Mr NATHAN HAGARTY (Leppington) (17:18): I also welcome our visitors from Wollondilly. I note that the mayor is not wearing his hat. It is probably because his head is throbbing with pain after listening to the rubbish from those opposite. I have never seen him without his hat—that is how serious it has got today. I strongly support the motion of the member for Wakehurst. I too made the transition from local government to State government, for much the same reasons he did. As he said, it was because we were frustrated with the lack of services, the lack of action and the way it was affecting our constituents. One way to fix that was to get into State Parliament, get rid of the mob opposite and start fixing some of the problems.
Much like the member for Wakehurst, I have a big problem in my area with a lack of bus services. Leppington is a growing area and, for 12 years, those opposite neglected every local service and piece of infrastructure. We did not see the promised bus services. We did not see new buses. I could tell story after story of kids being left on the kerb. I took countless calls from parents who said their school was served by only one bus when the school population had grown by 300 per cent. Little Jimmy, Timmy and Kimmy were left on the kerb because the buses were full, but members opposite did not put on additional buses. They might think this is a joke, but they should speak to the parents who were worried sick and could not get their kids on a bus because members opposite failed to fund bus services in south-west Sydney. It is an absolute disgrace. I pick up on the issue of bus contracts raised by the member for Coogee.
Ms Felicity Wilson: Point of order—
Mr NATHAN HAGARTY: There was an Audit Office of New South Wales report—
TEMPORARY SPEAKER (Mr Alex Greenwich): The Clerk will stop the clock. The member for North Shore rises on a point of order.
Ms Felicity Wilson: The member for Leppington is focusing his contribution on south-western Sydney bus services. The motion is about northern beaches bus services. I ask that the member be brought back to the motion before the House.
TEMPORARY SPEAKER (Mr Alex Greenwich): There is no point of order. The member's comments are in the context of the public interest debate. I remind the member for North Shore that she is on two calls to order and wishes to contribute to the debate. The member for Leppington will be heard without interruption.
Mr NATHAN HAGARTY: Let us talk about bus contracts. The audit report was about bus contracts right across our great State and the northern beaches is part of the State, so I do not know what the member for North Shore is banging on about. Thank you for correcting her, Mr Temporary Speaker. In relation to this Government and fixing issues with the buses, I am sure the people of the northern beaches will be excited to know that Singapore Airlines announced yesterday that it will start selling tickets for flights leaving Western Sydney airport in November. People can get to the airport on the new buses—which we funded to the tune of $300 million plus—from Leppington, Liverpool, Campbelltown and St Marys.
Mr Adam Crouch: Point of order—
Mr NATHAN HAGARTY: People just have to take the train to Penrith or St Marys and catch those buses.
TEMPORARY SPEAKER (Mr Alex Greenwich): The Clerk will stop the clock. The member for Terrigal rises on a point of order.
Mr Adam Crouch: My point of order is taken under Standing Order 129. The second airport is nowhere near the northern beaches.
TEMPORARY SPEAKER (Mr Alex Greenwich): There is no point of order. The member for Leppington has been relevant to the public interest debate. I encourage Opposition members to read the motion of the member for Wakehurst. It is not just about the northern beaches; it goes to governance issues under the former Coalition Government. The member for Leppington will be heard without interruption unless there is a valid point of order.
Mr NATHAN HAGARTY: An earlier speaker mentioned region 6 buses and the two-year contract extension. That happened so all the bus contracts aligned, which put the Government in a better negotiating position. Members opposite would not know anything about that because they left behind a series of contract landmines. They flogged off the buses—privatised them—and now they expect the Government to tear up the contracts. That is not going to happen. It is fiscally irresponsible. But of course we hear that from members opposite, who left this Government with a debt and deficit bomb. In the same way we are cleaning up after the debt and deficit bomb, we are fixing buses right across New South Wales—in Leppington, Campbelltown and, of course, on the northern beaches.
This is a fantastic motion, and I commend the member for Wakehurst for moving it. In the 2025-26 budget alone, we committed $452 million for new buses right across the State. That includes $150 million to increase the frequency of school services and routes in fast-growing areas. That will be great news for the parents of little Jimmy, Timmy and Kimmy because it means that my area of Leppington will have more school buses and people will not be left on the kerb. Members opposite cannot seem to get their heads around the fact that the problems we have fixed and are fixing on the northern beaches exist across the State. We are fixing them because this Government understands that buses are an important part of our transport network. As a frequent bus traveller, I could not be more excited to see more bendy buses.
