Bill Shorten sits down for an in-depth chat about the Gold Coast

Federal Opposition politician Bill Shorten has a Gold Coast secret, revealed in a detailed sit down interview with the Labor Party leader.

FEDERAL Opposition leader Bill Shorten has a Gold Coast secret.

He loves trams and during this week’s visit deliberately took the ride from Helensvale to Southport.

Shortening in odds to become the next PM, he talked with the Bulletin’s Paul Weston and Andrew Potts, in his first major interview on the Glitter Strip, about light rail, what he would fix, his view on casinos and cruise ship terminals, and his thoughts on opponents like retiring Cabinet minister and Member for Moncrieff, Steven Ciobo.

Opposition leader Bill Shorten visiting the Gold Coast at Helensvale light rail station today. Picture Glenn Hampson

Bulletin: Do you remember your first experience on the trams?

Bill Shorten: I’ve been catching trams my whole life, being from Melbourne, and I remember that iconic photo of Brisbane in 1969 when they ripped out their trams, so I have been a big supporter of the Gold Coast trams since Labor got the ball rolling in 2009. I spoke to one woman at the hospital who said it was saving her $2000 a year on parking fees.

B: The LNP’s Bert van Manen holds Forde with a margin of 0.7 per cent. For Labor to win government, you must win this seat?

BS: What the Government cannot do is give you stability in Forde or anywhere else. What I am going to do is get the conversation back to the people. That’s why we have talked about the widening of the M1, putting in additional MRI licences in Logan Hospital, talking about people’s penalty rates at Yatala, and in what has traditionally been safe Liberal Party heartland we are talking about light rail.

I want people to think politics can work for them again. It is a little-known statistic that I have been in Queensland campaigning for 95 days since I became Opposition Leader (in 2013), not including the family trips I have done because I am a Queenslander-in-law.

Opposition leader Bill Shorten. Picture Glenn Hampson

B: Labor is promising to reverse the cuts for penalty rates. What will this mean for workers in Forde, particularly those in the tourism sector, and can theme parks which have had tough times accommodate the increase?

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BS: Where there has been proper negotiation and a proper raise in the base rates of pay, that is one thing. What I want to reverse are the unilateral cuts to penalty rates done through the awards. We are talking about ground zero for penalty rate cuts which is the Gold Coast. There are 50,000 people who rely on the retail and hospitality awards have had their weekend and public holiday rates reduced progressively over the past three years. They have never had a pay rise out of this. Just thank you for turning up, here’s a cut.

B: How will business react?

BS: Business needs customers. We have seen the greatest drop in confidence because everything is going up except their raises. The workforce can miss out but there is no one with any coin in their pockets to spend on a Sunday. The little treats which make life worth living.

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B: The Palaszczuk Government is fully funding Cross River Rail. How do you see this project as being critical to the Gold Coast? There is only so much you can do with M1 improvements.

BS: You have a bottleneck and the reality is that we need new track across that part of Brisbane and that means you can put literally tens of thousands of extra journeys for people living down here. The Gold Coast and southeast Queensland is beautiful but people’s biggest annoyance other than cost of living is commuter times and congestion. You have got roads which are car parks and so the message gets out about it — it’s a waste of time. Cross River Rail is a genuine combustion buster. What we will contribute to it — there will be four new underground stations and the upgrade of two others. A beautiful bit of project.

B: There is only so much you can do with M1 improvements. Will federal Labor pledge money to the $2.2 billion project and will this quicken the build?

BS: We will contribute $800m in grant funding straight plus help with progress payments over 25 years. The Labor government I lead believes in public transport. Of course we want to do what we are doing with the M1, it’s crucial but you have to give people the chance of catching a train or a tram as well. If you have a rail track there is only so many carriages you can put on the track in a given hour. It’s a bit like a runway. You can only land a certain number of planes in an hour. We need more train track. At least you get more people movements. It gives people a choice beyond just cars.

Bill Shorten on outgoing MP Steven Ciobo: “He’s not a bad person.”. (AAP Image/Josh Woning)

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B: Aged care is a massive issue on the Coast. An audit showed that the federal seat of Moncrieff had the lowest care per resident ratio — 1.69 hours per resident per day, under the recommended 4.34 hours. How can you turn that around?

BS: The people have a real problem here — Moncrieff, as one of the worst aged care waiting lists in Australia. Across the nation it is disgraceful. There are 130,000 people waiting for aged care packages, most in the top category. Australians have the dream of living at home as long as they can and these packages … the money is not there. The Government has cut $3 billion from healthcare, $2.8 billion from hospitals and $1.9 billion from aged care — it’s massive.

B: How do you solve it?

BS: You have to find more money. It is a question of priorities. We want multinationals to pay more tax so we can pay for aged care. There is plenty of debate on us reforming negative gearing. We will put aged care ahead of tax loopholes.

Gold Coast Airport. Photo: Supplied

B: Federally, the Coast has been a blue line, with Mr Ciobo in Moncrieff, Stuart Robert in Fadden and Karen Andrews in McPherson. How and when can Labor address that in terms of representation here or is it impossible?

BS: When I come to Queensland I don’t see red lines or blue lines. I see Queenslanders. I don’t think the people of Moncrieff, Fadden and McPherson want their schools to be underfunded. I think they want their kids to go to TAFE, they don’t want $10.9 billion in cuts (to hospitals), they want people paid fairly, more action on renewables and climate. They want to see more investment in tourism with our $1 billion tourism infrastructure fund. I don’t think people are greatly different if you scrape the surface. We want to make sure our health is OK and our family is OK. If you have those going for you, then everything else is a possibility.

B: Your thoughts on Steven Ciobo retiring in Moncrieff?

BS: They are concentrating on running out the door, we are concentrating on running the nation. The LNP has treated the Gold Coast as a sinecure, taken it for granted and that is wrong. It doesn’t matter if you live in Labor or Liberal electorates, they are over being taken for granted. They have given the current government two terms. We are past the 2000 day mark of Liberal government in Australia and really, there is not much to show for it.

Opposition leader Bill Shorten on the Gold Coast. Picture Glenn Hampson

B: How do you see the future for the Gold Coast?

BS: The Spit is a good and exciting piece of news, the cruise line industry too. Annastacia Palaszczuk is switched on there — tourism, tourism, tourism. I think if you are going to be a commuter suburb for somewhere else, you need better public transport and roads. But I want people to raise their families here and not have to leave. In other words it is about the safety net. Good quality tertiary hospitals, cost of living support, seeing the doctor, making sure the schools are right.

We want this to be a fully-rounded community. I am interested in what we can do for the airport to the south.

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B: What are your thoughts about a second casino licence, the global tourism hub?

BS: In terms of a casino, I will let you work on the process. I won’t be a wise man from the south saying X or Y is the outcome. You’ll have to work through that carefully.

I’m from Victoria. The Gold Coast is our second home. You did well with the Games, I know it was controversial with some businesses but it led to some new infrastructure. The volunteers were fantastic. I think it is really important we upgrade the tourist experience here. That means tourism infrastructure, doesn’t it.

B: What about the cruise ship terminal?

BS: On balance if you can attract people, provided you get the environmental balance right. I get some residents are uneasy about it. But if it can economically and harmoniously get it right, the cruise ship industry is a net plus. Plenty of “ifs” there. But the only way you can develop anything is through community consensus. I think the local community has to see the benefit for them in a way which is sustainable. These days we do not want ugly developments and infrastructure which go against the grain of the community

The Gold Coast has always thought big so thinking sustainable doesn’t stop you from thinking big. There can be more done to improve the tourist experience when people land at Coolangatta. You want to make it a family experience.

I think the airport needs refurbishment. It is crowded and busier than Bourke Street at Christmas time. It could do with upgrading.

B: Are you a better surfer than (former treasurer and retiring Queensland MP) Wayne Swan?

BS: No, he’s a champion.

B: Final thoughts on Steven Ciobo?

BS: He’s not a bad person. I’m not a hater. Once you move on you move on. I am not thinking about Steven Ciobo. Good luck to him. He gets more time with his family and to pursue his interests.