❓ Mr. Miles questions the Minister for Transport regarding the status of the Butler train station project after hearing conflicting information. The Minister responds by criticizing Hon Ken Travers's comments and clarifying the project's timeline, leading to points of order and further debate.
AnsweredQoN 656Legislative Assembly
QuestionView source ↗
BUTLER TRAIN STATION
656. Mr P. Miles to the
Minister for Transport:
Listening to the radio, driving in this morning, I was
shocked and mortified to learn that Hon Ken Travers said that the Butler train
station project had been postponed. As the minister is aware, I will visit that
site tomorrow. With my visit in mind, can the minister please update the house
on the status and importance of the project?
656. Mr P. Miles to the
Minister for Transport:
Listening to the radio, driving in this morning, I was
shocked and mortified to learn that Hon Ken Travers said that the Butler train
station project had been postponed. As the minister is aware, I will visit that
site tomorrow. With my visit in mind, can the minister please update the house
on the status and importance of the project?
AnswerView source ↗
I thank the member for Wanneroo. I hope that he has recovered
from the shock of hearing Hon Kenny Travers on the radio making all sorts of —
Point of Order
Mrs
M.H. ROBERTS : The Treasurer is referring to a member of the upper
house and there are protocols in standing orders as to how those members are to
be referred to.
The
SPEAKER : I think he referred to him correctly, as Hon Kenny Travers.
Mrs M.H. ROBERTS :
If I can quote to you Mr Speaker, he used the words ''Kenny Travers''.
The SPEAKER : Carry
on, Treasurer.
Questions without Notice Resumed
Mr T.R. BUSWELL :
Let me correct the record—Hon Kenneth Travers. He is known to some as
Ken, others as Kenny and others as ''Goldfinger'', but we will
not revisit that.
Point of Order
Mrs
M.H. ROBERTS : The Treasurer is again using unparliamentary language.
He is now referring to the member as ''Goldfinger''. It is rather
pathetic that members of the government laugh at that. Under the standing
orders members of the upper house are to be referred to by their name, as in
Hon Ken Travers.
The
SPEAKER : Treasurer.
Questions without Notice Resumed
Mr T.R. BUSWELL : I
thank the Speaker. I will take his guidance.
Steve Mills runs a segment called ''Eyes and Ears of
Perth'' on his 6PR radio breakfast show. The show consists of people out
in the community getting the facts that no-one else knows. Hon Ken Travers
comes on and says that he has just heard through the ''Eyes and Ears of
Perth'' segment—hot off the press—that the train station
will be finished in January next year but the line will not be up and running
until later that year. There is a period between when the station will be
finished and the trains will start rolling down the track. Of course, Hon Ken
Travers is quick off the mark; he was out of bed at 7.20 something this morning
and is on the blower to Steve Mills, and he says ''Millsy, here is the
issue.'' He says, ''There are no trains and because there are no
trains there will a gap between when the station is finished and when the
trains start to chuff up and down the line.'' I thought that I had
better find out if this is the case. What did I find? It is not the case. It is
completely wrong. I have a couple of things to say on the project. First, it is
not top secret. Here is the media release that we put out last week about the
station. In it I state —
The Butler extension is on time
and on budget with the station itself due for completion early next year, after
which engineers will begin work on signalling and electrical components of the
project
By the end of 2014, the residents
of Butler and other nearby suburbs will be coming in droves to use this modern
station.
Mr B.S. Wyatt : So
he is right.
Mr T.R. BUSWELL :
No, he is not right.
Mr
B.S. Wyatt : It will not be open until late next year.
Mr
T.R. BUSWELL : Let me finish, member for Victoria Park. It is not top
secret; it was in a media statement that we put out last week. I made some
inquiries about the delay. The reason there is a delay between when a station
is finished and when trains can run up and down the lines is that there is a
whole lot of other work to be done around signalling and engineering work. This
has to be done before a station can open. I could not comfortably rest on the
advice of the Public Transport Authority, so I went to the Labor government
transport bible. Members who have been here for a while may remember this great
piece of Labor propaganda, 48 months, 48
minutes . It is the history of the Perth–Mandurah rail project. Members
may recall that there are a large number of photos of the former minister for
transport, Alannah MacTiernan, peppered through it.
This is what happened on the Mandurah project —
Ms R. Saffioti interjected.
The SPEAKER :
Member for West Swan!
Mr T.R. BUSWELL :
In January 2007 —
Several members interjected.
The SPEAKER : I
call the member for Mandurah to order for the first time.
Mr
D.J. Kelly interjected.
The
SPEAKER : I call the member for Bassendean to order for the first time.
Mr
T.R. BUSWELL : I want members opposite to listen to this: in January 2007,
the Mandurah railway station was completed. In December 2007—about a
year later—the first train ran down the line. Why is that? Because of
exactly the same —
Ms R. Saffioti interjected.
The SPEAKER :
Member for West Swan, I call you to order for the second time.
Mr T.R. BUSWELL :
It is exactly the same reason that there is a delay between the finishing of
the station and the opening of the Butler line. That is why it is called
engineering works!
Dr A.D. Buti interjected.
The
SPEAKER : Member for Armadale, I call you to order for the second time.
Mr T.R. BUSWELL : I
am having trouble coming off a long run on this one, so I will close with the
following observation about the assertion that there are no trains: it is
absolutely false. In fact, tomorrow the first of the new order of trains placed
by this government at a cost of $244 million will deliver 22 three-car sets.
The first of those train carriages rolls onto the line at Midland and will go
into service over the next couple of weeks. Not to be trumped by the Minister
for Emergency Services, I am holding up the schedule under which those train
carriages will flow to the state. Members can clearly see seven carriages by
the time the Butler extension opens next year. I have two conclusions: firstly,
the line will open on schedule and on budget; and, secondly, member for
Wanneroo, when it comes to transport, Hon
Ken Travers and the truth are rarely passengers in the same carriage!
from the shock of hearing Hon Kenny Travers on the radio making all sorts of —
Point of Order
Mrs
M.H. ROBERTS : The Treasurer is referring to a member of the upper
house and there are protocols in standing orders as to how those members are to
be referred to.
The
SPEAKER : I think he referred to him correctly, as Hon Kenny Travers.
Mrs M.H. ROBERTS :
If I can quote to you Mr Speaker, he used the words ''Kenny Travers''.
The SPEAKER : Carry
on, Treasurer.
Questions without Notice Resumed
Mr T.R. BUSWELL :
Let me correct the record—Hon Kenneth Travers. He is known to some as
Ken, others as Kenny and others as ''Goldfinger'', but we will
not revisit that.
Point of Order
Mrs
M.H. ROBERTS : The Treasurer is again using unparliamentary language.
He is now referring to the member as ''Goldfinger''. It is rather
pathetic that members of the government laugh at that. Under the standing
orders members of the upper house are to be referred to by their name, as in
Hon Ken Travers.
The
SPEAKER : Treasurer.
Questions without Notice Resumed
Mr T.R. BUSWELL : I
thank the Speaker. I will take his guidance.
Steve Mills runs a segment called ''Eyes and Ears of
Perth'' on his 6PR radio breakfast show. The show consists of people out
in the community getting the facts that no-one else knows. Hon Ken Travers
comes on and says that he has just heard through the ''Eyes and Ears of
Perth'' segment—hot off the press—that the train station
will be finished in January next year but the line will not be up and running
until later that year. There is a period between when the station will be
finished and the trains will start rolling down the track. Of course, Hon Ken
Travers is quick off the mark; he was out of bed at 7.20 something this morning
and is on the blower to Steve Mills, and he says ''Millsy, here is the
issue.'' He says, ''There are no trains and because there are no
trains there will a gap between when the station is finished and when the
trains start to chuff up and down the line.'' I thought that I had
better find out if this is the case. What did I find? It is not the case. It is
completely wrong. I have a couple of things to say on the project. First, it is
not top secret. Here is the media release that we put out last week about the
station. In it I state —
The Butler extension is on time
and on budget with the station itself due for completion early next year, after
which engineers will begin work on signalling and electrical components of the
project
By the end of 2014, the residents
of Butler and other nearby suburbs will be coming in droves to use this modern
station.
Mr B.S. Wyatt : So
he is right.
Mr T.R. BUSWELL :
No, he is not right.
Mr
B.S. Wyatt : It will not be open until late next year.
Mr
T.R. BUSWELL : Let me finish, member for Victoria Park. It is not top
secret; it was in a media statement that we put out last week. I made some
inquiries about the delay. The reason there is a delay between when a station
is finished and when trains can run up and down the lines is that there is a
whole lot of other work to be done around signalling and engineering work. This
has to be done before a station can open. I could not comfortably rest on the
advice of the Public Transport Authority, so I went to the Labor government
transport bible. Members who have been here for a while may remember this great
piece of Labor propaganda, 48 months, 48
minutes . It is the history of the Perth–Mandurah rail project. Members
may recall that there are a large number of photos of the former minister for
transport, Alannah MacTiernan, peppered through it.
This is what happened on the Mandurah project —
Ms R. Saffioti interjected.
The SPEAKER :
Member for West Swan!
Mr T.R. BUSWELL :
In January 2007 —
Several members interjected.
The SPEAKER : I
call the member for Mandurah to order for the first time.
Mr
D.J. Kelly interjected.
The
SPEAKER : I call the member for Bassendean to order for the first time.
Mr
T.R. BUSWELL : I want members opposite to listen to this: in January 2007,
the Mandurah railway station was completed. In December 2007—about a
year later—the first train ran down the line. Why is that? Because of
exactly the same —
Ms R. Saffioti interjected.
The SPEAKER :
Member for West Swan, I call you to order for the second time.
Mr T.R. BUSWELL :
It is exactly the same reason that there is a delay between the finishing of
the station and the opening of the Butler line. That is why it is called
engineering works!
Dr A.D. Buti interjected.
The
SPEAKER : Member for Armadale, I call you to order for the second time.
Mr T.R. BUSWELL : I
am having trouble coming off a long run on this one, so I will close with the
following observation about the assertion that there are no trains: it is
absolutely false. In fact, tomorrow the first of the new order of trains placed
by this government at a cost of $244 million will deliver 22 three-car sets.
The first of those train carriages rolls onto the line at Midland and will go
into service over the next couple of weeks. Not to be trumped by the Minister
for Emergency Services, I am holding up the schedule under which those train
carriages will flow to the state. Members can clearly see seven carriages by
the time the Butler extension opens next year. I have two conclusions: firstly,
the line will open on schedule and on budget; and, secondly, member for
Wanneroo, when it comes to transport, Hon
Ken Travers and the truth are rarely passengers in the same carriage!
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