Cathy McGowan has the independent question today. It’s to Barnaby Joyce:

“This week you met with the Victorian minister for public transport and major projects. And I hope you discussed the north-east Victorian rail line, which is maintained by the ARTC. Can you tell the House, or can you give us an update on the scope of workforce in the $100 million upgrade? When will the scope of works be released for public consultation? And when will work commence and can you tell the community of north-east Victoria when we can expect completion of the track works that will allow operation of the new trains?”



For those who complain about my ban on dixers (which, for those who are not familiar with the term is a throw back to the advice columnist Dorothy Dix, who was known to write her own questions) this is what I think government backbencher questions should be like - something that actually deals with the concerns of their electorate.

Joyce:

“It is that we are working on the line that you have stated. We are spending $100 million on that line. We will look to start consultation in around about the middle of this year. It is vitally important, as that being part of the link, not only for a commuter network, but also in what we need to do on the inland rail. Now, it’s incredibly important that we get the agreement in place, so that we can deal with any land acquisition requirements, and working with that, with the minister for Victoria, we look forward to a vast improvement, as part of this Coalition’s investment in infrastructure, especially investment in rail infrastructure.

Updated at 17.23 BST