Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Amendment (Local Industry Preference) Bill 2026
Mr GEE (Calare) (10:18): I second the motion and I second the bill. I commend the member for Fowler for bringing it to this House. The member for Fowler loves Australia.
She loves her electorate's manufacturing. She just loves it! We've got to support Australian manufacturing, and this bill, the Public Governance, Performance and Accountability Amendment (Local Industry Preference) Bill 2026, is about shoring up important Australian industry, backing in Aussie jobs and creating a more resilient and sovereign domestic manufacturing industry.
You know what? When the Commonwealth is going through its procurement processes for federal projects, why shouldn't we be backing in Australian manufacturing? Why should we be outsourcing not only services but also manufacturing in key materials like steel, and its fabrication?
Why would that go overseas, when we should be backing in Australian manufacturing? Out where we are, in the Central West of New South Wales, we've got agriculture and we've got a lot of food processing, but we also have hardcore manufacturing as well. I want to mention one firm that is really leading the way on this, and that is ICR Engineering in Blayney.
It's been around for 45 years, and it's a family-run business. ICR Engineering have done some big projects. They have held a contract with the state government's National Parks and Wildlife Service to manufacture ute bodies for their fire service units.
It was a trouble-free contract. They've built the Central West Equestrian and Livestock Centre at Blayney—a great project—and many other projects. They employ 32 people against the odds, when we see so many jobs, and manufacturing jobs, going offshore.
Against the odds, we have firms like ICR Engineering actually achieving. So we've got to back them in. We can do it in Australia; we can do it in country Australia.
I'd like to thank Ian Reeks, Roxanne Reeks, Justin Fardon, Amy Reeks, Nick Reeks and Matthew Reeks for the wonderful work that they do and for showing that we can still make things in Australia. As to the Future Made in Australia legislation that went through this House, one of the amendments that I tried to get through was to expand it to food processing and agriculture.
Out in the Central West, we make Chiko Rolls in Bathurst, we make Nutella in Lithgow, we make flour and canola oil at Manildra and we make pet food in Blayney and in Bathurst. We're an agricultural food bowl, and we need to be supporting those things that we're good at. So let's get behind our manufacturers, our food processors and our primary producers.
I back this bill to the hilt. The SPEAKER: The time allotted for this debate has expired. The debate is adjourned and the resumption of the debate will be made an order of the day for the next sitting.