SENATOR MALARNDIRRI McCARTHY
MINISTER FOR INDIGENOUS AUSTRALIANS

MATT SMITH
LABOR CANDIDATE FOR LEICHHARDT

 

E&OE TRANSCRIPT
PRESS CONFERENCE
CAIRNS
MONDAY, 7 APRIL 2025
 
SUBJECTS: Funding for Torres Strait Islands seawalls; Climate action.
 
MATT SMITH, LABOR CANDIDATE FOR LEICHHARDT: Good morning, my name is Matt Smith, I’m the ALP’s candidate for the federal seat of Leichhardt. I’m proud to be here today with Mayor Phillemon Mosby from TSIRC, members of TSRA and of course Senator Malarndirri. The Torres Strait Islands today are getting a huge investment of funding $77.4 million, $36.2 million for the construction of seawalls across five islands and an additional $42 million for the construction of essential water infrastructure, including waste water, potable water and solid waste disposal. Climate change is happening now, and it is happening now, particularly in the region of the Torres Strait. It is an existential crisis that requires immediate action, and that's what these sea walls are about. What we do know is that climate change needs to be addressed in two ways with remediation and resilience and with action on reducing the impacts of the climate change itself. This is part of the equation. The other part is, of course, the reduction of climate change and emissions. That is why the Anthony Albanese Labor Government takes climate change so seriously. That is why Australia's positioning itself as a renewable powerhouse. We lost 10 years on climate change over the former LNP government. The Torres Strait Islands do not have 20 more years to wait for nuclear to possibly come online. They need action right now. Masig Island, the cemeteries are inundated. The bodies and the bones of the old ones and the babies are being washed out to sea. This is something that has impacting the community every, every high tide, every king tide. This is an existential crisis that has to be addressed.
 
MALARNDIRRI McCARTHY, MINISTER FOR INDIGENOUS AUSTRALIANS: Well firstly thank you Matt. It’s lovely to be here in Cairns and I certainly pay my respects to the Traditional Owners of this region and Elders, but also to the Torres Strait leaders who are here today. It is a significant announcement, and as Matt’s says, he’s lobbied very heavily for this announcement to take place. We do need to see the construction complete in Queensland of Torres Strait Island seawalls. We see the effects of climate change right around the world, but particularly here in the Pacific. When I went to Fiji, I spoke to people there about the issues and they were very concerned with the rising sea levels and the same in Vanuatu at the United Nations. We've had advocacy from Australia, in particular, the Torres Straits because of the concern of the rising sea levels. So, our announcement today is over $77 million to complete the sea walls, is absolutely critical and we do need the support of the Crusafulli government to join us to complete this. We have had previous Queensland government’s work with us on stage one and two, and we certainly need that completion and that partnership with the Queensland government to be able to do that.
 
JOURNALIST: How much funding is required I guess from the state, how much are you looking for?
 
MCCARTHY: That would come down to negotiation, obviously, we are the largest funder in this with over $77 million. We would like the Queensland government to be at the negotiating table with us and we are urging them to come the table, so that we can actually start in terms of contracts and see this stage three begin by the end of the year. Before I take any more questions, can I just ask the Mayor to speak and then happy to take some questions.
 
PHILLEMON MOSBY, MAYOR OF TORRES STRAIT ISLAND REGIONAL COUNCIL: Thank you. Mayor Phillemon Mosby, with the Torres Strait Island Regional Council. I stand here with both the Leichhardt candidate for Labor and Senator McCarthy. On behalf of the Torres Strait Island Regional Council, our people and my counterparts, the leadership cohorts from the Torres Strait, the Torres Shire Council, Torres Strait Regional Authority, Northern Peninsula Area, we welcome and thank the Albanese Labor Government for investing $77 million into the Torres Strait. Climate change is real in the Torres Strait. It ensures the preservation and maintenance of one of the oldest cultures in this world. It ensures that our people continue to have kinship and affiliation to our land in our sea Country. It is a strategic part of the world to this country and to the state of Queensland. We welcome this investment, but what we are calling today, whilst we welcome this Commonwealth investment, is a bipartisan. The needs to be a whole of government approach for investment into the Torres Strait, it’s people and its strategic important role that it plays to this state and to this country Australia. So, we welcome a bipartisan agreement, for infrastructure funding and to address climate change in the Torres Strait. It is impacting our lives every day as Torres Strait Islander and an Australian citizen. Thank you.
 
JOURNALIST: Mr Mosby, Cook MP David Kempton has already vowed to fight from the state perspective, for better water infrastructure. Has he provided you with an update on where he's at?
 
MOSBY: I haven't received any update to date regarding whatever commitment the state is doing but we would expect, regardless what colour of government at state and Commonwealth, First Nations people are important agenda to Australia as a country and I would, one would think that those relationships and partnerships are in place at both state and Commonwealth.
 
JOURNALIST: No updates from the Cook MP, as of yet?
 
MOSBY: Nothing to date.
 
JOURNALIST: Jeremy Neal has said that the Coalition is in support of the seawalls program. Is this something that you believe that he would stick to his word?
 
SMITH: The seawalls is only part of the part of the issue. The main issue is of course, addressing climate change, and the LNP has a history of not taking climate change as an issue particularly seriously. Their former prime minister brought a lump of coal into parliament to brandish about. Peter Dutton made jokes about water lapping at the doorstep of people in the South Pacific. It's not a joke to the people of the Torres Strait. We are in a very real situation, where we are going to have climate refugees in our own country. Climate change is impacting right now and it needs to have action on right now, which is why the $2.3 billion investment to household batteries is so important, which is why making Australia, and particularly the far north, a renewable powerhouse is so important, to reduce our carbon dioxide emissions, and try to halt the march of climate change to ensure the Torres Strait Islands has a great future.
 
JOURNALIST: Matt on some other issues. Do you believe Jeremy Neal has a secret list from Cairns Regional Council?
 
SMITH: I don’t know. I know that there's been announcements that I haven't been informed on, but you know, that's fine. He's got a relationship with a lot of the people in there because he obviously did sit as a Councillor for those couple of months. If they're talking to him directly then I'm happy with that. I think that in my travels around and with my talking to the community, I understand what our community is looking for and what they're asking for. And you've got to remember, I did work in there for 10 years as well, so a lot of these projects I was a part of, in their design stage anyway.
 
JOURNALIST: Will you still be able to trust the Council should you win Leichhardt?
 
SMITH: Absolutely. I've known them for a very long time. I have good personal relationships with a lot of those councillors.
 
JOURNALIST: One the Barron River Bridge, are you able to explain what that $225 million exactly is for?
 
SMITH: I'm not talking about the Barron River Bridge today, we’re making a massively good announcement for the Torres Strait.
 
JOURNALIST:  In regards into the infrastructure for critical services, I guess can you run us through some of critical services where the money will be going?
 
MOSBY: Thank you. In terms of this investment from the Albanese Labor Government, it will ensure that essential to life infrastructure, across the region, is maintained. One of the biggest challenges that we have operating, in our part of the world is operating in a very heavy marina environment, which means the asset that is being built, it doesn't last its entire lifetime because of the heavy environment that we are in, but we have infrastructure on the ground that was used to be replaced yesterday and this investment will ensure that those critical to life infrastructure around water, sewer, safe access, affordable access for people in very remote parts of Australia, that people take for granted on the mainland. So, this is wonderful news and I'm really excited that Traditional Owners across the length and breadth of Zenadth Kes, Torres Strait, including Northern Peninsula Area, can have those important infrastructure replaced and that it doesn't pose further financial sustainability issues and concern to those local governments and those important services that's being provided in those remote communities.
 
JOURNALIST: How are remote communities dealing with the climate now, like before they get this funding?
 
MOSBY: Climate change is real in the Torres Strait, as Matt has alluded to earlier, there's a two-fold approach in addressing climate change. One is to build a sense of resilience and adaptation among First Nations people. Finding the balance between traditional knowledge and science, and how can we maintain people practicing ongoing kinship and affiliation to land and sea Country. Secondly, it's about us, the longevity of our lifestyle in those vulnerable communities. By investing such funds like today, to build defence work, to address inundation and erosion in the Torres Strait.

ENDS

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