❓ Minister Buswell defends the government's commitment to public transport, particularly rail, highlighting significant investments and contrasting them with the opposition's record and alleged inconsistencies.
AnsweredQoN 523Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
metropolitan public transport — GOVERNMENT COMMITMENT
Recently I noted some comments by the opposition that questioned the government’s commitment to rail. Can the minister please update the house on the government’s investment in public transport, particularly rail, and plans for the future of public transport in Perth? Mr T.R. BUSWELL
Recently I noted some comments by the opposition that questioned the government’s commitment to rail. Can the minister please update the house on the government’s investment in public transport, particularly rail, and plans for the future of public transport in Perth? Mr T.R. BUSWELL
AnswerView source ↗
I thank the member very much for that question. He is right: I noted some comments that the Leader of the Opposition made a weekend or two ago when he was down at Beeliar; he said at the time that the Barnett government had failed to invest in rail and that it was part of some cunning plan to force trucks onto southern suburbs roads. Incidentally, at the same meeting in Beeliar, I think the Leader of the Opposition also said that he would remove Roe 8 from the metropolitan region scheme if he were elected to government. Mr E.S. Ripper interjected. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : I am glad it is the Leader of the Opposition’s commitment; he might just want to tell his shadow Minister for Transport, who is out in that area with one of the opposition’s other shadow ministers, Hon Kate Doust from the other place, telling everyone that they support parts of Roe 8. Here is the Leader of the Opposition saying that he will abolish Roe 8 — Mr E.S. Ripper interjected. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : I will leave this for the Leader of the Opposition to read—“Roe fix for Murdoch”. Two of the Leader of the Opposition’s shadow ministers are out there saying that they support bits of Roe 8. The Leader of the Opposition might as well be truthful when he goes down to Beeliar to speak. I want to move on from that confused message and deal with this government’s commitment to rail. I had a bit of a look the other day at works in progress, and I thought that for a government not committed to rail, we are certainly spending a fair bit of money on it! I might just share some of those examples with the Leader of the Opposition. There is $240 million to extend the railway line north to Butler; $360 million to upgrade the city rail precincts, including the sinking of the rail and significant upgrades to the Perth railway station; $222 million to improve the rail network through regional WA to carry grain; $53 million to improve the railway line from Fremantle to Kewdale; $50 million on new car bays up and down the Joondalup–Mandurah line; and $164 million on new railcars. That adds up to $1.089 billion. I do not think that that is a bad spend by a government, and it shows that we are committed to public transport. In addition, we recently launched our public transport plan. It is a great document; it was well received. It outlines a future for public transport in Western Australia that includes light rail and additional heavy rail. The opposition brought out its plan; I meant to bring it with me but I left it behind. It looked like a version of Barry Jones’ “Spaghetti Noodle Nation”, or whatever it was called, when he was having a bad day. I will close by making a comparison with what the opposition is talking about. There are three issues on which I would like some clarification from the Leader of the Opposition. Firstly, there has been a lot of talk about the opposition’s commitment to invest in tier 3 railway lines. I was at the Dowerin field day last week, and no-one believes it, because in all the Labor Party’s eight years in government, it did not invest one cent in the regional rail network. I have heard the member for Gosnells talking about the railway line that will go from Morley through to Canning Vale. Do members know what one of the last acts of the former Labor government was? It was to try to sell the land that is reserved along that railway line for the railway stations. How could it have built a railway line if it was going to sell the land? The third point is: where does the Labor Party stand on a rail link to Ellenbrook? Mr E.S. Ripper : Where do you stand on it? Mr T.R. BUSWELL : Where do I stand? I stand at exactly the same point as a well-known Western Australian who said that while rail is a long-term solution in relation to Ellenbrook, a fast bus service should be introduced because it would be more cost effective. Does the Leader of the Opposition know who said that? It was not Campbell Newman; he is the former Mayor of Brisbane who wants to rule Queensland. It was the pending mayor of Vincent, who wants the Leader of the Opposition’s job. My question is this: is the Leader of the Opposition committed to funding a railway line to Ellenbrook? Several members interjected. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : I will turn them on! It is a bit like the way he argued against the Malaysian solution. His lips are moving, but the volume is right down! What are the Leader of the Opposition’s plans for Ellenbrook? Put them on the table; we would love to look. Mr E.S. Ripper : Ask me a question and I’ll answer it. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : This person has plans for Ellenbrook. More importantly, Leader of the Opposition, this person has plans for you.
Mr T.R. BUSWELL replied: I thank the member very much for that question. He is right: I noted some comments that the Leader of the Opposition made a weekend or two ago when he was down at Beeliar; he said at the time that the Barnett government had failed to invest in rail and that it was part of some cunning plan to force trucks onto southern suburbs roads. Incidentally, at the same meeting in Beeliar, I think the Leader of the Opposition also said that he would remove Roe 8 from the metropolitan region scheme if he were elected to government. Mr E.S. Ripper interjected. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : I am glad it is the Leader of the Opposition’s commitment; he might just want to tell his shadow Minister for Transport, who is out in that area with one of the opposition’s other shadow ministers, Hon Kate Doust from the other place, telling everyone that they support parts of Roe 8. Here is the Leader of the Opposition saying that he will abolish Roe 8 — Mr E.S. Ripper interjected. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : I will leave this for the Leader of the Opposition to read—“Roe fix for Murdoch”. Two of the Leader of the Opposition’s shadow ministers are out there saying that they support bits of Roe 8. The Leader of the Opposition might as well be truthful when he goes down to Beeliar to speak. I want to move on from that confused message and deal with this government’s commitment to rail. I had a bit of a look the other day at works in progress, and I thought that for a government not committed to rail, we are certainly spending a fair bit of money on it! I might just share some of those examples with the Leader of the Opposition. There is $240 million to extend the railway line north to Butler; $360 million to upgrade the city rail precincts, including the sinking of the rail and significant upgrades to the Perth railway station; $222 million to improve the rail network through regional WA to carry grain; $53 million to improve the railway line from Fremantle to Kewdale; $50 million on new car bays up and down the Joondalup–Mandurah line; and $164 million on new railcars. That adds up to $1.089 billion. I do not think that that is a bad spend by a government, and it shows that we are committed to public transport. In addition, we recently launched our public transport plan. It is a great document; it was well received. It outlines a future for public transport in Western Australia that includes light rail and additional heavy rail. The opposition brought out its plan; I meant to bring it with me but I left it behind. It looked like a version of Barry Jones’ “Spaghetti Noodle Nation”, or whatever it was called, when he was having a bad day. I will close by making a comparison with what the opposition is talking about. There are three issues on which I would like some clarification from the Leader of the Opposition. Firstly, there has been a lot of talk about the opposition’s commitment to invest in tier 3 railway lines. I was at the Dowerin field day last week, and no-one believes it, because in all the Labor Party’s eight years in government, it did not invest one cent in the regional rail network. I have heard the member for Gosnells talking about the railway line that will go from Morley through to Canning Vale. Do members know what one of the last acts of the former Labor government was? It was to try to sell the land that is reserved along that railway line for the railway stations. How could it have built a railway line if it was going to sell the land? The third point is: where does the Labor Party stand on a rail link to Ellenbrook? Mr E.S. Ripper : Where do you stand on it? Mr T.R. BUSWELL : Where do I stand? I stand at exactly the same point as a well-known Western Australian who said that while rail is a long-term solution in relation to Ellenbrook, a fast bus service should be introduced because it would be more cost effective. Does the Leader of the Opposition know who said that? It was not Campbell Newman; he is the former Mayor of Brisbane who wants to rule Queensland. It was the pending mayor of Vincent, who wants the Leader of the Opposition’s job. My question is this: is the Leader of the Opposition committed to funding a railway line to Ellenbrook? Several members interjected. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : I will turn them on! It is a bit like the way he argued against the Malaysian solution. His lips are moving, but the volume is right down! What are the Leader of the Opposition’s plans for Ellenbrook? Put them on the table; we would love to look. Mr E.S. Ripper : Ask me a question and I’ll answer it. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : This person has plans for Ellenbrook. More importantly, Leader of the Opposition, this person has plans for you.
I thank the member very much for that question. He is right: I noted some comments that the Leader of the Opposition made a weekend or two ago when he was down at Beeliar; he said at the time that the Barnett government had failed to invest in rail and that it was part of some cunning plan to force trucks onto southern suburbs roads. Incidentally, at the same meeting in Beeliar, I think the Leader of the Opposition also said that he would remove Roe 8 from the metropolitan region scheme if he were elected to government. Mr E.S. Ripper interjected. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : I am glad it is the Leader of the Opposition’s commitment; he might just want to tell his shadow Minister for Transport, who is out in that area with one of the opposition’s other shadow ministers, Hon Kate Doust from the other place, telling everyone that they support parts of Roe 8. Here is the Leader of the Opposition saying that he will abolish Roe 8 — Mr E.S. Ripper interjected. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : I will leave this for the Leader of the Opposition to read—“Roe fix for Murdoch”. Two of the Leader of the Opposition’s shadow ministers are out there saying that they support bits of Roe 8. The Leader of the Opposition might as well be truthful when he goes down to Beeliar to speak. I want to move on from that confused message and deal with this government’s commitment to rail. I had a bit of a look the other day at works in progress, and I thought that for a government not committed to rail, we are certainly spending a fair bit of money on it! I might just share some of those examples with the Leader of the Opposition. There is $240 million to extend the railway line north to Butler; $360 million to upgrade the city rail precincts, including the sinking of the rail and significant upgrades to the Perth railway station; $222 million to improve the rail network through regional WA to carry grain; $53 million to improve the railway line from Fremantle to Kewdale; $50 million on new car bays up and down the Joondalup–Mandurah line; and $164 million on new railcars. That adds up to $1.089 billion. I do not think that that is a bad spend by a government, and it shows that we are committed to public transport. In addition, we recently launched our public transport plan. It is a great document; it was well received. It outlines a future for public transport in Western Australia that includes light rail and additional heavy rail. The opposition brought out its plan; I meant to bring it with me but I left it behind. It looked like a version of Barry Jones’ “Spaghetti Noodle Nation”, or whatever it was called, when he was having a bad day. I will close by making a comparison with what the opposition is talking about. There are three issues on which I would like some clarification from the Leader of the Opposition. Firstly, there has been a lot of talk about the opposition’s commitment to invest in tier 3 railway lines. I was at the Dowerin field day last week, and no-one believes it, because in all the Labor Party’s eight years in government, it did not invest one cent in the regional rail network. I have heard the member for Gosnells talking about the railway line that will go from Morley through to Canning Vale. Do members know what one of the last acts of the former Labor government was? It was to try to sell the land that is reserved along that railway line for the railway stations. How could it have built a railway line if it was going to sell the land? The third point is: where does the Labor Party stand on a rail link to Ellenbrook? Mr E.S. Ripper : Where do you stand on it? Mr T.R. BUSWELL : Where do I stand? I stand at exactly the same point as a well-known Western Australian who said that while rail is a long-term solution in relation to Ellenbrook, a fast bus service should be introduced because it would be more cost effective. Does the Leader of the Opposition know who said that? It was not Campbell Newman; he is the former Mayor of Brisbane who wants to rule Queensland. It was the pending mayor of Vincent, who wants the Leader of the Opposition’s job. My question is this: is the Leader of the Opposition committed to funding a railway line to Ellenbrook? Several members interjected. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : I will turn them on! It is a bit like the way he argued against the Malaysian solution. His lips are moving, but the volume is right down! What are the Leader of the Opposition’s plans for Ellenbrook? Put them on the table; we would love to look. Mr E.S. Ripper : Ask me a question and I’ll answer it. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : This person has plans for Ellenbrook. More importantly, Leader of the Opposition, this person has plans for you.
Mr E.S. Ripper interjected. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : I am glad it is the Leader of the Opposition’s commitment; he might just want to tell his shadow Minister for Transport, who is out in that area with one of the opposition’s other shadow ministers, Hon Kate Doust from the other place, telling everyone that they support parts of Roe 8. Here is the Leader of the Opposition saying that he will abolish Roe 8 — Mr E.S. Ripper interjected. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : I will leave this for the Leader of the Opposition to read—“Roe fix for Murdoch”. Two of the Leader of the Opposition’s shadow ministers are out there saying that they support bits of Roe 8. The Leader of the Opposition might as well be truthful when he goes down to Beeliar to speak. I want to move on from that confused message and deal with this government’s commitment to rail. I had a bit of a look the other day at works in progress, and I thought that for a government not committed to rail, we are certainly spending a fair bit of money on it! I might just share some of those examples with the Leader of the Opposition. There is $240 million to extend the railway line north to Butler; $360 million to upgrade the city rail precincts, including the sinking of the rail and significant upgrades to the Perth railway station; $222 million to improve the rail network through regional WA to carry grain; $53 million to improve the railway line from Fremantle to Kewdale; $50 million on new car bays up and down the Joondalup–Mandurah line; and $164 million on new railcars. That adds up to $1.089 billion. I do not think that that is a bad spend by a government, and it shows that we are committed to public transport. In addition, we recently launched our public transport plan. It is a great document; it was well received. It outlines a future for public transport in Western Australia that includes light rail and additional heavy rail. The opposition brought out its plan; I meant to bring it with me but I left it behind. It looked like a version of Barry Jones’ “Spaghetti Noodle Nation”, or whatever it was called, when he was having a bad day. I will close by making a comparison with what the opposition is talking about. There are three issues on which I would like some clarification from the Leader of the Opposition. Firstly, there has been a lot of talk about the opposition’s commitment to invest in tier 3 railway lines. I was at the Dowerin field day last week, and no-one believes it, because in all the Labor Party’s eight years in government, it did not invest one cent in the regional rail network. I have heard the member for Gosnells talking about the railway line that will go from Morley through to Canning Vale. Do members know what one of the last acts of the former Labor government was? It was to try to sell the land that is reserved along that railway line for the railway stations. How could it have built a railway line if it was going to sell the land? The third point is: where does the Labor Party stand on a rail link to Ellenbrook? Mr E.S. Ripper : Where do you stand on it? Mr T.R. BUSWELL : Where do I stand? I stand at exactly the same point as a well-known Western Australian who said that while rail is a long-term solution in relation to Ellenbrook, a fast bus service should be introduced because it would be more cost effective. Does the Leader of the Opposition know who said that? It was not Campbell Newman; he is the former Mayor of Brisbane who wants to rule Queensland. It was the pending mayor of Vincent, who wants the Leader of the Opposition’s job. My question is this: is the Leader of the Opposition committed to funding a railway line to Ellenbrook? Several members interjected. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : I will turn them on! It is a bit like the way he argued against the Malaysian solution. His lips are moving, but the volume is right down! What are the Leader of the Opposition’s plans for Ellenbrook? Put them on the table; we would love to look. Mr E.S. Ripper : Ask me a question and I’ll answer it. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : This person has plans for Ellenbrook. More importantly, Leader of the Opposition, this person has plans for you.
Mr T.R. BUSWELL : I am glad it is the Leader of the Opposition’s commitment; he might just want to tell his shadow Minister for Transport, who is out in that area with one of the opposition’s other shadow ministers, Hon Kate Doust from the other place, telling everyone that they support parts of Roe 8. Here is the Leader of the Opposition saying that he will abolish Roe 8 — Mr E.S. Ripper interjected. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : I will leave this for the Leader of the Opposition to read—“Roe fix for Murdoch”. Two of the Leader of the Opposition’s shadow ministers are out there saying that they support bits of Roe 8. The Leader of the Opposition might as well be truthful when he goes down to Beeliar to speak. I want to move on from that confused message and deal with this government’s commitment to rail. I had a bit of a look the other day at works in progress, and I thought that for a government not committed to rail, we are certainly spending a fair bit of money on it! I might just share some of those examples with the Leader of the Opposition. There is $240 million to extend the railway line north to Butler; $360 million to upgrade the city rail precincts, including the sinking of the rail and significant upgrades to the Perth railway station; $222 million to improve the rail network through regional WA to carry grain; $53 million to improve the railway line from Fremantle to Kewdale; $50 million on new car bays up and down the Joondalup–Mandurah line; and $164 million on new railcars. That adds up to $1.089 billion. I do not think that that is a bad spend by a government, and it shows that we are committed to public transport. In addition, we recently launched our public transport plan. It is a great document; it was well received. It outlines a future for public transport in Western Australia that includes light rail and additional heavy rail. The opposition brought out its plan; I meant to bring it with me but I left it behind. It looked like a version of Barry Jones’ “Spaghetti Noodle Nation”, or whatever it was called, when he was having a bad day. I will close by making a comparison with what the opposition is talking about. There are three issues on which I would like some clarification from the Leader of the Opposition. Firstly, there has been a lot of talk about the opposition’s commitment to invest in tier 3 railway lines. I was at the Dowerin field day last week, and no-one believes it, because in all the Labor Party’s eight years in government, it did not invest one cent in the regional rail network. I have heard the member for Gosnells talking about the railway line that will go from Morley through to Canning Vale. Do members know what one of the last acts of the former Labor government was? It was to try to sell the land that is reserved along that railway line for the railway stations. How could it have built a railway line if it was going to sell the land? The third point is: where does the Labor Party stand on a rail link to Ellenbrook? Mr E.S. Ripper : Where do you stand on it? Mr T.R. BUSWELL : Where do I stand? I stand at exactly the same point as a well-known Western Australian who said that while rail is a long-term solution in relation to Ellenbrook, a fast bus service should be introduced because it would be more cost effective. Does the Leader of the Opposition know who said that? It was not Campbell Newman; he is the former Mayor of Brisbane who wants to rule Queensland. It was the pending mayor of Vincent, who wants the Leader of the Opposition’s job. My question is this: is the Leader of the Opposition committed to funding a railway line to Ellenbrook? Several members interjected. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : I will turn them on! It is a bit like the way he argued against the Malaysian solution. His lips are moving, but the volume is right down! What are the Leader of the Opposition’s plans for Ellenbrook? Put them on the table; we would love to look. Mr E.S. Ripper : Ask me a question and I’ll answer it. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : This person has plans for Ellenbrook. More importantly, Leader of the Opposition, this person has plans for you.
Mr E.S. Ripper interjected. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : I will leave this for the Leader of the Opposition to read—“Roe fix for Murdoch”. Two of the Leader of the Opposition’s shadow ministers are out there saying that they support bits of Roe 8. The Leader of the Opposition might as well be truthful when he goes down to Beeliar to speak. I want to move on from that confused message and deal with this government’s commitment to rail. I had a bit of a look the other day at works in progress, and I thought that for a government not committed to rail, we are certainly spending a fair bit of money on it! I might just share some of those examples with the Leader of the Opposition. There is $240 million to extend the railway line north to Butler; $360 million to upgrade the city rail precincts, including the sinking of the rail and significant upgrades to the Perth railway station; $222 million to improve the rail network through regional WA to carry grain; $53 million to improve the railway line from Fremantle to Kewdale; $50 million on new car bays up and down the Joondalup–Mandurah line; and $164 million on new railcars. That adds up to $1.089 billion. I do not think that that is a bad spend by a government, and it shows that we are committed to public transport. In addition, we recently launched our public transport plan. It is a great document; it was well received. It outlines a future for public transport in Western Australia that includes light rail and additional heavy rail. The opposition brought out its plan; I meant to bring it with me but I left it behind. It looked like a version of Barry Jones’ “Spaghetti Noodle Nation”, or whatever it was called, when he was having a bad day. I will close by making a comparison with what the opposition is talking about. There are three issues on which I would like some clarification from the Leader of the Opposition. Firstly, there has been a lot of talk about the opposition’s commitment to invest in tier 3 railway lines. I was at the Dowerin field day last week, and no-one believes it, because in all the Labor Party’s eight years in government, it did not invest one cent in the regional rail network. I have heard the member for Gosnells talking about the railway line that will go from Morley through to Canning Vale. Do members know what one of the last acts of the former Labor government was? It was to try to sell the land that is reserved along that railway line for the railway stations. How could it have built a railway line if it was going to sell the land? The third point is: where does the Labor Party stand on a rail link to Ellenbrook? Mr E.S. Ripper : Where do you stand on it? Mr T.R. BUSWELL : Where do I stand? I stand at exactly the same point as a well-known Western Australian who said that while rail is a long-term solution in relation to Ellenbrook, a fast bus service should be introduced because it would be more cost effective. Does the Leader of the Opposition know who said that? It was not Campbell Newman; he is the former Mayor of Brisbane who wants to rule Queensland. It was the pending mayor of Vincent, who wants the Leader of the Opposition’s job. My question is this: is the Leader of the Opposition committed to funding a railway line to Ellenbrook? Several members interjected. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : I will turn them on! It is a bit like the way he argued against the Malaysian solution. His lips are moving, but the volume is right down! What are the Leader of the Opposition’s plans for Ellenbrook? Put them on the table; we would love to look. Mr E.S. Ripper : Ask me a question and I’ll answer it. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : This person has plans for Ellenbrook. More importantly, Leader of the Opposition, this person has plans for you.
Mr T.R. BUSWELL : I will leave this for the Leader of the Opposition to read—“Roe fix for Murdoch”. Two of the Leader of the Opposition’s shadow ministers are out there saying that they support bits of Roe 8. The Leader of the Opposition might as well be truthful when he goes down to Beeliar to speak. I want to move on from that confused message and deal with this government’s commitment to rail. I had a bit of a look the other day at works in progress, and I thought that for a government not committed to rail, we are certainly spending a fair bit of money on it! I might just share some of those examples with the Leader of the Opposition. There is $240 million to extend the railway line north to Butler; $360 million to upgrade the city rail precincts, including the sinking of the rail and significant upgrades to the Perth railway station; $222 million to improve the rail network through regional WA to carry grain; $53 million to improve the railway line from Fremantle to Kewdale; $50 million on new car bays up and down the Joondalup–Mandurah line; and $164 million on new railcars. That adds up to $1.089 billion. I do not think that that is a bad spend by a government, and it shows that we are committed to public transport. In addition, we recently launched our public transport plan. It is a great document; it was well received. It outlines a future for public transport in Western Australia that includes light rail and additional heavy rail. The opposition brought out its plan; I meant to bring it with me but I left it behind. It looked like a version of Barry Jones’ “Spaghetti Noodle Nation”, or whatever it was called, when he was having a bad day. I will close by making a comparison with what the opposition is talking about. There are three issues on which I would like some clarification from the Leader of the Opposition. Firstly, there has been a lot of talk about the opposition’s commitment to invest in tier 3 railway lines. I was at the Dowerin field day last week, and no-one believes it, because in all the Labor Party’s eight years in government, it did not invest one cent in the regional rail network. I have heard the member for Gosnells talking about the railway line that will go from Morley through to Canning Vale. Do members know what one of the last acts of the former Labor government was? It was to try to sell the land that is reserved along that railway line for the railway stations. How could it have built a railway line if it was going to sell the land? The third point is: where does the Labor Party stand on a rail link to Ellenbrook? Mr E.S. Ripper : Where do you stand on it? Mr T.R. BUSWELL : Where do I stand? I stand at exactly the same point as a well-known Western Australian who said that while rail is a long-term solution in relation to Ellenbrook, a fast bus service should be introduced because it would be more cost effective. Does the Leader of the Opposition know who said that? It was not Campbell Newman; he is the former Mayor of Brisbane who wants to rule Queensland. It was the pending mayor of Vincent, who wants the Leader of the Opposition’s job. My question is this: is the Leader of the Opposition committed to funding a railway line to Ellenbrook? Several members interjected. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : I will turn them on! It is a bit like the way he argued against the Malaysian solution. His lips are moving, but the volume is right down! What are the Leader of the Opposition’s plans for Ellenbrook? Put them on the table; we would love to look. Mr E.S. Ripper : Ask me a question and I’ll answer it. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : This person has plans for Ellenbrook. More importantly, Leader of the Opposition, this person has plans for you.
I want to move on from that confused message and deal with this government’s commitment to rail. I had a bit of a look the other day at works in progress, and I thought that for a government not committed to rail, we are certainly spending a fair bit of money on it! I might just share some of those examples with the Leader of the Opposition. There is $240 million to extend the railway line north to Butler; $360 million to upgrade the city rail precincts, including the sinking of the rail and significant upgrades to the Perth railway station; $222 million to improve the rail network through regional WA to carry grain; $53 million to improve the railway line from Fremantle to Kewdale; $50 million on new car bays up and down the Joondalup–Mandurah line; and $164 million on new railcars. That adds up to $1.089 billion. I do not think that that is a bad spend by a government, and it shows that we are committed to public transport. In addition, we recently launched our public transport plan. It is a great document; it was well received. It outlines a future for public transport in Western Australia that includes light rail and additional heavy rail. The opposition brought out its plan; I meant to bring it with me but I left it behind. It looked like a version of Barry Jones’ “Spaghetti Noodle Nation”, or whatever it was called, when he was having a bad day. I will close by making a comparison with what the opposition is talking about. There are three issues on which I would like some clarification from the Leader of the Opposition. Firstly, there has been a lot of talk about the opposition’s commitment to invest in tier 3 railway lines. I was at the Dowerin field day last week, and no-one believes it, because in all the Labor Party’s eight years in government, it did not invest one cent in the regional rail network. I have heard the member for Gosnells talking about the railway line that will go from Morley through to Canning Vale. Do members know what one of the last acts of the former Labor government was? It was to try to sell the land that is reserved along that railway line for the railway stations. How could it have built a railway line if it was going to sell the land? The third point is: where does the Labor Party stand on a rail link to Ellenbrook? Mr E.S. Ripper : Where do you stand on it? Mr T.R. BUSWELL : Where do I stand? I stand at exactly the same point as a well-known Western Australian who said that while rail is a long-term solution in relation to Ellenbrook, a fast bus service should be introduced because it would be more cost effective. Does the Leader of the Opposition know who said that? It was not Campbell Newman; he is the former Mayor of Brisbane who wants to rule Queensland. It was the pending mayor of Vincent, who wants the Leader of the Opposition’s job. My question is this: is the Leader of the Opposition committed to funding a railway line to Ellenbrook? Several members interjected. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : I will turn them on! It is a bit like the way he argued against the Malaysian solution. His lips are moving, but the volume is right down! What are the Leader of the Opposition’s plans for Ellenbrook? Put them on the table; we would love to look. Mr E.S. Ripper : Ask me a question and I’ll answer it. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : This person has plans for Ellenbrook. More importantly, Leader of the Opposition, this person has plans for you.
I will close by making a comparison with what the opposition is talking about. There are three issues on which I would like some clarification from the Leader of the Opposition. Firstly, there has been a lot of talk about the opposition’s commitment to invest in tier 3 railway lines. I was at the Dowerin field day last week, and no-one believes it, because in all the Labor Party’s eight years in government, it did not invest one cent in the regional rail network. I have heard the member for Gosnells talking about the railway line that will go from Morley through to Canning Vale. Do members know what one of the last acts of the former Labor government was? It was to try to sell the land that is reserved along that railway line for the railway stations. How could it have built a railway line if it was going to sell the land? The third point is: where does the Labor Party stand on a rail link to Ellenbrook? Mr E.S. Ripper : Where do you stand on it? Mr T.R. BUSWELL : Where do I stand? I stand at exactly the same point as a well-known Western Australian who said that while rail is a long-term solution in relation to Ellenbrook, a fast bus service should be introduced because it would be more cost effective. Does the Leader of the Opposition know who said that? It was not Campbell Newman; he is the former Mayor of Brisbane who wants to rule Queensland. It was the pending mayor of Vincent, who wants the Leader of the Opposition’s job. My question is this: is the Leader of the Opposition committed to funding a railway line to Ellenbrook? Several members interjected. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : I will turn them on! It is a bit like the way he argued against the Malaysian solution. His lips are moving, but the volume is right down! What are the Leader of the Opposition’s plans for Ellenbrook? Put them on the table; we would love to look. Mr E.S. Ripper : Ask me a question and I’ll answer it. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : This person has plans for Ellenbrook. More importantly, Leader of the Opposition, this person has plans for you.
Mr E.S. Ripper : Where do you stand on it? Mr T.R. BUSWELL : Where do I stand? I stand at exactly the same point as a well-known Western Australian who said that while rail is a long-term solution in relation to Ellenbrook, a fast bus service should be introduced because it would be more cost effective. Does the Leader of the Opposition know who said that? It was not Campbell Newman; he is the former Mayor of Brisbane who wants to rule Queensland. It was the pending mayor of Vincent, who wants the Leader of the Opposition’s job. My question is this: is the Leader of the Opposition committed to funding a railway line to Ellenbrook? Several members interjected. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : I will turn them on! It is a bit like the way he argued against the Malaysian solution. His lips are moving, but the volume is right down! What are the Leader of the Opposition’s plans for Ellenbrook? Put them on the table; we would love to look. Mr E.S. Ripper : Ask me a question and I’ll answer it. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : This person has plans for Ellenbrook. More importantly, Leader of the Opposition, this person has plans for you.
Mr T.R. BUSWELL : Where do I stand? I stand at exactly the same point as a well-known Western Australian who said that while rail is a long-term solution in relation to Ellenbrook, a fast bus service should be introduced because it would be more cost effective. Does the Leader of the Opposition know who said that? It was not Campbell Newman; he is the former Mayor of Brisbane who wants to rule Queensland. It was the pending mayor of Vincent, who wants the Leader of the Opposition’s job. My question is this: is the Leader of the Opposition committed to funding a railway line to Ellenbrook? Several members interjected. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : I will turn them on! It is a bit like the way he argued against the Malaysian solution. His lips are moving, but the volume is right down! What are the Leader of the Opposition’s plans for Ellenbrook? Put them on the table; we would love to look. Mr E.S. Ripper : Ask me a question and I’ll answer it. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : This person has plans for Ellenbrook. More importantly, Leader of the Opposition, this person has plans for you.
Several members interjected. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : I will turn them on! It is a bit like the way he argued against the Malaysian solution. His lips are moving, but the volume is right down! What are the Leader of the Opposition’s plans for Ellenbrook? Put them on the table; we would love to look. Mr E.S. Ripper : Ask me a question and I’ll answer it. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : This person has plans for Ellenbrook. More importantly, Leader of the Opposition, this person has plans for you.
Mr T.R. BUSWELL : I will turn them on! It is a bit like the way he argued against the Malaysian solution. His lips are moving, but the volume is right down! What are the Leader of the Opposition’s plans for Ellenbrook? Put them on the table; we would love to look. Mr E.S. Ripper : Ask me a question and I’ll answer it. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : This person has plans for Ellenbrook. More importantly, Leader of the Opposition, this person has plans for you.
Mr E.S. Ripper : Ask me a question and I’ll answer it. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : This person has plans for Ellenbrook. More importantly, Leader of the Opposition, this person has plans for you.
Mr T.R. BUSWELL : This person has plans for Ellenbrook. More importantly, Leader of the Opposition, this person has plans for you.
Mr T.R. BUSWELL replied: I thank the member very much for that question. He is right: I noted some comments that the Leader of the Opposition made a weekend or two ago when he was down at Beeliar; he said at the time that the Barnett government had failed to invest in rail and that it was part of some cunning plan to force trucks onto southern suburbs roads. Incidentally, at the same meeting in Beeliar, I think the Leader of the Opposition also said that he would remove Roe 8 from the metropolitan region scheme if he were elected to government. Mr E.S. Ripper interjected. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : I am glad it is the Leader of the Opposition’s commitment; he might just want to tell his shadow Minister for Transport, who is out in that area with one of the opposition’s other shadow ministers, Hon Kate Doust from the other place, telling everyone that they support parts of Roe 8. Here is the Leader of the Opposition saying that he will abolish Roe 8 — Mr E.S. Ripper interjected. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : I will leave this for the Leader of the Opposition to read—“Roe fix for Murdoch”. Two of the Leader of the Opposition’s shadow ministers are out there saying that they support bits of Roe 8. The Leader of the Opposition might as well be truthful when he goes down to Beeliar to speak. I want to move on from that confused message and deal with this government’s commitment to rail. I had a bit of a look the other day at works in progress, and I thought that for a government not committed to rail, we are certainly spending a fair bit of money on it! I might just share some of those examples with the Leader of the Opposition. There is $240 million to extend the railway line north to Butler; $360 million to upgrade the city rail precincts, including the sinking of the rail and significant upgrades to the Perth railway station; $222 million to improve the rail network through regional WA to carry grain; $53 million to improve the railway line from Fremantle to Kewdale; $50 million on new car bays up and down the Joondalup–Mandurah line; and $164 million on new railcars. That adds up to $1.089 billion. I do not think that that is a bad spend by a government, and it shows that we are committed to public transport. In addition, we recently launched our public transport plan. It is a great document; it was well received. It outlines a future for public transport in Western Australia that includes light rail and additional heavy rail. The opposition brought out its plan; I meant to bring it with me but I left it behind. It looked like a version of Barry Jones’ “Spaghetti Noodle Nation”, or whatever it was called, when he was having a bad day. I will close by making a comparison with what the opposition is talking about. There are three issues on which I would like some clarification from the Leader of the Opposition. Firstly, there has been a lot of talk about the opposition’s commitment to invest in tier 3 railway lines. I was at the Dowerin field day last week, and no-one believes it, because in all the Labor Party’s eight years in government, it did not invest one cent in the regional rail network. I have heard the member for Gosnells talking about the railway line that will go from Morley through to Canning Vale. Do members know what one of the last acts of the former Labor government was? It was to try to sell the land that is reserved along that railway line for the railway stations. How could it have built a railway line if it was going to sell the land? The third point is: where does the Labor Party stand on a rail link to Ellenbrook? Mr E.S. Ripper : Where do you stand on it? Mr T.R. BUSWELL : Where do I stand? I stand at exactly the same point as a well-known Western Australian who said that while rail is a long-term solution in relation to Ellenbrook, a fast bus service should be introduced because it would be more cost effective. Does the Leader of the Opposition know who said that? It was not Campbell Newman; he is the former Mayor of Brisbane who wants to rule Queensland. It was the pending mayor of Vincent, who wants the Leader of the Opposition’s job. My question is this: is the Leader of the Opposition committed to funding a railway line to Ellenbrook? Several members interjected. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : I will turn them on! It is a bit like the way he argued against the Malaysian solution. His lips are moving, but the volume is right down! What are the Leader of the Opposition’s plans for Ellenbrook? Put them on the table; we would love to look. Mr E.S. Ripper : Ask me a question and I’ll answer it. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : This person has plans for Ellenbrook. More importantly, Leader of the Opposition, this person has plans for you.
I thank the member very much for that question. He is right: I noted some comments that the Leader of the Opposition made a weekend or two ago when he was down at Beeliar; he said at the time that the Barnett government had failed to invest in rail and that it was part of some cunning plan to force trucks onto southern suburbs roads. Incidentally, at the same meeting in Beeliar, I think the Leader of the Opposition also said that he would remove Roe 8 from the metropolitan region scheme if he were elected to government. Mr E.S. Ripper interjected. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : I am glad it is the Leader of the Opposition’s commitment; he might just want to tell his shadow Minister for Transport, who is out in that area with one of the opposition’s other shadow ministers, Hon Kate Doust from the other place, telling everyone that they support parts of Roe 8. Here is the Leader of the Opposition saying that he will abolish Roe 8 — Mr E.S. Ripper interjected. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : I will leave this for the Leader of the Opposition to read—“Roe fix for Murdoch”. Two of the Leader of the Opposition’s shadow ministers are out there saying that they support bits of Roe 8. The Leader of the Opposition might as well be truthful when he goes down to Beeliar to speak. I want to move on from that confused message and deal with this government’s commitment to rail. I had a bit of a look the other day at works in progress, and I thought that for a government not committed to rail, we are certainly spending a fair bit of money on it! I might just share some of those examples with the Leader of the Opposition. There is $240 million to extend the railway line north to Butler; $360 million to upgrade the city rail precincts, including the sinking of the rail and significant upgrades to the Perth railway station; $222 million to improve the rail network through regional WA to carry grain; $53 million to improve the railway line from Fremantle to Kewdale; $50 million on new car bays up and down the Joondalup–Mandurah line; and $164 million on new railcars. That adds up to $1.089 billion. I do not think that that is a bad spend by a government, and it shows that we are committed to public transport. In addition, we recently launched our public transport plan. It is a great document; it was well received. It outlines a future for public transport in Western Australia that includes light rail and additional heavy rail. The opposition brought out its plan; I meant to bring it with me but I left it behind. It looked like a version of Barry Jones’ “Spaghetti Noodle Nation”, or whatever it was called, when he was having a bad day. I will close by making a comparison with what the opposition is talking about. There are three issues on which I would like some clarification from the Leader of the Opposition. Firstly, there has been a lot of talk about the opposition’s commitment to invest in tier 3 railway lines. I was at the Dowerin field day last week, and no-one believes it, because in all the Labor Party’s eight years in government, it did not invest one cent in the regional rail network. I have heard the member for Gosnells talking about the railway line that will go from Morley through to Canning Vale. Do members know what one of the last acts of the former Labor government was? It was to try to sell the land that is reserved along that railway line for the railway stations. How could it have built a railway line if it was going to sell the land? The third point is: where does the Labor Party stand on a rail link to Ellenbrook? Mr E.S. Ripper : Where do you stand on it? Mr T.R. BUSWELL : Where do I stand? I stand at exactly the same point as a well-known Western Australian who said that while rail is a long-term solution in relation to Ellenbrook, a fast bus service should be introduced because it would be more cost effective. Does the Leader of the Opposition know who said that? It was not Campbell Newman; he is the former Mayor of Brisbane who wants to rule Queensland. It was the pending mayor of Vincent, who wants the Leader of the Opposition’s job. My question is this: is the Leader of the Opposition committed to funding a railway line to Ellenbrook? Several members interjected. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : I will turn them on! It is a bit like the way he argued against the Malaysian solution. His lips are moving, but the volume is right down! What are the Leader of the Opposition’s plans for Ellenbrook? Put them on the table; we would love to look. Mr E.S. Ripper : Ask me a question and I’ll answer it. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : This person has plans for Ellenbrook. More importantly, Leader of the Opposition, this person has plans for you.
Mr E.S. Ripper interjected. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : I am glad it is the Leader of the Opposition’s commitment; he might just want to tell his shadow Minister for Transport, who is out in that area with one of the opposition’s other shadow ministers, Hon Kate Doust from the other place, telling everyone that they support parts of Roe 8. Here is the Leader of the Opposition saying that he will abolish Roe 8 — Mr E.S. Ripper interjected. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : I will leave this for the Leader of the Opposition to read—“Roe fix for Murdoch”. Two of the Leader of the Opposition’s shadow ministers are out there saying that they support bits of Roe 8. The Leader of the Opposition might as well be truthful when he goes down to Beeliar to speak. I want to move on from that confused message and deal with this government’s commitment to rail. I had a bit of a look the other day at works in progress, and I thought that for a government not committed to rail, we are certainly spending a fair bit of money on it! I might just share some of those examples with the Leader of the Opposition. There is $240 million to extend the railway line north to Butler; $360 million to upgrade the city rail precincts, including the sinking of the rail and significant upgrades to the Perth railway station; $222 million to improve the rail network through regional WA to carry grain; $53 million to improve the railway line from Fremantle to Kewdale; $50 million on new car bays up and down the Joondalup–Mandurah line; and $164 million on new railcars. That adds up to $1.089 billion. I do not think that that is a bad spend by a government, and it shows that we are committed to public transport. In addition, we recently launched our public transport plan. It is a great document; it was well received. It outlines a future for public transport in Western Australia that includes light rail and additional heavy rail. The opposition brought out its plan; I meant to bring it with me but I left it behind. It looked like a version of Barry Jones’ “Spaghetti Noodle Nation”, or whatever it was called, when he was having a bad day. I will close by making a comparison with what the opposition is talking about. There are three issues on which I would like some clarification from the Leader of the Opposition. Firstly, there has been a lot of talk about the opposition’s commitment to invest in tier 3 railway lines. I was at the Dowerin field day last week, and no-one believes it, because in all the Labor Party’s eight years in government, it did not invest one cent in the regional rail network. I have heard the member for Gosnells talking about the railway line that will go from Morley through to Canning Vale. Do members know what one of the last acts of the former Labor government was? It was to try to sell the land that is reserved along that railway line for the railway stations. How could it have built a railway line if it was going to sell the land? The third point is: where does the Labor Party stand on a rail link to Ellenbrook? Mr E.S. Ripper : Where do you stand on it? Mr T.R. BUSWELL : Where do I stand? I stand at exactly the same point as a well-known Western Australian who said that while rail is a long-term solution in relation to Ellenbrook, a fast bus service should be introduced because it would be more cost effective. Does the Leader of the Opposition know who said that? It was not Campbell Newman; he is the former Mayor of Brisbane who wants to rule Queensland. It was the pending mayor of Vincent, who wants the Leader of the Opposition’s job. My question is this: is the Leader of the Opposition committed to funding a railway line to Ellenbrook? Several members interjected. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : I will turn them on! It is a bit like the way he argued against the Malaysian solution. His lips are moving, but the volume is right down! What are the Leader of the Opposition’s plans for Ellenbrook? Put them on the table; we would love to look. Mr E.S. Ripper : Ask me a question and I’ll answer it. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : This person has plans for Ellenbrook. More importantly, Leader of the Opposition, this person has plans for you.
Mr T.R. BUSWELL : I am glad it is the Leader of the Opposition’s commitment; he might just want to tell his shadow Minister for Transport, who is out in that area with one of the opposition’s other shadow ministers, Hon Kate Doust from the other place, telling everyone that they support parts of Roe 8. Here is the Leader of the Opposition saying that he will abolish Roe 8 — Mr E.S. Ripper interjected. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : I will leave this for the Leader of the Opposition to read—“Roe fix for Murdoch”. Two of the Leader of the Opposition’s shadow ministers are out there saying that they support bits of Roe 8. The Leader of the Opposition might as well be truthful when he goes down to Beeliar to speak. I want to move on from that confused message and deal with this government’s commitment to rail. I had a bit of a look the other day at works in progress, and I thought that for a government not committed to rail, we are certainly spending a fair bit of money on it! I might just share some of those examples with the Leader of the Opposition. There is $240 million to extend the railway line north to Butler; $360 million to upgrade the city rail precincts, including the sinking of the rail and significant upgrades to the Perth railway station; $222 million to improve the rail network through regional WA to carry grain; $53 million to improve the railway line from Fremantle to Kewdale; $50 million on new car bays up and down the Joondalup–Mandurah line; and $164 million on new railcars. That adds up to $1.089 billion. I do not think that that is a bad spend by a government, and it shows that we are committed to public transport. In addition, we recently launched our public transport plan. It is a great document; it was well received. It outlines a future for public transport in Western Australia that includes light rail and additional heavy rail. The opposition brought out its plan; I meant to bring it with me but I left it behind. It looked like a version of Barry Jones’ “Spaghetti Noodle Nation”, or whatever it was called, when he was having a bad day. I will close by making a comparison with what the opposition is talking about. There are three issues on which I would like some clarification from the Leader of the Opposition. Firstly, there has been a lot of talk about the opposition’s commitment to invest in tier 3 railway lines. I was at the Dowerin field day last week, and no-one believes it, because in all the Labor Party’s eight years in government, it did not invest one cent in the regional rail network. I have heard the member for Gosnells talking about the railway line that will go from Morley through to Canning Vale. Do members know what one of the last acts of the former Labor government was? It was to try to sell the land that is reserved along that railway line for the railway stations. How could it have built a railway line if it was going to sell the land? The third point is: where does the Labor Party stand on a rail link to Ellenbrook? Mr E.S. Ripper : Where do you stand on it? Mr T.R. BUSWELL : Where do I stand? I stand at exactly the same point as a well-known Western Australian who said that while rail is a long-term solution in relation to Ellenbrook, a fast bus service should be introduced because it would be more cost effective. Does the Leader of the Opposition know who said that? It was not Campbell Newman; he is the former Mayor of Brisbane who wants to rule Queensland. It was the pending mayor of Vincent, who wants the Leader of the Opposition’s job. My question is this: is the Leader of the Opposition committed to funding a railway line to Ellenbrook? Several members interjected. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : I will turn them on! It is a bit like the way he argued against the Malaysian solution. His lips are moving, but the volume is right down! What are the Leader of the Opposition’s plans for Ellenbrook? Put them on the table; we would love to look. Mr E.S. Ripper : Ask me a question and I’ll answer it. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : This person has plans for Ellenbrook. More importantly, Leader of the Opposition, this person has plans for you.
Mr E.S. Ripper interjected. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : I will leave this for the Leader of the Opposition to read—“Roe fix for Murdoch”. Two of the Leader of the Opposition’s shadow ministers are out there saying that they support bits of Roe 8. The Leader of the Opposition might as well be truthful when he goes down to Beeliar to speak. I want to move on from that confused message and deal with this government’s commitment to rail. I had a bit of a look the other day at works in progress, and I thought that for a government not committed to rail, we are certainly spending a fair bit of money on it! I might just share some of those examples with the Leader of the Opposition. There is $240 million to extend the railway line north to Butler; $360 million to upgrade the city rail precincts, including the sinking of the rail and significant upgrades to the Perth railway station; $222 million to improve the rail network through regional WA to carry grain; $53 million to improve the railway line from Fremantle to Kewdale; $50 million on new car bays up and down the Joondalup–Mandurah line; and $164 million on new railcars. That adds up to $1.089 billion. I do not think that that is a bad spend by a government, and it shows that we are committed to public transport. In addition, we recently launched our public transport plan. It is a great document; it was well received. It outlines a future for public transport in Western Australia that includes light rail and additional heavy rail. The opposition brought out its plan; I meant to bring it with me but I left it behind. It looked like a version of Barry Jones’ “Spaghetti Noodle Nation”, or whatever it was called, when he was having a bad day. I will close by making a comparison with what the opposition is talking about. There are three issues on which I would like some clarification from the Leader of the Opposition. Firstly, there has been a lot of talk about the opposition’s commitment to invest in tier 3 railway lines. I was at the Dowerin field day last week, and no-one believes it, because in all the Labor Party’s eight years in government, it did not invest one cent in the regional rail network. I have heard the member for Gosnells talking about the railway line that will go from Morley through to Canning Vale. Do members know what one of the last acts of the former Labor government was? It was to try to sell the land that is reserved along that railway line for the railway stations. How could it have built a railway line if it was going to sell the land? The third point is: where does the Labor Party stand on a rail link to Ellenbrook? Mr E.S. Ripper : Where do you stand on it? Mr T.R. BUSWELL : Where do I stand? I stand at exactly the same point as a well-known Western Australian who said that while rail is a long-term solution in relation to Ellenbrook, a fast bus service should be introduced because it would be more cost effective. Does the Leader of the Opposition know who said that? It was not Campbell Newman; he is the former Mayor of Brisbane who wants to rule Queensland. It was the pending mayor of Vincent, who wants the Leader of the Opposition’s job. My question is this: is the Leader of the Opposition committed to funding a railway line to Ellenbrook? Several members interjected. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : I will turn them on! It is a bit like the way he argued against the Malaysian solution. His lips are moving, but the volume is right down! What are the Leader of the Opposition’s plans for Ellenbrook? Put them on the table; we would love to look. Mr E.S. Ripper : Ask me a question and I’ll answer it. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : This person has plans for Ellenbrook. More importantly, Leader of the Opposition, this person has plans for you.
Mr T.R. BUSWELL : I will leave this for the Leader of the Opposition to read—“Roe fix for Murdoch”. Two of the Leader of the Opposition’s shadow ministers are out there saying that they support bits of Roe 8. The Leader of the Opposition might as well be truthful when he goes down to Beeliar to speak. I want to move on from that confused message and deal with this government’s commitment to rail. I had a bit of a look the other day at works in progress, and I thought that for a government not committed to rail, we are certainly spending a fair bit of money on it! I might just share some of those examples with the Leader of the Opposition. There is $240 million to extend the railway line north to Butler; $360 million to upgrade the city rail precincts, including the sinking of the rail and significant upgrades to the Perth railway station; $222 million to improve the rail network through regional WA to carry grain; $53 million to improve the railway line from Fremantle to Kewdale; $50 million on new car bays up and down the Joondalup–Mandurah line; and $164 million on new railcars. That adds up to $1.089 billion. I do not think that that is a bad spend by a government, and it shows that we are committed to public transport. In addition, we recently launched our public transport plan. It is a great document; it was well received. It outlines a future for public transport in Western Australia that includes light rail and additional heavy rail. The opposition brought out its plan; I meant to bring it with me but I left it behind. It looked like a version of Barry Jones’ “Spaghetti Noodle Nation”, or whatever it was called, when he was having a bad day. I will close by making a comparison with what the opposition is talking about. There are three issues on which I would like some clarification from the Leader of the Opposition. Firstly, there has been a lot of talk about the opposition’s commitment to invest in tier 3 railway lines. I was at the Dowerin field day last week, and no-one believes it, because in all the Labor Party’s eight years in government, it did not invest one cent in the regional rail network. I have heard the member for Gosnells talking about the railway line that will go from Morley through to Canning Vale. Do members know what one of the last acts of the former Labor government was? It was to try to sell the land that is reserved along that railway line for the railway stations. How could it have built a railway line if it was going to sell the land? The third point is: where does the Labor Party stand on a rail link to Ellenbrook? Mr E.S. Ripper : Where do you stand on it? Mr T.R. BUSWELL : Where do I stand? I stand at exactly the same point as a well-known Western Australian who said that while rail is a long-term solution in relation to Ellenbrook, a fast bus service should be introduced because it would be more cost effective. Does the Leader of the Opposition know who said that? It was not Campbell Newman; he is the former Mayor of Brisbane who wants to rule Queensland. It was the pending mayor of Vincent, who wants the Leader of the Opposition’s job. My question is this: is the Leader of the Opposition committed to funding a railway line to Ellenbrook? Several members interjected. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : I will turn them on! It is a bit like the way he argued against the Malaysian solution. His lips are moving, but the volume is right down! What are the Leader of the Opposition’s plans for Ellenbrook? Put them on the table; we would love to look. Mr E.S. Ripper : Ask me a question and I’ll answer it. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : This person has plans for Ellenbrook. More importantly, Leader of the Opposition, this person has plans for you.
I want to move on from that confused message and deal with this government’s commitment to rail. I had a bit of a look the other day at works in progress, and I thought that for a government not committed to rail, we are certainly spending a fair bit of money on it! I might just share some of those examples with the Leader of the Opposition. There is $240 million to extend the railway line north to Butler; $360 million to upgrade the city rail precincts, including the sinking of the rail and significant upgrades to the Perth railway station; $222 million to improve the rail network through regional WA to carry grain; $53 million to improve the railway line from Fremantle to Kewdale; $50 million on new car bays up and down the Joondalup–Mandurah line; and $164 million on new railcars. That adds up to $1.089 billion. I do not think that that is a bad spend by a government, and it shows that we are committed to public transport. In addition, we recently launched our public transport plan. It is a great document; it was well received. It outlines a future for public transport in Western Australia that includes light rail and additional heavy rail. The opposition brought out its plan; I meant to bring it with me but I left it behind. It looked like a version of Barry Jones’ “Spaghetti Noodle Nation”, or whatever it was called, when he was having a bad day. I will close by making a comparison with what the opposition is talking about. There are three issues on which I would like some clarification from the Leader of the Opposition. Firstly, there has been a lot of talk about the opposition’s commitment to invest in tier 3 railway lines. I was at the Dowerin field day last week, and no-one believes it, because in all the Labor Party’s eight years in government, it did not invest one cent in the regional rail network. I have heard the member for Gosnells talking about the railway line that will go from Morley through to Canning Vale. Do members know what one of the last acts of the former Labor government was? It was to try to sell the land that is reserved along that railway line for the railway stations. How could it have built a railway line if it was going to sell the land? The third point is: where does the Labor Party stand on a rail link to Ellenbrook? Mr E.S. Ripper : Where do you stand on it? Mr T.R. BUSWELL : Where do I stand? I stand at exactly the same point as a well-known Western Australian who said that while rail is a long-term solution in relation to Ellenbrook, a fast bus service should be introduced because it would be more cost effective. Does the Leader of the Opposition know who said that? It was not Campbell Newman; he is the former Mayor of Brisbane who wants to rule Queensland. It was the pending mayor of Vincent, who wants the Leader of the Opposition’s job. My question is this: is the Leader of the Opposition committed to funding a railway line to Ellenbrook? Several members interjected. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : I will turn them on! It is a bit like the way he argued against the Malaysian solution. His lips are moving, but the volume is right down! What are the Leader of the Opposition’s plans for Ellenbrook? Put them on the table; we would love to look. Mr E.S. Ripper : Ask me a question and I’ll answer it. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : This person has plans for Ellenbrook. More importantly, Leader of the Opposition, this person has plans for you.
I will close by making a comparison with what the opposition is talking about. There are three issues on which I would like some clarification from the Leader of the Opposition. Firstly, there has been a lot of talk about the opposition’s commitment to invest in tier 3 railway lines. I was at the Dowerin field day last week, and no-one believes it, because in all the Labor Party’s eight years in government, it did not invest one cent in the regional rail network. I have heard the member for Gosnells talking about the railway line that will go from Morley through to Canning Vale. Do members know what one of the last acts of the former Labor government was? It was to try to sell the land that is reserved along that railway line for the railway stations. How could it have built a railway line if it was going to sell the land? The third point is: where does the Labor Party stand on a rail link to Ellenbrook? Mr E.S. Ripper : Where do you stand on it? Mr T.R. BUSWELL : Where do I stand? I stand at exactly the same point as a well-known Western Australian who said that while rail is a long-term solution in relation to Ellenbrook, a fast bus service should be introduced because it would be more cost effective. Does the Leader of the Opposition know who said that? It was not Campbell Newman; he is the former Mayor of Brisbane who wants to rule Queensland. It was the pending mayor of Vincent, who wants the Leader of the Opposition’s job. My question is this: is the Leader of the Opposition committed to funding a railway line to Ellenbrook? Several members interjected. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : I will turn them on! It is a bit like the way he argued against the Malaysian solution. His lips are moving, but the volume is right down! What are the Leader of the Opposition’s plans for Ellenbrook? Put them on the table; we would love to look. Mr E.S. Ripper : Ask me a question and I’ll answer it. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : This person has plans for Ellenbrook. More importantly, Leader of the Opposition, this person has plans for you.
Mr E.S. Ripper : Where do you stand on it? Mr T.R. BUSWELL : Where do I stand? I stand at exactly the same point as a well-known Western Australian who said that while rail is a long-term solution in relation to Ellenbrook, a fast bus service should be introduced because it would be more cost effective. Does the Leader of the Opposition know who said that? It was not Campbell Newman; he is the former Mayor of Brisbane who wants to rule Queensland. It was the pending mayor of Vincent, who wants the Leader of the Opposition’s job. My question is this: is the Leader of the Opposition committed to funding a railway line to Ellenbrook? Several members interjected. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : I will turn them on! It is a bit like the way he argued against the Malaysian solution. His lips are moving, but the volume is right down! What are the Leader of the Opposition’s plans for Ellenbrook? Put them on the table; we would love to look. Mr E.S. Ripper : Ask me a question and I’ll answer it. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : This person has plans for Ellenbrook. More importantly, Leader of the Opposition, this person has plans for you.
Mr T.R. BUSWELL : Where do I stand? I stand at exactly the same point as a well-known Western Australian who said that while rail is a long-term solution in relation to Ellenbrook, a fast bus service should be introduced because it would be more cost effective. Does the Leader of the Opposition know who said that? It was not Campbell Newman; he is the former Mayor of Brisbane who wants to rule Queensland. It was the pending mayor of Vincent, who wants the Leader of the Opposition’s job. My question is this: is the Leader of the Opposition committed to funding a railway line to Ellenbrook? Several members interjected. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : I will turn them on! It is a bit like the way he argued against the Malaysian solution. His lips are moving, but the volume is right down! What are the Leader of the Opposition’s plans for Ellenbrook? Put them on the table; we would love to look. Mr E.S. Ripper : Ask me a question and I’ll answer it. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : This person has plans for Ellenbrook. More importantly, Leader of the Opposition, this person has plans for you.
Several members interjected. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : I will turn them on! It is a bit like the way he argued against the Malaysian solution. His lips are moving, but the volume is right down! What are the Leader of the Opposition’s plans for Ellenbrook? Put them on the table; we would love to look. Mr E.S. Ripper : Ask me a question and I’ll answer it. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : This person has plans for Ellenbrook. More importantly, Leader of the Opposition, this person has plans for you.
Mr T.R. BUSWELL : I will turn them on! It is a bit like the way he argued against the Malaysian solution. His lips are moving, but the volume is right down! What are the Leader of the Opposition’s plans for Ellenbrook? Put them on the table; we would love to look. Mr E.S. Ripper : Ask me a question and I’ll answer it. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : This person has plans for Ellenbrook. More importantly, Leader of the Opposition, this person has plans for you.
Mr E.S. Ripper : Ask me a question and I’ll answer it. Mr T.R. BUSWELL : This person has plans for Ellenbrook. More importantly, Leader of the Opposition, this person has plans for you.
Mr T.R. BUSWELL : This person has plans for Ellenbrook. More importantly, Leader of the Opposition, this person has plans for you.
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