Mackay's One Billion Dollar Man

28 JULY 2016: With the support of the Liberal National Government, I am driving a one billion dollar investment to create more than a thousand jobs for Mackay over the next three to four years. Investments include major projects like the Walkerston Bypass, the Mackay Ring Road, and the northern approach to Mackay, as well as key community infrastructure such as the sporting precinct and funds for Mackay soccer and netball facilities. Investment across the wider North Queensland electorate is even greater, including more than half a billion dollars in the Haughton River bridge and the Sandy Gully bridge, as well as more water infrastructure in the Burdekin catchment.The focus is on creating local jobs now and into the future. A billion dollars is a massive commitment for Mackay, enabling major projects to create immediate jobs in construction as well as growing the region’s economic capability. The Mackay Ring Road will create 600 jobs during construction and Urannah Dam can create 6000 jobs during construction as well as creating more jobs in new and expanded industries into the future. My fight for local jobs has paid off, with the Liberal National Government making record commitments to major infrastructure in Mackay and helping the local economy through the mining downturn. The Liberal National Government’s $30 million Bowen Basin Jobs Package will help locals transition to a sustainable new economy through staff training and business investment. The resource sector will be a mainstay of our economy for many years to come but we are also committed to expanding our economy in new directions. The Liberal National Government will assist businesses overcome the hurdle of high initial investment costs as industry retools for new export and domestic markets. We are also supporting workers through training and employment subsidies to ensure we have locals with the right training to take advantage of future opportunities.Although the government is helping the Bowen Basin economy transition, the Liberal National Government remains committed to mining and the Carmichael Coal Project. While Labor and the Greens do whatever they can to stall and stifle the industry and billions of dollars of investment, the Liberal National Government recognises the need for thousands of good local jobs.