Government commits further $15b national infrastructure programs11/05/2021|4min
Treasurer Josh Frydenberg has announced a further $15 billion in additional infrastructure commitments will be added to the government s 10-year, $110 billion national infrastructure program.
The investment includes funding for the North-South Corridor in South Australia, the Great Western Highway and Newcastle Airport in New South Wales, the new Melbourne intermodal terminal in Victoria, the Bruce Highway in Queensland, Metronet in Western Australia, highway upgrades in the Northern Territory, light rail stage 2A in ACT and Midland Highway upgrades in Tasmania. In this budget, we also invest a further $1 billion in road safety upgrades to save lives and a further $1 billion in local road infrastructure projects, the treasurer said.
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Regional Universities must be eligible for Regional Development Infrastructure funding
Regional universities have been largely ignored in the latest Federal Budget, with calls for much-needed regional university infrastructure going unheeded.
The chair of Regional Universities Network (RUN), Professor Nick Klomp, said that a major gap in the Federal Government budget is the lack of funding for infrastructure at regional universities.
“RUN has long argued that regional universities should be eligible for relevant infrastructure programs in the regional development portfolio, such as the Building Better Regions Fund,” Professor Klomp said.
“Regional universities are anchor institutions for their regions, and make a fundamental contribution to regional economies. Infrastructure at our universities improves research capacity, supports the engagement and partnership with regional industry, and provides broader social benefit to towns. Government should support the est
The second “pandemic” budget was delivered by Australia’s Treasurer Josh Frydenberg on Tuesday. “Australia is coming back,” he said. “The Australian spirit has shone through.”
Showcasing the Australian economy, he said the deficit for 2021-22 will be at $106.6 billion – $53 billion lower than forecast in the last budget in October 2020. “Unemployment is at 5.6 per cent, lower than when the Coalition came into government,” he said.
“The COVID-19 recession will see our deficit reach $161bn this year, falling to $57bn in 2024-25. With more Australians back at work, this year’s deficit is $52.7bn lower than was expected just over six months ago in last year’s budget. Net debt will increase to $617.5bn or 30 per cent of GDP this year and peak at $980.6bn or 40.9 per cent of GDP in June 2025.”
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Subscriber only A MAJOR road project and air travel are the key outcomes of the Federal Government s 2021 budget for Sunshine Coast residents. Specific funding allocations for projects across regional Queensland were thin on the ground in Treasurer Josh Frydenberg s billion-dollar spending spree today, with our region one of the few to score a mention in the voluminous treasury documents made available to journalists during the annual lock-up in Canberra. The Treasurer set aside $160m for the Mooloolah River Interchange Upgrade, saying the money was a new commitment under the $2b set aside for Queensland infrastructure projects designed to increase support jobs and livelihoods across the state.
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Mackay and Whitsunday residents hoping for generous gifts from the 2021 Federal Budget will be disappointed, with no specific new offerings outlined in the hefty papers.
But residents will benefit from a pre-budget announcement of $400m for the Bruce Highway, from Mackay to Proserpine and Rockhampton to Gladstone, covering floodproofing, safety improvements and reducing congestion.
The budget papers did not show any specific allocations for the Peak Downs Highway or Urannah Dam.
However, the Federal Government’s $3.5bn National Water Grid Fund has earmarked $258m to fund new dams and irrigation projects.
Mackay Whitsunday residents are also set to benefit from the government’s pre-budget commitment to establish a reinsurance pool to cover cyclone and related flood damage in Northern Australia from July 1, 2022.