ADJOURNMENT

Mr ROB MITCHELL (McEwen) (19:55): I rise tonight to speak about something that matters deeply to the people of McEwen: the essential investment in infrastructure and jobs needed to support our growing community. Three weeks ago, I welcomed my good friend and colleague the Deputy Prime Minister to McEwen to visit two major projects that demonstrate exactly what Labor governments can deliver when we invest in growing communities.

Our first stop was the Beveridge Intermodal Precinct. This is a transformational project not only for our community, or for Victoria, but for our national freight network. The $1.62 billion Beveridge Intermodal Precinct will create thousands of jobs, attract billions of dollars in economic activity and establish Melbourne's north as a major employment and logistics hub.

For the people in our community it means something very simple: more jobs closer to home. For generations, people in our community have headed down the Hume Highway every morning to work, and as our population has exploded that commute has become longer and harder. The Beveridge intermodal will change that.

Construction and ongoing operations at the precinct are expected to create some 8,000 onsite jobs, with an anticipated total of 17,000 roles once ancillary businesses are up and running. On top of that, we're investing in the roads that are needed to make that growth work, including over $900 million towards the Camerons Lane Interchange and the associated infrastructure.

It provides the critical connection between the Hume Freeway and the Beveridge precinct, while improving connectivity, reducing congestion and helping unlock further development across our rapidly growing region. This is what serious investment looks like. Our next stop was the Mernda sports precinct, where our $10 million investment via the Thriving Suburbs Program will deliver a four-court stadium with changerooms, accessible toilets and operational spaces such as a reception, kiosk and storage.

This stadium is delivering new indoor netball and basketball facilities for our local families and sporting clubs, which have been desperately in need—but it doesn't stop with the stadium. As part of the sports precinct, we have also funded eight outdoor netball courts with $1.5 million from the Play Our Way program. This will help our communities, including the Northern Pride Netball Association.

It's easy to only think about housing when we talk about growing communities, but our community knows the importance of having the infrastructure to support that growth. That is why Labor's investment across the outer north is so important. In Wallan, the Albanese Labor government has contributed $90 million to the Watson Street Interchange and Northern Highway intersection works.

These projects will deliver the improvements that our community in Wallan has been crying out for and will mean safer journeys, better traffic flow and easier access to the Hume. In addition, we are investing in Donnybrook Road—another vital artery for our growing northern communities. With our investment of close to $140 million, these works will see improved safety and connections around the freeway interchange as well as duplication of the Donnybrook bridge over the Hume.

Also, let's not forget Yan Yean Road stage 2, part of our $1.58 billion contribution to the suburban roads fund, which will improve travel times for over 24,000 drivers each day. None of these projects are luxuries. They are critical infrastructure for communities that have grown at an extraordinary rate.

Here is an important contrast: for nearly a decade, the former Liberal-National coalition government watched Melbourne's north grow and failed to make the necessary investments. Communities like Beveridge, Wallan, Donnybrook and Mernda were all expected to put up with congestion and inadequate infrastructure while the former coalition government ignored our pleas to invest in their future.

We changed that. Since 2022, Labor has invested well over $1 billion in roads for our community and is showing these communities the respect they deserve. It's what investing in growth looks like.

It's about connecting housing with roads, jobs and community infrastructure. After a decade of neglect, it is a Labor government that is investing in Melbourne's outer north and investing in the people who call our communities home. We do this in conjunction with the state Labor government, which is committed to the north and hasn't failed them like we saw under the former Liberal-National coalition.

It's important to remember that the only time infrastructure gets built in our region is when there are Labor governments—something we all need to think about. House adjourned at 20:00