NORTH QUEENSLAND POLITICIANS POINT OUT POTHOLES IN PM’S PROMISE

Opinion Piece

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Federal Member for Dawson Andrew Willcox has called Federal Government’s announcement for an extra $467m worth of funding to upgrade the Bruce Highway a “slap in the face” for the people of Dawson.

Mr Willcox said the announcement made by Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and his Treasurer is nothing more than a smokescreen, and that he is “insulted and infuriated” on behalf of everyone living and working in Dawson who has once again missed out.

“The section of the Bruce Highway that runs through the electorate of Dawson has been rated the most dangerous section, and this announcement by the Albanese Labor Government sees funding provisions for everywhere but the area that needs it the most,” Mr Willcox said.

“The Prime Minister is on record this week confirming that the Bruce Highway ‘should be’ as good as the M1 between Brisbane and Sydney, so why isn’t he actually doing something about it instead of yet again, hiding behind promises that are entirely political and full of potholes.

“This comes after the Prime Minister cut more than $200m worth of road projects in Queensland following his infrastructure review, as well as lowering the funding contribution provided by the Federal Government to help complete these projects.”

State Member for Burdekin Dale Last agreed with his federal counterpart, saying the so-called budget boost for the Bruce Highway proves that both the state and federal governments have no understanding of regional Queensland’s reliance on the highway.

“While $467 million sounds like a huge investment, very little will change in real terms,” Mr Last said.  

“The Haughton Flood Plain Upgrade alone cost more than the total amount the federal government has allocated to the entire 1,700km of the Bruce Highway.

“It is nothing short of insulting that the federal Treasurer can call this a budget for the Bruce when, in today’s terms, the announcement would bring less than 1% of the highway up to standard.  

“Canberra and Brisbane might think it’s a great announcement but, in regional Queensland, we know it’s nothing short of a hoax.”

“With the current state of the Bruce Highway, there’s barely enough money to fill the potholes, let alone make the road safer.

“In addition to the economic importance of the Bruce it is a fact that lives are being lost on an almost daily basis and the majority of those are in regional Queensland.”

Mr Willcox said the people living and working in Dawson deserve a safe road to drive on to get to work safely and return home safely to their loved ones.

“The roads in Dawson are a necessity; they are how we get our product to market and receive our supplies from the city,” he said.

“Rural and regional areas such as Dawson are the heart of our country, where all our food and fibre is produced.

“Without rural and regional areas, this country wouldn’t be what it is today.

“This current government needs to stop ignoring that reality and start investing in the future of these areas before it is too late.”

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Federal Member for Dawson Andrew Willcox is calling for more federal funding for the Bruce Highway

Member for Burdekin, Dale Last MP, inspects the planned upgrades of the Bruce Highway prior to construction of the Haughton Flood Plain project

Photos supplied

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