❓ Mr. Love questions the Minister for Transport about delays to Metronet projects, specifically the Thornlie-Cockburn Link and the Armadale line. The Minister responds by criticizing the opposition's past record on public transport and defends the government's current investment and delivery of projects.
AnsweredQoN 531Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
METRONET PROJECTS — TIME FRAME
531. Mr R.S. LOVE to the Minister for Transport:
I refer to the Minister for
Transport's latest Metronet project timetable.
(1) Can the
minister confirm that the opening of the Thornlie–Cockburn Link will be
delayed until mid-2025 due to this week's announced delay to the
shutdown of the Armadale line?
(2) Given the
minister's three-year delay in delivering the Forrestfield–Airport
Link, will the minister be able to tell residents on the Armadale line that her
revised timetable can be delivered?
531. Mr R.S. LOVE to the Minister for Transport:
I refer to the Minister for
Transport's latest Metronet project timetable.
(1) Can the
minister confirm that the opening of the Thornlie–Cockburn Link will be
delayed until mid-2025 due to this week's announced delay to the
shutdown of the Armadale line?
(2) Given the
minister's three-year delay in delivering the Forrestfield–Airport
Link, will the minister be able to tell residents on the Armadale line that her
revised timetable can be delivered?
AnswerView source ↗
(1)–(2) I
love getting questions on Metronet from the opposition. I love it because, yet
again, it is a chance to outline the history of those opposite on public
transport in Western Australia.
Ms M.J. Davies : The question
is about your record.
Ms R. SAFFIOTI : Have you
finished?
Let us go through their record. Does
everyone remember MAX light rail? Can everyone remember that? Members opposite went out in 2013 and said, ''We're
going to build a light rail line called MAX.'' They gave it a name. They built merchandise.
Ms L. Mettam : You said 2020.
Ms
R. SAFFIOTI : Dial-a-quote—the
member for Vasse! Any matter—she will make a comment on it.
Particularly when the media give her the lines, the member for Vasse is
ready to go and run them.
So, members opposite named it and
made merchandise. They told people to buy property along the rail line, and
then they came in and said, ''It's too hard. This public transport
is a bit harder than we thought.''
Let us go to the Ellenbrook rail
line. It is one of my favourites. In 2008, members opposite committed to
building a rail line to Ellenbrook, and what
did they do? Nothing. They recommitted to it in 2013, and what do they do?
Nothing.
Let us go to the Forrestfield–Airport
Link, as many may not know the history. Do members know when members opposite
committed to it? It was in January 2013. The then Treasurer—the member
for Vasse's idol—Mr Buswell went out carrying a suitcase and
said, ''Labor's plan for a rail line is not great. Look at our
plan for a rail line.'' Does anyone remember it? Then they did another
media stunt and said they would deliver it by 2018. In four years, the former
government did nothing. When we arrived in office, the tunnel-boring machine
was not even here. We have put together the tunnel-boring machine and we have
built the rail line.
With
respect to the member's question, yes, we announced it in a media
statement. Again, I know members of the opposition do not like reading.
They do not like reading our media statements and they do not like reading
budget papers either. I thought the member was going to ask a question about
the budget, and I was going to say, ''There's this thing you can
read called the budget papers. It has a lot of good information in it.''
Every week, they say we are being secret about our costs. The members will find
the costs are in the budget papers.
Mr R.S. Love : They don't
actually bear much resemblance to your current reality.
Ms R. SAFFIOTI : What?
Mr R.S. Love : Your budgets
are blowing out daily.
Ms R. SAFFIOTI : What?
The FAL was delivered on budget for
$1.86 billion. Yes, we are working with industry because we have the biggest transformation of the public transport system ever
seen. As I said, whether it is nurses in the hospital saying, ''I can't believe what you're doing with
public transport in WA'', or whether it is at a cafe or the butchers,
people are constantly saying, ''Wherever we go, there is
infrastructure.'' I think everyone knows. Just to put some more facts to
it, last year our budget expenditure in the transport portfolio was $3.2 billion.
We spent 98 per cent of that figure. In these times and with these issues, we
are spending basically 100 per cent of our transport investment. We are seeing
a complete modernisation of the system.
Members
may not know that I love star signs. A couple of weeks ago, I walked into the
cafe and someone was reading some star signs. I said, ''Let's
look at mine for today.'' It was an interesting one. It said —
Be extra careful when emailing,
texting or tweeting today.
That was my star sign. I thought it
was probably better for the Leader of the Liberal Party that day, but anyway. I just thought I would check what the member for
Moore's star sign would have said that day, and I think it is relevant today, too —
If you meddle in other people's
affairs or engage in garrulous gossip, then you could end up with egg on your
face. Check the facts before you open your mouth.
That was the star sign of the member
for Moore.
Several members interjected.
The SPEAKER : Order, please!
Member for Southern River!
love getting questions on Metronet from the opposition. I love it because, yet
again, it is a chance to outline the history of those opposite on public
transport in Western Australia.
Ms M.J. Davies : The question
is about your record.
Ms R. SAFFIOTI : Have you
finished?
Let us go through their record. Does
everyone remember MAX light rail? Can everyone remember that? Members opposite went out in 2013 and said, ''We're
going to build a light rail line called MAX.'' They gave it a name. They built merchandise.
Ms L. Mettam : You said 2020.
Ms
R. SAFFIOTI : Dial-a-quote—the
member for Vasse! Any matter—she will make a comment on it.
Particularly when the media give her the lines, the member for Vasse is
ready to go and run them.
So, members opposite named it and
made merchandise. They told people to buy property along the rail line, and
then they came in and said, ''It's too hard. This public transport
is a bit harder than we thought.''
Let us go to the Ellenbrook rail
line. It is one of my favourites. In 2008, members opposite committed to
building a rail line to Ellenbrook, and what
did they do? Nothing. They recommitted to it in 2013, and what do they do?
Nothing.
Let us go to the Forrestfield–Airport
Link, as many may not know the history. Do members know when members opposite
committed to it? It was in January 2013. The then Treasurer—the member
for Vasse's idol—Mr Buswell went out carrying a suitcase and
said, ''Labor's plan for a rail line is not great. Look at our
plan for a rail line.'' Does anyone remember it? Then they did another
media stunt and said they would deliver it by 2018. In four years, the former
government did nothing. When we arrived in office, the tunnel-boring machine
was not even here. We have put together the tunnel-boring machine and we have
built the rail line.
With
respect to the member's question, yes, we announced it in a media
statement. Again, I know members of the opposition do not like reading.
They do not like reading our media statements and they do not like reading
budget papers either. I thought the member was going to ask a question about
the budget, and I was going to say, ''There's this thing you can
read called the budget papers. It has a lot of good information in it.''
Every week, they say we are being secret about our costs. The members will find
the costs are in the budget papers.
Mr R.S. Love : They don't
actually bear much resemblance to your current reality.
Ms R. SAFFIOTI : What?
Mr R.S. Love : Your budgets
are blowing out daily.
Ms R. SAFFIOTI : What?
The FAL was delivered on budget for
$1.86 billion. Yes, we are working with industry because we have the biggest transformation of the public transport system ever
seen. As I said, whether it is nurses in the hospital saying, ''I can't believe what you're doing with
public transport in WA'', or whether it is at a cafe or the butchers,
people are constantly saying, ''Wherever we go, there is
infrastructure.'' I think everyone knows. Just to put some more facts to
it, last year our budget expenditure in the transport portfolio was $3.2 billion.
We spent 98 per cent of that figure. In these times and with these issues, we
are spending basically 100 per cent of our transport investment. We are seeing
a complete modernisation of the system.
Members
may not know that I love star signs. A couple of weeks ago, I walked into the
cafe and someone was reading some star signs. I said, ''Let's
look at mine for today.'' It was an interesting one. It said —
Be extra careful when emailing,
texting or tweeting today.
That was my star sign. I thought it
was probably better for the Leader of the Liberal Party that day, but anyway. I just thought I would check what the member for
Moore's star sign would have said that day, and I think it is relevant today, too —
If you meddle in other people's
affairs or engage in garrulous gossip, then you could end up with egg on your
face. Check the facts before you open your mouth.
That was the star sign of the member
for Moore.
Several members interjected.
The SPEAKER : Order, please!
Member for Southern River!
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