FEDERAL MEMBER FOR FRASER DANIEL MULINO: Great to be here this morning at Sunshine Train Station. I’m Daniel Mulino, the Member for Fraser, and Sunshine Train Station is right in the heart of my electorate and my electorate office is just 100 meters away from this very important transport hub. It’s great to be here this morning with Catherine King, the Federal Infrastructure Minister, Gab Williams, the Transport Minister for the Victorian Government and also a number of my state colleagues, Sarah Connolly, the local member, Natalie Suleyman, and Katie Hall. And the number of people who are here this morning reflects the importance of this project, the Melbourne Airport Rail Link, to people in my community, but right across Melbourne. So this is a project which we’re seeing Stage 1 announced today, a really important step in delivering a much needed transport boost for this region and for Melbourne more generally.

And with that, I’ll hand over to the Federal Minister who is here this morning.

MINISTER FOR INFRASTRUCTURE, TRANSPORT, REGIONAL DEVELOPMENT AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT CATHERINE KING: Well, of course, Melbourne Airport Rail is a step closer today. The Albanese Labor Government is investing $7 billion in Melbourne Airport Rail and $2 billion of that alongside the Victorian Government’s contribution is here at the Sunshine Super Hub. What we are seeing here with the first designs being released today ready for community consultation is a really complex and big project. It is basically building the Southern Cross Station here in Sunshine. It is untangling the rail network that then opens up the capacity for us to build the line out to Melbourne Airport but also for future Melton electrification. It provides two new platforms for regional rail, my hometown of Ballarat, a huge improvement in the rail accessibility for Ballarat, for Bendigo and Geelong.

And this is a project that has been- we announced back almost a year ago now. The planning work has commenced. The design work has commenced. Community consultation is about to commence, and you’ll start to see that early construction here at the Sunshine Super Hub. We can’t be the only capital city in the country that does not have a rail link to its airport. I’m very pleased that we’ve got the continued work that is happening between the Victorian Government, the Commonwealth, my department, and the airport now to really get the actual links onto the airport site sorted out. And that work is continuing as we speak, and we’ll have more to say about that in the coming months.

But this is an exciting day in the history of rail out in this area. We’ve got some very complex work to do to really make sure that we untangle that rail network, provide that opportunity for future growth in our rail network. It is the biggest project since Metro, which recently opened successfully here in Victoria. And terrific to be here today with my colleagues, Gabrielle Williams, who’s a great partner for Canberra to work with, to really get some of these big public transport networks once and for all sorted so that we can have a modern and accessible rail network here out to the airport as well.

And what I would say really clearly is that from our point of view, this $7 billion project is really critical to providing that opportunity for people out here in the west to be able to go about their business. Many of the workers who work at the airport are desperate for this rail link. We know that will provide an important opportunity for them to be able to commute to work, and so looking forward very much to having this project well and truly off the drawing board and into construction.

I’ll hand over to Gab.

VICTORIAN MINISTER FOR TRANSPORT INFRASTRUCTURE GABRIELLE WILLIAMS: Thank you, Minister and the team that we are joined by here today. I won’t roll through all the names again. I think you’ve got them all on record. But such an exciting occasion to be here at Sunshine Station, marking Stage 1 of Airport Rail, that section between West Footscray and Albion. We know how important this project is, not just because it represents us getting going on that important rail connection to the airport, but because it’s also effectively stage one of Melton electrification, also and very significantly, our pathway to be able to deliver more services to Melbourne’s western suburbs and also our western region of Victoria as well. Important to remind us that the western suburbs of Melbourne are not only one of the fastest growing areas of Victoria, it’s one of the fastest growing regions in our nation. And so, being able to untangle that six kilometres of track, separate out that metro, regional and freight network is all about enabling us to deliver over a thousand services through Sunshine Station every day, and we know how important that is to meeting the needs of a very fast growing community.

Of course, this project isn’t just about Sunshine Station, as important as the work is that will be taking place right here. It’s also about delivering a brand-new Albion Station, and an element that is new to people who have been familiarising themselves with this project, it will also involve a new Tottenham Station slightly north to its existing location, meaning that we are delivering more accessible stations with better amenities. And of course, alongside the work here at Sunshine will also be taking place our work around the Sunshine Masterplan. Some $143 million to really improve the amenity of this area through, for example, a new cycling and pedestrian path over the rail line along Hampshire Road, an upgraded bus interchange, and some new station forecourts and open spaces.

It’s such an exciting project, such an important project for all that it delivers in the short term and all that it paves the way for, of course that Stage 1 of Airport Rail and of course the future electrification of the Melton line. It’s wonderful to see the designs now out for consultation on the Sunshine Station component of this, and we encourage people to get out onto the Engage Victoria website and have their say. And also, marking the beginning of those enabling works that need to be done to pave the way for this very important project. In particular, the moving of a jet fuel pipeline. So you’ll see some works commencing between – really at either ends of that West Footscray to Greater Albion section, and those works are all about moving that pipeline in preparation for major construction starting.

In terms of the consultation around the design for Albion and Tottenham, those designs will be out to the Victorian community later in the year. And we can’t wait to be able to share this vision as we are doing today at Sunshine with the Victorian community, knowing how important this project is to future proofing our city.

And as usual, as I like to reflect on, it’s always great to have a partner in Canberra. Victoria was short-changed by successive Liberal-National Coalition governments federally over the best part of a decade. Finally, we have a partner in Canberra who has been investing in the projects that we know contribute to the liveability of Melbourne and Victoria and will continue to allow us to cater for the needs of a very fast-growing community here in Victoria. And this project here, the Stage 1 of Melbourne Airport Rail, is key to achieving just that.

So with that, we might go to questions if there’s anyone else.

JOURNALIST: I think I read a tweet from Ben Carroll saying shovels are in the ground. Where are these shovels?

WILLIAMS: So that’s the work I was referring to. Those enabling works to move that jet fuel pipeline are taking place. There’s two points of works, I understand. One is sort of at the Albion end. The other one is at the West Footscray end to move what is a very important, clearly, piece of infrastructure but a very necessary precursor to the major construction work starting along that six kilometres of track.

JOURNALIST: Now, the work that’s happening today, would that happen with or without the Airport Rail Link? You’re saying that the works starting today paved the way for the Airport Rail Link, but they’re also part of the broader rail network. So, is this really the start of Airport Rail?

WILLIAMS: It absolutely is a start of Airport Rail. You can’t – Airport Rail is dependent on the works that happen here between that Sunshine- or West Footscray to Albion section. I’ve outlined a few reasons why that’s so critically important. In terms of Melbourne Airport Rail, and why it’s critical to that particular project, it’s because we need to realign the track to make way for the new Melbourne Airport alignment. So you need to, effectively, make space for that new track. Obviously moving what’s underground, in this case a very significant jet fuel pipeline is a part of that. So that is work that has to be done before you can commence that other more visible above ground work, and we’re getting on and getting started with that work while we’re out for consultation on the Sunshine Station aspects of this project.

JOURNALIST: What do you want to see built first, Minister, Airport Rail or fast rail to the city?

WILLIAMS: We are very committed through the funding at the state and federal level to delivering Melbourne Airport Rail, starting here with the works here at Sunshine and that six kilometres of track. That stage one between West Footscray and Albion and all that it enables us to do – Airport Rail, Melton Electrification and delivering more services to Melbourne and Victoria’s West. This is a critical project of untangling what is probably at this point in time the biggest single obstruction in our rail network that is a hurdle to us being able to add more services. We build infrastructure because it allows us to add more services and add more connection points for Victorian communities. And this project is critically important for Melbourne Airport Rail, for the future electrification of the Melton Line and for untangling a significant blockage point that enables us to add more services soon for a very fast-growing community here in Melbourne’s west, and we’re looking forward to getting cracking and delivering on some important wins for the Victorian community.

JOURNALIST: When will Victorians be able to finally take a train to the airport? Do you have sort of a timeline or a date that you’d like to see?

WILLIAMS: The Federal Minister might like to supplement my remarks here. But you’ll remember last year, we signed an MOU between the State Government, the Federal Government and the airport. And since that time, there’s been the establishment of a steering committee to work through the scope and design details for that project, which will really determine timeframes as well. We’ve been really pleased with the progress that those discussions are making and I’m not here to make announcements today about timeframes, but I am very pleased that we’ve got now three parties at the table who are all deeply committed to delivering this project. A project that is very complex, it’s complex on this end of the project, it’s extremely complex on the other end when you consider that you’ve got significant rail construction work happening in a live airport environment and in an environment where the airport has its own projects that we’re seeking to complement taking place on airport land. So those conversations are really important. I’m very pleased that all parties are coming to those discussions with enthusiasm and with good faith, and we look forward to being able to give updates as we are able to.

JOURNALIST: There are ongoing concerns about CFMEU’s conduct on the SRL and the North East Link. The Victorian Government is embarking on another major infrastructure project with this. Do you have confidence that Victorians won’t actually see that level of misconduct we saw on all the other projects?

WILLIAMS: Let me add my voice to others in this. We have a zero tolerance to the sorts of behaviour, that criminal and corrupt behaviour that was brought to light a couple of years ago now in the media. And that is why we have worked so hard across a number of different work streams since that came to light to make sure that we’re stamping out that poor behaviour. Whether that’s through supporting the federal administrator in his important work focused on the union, whether it’s through the Wilson Review, which was instigated by the state government and its focus on ensuring that there are adequate complaints mechanisms, because quite frankly you can’t enforce unless you can evidence, so that work is very important. Whether it’s through Taskforce Hawk – and we’ve seen and learned more recently about the work that’s being done and the very good outcomes that are being delivered through Taskforce Hawk – I think some 70 charges against 15 individuals. And of course, that also builds on the work stemming from the Wilson Review and through the work of the Labour Hire Authority and now cancelling about 126 construction business licences.

And in addition to that, though, we’ve learned in recent times and had reason to talk about the Premier’s referral to the Fair Work Commission to look at certain EBAs. The work with industry expert John Merritt that has been taking place last year, acknowledging that this is an industry issue, bringing together contractors, unions, acknowledging that there is a challenge in the ecosystem and looking at additional measures that may be desirable to complement the work of Wilson. And of course, we know that the Integrity and Oversight Committee handed down a report just before Christmas that the Attorney has outlined that she is considering.

The reason I go to such great lengths to outline those many work streams is because since these allegations came to light, and they are serious allegations, we have not stopped working to stamp them out. We have got work streams across many different areas that reflect the complexity of the issues and the fact that there are many lines of accountability depending on where those challenges sit and what the appropriate referral pathways are.

Our work has not stopped and it continues still, and we are very committed to stamping out this incredibly poor conduct, and there’s good reason to be committed to that because there are literally tens of thousands of Victorians who work in our construction industries. They are hard-working; they are law abiding. They turn up to work every day wanting to know that they are safe so they can return home to their families. Quite frankly, I am angry for them that they have been let down by their union leadership and that they have been let down by a small number of bad actors who ultimately have not served any of those workers well. I’m also concerned, though, that in recent weeks we’ve seen the opposition seek to conflate those tens of thousands of hard-working, law-abiding construction workers with a small handful of bad actors.

Also, she can pave, in the case of the Leader of the Opposition, pave the way to effectively cutting projects to fill her $11 billion black hole. And the people that are most disadvantaged by this are the tens of thousands of Victorian workers who turn up every day and build incredible infrastructure and lend us their skills and have a very basic expectation of a good wage and a safe workplace. And we have been the beneficiaries of their hard work here for a very long time and we’ve had reason to celebrate their hard work in the back end of last year and I think it’s a travesty to see their hard work conflated with the incredibly poor conduct of a small number of very bad actors.

JOURNALIST: Minister King, can I just ask you on that? Do you have confidence – given what we’ve seen over the last couple of years’, do the feds actually have confidence in partnering with the Victorian Government on some of these major projects?

KING: Yes, we do. And you can see that evidenced here in this project as well as in the announcements that we’ve been making in the State of Victoria because we know that Victoria, under the previous Morrison, Abbott, Turnbull Government, was really short changed when it came to those investments that were going into other states but not coming here into Victoria.

What we’re seeing in both the work that the Victorian Government is doing and, of course, the decision that the Albanese Labor Government took to put the CFMEU into administration, the strongest possible action we could take, is an absolute determination to clean this industry up. As Minister Williams said, there are thousands of construction workers who are amazing and do fantastic work in our community every day, and we – you know they want to see their industry cleaned up as well, and that is why we’ve taken that action and we have confidence in the work that the Victorian Government has done.

Across the country, back in 2024, every state and territory agreed with our new federated funding agreement – the provisions that were placed in that to make sure that we have strong government and accountability mechanisms in place between the Commonwealth and the states on all of the projects that we’re funding. And I’m confident of the work the Victorian Government is doing in that regard.

JOURNALIST: Minister, would federal funding for a fast rail from Sydney to Melbourne come at the cost of more funding for Airport Rail?

KING: No. So, the funding that is for Airport Rail, there’s 2 billion here in the Sunshine Super Hub, and 5 billion of Commonwealth funding sitting for Airport Rail at the moment. And the work of that steering group which has met, I think, five or six times to date to really knuckle down and get down the details, particularly at the airport end, and get agreement from the airport as to where the station box is going to go, how the connectivity is going to go. And then start that detailed design work so that we can then start the work of building Melbourne Airport Rail – I’m very confident about that.

High speed rail, which I announced yesterday in Newcastle, is a fantastic opportunity. The first stage, 1A to 1B, where we announced yesterday, we are starting to do the detailed design work. We’ve got the concept work done. The business case was released yesterday. It’s unusual for that to happen, business cases often don’t get released – well, they have been released yesterday. That first stage at the development now doing that detailed design. We’ll get it ready for final investment, but it’s certainly- the money for Melbourne Airport Rail is there.

JOURNALIST: Would you like to see it built? The high speed rail? Or …

KING: I would like to see- I want to build everything. And I’m an infrastructure minister, that’s what I do. We want to build everything but we are very conscious that you can’t do everything all at once. Many communities would like us to do that. Obviously, our Airport Rail – Airport Rail, this stage here, Sunshine, we can’t build it without it. And I really want people to understand the links between this precinct and the untangling of the lines that has to happen. That has to happen first.

We can’t build Airport Rail without it. You can’t just suddenly chuck a rail line that isn’t going to connect in. And there’s just not room if you look at the congestion of the network here. So this has to happen. It’s intricately linked to the project in the first place.

But I would like to see Melbourne Airport Rail. It is well advanced. It’s obviously more advanced than high speed rail. But we’ll announce, once we’ve got detailed designs that will then give a construction timetable. And we’re not quite there yet with the line out to the airport itself.

JOURNALIST: [Indistinct] by 2060, which I think is what you’ve said. When do you need to start working on the first leg here up to northern Victoria?

KING: Again, we’re not making announcements about the timeframes. You don’t have a construction timetable until you have the detailed designs. Work is continuing with the steering committee for that line out in – out to the airport itself. But nothing can happen with Airport Rail without this first stage here at the Sunshine Super Hub. And what we’re announcing today is the concept designs are out. They’re out for consultation. Detailed design works will happen for the Sunshine precinct as well, and that is part of Airport Rail.

JOURNALIST: The freight industry says the work you’re doing here at the Sunshine is a disaster, and it will make rail freight from western Victoria unviable, pushing thousands more trucks on the country roads. Were you aware of that fact? And if so, why?

KING: Well, that is actually not quite – not true. So, there is a working group of rail – the working group of rail freight operators working very closely with Melissa Horne to ensure that we are able to get the freight line continuing through this region. That work is ongoing. I think it’s – will come to me shortly and we’ll have more to say about that. But the freight industry has been working very closely with the Victorian Government and with my department on resolving that issue.

JOURNALIST: [Indistinct] the freight industry…

KING: On resolving that issue, and the freight industry’s very much been part of that.

JOURNALIST: Just one here on the CFMEU’s misconduct. Do you support Geoffrey Watson and Murray Furlongs’ sworn testimony that CMFEU’s conduct cost taxpayers at least $15 billion? Do you support a Royal Commission to uncover the expense [indistinct]?

KING: The most important thing that I can do and Minister Williams can do is to support the work of the administrators. Obviously, all of this is coming to light because of the work of the administrator. The administrator must be allowed to do that work. That is what I support. As a Federal Government, that was the strongest possible action we could take.

We want to clean this industry up, get rid of the bad actors out of it. And as a result of the administrator’s work, many of the officials who were named in Watson’s report and testimony have been removed from their positions, and they are no longer involved in their work, and that is really important. We want to clean this industry up.

Frankly, my view is a Royal Commission is just a delaying tactic. What we need to do is let the administrator actually do its work and get on with that work, and be supported by government to do so.

JOURNALIST: The administrator supports a coercive inquiry to get to the bottom of all this. Do you back them on that?

KING: Again, our view very firmly as the Federal Government is that we support the work of the administrator. It was the strongest possible action we could take to make sure we clean this industry up. And what you are seeing come to light is a result of that administrator’s work. And we’ll continue to support the administrator and allow him to do that really important work of clearing this sector up.

And obviously, we will see through the work of the Victorian Government, through the work of other governments as well, that continued cleaning up of the industry right the way through various states and territories.

JOURNALIST: Some Victorian Government ministers have personally attacked Watson and they’ve also cast out on that $15 billion figure. Do you have any reason to doubt that figure, and do you share those figures?

KING: Again, I think that figure, it is contested. So let’s be clear about that, it is a contested figure. But let’s also be really clear, I have zero tolerance for any criminal or corrupt activity on building sites. As an Infrastructure Minister, Minister Williams has the same view. We want to see every dollar of taxpayers’ money spent appropriately on these work sites. That is why the administrator is doing its work. We are doing governance and assurance work as well.

But none of this happens in a vacuum. It’s why Amanda Rishworth and I, the Minister for Industrial Relations, established the National Construction Industry Forum. It’s got unions, it has the construction industry and Government together working on things like the unacceptable behaviour guidelines, which were established here in Victoria and in South Australia that are actually working their way through building sites. It is working closely together to try and ensure that the construction industry as a whole accepts responsibility for working together to ensure that taxpayers’ money is spent appropriately; that workplaces are safe, that they are places people want to work. Because the construction industry is important to our economy, and we want to make sure that we clean it up.

JOURNALIST: Minister, do you want the number to be tested? Murray Furlong said Victorians deserve answers. Is he right?

KING: Well, again, what the Federal Government has said very clearly is we support the work of the administrator. The Watson report came about because it is a report to the administrator. So we support the work of the administrator, and it has to be allowed to do its job.

JOURNALIST: So why not [Indistinct]…

KING: Again, I support the work of the – we support the work of the administrator.

JOURNALIST: Did the federal government think that it’s important to test that claim though, given it’s a large figure and Victorians want answers?

KING: Again, what we do at the federal level is, through the federated funding agreement we are an active and interested investor in infrastructure projects. What we do is seek assurance all the way through our processes to make sure that the money that we are investing in Victoria and investing in other states is delivering the infrastructure that Victorians deserve, and I am confident in that process.

JOURNALIST: You’re about to make a decision on further funding for the SRL. The Fair Work Commission recently said that there are ongoing risks of CFMEU misconduct on SRL. What kind expert insurances and due diligence are you seeking from the state beforehand about this money?

KING: Sure. Well, they’re decisions for budget, and I’ll announce those decisions at budget time. We haven’t made those decisions as yet.

JOURNALIST: But are you seeking any further…

KING: Again, I’ll make some further announcements in terms of the budget in relation to SRL. But already – already within the federated funding agreement back in 2024 every state and territory agreed to particular conditions within that federated funding agreement around governance, around assurance, and those measures already exist within our existing framework.

JOURNALIST: Do you need to strengthen it a bit more?

KING: Certainly, we will look to do that if we need to. But our view very firmly in terms of the federated funding agreement is that is working appropriately, and we are working appropriately with the Victorian Government on all of the projects that we have co-funding here in Victoria.

JOURNALIST: Just back on the fast rail, sorry. Experts have cast doubt over the – I guess, the business case claims that 100,000 homes will be built along that. How confident are you in those forecasts? It seems a bit farfetched.

KING: Yeah, I think it’s an – like, number one, we don’t normally release business cases, but we have. It’s a very robust business case. But what we are now doing, we’ve got a two-year development phase. We’ve put an additional $230 million into that phase. They will test all of those assumptions through the business case and do that detailed design work, but I’m very confident in the figures that are in the business case. It was a very good piece of work, and I think it’ll stand up to the testament of time.

JOURNALIST: Is there any work going on at all about the Victorian leg of the high-speed rail?

KING: So, what will happen – obviously, we are concentrating on that 1A and 1B section, the Newcastle to Sydney section via the Central Coast, and that’s really where we’re concentrating the development phase. But you can see from the business case it then also talks about what are the next stages over time. We will need to do some work to look at corridor preservation over that period of time, and we’ll have to talk to the ACT and the Victorian governments about that. But really, at this stage age, we’re concentrating on that Newcastle to Sydney phase first.

JOURNALIST: None of those conversations have started yet?

KING: We are always in conversations. Gab and I met last week. We meet constantly to talk about projects of interest, and I know that the High Speed Rail Authority has had initial discussions with all states and territories along that east corridor about what sorts of things we might need to look to from the future. But it’s early days yet.

JOURNALIST: Minister, we asked the state minister before, but when are we going to be sitting on a train? When are we sitting on that train to the airport?

KING: Well, again, we’re not here today to announce timeframes. There’s a lot of work. I know there’s a lot of interest in this, and people love Melbourne Airport Rail and really want to see it a reality. What we’re seeing today is that we are a step closer. We have to do the Sunshine Super Hub. We have to untangle that network. Airport Rail – the link out to the airport itself cannot happen without it. I can’t emphasise that enough. It has to happen. This project has to happen. So we’re not here to announce the detailed designs are ready. They’re not ready yet. The work that we need to do in terms of planning is still ongoing, but we want to see this project happen. We want to see it be a reality. And this is why we’re investing $7 billion in Melbourne Airport Rail and $2 billion of that is here at the Sunshine Precinct, which is the first bit to make sure we make Airport Rail a reality.

That is a huge opportunity for the people of the west. I’m really looking forward to seeing how that works and getting on with Melbourne Airport Rail, and this project is very much part of that. Thanks everybody. Thanks everyone.

JOURNALIST: Can I just ask Minister about Craig Tiley…

WILLIAMS: You can, but …

JOURNALIST: Just one or two sentences from you, Minister. Just about the legacy he left behind. His [indistinct] similar roles, what impact that he had?

WILLIAMS: Oh look, it’s probably a question better for my counterpart, Minister Dimopoulos. But look, I mean, I saw the coverage about Craig’s exit. He’s obviously been a big figure in the Australian Open here for some time, an event that is a jewel in the crown of Melbourne, the events capital of the nation. And an event that is a point of pride and brings in people not only from around the country but around the world, and he’s been obviously a big part of that story. We wish him all the best in the next chapter in his career.

JOURNALIST: And just very quickly, Minister, what do you make of the Opposition’s plan to supersize the city centre? They want to push out more of the city, including suburbs like [indistinct] and to do more high-rise buildings.

WILLIAMS: I think what we see in the Opposition’s housing plan is a return to the past; a return to a policy setting that effectively led us to the crisis that we’re now in in housing. They’ve talked about moving more people to the urban fringe which countless expert planners have told us is not only bad in terms of amenity for individuals, but it’s bad economics in terms of the ongoing cost to the state of doing that. And being able to preserve liveability for people who they’re seeking to push out into the fringes more and more and more.

You know, we have continued here in Victoria to lead the nation in not only building approvals but in the delivery of homes, even despite the market pressures that have impacted the nation. We lead those efforts. We remain committed to making sure that Victorians have the homes they deserve in the areas that they want to be that are connected to good public transport networks and all the opportunities that that leads to. Close to jobs, close to education, close to recreation.

What we’re seeing from the Opposition is effectively a return to the days of old where – which do nothing but guarantee that we’ll be here in another 50 years talking about how we’re going to ensure that younger generations can afford a house. But the difference in 50 years’ time is that we’ll be talking about three generations of people that haven’t been able to buy a house. We’re getting on and with a plan that ensures that we can deliver those important homes for people that are connected to where they need to be – to jobs, to education, to recreation. What we’re seeing from the Opposition is yet another NIMBY policy.

JOURNALIST: Minister, Just one more on Sunshine. The original proposal for the super hub included a second concourse and all sorts of other amenity upgrades, all of which seem to be stripped back quite significantly for something fairly bare bones. Do you have any comments for the locals who feel ripped off by that?

WILLIAMS: Well, look, as I’ve said, alongside the work on that six-kilometre untangling of track, effectively, and all that it paves the way for, is the work around the Sunshine Masterplan. The Stage 1 of that master plan is that $147 million that my colleague Minister Shing has spoken about previously. As a part of that, you are seeing significant amenity uplifts, including that new cycling and pedestrian path over the rail line, an upgraded bus interchange, and of course a new station forecourts and open spaces around it. So you will see significant uplift around the immediate Sunshine Precinct with more work to come in the future. And of course, though, as a part of this Stage 1 of Airport Rail, you’re also seeing new stations at Albion and Tottenham as well, which represent significant uplifts for those communities in terms of more accessible stations, better amenities at those stations.

This is a really significant project for Melbourne’s west, not only for what it delivers immediately through the work that takes place across those six kilometres and some of the complimentary work through the masterplan, but all that it effectively unlocks into the future. And we’re very excited about being able to share that through these initial concept designs with the Victorian community, and through further designs for those other two stations later in the year.

JOURNALIST: Melbourne Airport Chief Executive said that expansion for the actual airport [indistinct] with the Federal government [indistinct] recouped through airfare increases. Is that fair for Victorians after these upgrades?

WILLIAMS: Look, I’ll leave commentary around airfare prices to the CEO of Melbourne Airport. They’re obviously beyond the jurisdiction of the Victorian Government. Obviously though, the airport has big plans for Melbourne Airport and is a key partner with the Victorian Government and the Commonwealth Government in being able to deliver Airport Rail, and make sure that this brand new airport link that we’re all so committed to works in well with the upgrades that are planned by the airport itself on airport land. And we’re very excited that they are so enthusiastic about this project, and that we’re all at the table and very committed to delivering.