Mr REPACHOLI (Hunter) (10:52):

As Dorothea Mackellar said, we're a land of drought and flooding rains. There is no doubt that the harsh weather has had an impact on our road network. The Hunter has been impacted by that weather as much as any other area. Less than a month after I was declared the member for Hunter, my electorate was smashed by floods that cut a swathe of damage throughout the Hunter. Roads right across the Hunter electorate, from Lake Macquarie to Muswellbrook, were severely damaged. Unlike those opposite, who did nothing to help following the bushfires that ravaged parts of the Hunter in 2019 and 2020, the Albanese government stepped up and delivered to the areas impacted by these weather events. We provided councils with 100 per cent of the 2023-24 financial assistance grants-that is 200 million as part of the Infrastructure Betterment Fund to help recovery efforts focus on rebuilding damaged and destroyed infrastructure, such as bridges and stormwater drainage, in a more resilient way. In a further show of bipartisanship, the NSW government and the federal government provided 560 million to the Singleton Bypass, which is underway and expected to be open to traffic late 2026.

Likewise, we have committed 4.5 million between state and federal governments to raise the Kilfoyles Bridge at Lambs Valley. If you listened to those opposite, you would think nothing is happening-that not a single bit of roadworks has been undertaken. It is like the little boy who cried wolf. They have told so many fake stories about road funding that they are beginning to believe their own lies.

The Albanese Labor government continues to deliver on its commitment to improve road safety in the Hunter by significantly increasing funding available to local councils to maintain and upgrade their road networks. The Roads to Recovery funding will rise gradually from 1 billion per year. Black spot funding will also increase from the current annual commitment of 150 million. The Heavy Vehicle Safety and Productivity Program and the Bridges Renewal Program will be merged into a new Safer Local Roads and Infrastructure Program. The amount of funding for the new program will also gradually increase such that 150 million total annual investment in the Heavy Vehicle Safety and Productivity Program and the Bridges Renewal Program.

These programs are already having a significant impact on road quality and safety in New South Wales communities, with millions of dollars flowing to local councils under Roads to Recovery funding. In addition, a combined total of more than $440 million has been provided to New South Wales across the life of the Heavy Vehicle Safety and Productivity Program and the Bridges Renewal Program. Those opposite want to play petty political games and are so miserable about the great work that we are doing that, if you gave them a straw, they would suck the fun out of someone else's day. This motion is a perfect example of that.