Federal budget to include cash splash for NT roads and new jobs

THE Federal Government will on Monday announce major funding for highway upgrades in the NT along with the promise of new jobs, to be included in Tuesday’s budget

THE federal government will announce another $190m in highway upgrades for the NT on Monday, along with the promise of more than 1000 new jobs, to be included in Tuesday’s budget.

The cash splash will include $120m for an upgrade to the Carpentaria Highway, $23m for works on the Stuart Highway in Coolalinga and another $47m in national network highway upgrades.

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In announcing the funding, Prime Minister Scott Morrison said the government was “serious about laying the foundations for an infrastructure-led recovery from the economic shock of the global pandemic”.

“We have been working closely with state and territory governments to invest in the infrastructure that is ready to go and can help rebuild our economy and create more jobs,” he said.

“As part of the COVID-19 economic recovery plan we have invested an additional $240m into shovel-ready projects across the Northern Territory.

“This latest investment will provide another boost to the local economy by supporting an estimated 1050 direct and indirect jobs across the Territory.”

Deputy Prime Minister Michael McCormack said the government would use local contractors on the projects to help stimulate the region’s economy.

“Infrastructure means jobs, it means livelihoods, it means stronger local communities and it means building a better and more secure future for our nation,” he said.

The announcement comes on the back of the start of works to upgrade 15km of key mango roads south of Humpty Doo recently.

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Mr McCormack said sealing those roads would be a boon for farmers and fruit packers alike while also creating jobs.

“This project will support an estimated 109 jobs during the construction phase and around 10 ongoing jobs in operations, which will provide much-needed certainty on the books of construction workers and businesses while boosting cash flows across the community,” he said.