4 years ago
NAIF STILL FAILS TO FIRE IN NORTHERN AUSTRALIA
Murray Watt MP
Australia’s north is still waiting for its fair share, with new government data proving the Northern Australia Infrastructure Facility (NAIF) is a mirage.
Despite the $5 billion loan scheme being announced five years ago, answers to a Question on Notice have revealed only $130 million, or 2.6 per cent, of funding has dribbled out.
When the NAIF was first announced, the Government claimed it would create jobs and boost investment in the north.
But five years on, the NAIF has become just another failed funding promise which the Morrison Government can hang its hat on.
For too long the north has been forgotten by the Morrison Government, but there is boundless untapped potential from Darwin to Alice Springs, Cairns to Carnarvon, which could bring enormous opportunity to the region.
But that opportunity is languishing in a Government bank account, instead of creating jobs and industry.
This snail-paced delivery shows Scott Morrison and his team are more interested in marketing than in results.
Ten weeks ago, I called on the Government to use the NAIF to kickstart the north’s recovery from COVID-19.
The Government must urgently get the NAIF on track and start delivering what they promised.
Despite the $5 billion loan scheme being announced five years ago, answers to a Question on Notice have revealed only $130 million, or 2.6 per cent, of funding has dribbled out.
When the NAIF was first announced, the Government claimed it would create jobs and boost investment in the north.
But five years on, the NAIF has become just another failed funding promise which the Morrison Government can hang its hat on.
For too long the north has been forgotten by the Morrison Government, but there is boundless untapped potential from Darwin to Alice Springs, Cairns to Carnarvon, which could bring enormous opportunity to the region.
But that opportunity is languishing in a Government bank account, instead of creating jobs and industry.
This snail-paced delivery shows Scott Morrison and his team are more interested in marketing than in results.
Ten weeks ago, I called on the Government to use the NAIF to kickstart the north’s recovery from COVID-19.
The Government must urgently get the NAIF on track and start delivering what they promised.