreement with the UAE has now seen $67 million worth of Aussie beef exported in just its first two months. We've secured new market access for Australian blueberries to Vietnam—trade worth around $22 million. We've improved access for wheat exports to Indonesia. This is a market worth $1.5 billion. It took a Labor government to secure these market access improvements for our farmers and our producers, because we understand that relationships require stability, consistency and trust. But, Mr Speaker, if you want a lesson on how not to manage a relationship, you've just got to look at the shambles opposite of the Liberals and the Nationals splitting twice in a mere two months.”
“This is testament to the hard work and resilience of our farmers, backed, of course, by our government's careful and considered work to diversify trade and restore Australia's standing in the world, because we know that more trade is good for our farmers, good for regional jobs and good for local economies. Since coming to government, we've delivered 256 market access achievements and improvements for agricultural products. We now reach around 190 countries. It's the most diversified our agricultural trade has ever been. We've secured the removal of $80 billion worth of trade impediments from our largest trading partner. We've delivered Australia's first free trade agreement with the Middle East, which slashed around $50 million a year in tariffs on Australian agricultural and food exports.”
“I thank our terrific member for Paterson. She is chair of the Standing Committee on Primary Industries, and she's done a mountain of work about food security and the importance of farmers in our region. I do want to thank her. She, of course, knows how important our trade outcomes are for farmers and regional communities. While those opposite have remained focused on themselves for months, we've been focused on delivering more opportunities for our farmers and our producers to export their world-class products. This is delivering record success for our farmers and our producers, with ABARES predicting agricultural exports will reach over $83 billion this financial year—that's over $83 billion this financial year from our farmers.”
“He was also taking them home for his family and friends to enjoy—a little gift from Tassie that I made sure that I brought to this building to make sure that he and the other people that work in this building understood that we do value what they do in this place, that it's important and that it matters. To all of those for whom Luch's life matters: there are many, many people in this building for whom Luch's life mattered. We share with you in your grief. We hope that our stories and anecdotes give you some comfort at a time of sudden loss, and we wish you and your family all the very best as you deal with this sudden loss. Vale.”
“Engaging with them, I recalled very fondly that each year at the end of the year I would bring gifts up for the attendants, from my electorate, of Tasmanian fudge. I always brought them up and still do every Christmas. I would try and find Luch or some of the attendants, and Luch was always making sure that everybody got their share of the little token Christmas gift that I was bringing to say a big thank you for all of the work that the attendants and the people in this building do to make our job so much easier. He was always thinking about others. Clearly some of those made it home with my little 'Thanks from Julie Collins' on it, because the family knew who I was. I think that that says a lot about Luch too.”
“Every day he would tick us off and make sure that all of those that needed to be here, in terms of the reduced quorum in this place, were here to be able to make sure that federal parliament could continue to function, that the government could continue to function and that we would together work to make sure that Australians got the support they needed during what was an incredibly difficult time for our nation and indeed the globe. Luch had an important role in that, like everybody else did, as part of that democracy and the institution of democracy in which he took such great pride. It was very lovely to meet his family yesterday and to pass on my condolences. Like many others, I'm sure, I was shocked that they knew my name.”
“None of us was more important than anybody else, nor are we, but the fact that Luch saw that, understood it and treated us all equally, I think, says a lot about Luch as a human being. To Luch's family and friends: I hope that our stories, our condolences, give you some comfort as you deal with the sudden loss of a loved one. Sudden loss can be incredibly difficult, but the stories and the esteem in which we held him in this place hopefully will help heal some of that pain. I was talking to the Chief Government Whip today, and we remembered how hard the attendants and the people in this building worked through COVID to make sure that our parliament could continue to sit. Luch—we called him our official greeter.”
“One, of course, was the great dedication to his job and the important role which it played in our democracy and how proud he was of it. One was his sense of humour and that great smile and the little smirk he would give as he made his jokes. The other, of course, was his industriousness. He understood how this building worked, and he made sure it worked as well as it possibly could. He was so proud of his role in it. As we heard from others, it didn't matter if he was talking to fellow attendants, clerks or people that work in this building or if he was talking to prime ministers, treasurers, leaders of the opposition; every single one of us Luch made feel important. He took time to engage with all of us equally.”
“I think the fact that so many of us in this place are actually speaking on a condolence motion for an attendant in this building says a lot about the person that Luch was and the esteem in which we held him. He had been a constant in my journey here in parliament. I've now been a member for over 18 years, and every day I turned up Luch was in the building. Every day, he anticipated my needs and the needs of the other many members of the federal parliament in the House of Representatives chamber. Everybody here, when we talked about the sudden loss of Luch, was shocked. Everybody was saddened, but everybody had such wonderful anecdotes to share. Talking to my colleagues about those anecdotes, about those stories about what made Luch so special, a few themes came through.”
“We should remember the heroes of that day—as I said, the ordinary Australians who stepped up on that day: the heroes who tried to stop the atrocity from happening, and the first responders, who didn't know that they were going to be in a place that would be etched in history for Australia. It is an incredibly difficult time, I know, for all those that are healing, but we should be coming together as a nation and as a country. I'd urge this parliament to seriously consider our responsibility to make sure that this country remains united.”
“These events remind us all that we should be focused on the things that unite us and that we need to show each other more love, more kindness, more empathy and more understanding of how each other lives. We should be able, in Australia, to feel safe. All Australians have a right to feel safe, and today Australians are asking, 'What will it take to feel safe again?' as this reverberates around the community. To feel safe again, Australians need all of us in this place, in this building and in parliaments across the country to come together in unity, in kindness and in love and to do what we can to make sure that more Australians feel safe—safer than they do today and safer than they did on 14 December last year. It is a dreadful thing that happened, but out of dreadful things also come heroic actions that bring us all together.”
“The day of 14 December 2025 will be one of those days that Australians remember where they were when they heard. It reminds many in my home state of Tasmania of that dreadful day in Port Arthur. It reopens many wounds for Tasmania about the discussions that were had at the time about how we could come together after such a tragedy, how we could show kindness and empathy, and how we could rebuild. I know that the scars for those who were impacted by Bondi will be there not just for days and weeks but for months, years and decades to come. To those families that are grieving their loved ones, I say: our thoughts are with you. So many Australians send to you kindness, empathy and condolences, and I speak on behalf of my electorate and the people of Tasmania when I say that our thoughts truly are with you.”
“The day of 14 December 2025 will now be marked in Australian history, partly for all the wrong reasons—as the deadliest terror attack on Australian home soil. But, for the families and loved ones of the 15 Australians who died that day, it is etched in history because it was the day that their loved one died. For the people who assisted on that day, from the everyday Australians who ended up becoming first responders to the first responders themselves—the police, the ambulance officers, the health workers and the surf lifesaving people who were on hand—it will also be etched in their memory because of the trauma that they witnessed and the devastation that they saw. Their lives will be changed because of what happened on that day. So many lives rippling across Australia were impacted.”
“As the member would know, we are in a fortunate position where we can feed Australia more than 2½ times over in terms of our food production. We can produce almost all of the food that we need in Australia, but we understand food security is important. That is why we have launched a food security strategy. Just last week I announced the members of the Food Council that will advise the government on our food security going forward and develop that food security strategy for the nation.”
“I thank the member for Calare for that question. Our agricultural land in Australia is incredibly important. We as a government believe it is important. Protecting agricultural land and ensuring food security is top of our agenda in terms of making sure that Australians get access to the food that they need. These are critical priorities for Australia's future prosperity. As the member would know, in terms of land use, these are primarily a responsibility for the states. The states and territories regulate land use across the country. His proposed bill seeks to override the states, raising significant property rights and constitutional concerns. Such implications require careful consideration to avoid unintended consequences for landholders and governments.”
“As I said, our state is now facing a record debt, sadly, and I share the concerns of all Tasmanians that the state Liberal minority government is failing Tasmanians. They're making stop-gap policy decisions on the run, each and every day, without a strategic thought to Tasmania's best interests. Tasmanians deserve much better than this. They deserve better than the games that are being played by their Tasmanian Liberal minority government at the moment. As they deliver their budget today, I hope they have in their hearts, and in their decisions, Tasmania's best interests. I seriously doubt it, but with the debt that they're accumulating they need to do much better for Tasmanians.”
“They are handing down a budget today that will show that our state now has a record debt. This lack of delivery is the reason that I wrote to the state minister for infrastructure regarding projects in my electorate—projects worth more than $300 million—that we're still waiting on to be delivered in my electorate. They include upgrades to the Tasman Bridge, the South Arm Highway, the Huon Highway, the Channel Highway and the Mornington roundabout and the expansion of the Derwent ferries project. Some of these projects have been waiting to be delivered for years. The state government needs to get on with this, and I'm going to keep the pressure on to make sure that they do deliver for our electorate.”
“This is Tasmania getting our fair share. We're investing responsibly in the future of our state. There are five urgent care clinics, with another three on the way, including one in my electorate, in the area of Kingborough. Cheaper medicines have helped Tasmanians save more than $40 million. The HECS debt relief that was promised is being delivered now for more than 50,000 Tasmanians. We're also delivering funding for major works, such as the Macquarie Wharf redevelopment and the Hobart airport upgrades, and providing support for Tasmanian industries, such as Nyrstar and the Boyer Paper Mill, as part of the clean energy transition. This is what delivery looks like, and it's in stark contrast to the Tasmanian state Liberal minority government. They are failing.”
“I rise today to talk about the government's proud record of delivery in my home state of Tasmania. Tasmanians know that they always do better under federal Labor governments, and that's certainly the case at the moment. Since we've come to office, more than $2 billion in new commitments has flown to my home state, supporting hospitals, schools, local roads and housing and the jobs that keep our community strong. Total federal support for Tasmania now exceeds $6 billion every single year, That's nearly double what it was a decade ago. Federal funding now makes up two-thirds of Tasmania's entire state budget, around 70 per cent, and at the moment our GST receipts are over $100 million higher than forecast. This year alone, the Albanese Labor government are investing $750 million in hospital funding in my home state.”
“As the member would know, I have been up to Beef Australia in the great state of Queensland—his home state—as has our assistant minister. Indeed, in the last budget we provided $12 million for Beef2027. Beef is, as was quite rightly pointed out, a significant export for Australia; indeed, it's our most valuable agriculture export. Beef exports are currently up 62 per cent since we came to government to $16 billion last financial year. It's a significant industry that we value and that we are working with to ensure it reaps the opportunities of the hard work it has been putting into providing a great Australian product and exporting it across the globe.”
“Any recommended management action would not adversely affect buffel grass in agricultural production areas where it's deliberately planted, not considered a weed, and continues to provide benefit to livestock. Any future decisions on weed priorities, including a decision on this particular one, would be made collaboratively by all state and territory governments along with the Commonwealth, because, as the member will be aware, states and territories are responsible for the management of pests and weed invasions in their local jurisdictions. The member will also understand that this industry is significant for regional jobs across Australia and for our national economy as well, and we do understand the importance of the beef industry that the member referred to, and the need to seize the opportunities that are there for the beef industry.”