Andrew Gee
Calare · Independent · Australia
“She also plans to engage medical, nursing and allied health students, giving them a unique opportunity to assist local patients while gaining invaluable 'community credits' for their participation. This initiative proves once again that the spirit of community care is alive and well in Bathurst.”
“There just aren't as many providers in country areas, and participants and providers often have to travel long distances in order to meet and get those services delivered—and to help country Australians on the ground. So I will be supporting these amendments. I think they are very important for the modern Australia that we live in.”
“I wish to support the amendments moved by the member for Fowler. They are important amendments not only for the member for Fowler's electorate but for all electorates across this country.”
“I rise today to celebrate a wonderful new community initiative in the Central West, the official launch of the Friends of Bathurst Hospital. Hospitals can be daunting, confusing and stressful places for anyone to navigate.”
“I want to say a big thank you to outgoing Rotary Club of Bathurst Daybreak president, Craig Ronan, for his leadership over the past 12 months and offer my congratulations to incoming president Erik Mol.”
“Volunteer coordinator Sylvia Gore so beautifully put it: Our health service and its staff do such important work caring for our community every single day, and the Friends of Bathurst Hospital is an opportunity for people to support that work but also help look after one another too.”
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“And, when they did it, they did not properly regulate and set out the rights of impacted residents and neighbours. It was exactly the same with the creation of the renewable energy zones, which the National Party created, and they again abjectly failed to properly regulate them. Look at what has happened with EnergyCo and ACEREZ in the Merotherie Road area near Gulgong. They basically bulldozed a centuries-old wildlife corridor and have wrought significant and devastating destruction on that local community, all in the name of saving the environment. It should not have come to this and it would not have come to this if the National Party had done its job. But it has failed.”
“I spent months and months trying to work through the community concerns with the developer, Res, which is controlled by the McAlpine Group in the United Kingdom, and, after all of that, there's been hardly any movement at all—no meaningful movement. This whole consultation process has been a waste of time. Does anyone really think the United Kingdom boardroom of the McAlpine group of companies is going to care what the people in the Molong area want? I don't think so. How did we get here? It's a failure of politics and the result of politicians doing nothing. The problem is that the wind farms are regulated by state planning laws and, in 2021, the New South Wales National Party passed a law to put wind farms into state forests.”
“They have been shopping turbines outside the boundaries of the state forests, after giving those assurances that have proved to be false, and they're moving into the Trunkey Creek area, a small, close-knit farming community that just want to get on with their lives without this hanging over their heads. The community is in shock. So I say to TagEnergy and Stromlo: Move on. Read the community and move on. Just leave the area. As I've said, for all of the so-called consultations and the calming words of the city based consultants on the ground, decisions about turbine placement are, for the most part, made in foreign boardrooms far, far away. It's a business decision, and moving turbines away from impacted residents costs money. It's the same with the Kerrs Creek Wind Farm near Molong.”
“It's all about the money, and, sadly, profits are being put ahead of people. It's appalling. People have had enough of it. In the Oberon area, the developers of the Pines Wind Farm, TagEnergy and Stromlo, have managed to turn a whole community and region against it. The backlash in and around Oberon has been extraordinary. Here is an example of the doublespeak of these companies. The developers told me they would be putting turbines only within the boundaries of the state forests. They made that very clear when I first spoke to them. This has turned out to be blatantly false.”
“In the case of the Sunny Corner Wind Farm, some residents were given maps that showed 300-metre turbines less than one kilometre from their homes—just a few hundred metres. I had one resident approach me to tell me he'd sunk all his super into his house and land package and that he can't sell it now because of the proximity of the turbines, which he pointed out, one being just 700 metres away. People in the cities don't understand the anguish and the stress this causes for our local residents. I've been contacted by many constituents who've spoken of the mental toll this takes on them. There's a real human cost to this that is too often lost, overlooked and ignored. In the case of the Sunny Corner Wind Farm proposal the developer, Someva, has clearly placed turbines in locations that will cost them the least yet impact residents the most.”
“It's all about the money, and it makes a mockery of the consultation process. The people on the ground from the turbine companies say they feel the pain of local residents, but this rarely translates into meaningful change. City people may think putting turbines in state pine forests means they're out in the back blocks, far from having impacts on local residents. Some people in our area think that, as well. But that is not the case at all. The developers are putting them close to the powerlines and to road access, which means they're extremely close to towns, villages and community members. They are literally surrounding some of our communities and some of our isolated farmhouses, for example—and not-so-isolated farmhouses.”
“It's fly in, fly out tick-a-box consultation from developers, without meaningful engagement and genuine dialogue, and this has been a feature of our residents' experiences. These developers fly into our communities, and then this elaborate charade of consultation commences. The companies assiduously tally up all the contacts with community members so that this can appear in documents to support their development approvals. I have to tell you, there's a strong feeling in our communities that they are being played for mugs by people with no real stake in the local area besides the businesses operated by their bosses. These windfarm companies are overseas for the most part. Many of the companies are foreign, and the decisions made about turbine placement are made in foreign boardrooms with little regard to the impact on residents.”
“The pain is real, and the anguish is real. Since bringing this bill to the House, the situation on the ground for our communities has not improved, and the House needs to hear it. The pain and the anguish have not gone away. Politicians of all persuasions have failed to act. They've let our communities down. So I'm once again bringing this bill to the House. It needs to be passed into law, and I'm giving all members the opportunity to vote on it again. I'm not against renewable energy, and neither are our communities. But our communities are crying out for reasonable and commonsense balance. I've attended many community meetings and consultations over these proposals, and what residents are experiencing is really concerning. I have to tell you, bogus consultation is a major feature of these windfarm companies moving into our area.”
“I move: That so much of the standing and sessional orders be suspended as would prevent the following from occurring immediately: (1) the Stopping Wind Farms in State Forests Bill 2025 being called on; (2) debate on the second reading of the bill proceeding immediately for a period of no longer than one hour; and (3) any questions required to complete passage of the bill then being put without delay. This bill requires the urgent attention of this House. In the last parliament, I introduced a game-changing bill which would stop the building of wind farms in softwood pine plantations which are state forests. I've brought it back again. I introduced this bill in the first place because of the continuing pain, anguish and anger that many of our local residents are feeling over wind farm proposals in these areas.”
“I was informed that they were not able to deliver, as they are not able to access any diesel for on-farm delivery.' Another local farmer, Malcolm Crockett, wrote to me and said: 'We ordered diesel and petrol for our farm a week ago, and nothing has arrived. I've ordered seed to sow crops and fodder for livestock, and now I can't get hold of the diesel we need to commence sowing. Our business will grind to a halt if timely delivery of fuel doesn't occur. Time is a critical issue in our work to produce food for this nation.' This fuel crisis will very quickly become a food security crisis if immediate action is not taken. I call on the government to take urgent action to guarantee our farmers the fuel supply they need to feed the nation and our businesses the fuel they need to keep—”
“In the Central West of New South Wales and around our country, there is a major fuel crisis unfolding before our eyes. Farmers are ringing the alarm bells as they're not able to secure the diesel needed to sow their crops. Fuel deliveries aren't turning up at service stations, and rationing in some areas has commenced. Cudal farmer Rob Cook wrote to me and said: 'Right on the cusp of planting season, it is critical that we are assured of both availability and supply and a reasonable price. This will become a food security issue if action is not taken now.' Mudgee area grazier Tim Rohar says: 'After recent rain, we prepared some land for sowing oats for winter feed. I rang our supplier for a delivery of diesel to replenish our supplies.”
“My question is to the Prime Minister. It defies belief that the main access road in and out of the Central West relies on a bridge built by a convict chain gang in the 1830s. The Great Western Highway at Victoria Pass is now closed because, unsurprisingly, that Convict Bridge has failed. This highway is not fit for purpose. For decades, all the major parties have let us down on access to the city—just cheap talk, broken promises and small change. Will you apply pressure to and work with the New South Wales government to finally deliver a genuine expressway through to Sydney?”
“On behalf of this House, I sincerely thank all of those honoured on Australia Day, including all of our volunteers and community groups, for their vitally important contributions in making Australia the greatest country on Earth.”
“Christian Cheney was named Cargo's Citizen of the Year, and Darcie Cole was awarded Young Citizen. Cumnock Citizen of the Year was Bev Worrall, and Sophie Foster was named young citizen. At the Manildra celebrations, Craig Williamson was awarded Citizen of the Year and Lucy Gibson young citizen. In Molong, Rozzi Smith was presented with the Citizen of the Year award, while Katie Fulwood was awarded young citizen. Ashleigh Miller was Mullion Creek's Citizen of the Year, along with young citizen Fletcher Ryan; and, in Wellington, Mark Griggs was named Citizen of the Year. Well done, Griggsy! Congratulations also to Carol Morrissey, Mid-Western Regional Council's Citizen of the Year, and Young Citizen, Ellie Rowlands. And well done to Cabonne's Australia Day Youth Ambassador, Nick Gibson.”
“Kevin McGuire was named Orange Citizen of the Year, and young citizen was presented to Oliver Jarick. Sally Green was awarded Blayney Citizen of the Year and Zareah Coughlan was named young citizen. In Oberon, Helen Ivers was presented with local Citizen of the Year, and Serenity Saville was named young citizen. Kymberlee Chase was awarded Cudal Citizen of the Year, and congratulations to young citizen, Ava Fountain. Eugowra's Daniel Townsend was awarded Citizen of the Year, and congratulations to Young Citizen, Celeste Gavin. Sandra Barker was awarded Yeoval Citizen of the Year alongside Brooke Haycock, who was named young citizen. Congratulations to Jacquie Dredge, who was named Canowindra's community person of the year, and Jack Smyth, who was named Young Citizen of the Year.”
“In Mudgee, Richard Blackman was recognised for service to Coonabarabran. Three Bathurst residents received meritorious awards. Bathurst council general manager David Sherley received the Public Service Medal for outstanding service to local government. Paramedic Kirsty England was awarded the Ambulance Service Medal for 25 years service as a paramedic and educator, and Bathurst Commander, Detective Superintendent Darren Beeche, received the Australian Police Medal. On Australia Day there were many highly deserving local award winners from right around our region, and it's a privilege to also recognise some of them in this house today. The Lithgow Open Citizen of the Year was awarded to Chris Wade, and Zoe Walsh was named young citizen. Congratulations to Cecilia Hunt, Bathurst Citizen of the Year.”
“On Australia Day in Calare, we celebrated the wonderful community members who've made such an enormous contribution to the life of our region and country. I had the privilege of attending numerous events and I congratulate the Central West Australia Day honours recipients. Chris Colvin, the Orange RSL sub-branch president, received an OAM for service to veterans. Judith Brooke was awarded an OAM for service to the Bathurst community, while Paul Crennan was awarded an OAM for his significant contribution to the law and the Bathurst community, also. Paul Hennessy's 40 years of service to Scouts was recognised with an OAM for service to youth and the community, while John Hollis also received an OAM for service to Bathurst. Dr Ed Marel from Clear Creek received an OAM for 35 years service to orthopaedics.”
“Sydney does not have a doctor shortage. That's why I introduced the Doctors for the Bush Bill in the last parliament—to remedy this unfairness and to restore the priority that country areas should have. Unfortunately, when we put it to a vote, none of the major parties supported it. I count the so-called 'guardians of the bush', the National Party, in that, as they would not support the Doctors for the Bush Bill, despite my bill restoring the boundaries. I would urge the government to look at distribution priority areas and get more Medicare urgent care clinics and Medicare mental health centres into the Central West and into the seat of Calare because, at the moment, we've only got one clinic, in Bathurst. (Time expired)”
“For the first time, instead of country areas having priority for overseas trained doctors, basically the whole of the country—except for central business districts—was opened up to overseas trained doctors, so they didn't have to work in a rural or remote area. In city areas, you can get more money, you can see more patients and there's more support for you as a GP. So, of course, as soon as that was announced, there was a great movement of doctors from the country to the city. In terms of the way these boundaries changed, it means that areas such as Fairfield, Hornsby and Warringah and the outer suburbs of Sydney and Melbourne now have the same priority as country areas for overseas trained doctors. If you look at the map of New South Wales, it's now basically one big distribution priority area, except for the inner suburbs of Sydney.”
“Analysis by the National Rural Health Alliance shows that rural communities miss out on $8.3 billion in health funding every year, with underspending across hospitals, disability services, aged care and community health. It is a crisis which is having devastating impacts across regional New South Wales and, indeed, country Australia. The rural doctor shortage crisis has been made much worse by changes this government has made to the distribution priority area system. Basically, the way the system worked was that, when overseas trained doctors wanted to come and work in Australia, they would have to work in a country area for up to 10 years. These country areas were known as distribution priority areas. But the current government has changed the boundaries. In July 2022 it all changed.”
“In fact, devastatingly, people who live in very remote areas die about 15 years earlier than their city cousins. It's a shocking statistic in this modern and prosperous Australia, but it is true. Part of that is the rural doctor shortage crisis. The Salvation Army Social Justice Stocktake 2025 found that 40 per cent of people in the Calare electorate felt they had waited longer than acceptable for a GP appointment. It's weeks and months to see a GP across the Central West of New South Wales, and many GP practices have closed their books to patients so you can't get in to see a GP. The situation is absolutely dire. It's not just a rural doctor crisis. There is a shortage of providers across all healthcare professions, and it manifests itself in an increasing scarcity of all rural health services.”
“I thank the member for Fowler for bringing this matter of public importance to this House today. The topic is 'the postcode lottery of accessing quality health care in Australia'. I can tell you that there is a fundamental unfairness and inequality in access to health services in this country. I'm from the Central West of New South Wales, and we are on the western side of the Great Dividing Range. We call that Great Dividing Range 'the sandstone curtain' because it divides city and country physically but it divides city and country in so many other ways as well. One of those ways it divides is in access to health services. The cold, hard truth of health care in this country is that the further away you live from a city, the shorter your life expectancy is.”
“At the celebration, we also honoured highly deserving longstanding members of the VRA, who received long-service awards: Wayne Norris, Adam Newton, Felicity Creswell and Craig Martin. Also recognised and acknowledged were John Yates, who received life membership; patron and founding member Craig Martin; and new trainee member Janelle Hinton. The rescue squad started 50 years ago, with an old wooden trailer with some tools in the back, because there was no frontline rescue presence in the area. For half a century, Rylstone and Kandos Rescue Squad members have saved lives and changed lives, and we thank all members for their extraordinary dedication and the sacrifices they and their families make for our communities and our country.”
“The Kandos-Rylstone Volunteer Rescue Association recently celebrated 50 years of service to the local community. From dealing with horrific car crashes to assisting hikers stranded in the bush, rescue squad members save lives and personify service above self. It was an honour to attend the celebration dinner, and I wish to thank and congratulate all squad members, including office bearers President and New South Wales VRA Regional Operations Manager Glenn Hinton ESM; Vice-President, Deputy Captain and Equipment Officer Sean Hinton; Treasurer and Deputy Captain Jake Norbat; Secretary Lorna Anderson; Captain Wayne Norris; Senior Deputy Captain and Training Officer John Yates; and Assistant Training Officer Adam Newton.”
“We are calling on the government to take immediate and urgent action to address this cost-of-living pain and the devastation that it's causing.”
“Country people face greater housing insecurity and overcrowding and greater housing affordability issues. Country people experience rental stress above the New South Wales state average, with more than 38 per cent of households affected in the regions. We have growing social housing waitlists, with nearly 26,000 vulnerable households across regional New South Wales seeking secure housing. Homelessness is a rising issue, with rough sleeping surging by 51 per cent since 2020, primarily driven by an increase in the cost of living. Homelessness in regional communities just keeps continuing to grow. The cost-of-living crisis is having devastating impacts in regional Australia, and country people shouldn't bear the brunt.”
“Australia has not.' Jason goes on to state, 'Regional Australians cannot be expected to carry the weight of poor policy decisions made in Canberra.' Jason makes very good points, as do all of my constituents. Nearly one-third of Australia's population, around seven million people, live in regional and rural areas. But this gap between city and country is only getting wider, and it's being exacerbated by the cost-of-living crisis. Country people have 15 per cent lower incomes and 22 per cent lower net household worth compared with those living in metropolitan areas. Country people face 30 per cent higher costs for essential food items, such as fresh fruit and vegetables and bread. Country people experience inequitable health outcomes, including higher rates of hospitalisation, chronic disease and premature and preventable death.”
“Yet the federal government continues to rely almost exclusively on interest rate rises as its main economic tool, despite this being outdated and increasingly ineffective. This lack of modern thinking is failing regional Australians, who are already under pressure from high fuel prices, rising rents and house shortages, soaring groceries and supermarket price manipulation, steep increases in insurance and energy bills, supply shortages affecting farmers, tradies and small business, and wages that aren't keeping up with inflation. Meanwhile, the sector's actually causing inflation. Energy companies, insurance giants and supermarkets continue to operate without meaningful accountability. Other advanced countries have modernised their inflation tools.”
“It feels like no-one in power cares if people like me live or die.' A constituent, Peter, who is a pensioner, also wrote to me and said, 'I am writing to express deep concern regarding the rising cost of living, particularly its impact on pensioners residing in Orange.' Peter highlighted the rising cost of electricity and said: 'The daily supply charge of electricity has now reached $1.80, a staggering increase of 50c per day. For pensioners on fixed incomes, this is a significant burden. It raises the question: where can one afford to live and still enjoy a modest quality of life?' Another constituent, Jason from Mudgee, wrote to me and said: 'Across Mudgee and the wider Calare electorate, people are feeling the cost-of-living crisis more severely than those in metropolitan areas.”
“A constituent from Lithgow contacted me recently and said: 'I'm writing because, frankly, I've reached my breaking point. I care for my mum while barely surviving myself. I live in fear of rent hikes that could leave me homeless. Lithgow has no mental health services for people like me. Waitlists are a joke, and I've been told to just call Lifeline. Last week, I chose between feeding myself and feeding my cat.' My constituent goes on to write: 'I don't want platitudes; I want a plan.”
“The cost-of-living crisis is having devastating impacts in regional Australia and the Calare electorate. It's a grim picture. In the 12 months to January 2026, Australia's inflation rate was 3.8 per cent. Electricity and gas prices continue to be a major source of financial strain. Persistent increases to food prices have climbed across many essential categories, including fresh produce, meat and dairy, and they contribute significantly to everyday household budget stress. Interest rates are going up, and, along with it, mortgage stress is on the rise. Fuel prices continue to rise. Home, car and health insurance premiums are rapidly increasing. Overall, these essential costs are rising faster than wages, and country Australians are hurting as a result. Businesses are struggling to stay afloat.”
“My question is to the Prime Minister. The Lithgow locomotive workshop is a critical piece of railway infrastructure. The site is needed to expand and secure existing freight rail businesses and new ventures such as battery electric train manufacturing, yet it seems that Pacific National wants to sell it to a property developer. The community wants the site saved, and I note that the recent NSW Country Labor Conference unanimously called on the state and federal governments to begin discussions to buy the site and support local workers and businesses. Will your government do this?”
“This bill would also introduce a new six-month cooling-off period to prevent recent politicians or political staffers from being appointed to major public roles. I don't think it's too much to ask that we have the most qualified people being appointed to key public positions and that there's an open, independent and transparent process around selections. If, as a nation, we are serious about restoring confidence in government, this is surely a vitally important place to start. I commend this bill to the House, and I again commend the member for Mackellar for bringing it.”
“But I think if the public knew the extent of it they would be shocked, and this has to change. Trust is the truest test of whether our systems of governance are fit for purpose in both private and public settings. The member for Mackellar has been through the Briggs review and the need for these reforms, but I think it's very important that we note that this bill establishes a number of new key elements that bring openness, transparency and independence to the appointment process. It will introduce a public appointments commissioner to oversee the act and set up a new parliamentary joint committee on appointments to consider selections and report to the parliament on whether the committee supports the selections.”
“I second the motion, and I'm very pleased to be doing so. I commend the member for Mackellar for bringing it to this House again. She has been a tireless campaigner for integrity and transparency, and I commend her on her efforts in this regard since her election to this parliament. Jobs for mates erodes public trust and confidence in our government and our public institutions, and making political appointments to government boards has become an accepted part of Australian political life that's been going on for far too long. All of the major parties do it when they're in government, and it's time to clean this up and bring the practice to an end. As a former minister and cabinet minister, I've seen how this process works firsthand, and it's become a time honoured part of politics in Australia. There's nothing covert about it.”
“Questions have also been raised about whether turf laid on the playing fields was washed first in order to remove silt, as required by the contract. Another whistleblower has come forward and stated that, before sand was delivered to the site, unwashed sand was mixed in with washed sand. Washing the sand removes silty particles. When I first raised this with council, their first response was, in effect, 'There's nothing to see here.' Now they've finally admitted that there are problems with the construction of several of the fields but, bizarrely, state that there are no issues with the sand. This isn't good enough. We need full transparency and accountability from Orange City Council. The public needs to know what's gone on here, who's responsible and how much it's all going to cost to fix.”
“I'm calling for an independent inquiry into Orange City Council's management of the Orange Regional Sporting Precinct project. This $75 million development is made up of state and federal funding that should deliver a world-class regional sporting facility. Unfortunately, some serious questions need to be answered about what's gone on with this project. One whistleblower, who is also an expert, has provided me with council documents that include scientific lab tests which show that sand supplied to the site for the playing fields contained too much clay and silt, in breach of the contract. Despite failing lab tests multiple times, the sand was apparently spread anyway. The lab test results sourced from council also show that sand failed drainage tests.”
“So I would commend this legislation to the House and I would encourage the opposition to start taking a more constructive approach to not only Indigenous issues but many other issues that are affecting this country rather than focusing on themselves, which quite frankly is not resonating with the Australian people. They see through what you're doing and they are appalled by it. I commend this legislation to the House.”
“So this bill can be a very important driver of change, and that's why I'm supporting it. I've listened to what the opposition has said about this bill and I'm very disappointed by the negativity in their response. They criticise this bill, but they put forward no meaningful policies of their own. Perhaps that is to be expected, because quite frankly their performance over recent weeks almost amounts to an abrogation of their responsibilities as an opposition. They're totally self-absorbed in their own vainglorious grandstanding rather than coming up with meaningful policies that move this country forward. As I've said, there is still a lot of work to be done on moving reconciliation forward in this country. But, as I've said, this commission can be a very important step along that long and winding journey that this country is taking.”
“Interestingly enough, I spoke to one of our local Indigenous representatives, who was a member of the Australian Army, and he told me that, even as late as the 1980s, when he and his mates came through Cowra in their army uniforms and stopped at a pub for a drink, he was refused entry. It's hard to believe but it happened. We've made significant progress on closing the gap since 1965, but the gap continues. It's still there. Reconciliation in this country is not complete and the work of the Freedom Riders in this country is not complete. The detention rate of young Indigenous Australians is 21 times higher than non-Indigenous young people. Sixty per cent of young people in detention are First Nations, which is three in five of those that are incarcerated.”
“One of the places they stopped—in fact, I believe it was the first place they stopped—was Wellington, in our electorate of Calare. They went to Nanima Mission, now called Nanima village, and saw what were, in effect, shanty houses with earth floors and no running water. They saw discrimination—effectively apartheid—in the Australia of 1965. There was segregation in the cinemas, with separate seating for Indigenous Australians and a separate entry and exit as well. There was segregation in the hospital. Indigenous women were not allowed the same maternity services that non-Indigenous women were provided and could not have their children inside the hospital. I've heard accounts of being out on the verandah or even in a shed out the back. There was segregation at the pubs. There were pubs that would not allow Indigenous Australians to enter.”
“I think the establishment of the commission and the office of commissioner is squarely aimed at effecting this change. This can happen through identifying the issues, recommending solutions and ensuring that the government of the day is held to account for policy on Indigenous children and young people. We need this commission to succeed. Every year the parliament pauses to hear the annual update on Closing the Gap, and, yes, while progress is being made, last year only five of the 19 targets were on track to be met, in the modern, prosperous Australia that we live in. In 1965, Charlie Perkins and a group of young Australians got on a bus in Sydney and embarked on what became known as the Freedom Ride through western New South Wales.”
“I will be supporting this legislation, the National Commission for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children and Young People Bill 2026 and the transitional provisions bill. Almost eight per cent of Calare's residents are Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander, and I believe that the National Commission for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Children and Young People can make a very important contribution to closing the gap that still, disturbingly and, quite frankly, disgracefully, exists in so many different ways in this country. When the Prime Minister announced the establishment of the national commissioner, he noted that Indigenous children are almost 11 times more likely to be in out-of-home care than non-Indigenous children. This must change.”
“My question is to the Minister for Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development and Local Government. Since the days of the gold rush, our residents have been pushing for a crossing over the Macquarie River at Dixons Long Point, in central western New South Wales. Mid-Western Regional Council wants to access the $10 million allocated to move the project forward. Have the funds been released? On a separate note, will your government take the lead to finally build an expressway through the Blue Mountains, which has been promised for decades and never, ever delivered? The traffic jams are worse than ever, and it's just not good enough.”
“Put aside the daily drama, the daily soap opera with multiple episodes going live in Parliament House every day. Come in here and actually do something for your constituents instead of talking about yourselves. Come into this chamber and axe the tax. I commend this amendment to the House.”
“While the freeze on excise for two years means that the club will be able to keep prices of products lower for longer, Peter says a permanent fix would go a long way to help. That's why we need to axe the tax. This amendment is our opportunity to not only axe the tax but update, overhaul and reform the whole tax regime around beer, wine and spirits. We all know it's long overdue. The current system is no longer fit for purpose to support our local hospitality and tourism sectors. At the last election, I stood at polling booths and I heard National Party members and their Plymouth Brethren proxies constantly tell voters they were for cheaper beer. Well, this is their chance to prove it. Come in and vote for this amendment. Show us that you actually support cheaper beer. Don't just lock in sky-high schooner prices.”
“It would make business more sustainable and be good for the hip pockets of his customers. Peter Sargent, the chief executive officer of Bathurst RSL club, says: The cost-of-living crisis is about managing the basics and being able to go out and have a beer. But as the excise creeps up, this simple activity becomes unaffordable. Bathurst RSL try to keep their prices as low as possible, but with each and every excise increase it becomes harder and harder to do that. Peter is concerned that, if they keep being taxed like this, being able to go to the pub for a beer and a schnitty—that small enjoyment, that simple pleasure that a lot of everyday Australians like to experience; I love it too—will become out of reach.”
“In my electorate of Calare, there are more than 400 licenced venues that employ around 1,300 people and service countless residents and visitors each year. These venues are often key employers in our smaller towns and villages—and in our larger ones as well! Our country pubs and hospitality venues don't just serve drinks; they support our local farmers, entertainers, local community groups. They keep people connected. Our country pubs and clubs want the tax axed. The Hotel Orange is one of our iconic heritage pubs. Vijay is the publican and says that the hospitality industry is one of the hardest hit when it comes to taxes. Coupled with high operating costs, it's not an easy gig. He says that freezing the tax would be good but if it were completely scrapped, that would be better.”
“I've heard opposition members complain that this bill only freezes excise for two years, notwithstanding that it was the policy they took to the last election. The crossbench is here to help. We know things are very chaotic on the opposition benches at the moment. We know that every day brings a new episode of the soap opera—it's like Days of Our Lives . They seem very distracted, and things just aren't very happy in the happy kingdom anymore. But we are here to help, so we've drafted this amendment to give all members of this House, but in particular Nationals and Liberal Party members, the chance to vote to axe the tax. Now, they could have drafted this amendment themselves, but I'm very happy to assist them and do the heavy lifting for them.”
“I move: (1) Schedule 1, page 3 (line 1) to page 3 (line 23), omit the Schedule, substitute: Schedule 1 — Removal of excise for draught beer Excise Tariff Act 1921 1 Subitems 1.2, 1.6 and 1.11 of the Schedule Repeal the items. I'm moving this amendment because while freezing the beer excise for a couple of years is better than nothing, the reality is that it just locks in sky-high schooner prices. After that, we're just going to be back in this place arguing about it all over again. I believe it is time to axe the tax, and that's what this amendment does. We need to implement a fairer system of alcohol taxation that helps ensure the long-term viability of our hospitality sector and doesn't keep stinging consumers year in, year out. That's what this amendment does.”