Mr BARRY O'FARRELL: My question is directed to the Premier. How can the public have any confidence in the Premier's leadership when, despite lacking detailed costings, patronage figures, environmental or geotechnical studies, planning approvals or even a business case study, she treated the community with contempt by signing up to a multibillion-dollar rail link simply to shore up Federal Labor votes? When will the public ever come first under her Government?

Ms KRISTINA KENEALLY: The New South Wales Government welcomes the commitment of $2 billion for the construction of the Parramatta to Epping rail link. This represents a significant investment by the Commonwealth in Sydney's infrastructure. I note that, while the State Leader of the Opposition was happy to watch his Federal leader promise billions of dollars for other State capitals across the nation, he did not seek to secure any commitment from the Federal Opposition for funding for infrastructure for Sydney. I will be generous and note that I said in the course of the Federal election campaign that the Leader of the Opposition and I most likely agree on the point that whoever forms government must invest in Australia's only global city—Sydney. But we only saw one side of the Federal campaign make that commitment.

The SPEAKER: Order! Members will cease interjecting.

Ms KRISTINA KENEALLY: While the Leader of the Opposition was happy to see his Federal counterpart run around the country and promise the duplication of the highway between Melbourne and Adelaide, a $1 billion road from Brisbane to Toowoomba, the Brisbane to Melbourne inland rail line, a four-lane highway between Launceston and Hobart, highway connections from Perth to Western Australian mining towns and the Brisbane to Redcliffe rail link, we got nothing—

The SPEAKER: Order! The Leader of the Opposition will come to order.

Ms KRISTINA KENEALLY: We got nothing from the Federal Opposition when it came to infrastructure for Sydney.

The SPEAKER: Order! The member for Willoughby will come to order.

Ms KRISTINA KENEALLY: In the Age on 17 August Tony Abbott said:

There's no point running around like Santa Claus distributing presents to everyone from Santa's sack.

Except that he had plenty in his Santa sack for every other State, plenty in his Santa sack for every other city, but nothing for his home State. The people of western Sydney have welcomed this project.

The SPEAKER: Order! The member for Wakehurst will come to order.

Ms KRISTINA KENEALLY: Alison McLaren, president of Western Sydney Regional Organisation of Councils, stated in the Parramatta Sun on 12 August:

This initiative will take thousands of cars off the road saving people time, reducing stress and cutting tons of carbon emissions.

Parramatta councillor Michael McDermott told the Parramatta Advertiser—

Ms Tanya Gadiel: He's not in the Labor Party; he's a Liberal, isn't he?

Ms KRISTINA KENEALLY: Excellent point! Parramatta councillor Michael McDermott told the Parramatta Advertiser on 19 August 2010:

I think that this link is absolutely critical.

Even the member for Castle Hill, who the last time I checked was definitely not a member of the Labor Party, told the House, as reported in Hansard in March 2010, that this link is "a critical piece in the puzzle that is the Sydney Rail Network".

The SPEAKER: Order! The House will come to order. Members will not argue with each other when they are in total agreement.

Ms KRISTINA KENEALLY: Despite all of this the Opposition spokesperson for Transport cannot commit to this project because she is not sure if it is a good idea.

The SPEAKER: Order! The member for Murrumbidgee will come to order.

Ms KRISTINA KENEALLY: For the record—

[Interruption]

We will come to that. For the record this is what the shadow Minister for Transport had to say:

Our policy has always been to build on the missing links. This is also one of those missing links. But we won't make any announcements until we've done our homework.

How long has she had the Transport portfolio? When did you take on the Transport portfolio, Gladys?

The SPEAKER: Order! The member for Terrigal will come to order.

Ms KRISTINA KENEALLY: She has had that portfolio since 2006 but she has not had the time to determine whether or not Sydney's rail network needs the Parramatta to Epping rail link. Let us be abundantly clear whom we are talking about: the member for Willoughby—the shadow Minister for Transport—says that this project should not proceed because it is not in our 10-year plan. The argument made by the shadow Minister is that this project should not proceed because it is not in our 10-year plan. First of all, it is on page 43 of the—

Mr Adrian Piccoli: Point of order: I refer to Standing Order 129 and the question. The Premier's own transport Minister—

The SPEAKER: Order! The member for Murrumbidgee will resume his seat.

Ms KRISTINA KENEALLY: The Metropolitan Transport Plan released in February makes it abundantly clear what is in our $50 billion transport plan, what projects we will bring forward—

The SPEAKER: Order! I call the member for Willoughby to order.

Ms KRISTINA KENEALLY: The Metropolitan Transport Plan makes it abundantly clear what projects this Government considers a priority, what projects we will bring forward should Federal funding become available.

The SPEAKER: Order! The member for Murrumbidgee will come to order. I call the member for Murrumbidgee to order.

Ms KRISTINA KENEALLY: I encourage the member for Willoughby to read the Metropolitan Transport Plan.

Ms Gladys Berejiklian: I know it by heart.

Ms KRISTINA KENEALLY: It is there on page 43.

The SPEAKER: Order! I am not quite sure what just happened. I will order an action replay from the new cameras.