Today the Prime Minister joined me in Mandurah to announce $824 million of federal funding to build three vital infrastructure projects in Canning. This represents one quarter of the infrastructure package announced today for Western Australia.

Historic Funding Announced For The Peel Region

It's is a big win for our region and the culmination of many years of effort. We will extend and upgrade the Tonkin Highway, build Lakelands Train Station and give Byford locals access to rail.  

These projects will transform the Peel Region in the best possible way. Thank you for signing my petitions, voicing your concerns, and telling your stories. Time and again, you have strengthened the case I've made in Canberra.

Over half a billion dollars will extend the Tonkin Highway southward into the heart of the Peel region. This will put Peel on the map, bringing more jobs and streamlining access to Canning. I’m happy to announce the hard work has paid off.

The Tonkin Highway and Thomas Road intersection has become a severe bottleneck and safety hazard, causing heavy congestion to spill out onto many adjoining local roads. This chokes industrial growth and puts lives at risk. The new extension will connect Tonkin to the South Western Highway, south of Mundijong Road. It will enable free flowing traffic, and improve the safety of many local roads in SJ. 

If you’re a FIFO worker an area like Pinjarra, North Dandalup or Greenfields, shorter commutes will mean more time at home with loved ones. The Tonkin Highway Extension will give you a direct route to the airport.

The Tonkin Highway Extension Will Reduce Congestion And Improve Safety On Roads Throughout SJ

John Mitchell, owner and operator of Mitchell’s Livestock Transport, moves over 500,000 cattle across 1,500 pick-up and delivery locations across Australia. Instead of using a patchwork of main streets and country roads that are unsuitable for heavy haulage, John will soon have access to a newly created North-South corridor.

This is also great news for businessmen like Ron Bell, too. Ron built his business, Bells Engines, from scratch into a big operation with a global market. Although he’d like to expand while remaining local, a growing number of hurdles have forced him to consider leaving the Peel region.  

The new Tonkin Highway extension is exactly what Ron and John need: better road access that will support their businesses.

Improved Infrastructure Will Develop The Local Economy, Growing Jobs And Industry In The Peel Region

A further $241 million will extend the Armadale line to Byford. This is big news. Byford is the fastest growing local government area in Australia. If you live locally, the train will provide easy access to employment in Perth and beyond.

Serpentine-Jarrahdale has undergone serious change over the past 10 years. I acknowledge the anxiety some feel about how the train line may impact our region. I’ll be following the project closely, to ensure the local community isn’t left behind.

This Investment is a Game-Changer For Our Region

This morning the Prime Minister confirmed funding that will get the ball rolling on the Lakelands Train Station. Lakelands residents have been waiting over a decade for this to happen. In that time, the Lakelands population has tripled. $2 million has been allocated to develop the business case, and further funding has been set aside for the station's construction.

We've fought hard for this infrastructure funding. This is a game changer for our region - thank you for your support.

Residents of Canning have received a major boost to road safety, with the Coalition Government set to invest over $1,270,000 to upgrade problem roads under the 2018-19 Black Spot Program.

The money will be spent to upgrade roads in Roleystone, Serpentine and Pinjarra.

Road upgrades

Karnup Road, Serpentine, between Walker and Hopeland Road. Upgrades will include the widening and sealing of shoulders; the installation of edge lines, signs and delineation; and the removal of roadside hazards and obstructions.

Kingsbury Drive, Serpentine, between the South Western Highway and Mayara Road. Development will include the sealing of shoulders to 1m, the removal of hazards, and the installation of audible edge lines, guideposts and signs.

Croyden Road, Roleystone, between Brookton Highway and the Gardiner Road and Redtail Lane intersection. This will include the widening and sealing of shoulders, the installation of edge lines, signs and delineation, and the removal of roadside hazards and obstructions.

Pinjarra Road, Pinjarra. Installation of a roundabout on the intersection of Murray Street and Pinjarra Road.   

Andrew Hastie said improving transport infrastructure was one of his key priorities.

“In many parts of Canning road maintenance and development has not kept up with the rise in population.

"I know many people are concerned about the quality of local roads frequently used by heavy transport. These upgrades will help handle the increased traffic and improve road safety.

“None of these projects would be delivered without the community’s vital input, and I’d encourage all residents and motorists in the region to nominate projects for future funding rounds.”

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Infrastructure and Transport Michael McCormack said reducing fatalities and serious injuries on our roads was a key focus of his role as infrastructure minister.

“Accidents on our roads cost Australian’s approximately $30 billion per year – let alone the pain borne by families and friends who have lost loved ones,” Mr McCormack said.

“On average, Black Spot projects reduce the number of crashes causing death and injury by 30 per cent, making it one of the most effective road safety measures the Australian Government has at its disposal.

“The Coalition Government has extended the Black Spot Program and is providing $60 million per year from 2021-22 onwards, building on the current $684.5 million investment from 2013-14 to 2020-21.

For more information, or to make a nomination, visit http://investment.infrastructure.gov.au/funding/blackspots/

Students and staff at Foundation Christian College in Greenfields will have full use of a new theatre and performing arts centre thanks to $750,000 in Capital Grant funding from the Turnbull Government.

Mr Hastie officially opened the new facility today on behalf of the Minister for Education and Training Simon Birmingham

“It’s an honour to open Foundation Christian College’s new performing arts facilities,” Mr Hastie said

“Every year I run the Canning Shakespeare Competition for high school students to encourage them to embrace the arts and challenge themselves.

Peel needs self-confident and culturally-confident young people, and these facilities will ensure the students of Foundation Christian College have the opportunities to develop their skills.

And who knows, the future winners of the Canning Shakespeare Competition might just come from Foundation Christian College,” said Andrew Hastie.

Minister for Education and Training Simon Birmingham said in addition to funding for projects like the Foundation Theatre and Performing Arts Centre, the Turnbull Government was also delivering a new funding system to ensure every student gets the resources they need.

“We’re overhauling Australia’s schools funding system and boosting investment to Foundation Christian College from around $9607 per student this year to about $13,802 over the next decade. The changes ensure students with the greatest needs get the greatest level of resources,” Minister Birmingham said.

“We know that funding and buildings alone don’t make a great school, so we’ve asked a panel of education experts led by David Gonski to recommend how schools can best use the extra resources we’re delivering to boost student outcomes.”

“Families and teachers can see exactly what our $25.3 billion funding boost means for their local schools by visiting our funding estimator at www.education.gov.au/qualityschoolsand they can learn more about our quality reforms.

Today I made the case in Parliament for the extension of the Tonkin Highway to Lakes Road.

Extending the Tonkin makes sense for so many reasons. I explained to the House how the highway's current terminus is choking the Peel Region's roads, and holding back our local economy.

Extending the Highway will make our communities safer and more prosperous. You can read or watch my speech to parliament below. 

I rise today to further advocate for the extension of the Tonkin Highway in my electorate of Canning. The Tonkin Highway was first laid in 1980 and since then has been extended both north and south. In 2005 its southern extension was complete, terminating the highway at Thomas Road in the shire of Serpentine Jarrahdale.

Since that time the population of the shire of Serpentine Jarrahdale has more than doubled. With many more motorists on the road, the Tonkin Highway/Thomas Road intersection has become a severe bottleneck, causing heavy congestion to spill out onto many adjoining local roads. It forces existing heavy haulage trucks onto local roads networks, impacting their safety and capacity. And with its terminus at the northern end of the shire boundary, the Tonkin Highway in its current form is restricting industrial growth and the development of the local economy.

No-one understands this issue better than John Mitchell, owner and operator of Mitchell's Livestock Transport. In any given year, Mitchell's is responsible for moving over 500,000 cattle across 1,500 pick-up and delivery locations across Australia. With his business based out of Waroona in the southern end of Canning, John has an intimate knowledge of the road network in the Peel region and beyond and how it could be improved.

At present, any of John's trucks driving through Perth from the Great Southern and beyond have to use one of the following east-west links to get to the freeway and out to Kwinana: South West Highway and Armadale Road, Thomas Road, Mundijong Road, Karnup Road, Lakes Road, Pinjarra Road and Greenlands Road. Most of these links are main streets and country roads running through the Peel region. They are unsuitable for heavy transport like John's, because the roads are either already heavily congested, are dangerous to navigate by virtue of their topography or act as the main streets in local communities.

And even if they do use these roads, the trucks still need a north-south corridor. The only current options are the Kwinana and Mitchell freeways, but these are even more heavily congested. In fact, yesterday Infrastructure Australia released its national report noting that congestion on the freeways will increasingly result in nationally significant losses to productivity.

There is an obvious solution. Extending the Tonkin Highway from Thomas Road down to Lakes Road would solve a number of these problems.

First and foremost, it would allow heavy haulage to travel along an interior pathway, reducing the number of big trucks on the freeways.

It would strengthen north-south and east-west links in Perth and Western Australia as well as provide an opportunity to create better transport routes between the east and west coasts of Australia.

It would cut down the number of trucks currently passing along local roads and through communities, such as the Byford CBD, which is rapidly growing.

It would improve heavy haulage access and also provide a significant boost to the local economy.

The Tonkin Highway extension would create the right conditions for industrial growth in places like the West Mundijong industrial park. The Tonkin Highway extension is vital for the long-term future of Serpentine Jarrahdale and indeed the whole Peel region. We need to prioritise this project as one that will encourage local development and growth.

Students and staff at Austin Cove Baptist College will have full use of a practical skills building thanks to a contribution of more than $1 million from the Coalition Government. 

Canning MP Andrew Hastie officially opened the new facility today on behalf of the Minister for Education and Training, Simon Birmingham

“It was great to visit Austin Cove Baptist College to see the new facilities firsthand,” Mr Hastie said. “Austin Cove is driven by a dedicated community of teachers and parents. This is just the latest addition to a growing school that is passionate about providing the best possible education for its students.”

The Coalition Government delivered funding under its Capital Grants Program, which provides funding for non-government schools to improve capital infrastructure where they otherwise may not have sufficient funding. 

The block includes science laboratories, a science preparation area, technical skills rooms, staff rooms and stores. Mr Hastie said the whole school community would benefit from these new facilities.

“The Australian Government is committed to putting science, technology, engineering and mathematics at the heart of school education. This building will help deliver that. It will also enable students explore a trade that would help meet Australia’s skills shortage.”

“It’s critical to our nation’s future that we get more students involved in all these subjects.”

The Minister for Education Senator Simon Birmingham said the Government was committed to funding the best possible education for all Australian youth. The Quality Schools package will deliver a funding increase of $442.1 million to independent schools in Western Australia between now and 2027. This represents an average per student increase of 5.9 per cent each year, over the next four years.

“The Australian Government is committed to improving the quality of our schools and equipping students with the skills they need to succeed in an increasingly competitive world.”

For more information on the Quality Schools reform package visit: www.education.gov.au/qualityschools

Mandurah and the Peel region are in serious need of more public infrastructure. Development has not kept up with population growth. That fact is no better illustrated than in the suburb of Lakelands.

Lakelands is in north Mandurah. At the 2006 census its population was 434. By 2016, that number had exploded by more than 10 times to 4830. If you include the immediate surrounding suburbs the number rises to 17,298.  

The only train station in Mandurah was completed ten years ago. The station has transformed our City. It has opened access to the Perth jobs market and injected new life into the Mandurah economy.

The train line’s completion was a watershed moment in the history of Mandurah, but there is more work to be done. Building a new train station in Lakelands will increase economic and social opportunities for the people of north Mandurah. Importantly, there will be fewer cars on the road.

The people of Mandurah recognise this. At the end of 2017 I conducted a poll of more than 1600 people who live in the north of Mandurah.  Of the respondents, over 90% want a train station build in Lakelands.

I call on my colleagues in the Labor state government to work with us on this essential project. I was gratified to read in the Sunday Times that the Labor state government is listening to me on the development of the Byford train line and the Tonkin Highway extension. Mandurah is important too. I will not let the Labor state government take the people of northern Mandurah for granted.

On 12 February Andrew addressed parliament about the erosion issues facing the Murray Delta Islands community:

I rise today to share the concerns of the delta islands residents in my electorate of Canning. Located in the Shire of Murray, the Murry River delta islands area is a network of low-lying islands and estuaries where the Murray and Serpentine rivers meet the Peel Harbour estuary. In the 1970s and eighties, the estuaries were attacked by algal bloom as a result of nutrient run-off and stagnation.

To overcome this problem,a decision was made in the nineties to build a channel between the estuary and ocean at Dawesville. The channel would ensure that nutrient-rich estuary water could flush out to sea, and that the incoming salt water could restrict algae growth. While the Dawesville cut has solved the algae problem, the increased salinity in the estuary has resulted in serious erosion of the riverbanks, particularly in the delta islands area of South Yunderup.

After being contacted by a frustrated group of island residents who have been battling this for years, I recently visited the islands to examine the erosion myself. The erosion is significant—much like its effect on local housing prices. 

Led by Don MacLure, the delta island residents have offered their time and labour to the Shire of Murray to install infrastructure that would solve and slow the effects of erosion. Instead, the shire is focused on combating rising sea levels, which are unlikely to affect the islands until 2070—if, indeed, you accept the modelling.

Given the very real threat of erosion, I understand the residents' frustration with the Shire of Murray's priorities. I hope that, under new president David Bolt, the Shire of Murray will use its resources to address the erosion in South Yunderup.

The Murray  Delta Islands residents deserve practical solutions. I look forward to working together to deliver them.

Member for Canning Andrew Hastie has used one of his first speeches before parliament in 2018 to call again for the extension of the Tonkin Highway south of Thomas Road.

Mr Hastie told a full sitting of the House of Representatives on Wednesday that the Highway’s expansion was key to local jobs and economic development in the Peel Region.

“The residents of Serpentine Jarrahdale –the fastest growing local government in the country­– have been waiting more than 20 years for the Tonkin Highway to be built past Thomas Road.”

“They are still waiting.”

“Extending the Tonkin Highway will boost the local economy, stimulating industry in Serpentine-Jarrahdale and the centre of the Peel Region. This will create countless local jobs, particularly for young people looking to get into a trade.”

“We need to get this road built soon.”

Mr Hastie’s speech is the latest of more than two years campaigning for the project and comes off the back of a visit in December from federal Minister for Finance, Senator Mathias Cormann.

Minister Cormann said that the federal government understood that extending the Highway was an important step in unlocking the Peel Region’s potential.

“The Turnbull Government recognises that extending the Tonkin Highway south is an essential step in unlocking the Peel region’s economic potential,” Minister Cormann said.

Mr Hastie called on the state and federal governments to work together to get the job completed.

“Locals want it, and the federal government understands the need. I urge Premier McGowan to work with us for the good of Serpentine-Jarrahdale and the greater Peel Region.”

A transcript of Andrew's speech can be found here

Finance Minister today met with Member for Canning Andrew Hastie MP and executives from the Shire of Serpentine-Jarrahdale to talk about the Tonkin Highway extension project.

With the Shire of Serpentine-Jarrahdale recognised by the 2016 Census as the fastest-growing local government area in Australia, Andrew Hastie MP said it was time to get the project off the ground.

“The purpose of today’s meeting was to give the Finance Minister an opportunity to view the project on the ground, rather than just on paper.

“It was a very positive meeting. The Minister understands that extending the Tonkin Highway south to Mundijong Road is critical to sustainable population growth in Serpentine-Jarrahdale,” said Mr Hastie.

“There is wide community support for this project, and all five local governments in the Peel region have identified it as a priority.

“The next step for us is to harness that community support, and encourage the State Government to put the Tonkin Highway extension at the top of their to-do list. The McGowan Government needs to make this a priority,” said the Member for Canning.

I encourage all local residents who support extending the Tonkin Highway to email my office over the Christmas break, so I can take your feedback directly to decision makers,” said Andrew Hastie.

Member for Canning Andrew Hastie has continued to fight for a train station in Lakelands, saying that the State Government needs to come alongside the community, local council and federal government to deliver the long overdue infrastructure.

On Monday Mr Hastie was joined by Assistant Minister for Cities Angus Taylor in Mandurah. Together they met with local council representatives and developers to discuss the funding options with the Commonwealth Government.

“Lakelands has seen huge growth in the past decade, with the suburb tripling in population. A train station has always been part of the plans and I’ve spoken to people who bought into the suburb on the understanding that one would be built there,” Mr Hastie said.

“It’s a decade on and still nothing has happened.