$400m Queensland freight road upgrade
Scott Morrison will commit $400m to upgrade a key freight road in Queensland as the government uses the budget to enhance its standing in the regions.
Scott Morrison will commit $400m to upgrade a key freight road in Queensland as the government uses the budget to enhance its standing in the regions.
The government will use the money to upgrade the 1184km Inland Freight Route, which runs from Charters Towers in North Queensland to Mungindi on the NSW border.
Deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce said the spate of pre-election budget commitments for the regions showed the Nationals had ensured rural Australians would prosper under the government’s net-zero by 2050 target.
In the past week, the government has unveiled funding for two dams in Queensland as well as support for gas and resources projects across regional Australia.
The government has also vowed to spend an extra $678m to upgrade and seal the Outback Way road that runs from western Queensland through to Western Australia.
“The Nationals are negotiating substantial changes to broaden and strengthen Australia’s economic base,” Mr Joyce told The Australian. “It’s not parochial because a lot of these things are not in Nationals seats. It is a vision for the nation more than a vision for the Nationals.”
Last year, the Nationals held out to agreeing to back net-zero emissions by 2050 until it negotiated a deal for the regions with the Prime Minister.
Red alert for AUKUS submarine reactors
A Rolls-Royce program set to supply reactor cores for Australia’s nuclear submarines has been branded as ‘unachievable’ in a blow to the nation’s AUKUS ambitions.
Call for origin labels on imported timber
About a quarter of timber tested in Australia last year had incorrect species or origin labels. The industry wants new laws to prevent it happening and to support Australian producers.