Mr PALLAS (Tarneit)  — The matter I  wish  to raise is for  the Minister for Planning.  It concerns the Werribee employment precinct. Over the last two years under  the government this matter has been languishing in terms of planning  and future direction.  The  action  I  seek  is  that  the minister provide a public statement confirming that  any  plans  associated  with  the Werribee employment precinct, including Point  Cook West, will  ensure  that revenue from  sales  of state-owned land will be used for the  purposes  of  funding  all  necessary and associated infrastructure.

The history  of this matter is that  the residents of Point Cook  West have been waiting for quite some time for the government to give a clear exposition of its intentions. The Minister  for  Planning  has  made  it  clear that he intends to progress what was in effect Labor’s policy at the time of the last election.

We have not  heard anything  from this  government in  regard to the policy, but nonetheless I am  pleased to see that  some action has been taken  in a planning sense. Unfortunately what we  are  also seeing is that this government is intent on making a windfall profit through the sale of land, but it is not directing or committing  to the infrastructure  that would be necessary  to build communities around that land.

The Growth Areas Authority is due to release its  draft plans  by December. That will make it two  years, as I have said,  into the government’s term.  Still the community is unaware of governance proposals, job targets, overall project aims, composition and  community input opportunities. The only plan so far has been to apply to  the federal  government to  help provide  half of  the funding  for  a diamond interchange at Sneydes Road.

Real estate experts have estimated that the windfall gain from the land sales at Point Cook West alone could be $100 million — and that area is less than 15 per cent of the total Werribee employment precinct. The Growth Areas Authority draft precinct structure plan for Point Cook West released in December  2011  gives an indicative cost for  the  Sneydes Road and  Princes  Freeway interchange of  $60 million,  and  a  further  $20  million  is  required for  other  arterial  road improvements. It is evident that this interchange is necessary.

With  5800 more  residents coming into Point Cook West, it  is evident  that the government needs  to  make  an announcement  and  provide  an assurance  to  the community that the  revenues arising as a consequence of the sale of state-owned land will, as a priority,  be directed towards providing  for the infrastructure necessary to build  communities  rather  than  being  directed into consolidated revenue.

See Tim’s speech in Hansard here.