Bill swings in too and offers plan
A GAME of follow the federal leader has come to Cairns with Bill Shorten touching down just two days after Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull.
The Opposition Leader will unveil plans to form a local advisory panel for Labor’s proposed $1 billion Northern Australia Tourism Infrastructure Fund.
The unpaid panel will consist of community and business leaders, tourism operators and other experts from major regional tourism centres like Cairns, Townsville, Mackay, Rockhampton, Darwin and Broome.
The idea is to form a list of key projects worthy of support so Labor can hit the ground running if it wins the election.
“It will be established in the next few months so that it can start providing advice and recommendations to Labor this year and funds can start being delivered as soon as possible in government,” Mr Shorten said.
“One thing is clear – locals know what their communities need and Labor wants to listen and learn from local experts.”
The panel will counsel the current Opposition on issues including regional airport capacity, cruise ship and road infrastructure, attracting international tourists and airlines to regional centres, job creation and new attractions.
“The Northern Australia Tourism Infrastructure Fund will be fully offset by the Northern Australia Infrastructure Facility, which is yet to invest a single dollar or create a single local job in Queensland,” Mr Shorten said.
The Prime Minister attended an Advance Cairns-hosted politics-in-the-pub session in Cairns on Sunday before announcing a $60 million Great Barrier Reef package in Townsville yesterday.
Mr Shorten planned to visit the Reef today to learn more about the environmental threats it faced — a plan likely to be cancelled if predicted storms hit the coast.
He was critical of the Federal Government’s announcement, given Labor had proposed a $500 million Reef plan at the last election.
“The Great Barrier Reef is an environmental treasure that Australia holds on trust for the world,” Mr Shorten said.
“But protecting the Reef isn’t just the right thing to do for the environment — it’s crucial for jobs in Queensland.
“I’m glad Turnbull finally recognises there is a problem, but his answer is a drop in the ocean compared to what’s needed.
“If you’re serious about protecting the Great Barrier Reef, you’ve got to be serious about tackling climate change.”
Leichhardt MP Warren Entsch rejected Labor’s claim of Reef-friendly credentials.
“Why didn’t they do it when they were in government?” he asked.
“It’s all very well in hindsight, but we’re actually delivering it and putting money on the ground.”
Greens Senator Andrew Bartlett joined the Turnbullbashing chorus yesterday, writing off the $60 million scheme as an attempt to distract attention away from the Reef’s biggest threats.
“The real beneficiaries of this blatant publicity stunt are the fossil fuel giants and their Liberal Party mates, who will continue to go about their business as usual — certainly not the Reef or the public, who are footing million-dollar bills for wasteful projects that are doomed to fail,” he said.
The World Wildlife Fund Australia said the commitment was not enough for Australia to meet its commitments to the World Heritage Committee.
Queensland Labor’s Leeanne Enoch also today planned to make her first Reef trip since taking over the environment portfolio in December, during an unrelated visit to Cairns.