Mr LITTLEPROUD (Maranoa—Leader of the Nationals) (12:14): I firstly associate the coalition with the minister's comments around Tropical Cyclone Fina, and our thoughts are with those that have been impacted, knowing that both the Territory and federal governments are working closely together in a collaborative way to give Australians the support they need in their hour of need. I thank the minister for her acknowledgement of that. On behalf of the federal coalition, I'm pleased to have the opportunity, in responding to the minister's statement, to recognise, affirm and promote the crucial importance of northern Australia within the fabric of our nation. When we discuss northern Australia, it's essential to identify and appreciate the immense potential that it boasts. In fact, with more than 50 per cent of our nation's landmass, the vast northern frontier of our continent offers a remarkable potential which extends into many critical areas. It has a profound strategic and defence potential, which is underpinned by the proximity of northern Australia to our Indo-Pacific region. From energy security to mining and critical minerals, it has a potential which is tied to the north's extraordinary array of natural resources. With rich agricultural land producing cattle, fruit and sugar, it has a potential which is critical for Australia's food security. And, by offering stunning environmental assets which exist nowhere else in the world, northern Australia has a potential that presents incredible opportunities as a tourism powerhouse. Strategically, economically and socially, the north is equipped with a diverse range of unique strengths that all Australian governments must actively harness. The potential of northern Australia has long been acknowledged and has been a consistent theme throughout our nation's history. The first pen-to-paper record of the potential of northern Australia was made by Willem Janszoon, the Dutch explorer who chartered approximately 320 kilometres of Cape York Peninsula in 1606 in the pursuit of trade opportunities. So it's a reality that we have been recording and talking about the potential of northern Australia for more than 400 years. We know that across the past 400 years the world has evolved and reinvented itself time and time again. We've seen it through the recharting of imperial borders. We've seen it through the Industrial Revolution and its compounding impacts upon the ability to urbanise, to increase populations and to globalise. And we see it now through the viral influence of the digital age—the rapid speed of information, cultural diversification and constantly evolving world views. Grandparents of just one or two generations ago could not have possibly imagined the reality of an Australian life in 2025, even though they would have had similar conversations about our nation's potential. It was less than two weeks ago that we, as Australians, paid tribute and solemnly commemorated Remembrance Day. Generations of Australians would gather nightly to listen to radio reports of attacks on the Australian mainland in Darwin in 1942, of the air raids over Broome soon after, of the Battle of the Coral Sea, of the Battle of Milne Bay and of the Battle of Kokoda. They were the generations who simultaneously experienced the vulnerability and fortification of northern Australia. They were the generations who experienced firsthand the importance of Australia's neighbours such as New Guinea, who stopped the advance of our foreign enemies through their northern approaches. Today, Australia finds itself at a critical juncture. It's at this juncture that we examine the terms of critical vocabulary that apply to northern Australia. It's time, after so many years of discussing the potential of the north, to add the word 'urgency' to the agenda, because, in an international theatre of geopolitical tension and complexity, Australia is living in uncertain times. And northern Australia is uniquely poised to secure the safety of Australia's future as well as that of its global partners. Therefore, the responsibilities of the federal government, when it comes to building and securing the future of the north, are vitally important and vitally serious. Australians need a federal government that is firmly committed to actively homing in on northern Australia's proactive role in defence, in border protection, in critical minerals, in supply chain resilience, in water infrastructure and in food security. On this front, it's worth acknowledging the shared vision of the Northern Australia Ministerial Forum. The forum sets out the aims and goals of the federal government, the Queensland government, the Western Australian government and the Northern Territory government when it comes to diversifying and strengthening the economic opportunities in northern Australia so that all Australians can benefit. Many of the listed goals are well recognised, such as meeting current and future workforce needs and the priority of developing natural and economic assets. Crucially, the statements in the ministerial forum's vision that point to critical policy matters on the table for northern Australia include both 'optimising sustainable resources' and 'capitalising on the north's strategic location in the Indo-Pacific region and proximity to Asia'. The federal coalition are strongly committed to providing bipartisan support for the northern Australia agenda, and we recognise the government's plan to develop this vast, challenging and expansive region. However, we do implore all members who have been elected to this federal parliament to look deeply, and to appreciate and recognise the invaluable significance of northern Australia to not only the future of our own country but the prospects of global security. Historically, the north has defended us. The north has also fed us. Amazingly, we know that the 5.2 per cent of Australians who live in the north grow about 12½ million beef cattle for domestic and international consumption, as well as 96 per cent of our bananas and 92 per cent of our mangoes. The north also dominates Australia's remarkable mining sector, with nearly eight per cent of its workforce employed in mining, compared to just 1.9 per cent nationally. Proudly, it's an economic engine room and a region that has always punched above its weight. This means that a stronger north equals a stronger Australia. When the federal government seeks to harness this strength, this potential, and northern Australia's future, the time to act is now. We have reached the point where this nation has moved beyond identifying the north's potential. We have moved beyond a futuristic goal. The need to deliver is tangible, it's real and it's urgent. In last year's opposition reply to the minister's statement on northern Australia, I said that the sense of urgency to support and build the north needs to be escalated right now. Furthermore, I said: Faced with a dynamic geopolitical backdrop, an increasingly hungry world demanding quality food with reliable supply chains and our allies seeking a secure supply of critical and traditional minerals and rare earth to electrify the world, there's an opportunity which exists at our northern gateway. On these fronts, we need to see both urgency and concrete delivery from the federal government. Our neighbours and allies recognise the importance of northern Australia. Right now, they are utilising strategies for their own national security and economic development based upon what they know we can deliver. We know that Japan relies upon Australian LNG for their energy security. The United States looks to Darwin as a key location in their Indo-Pacific foreign policy and uses our northern ground to train their defence troops. We can see that South Korea is looking favourably at our critical minerals to help supply its electrical vehicle and battery industries. Meanwhile, others choose to be friendly neighbours and partners based upon the north's strategic geographical location. Domestically, here at home, it's likely that someone who has visited the Northern Territory recently would have sensed the excitement and the anticipation of what the Beetaloo Sub-basin gas reserves will deliver for advanced manufacturing, sovereign capability, domestic supply security, cleaner energy and the longer term global gas supply. Impressively, resource estimations for Beetaloo are equivalent to more than a thousand times the current annual domestic consumption in Australia or equivalent to the amount of energy required to drive a car 483 million kilometres. Fortunately, with a proactive Northern Territory government in office, combined with widespread industry recognition and the passionate backing of this energy sector, the promising reality of Beetaloo is most definitely in the now and in the present, instead of being in the category of 'future potential'. If we add the capacity and productivity of Beetaloo to the Middle Arm in Darwin—a project which will provide critical minerals processing, enabling manufacturing and support Defence logistics through the AUKUS partnership—we can see firsthand how northern Australia will be front and centre, being a long-term economic and physical security hub for our nation. Importantly, by transferring Canberra based decision-making to on-the-ground strategy and policy development which is permanently housed in northern Australia, we can ensure that major investment in the broad physical infrastructure of roads, rail, bridges, airfields, data security, energy security, disaster response and, specifically, an east-west connection between the three northern jurisdictions—all of these policy priorities can be translated into real delivery. This is all about meeting the demands, expectations and needs of northern Australia head-on. This is the pathway to ensure that Australian governments and Australian families can benefit from a strong economy and a robust national security system, which will allow our nation to be ideally positioned to harness the advantages, to mitigate the risks and to resist the threats going into the future. The federal coalition recognises the infrastructure spend in new and existing roads in the north. We recognise the federal government's backing of the Middle Arm in the Northern Territory and we recognise the jobs and projects generated by the Northern Australia Infrastructure Fund, the NAIF. However, now is the time to accelerate; it's not the time to sit back and take the foot off the pedal while our projects, such as the Outback Way, take 30 years to complete. When it comes to delivering crucial infrastructure across northern Australia, the federal coalition proudly backs the ongoing role of the NAIF. On this side of the House, we're proud of the NAIF because it was a coalition government who established it, it was a coalition government who funded it and it was a coalition government who legislated it. The federal coalition commends the NAIF's proven success, and we remain absolutely committed to supporting this effective framework which fosters private investors' confidence and certainty in collaboration with the public sector. Furthermore, we commend the NAIF review recommendations and look forward to their implementation, along with making the NAIF permanent. Ultimately, we firmly believe that the NAIF is the perfect instrument to drive significant infrastructure investment in the north. When it comes to the Cooperative Research Centre for Developing Northern Australia, we appreciate that its conclusion in 2026 necessitates a new iteration of the centre. This will ensure the continuation of specific northern Australia research and development, which will help fuel further productivity, innovation and economic growth. The pressing challenges, priorities and requirements of the north and the issues which are impacting families, communities, industries and economies in this part of the country are diverse and they are many. This includes the need for improved roads, bridges and transport. This includes quicker responses from emergency services. This includes more doctors and hospital beds. This includes stronger defence for our borders. This includes maintaining the integrity of our biosecurity system and the protection of our agricultural industry. This includes water security for both our urban cities and our rural communities. This includes incentives for businesses, mining and tourism investment. This includes having access to reliable telecommunications. This includes affordable insurance. It includes having equitable treatment for preventable diseases in our most remote communities. But it doesn't end there. Critically, with more than 17 per cent of the population in northern Australia being Indigenous, compared with only 3.1 per cent across the country, this region holds an essential key for our nationwide efforts to effectively close the gap for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people. Time is not on our side, and it is not ours to waste or ponder on. We have the greatest resources in northern Australia to ensure the ongoing wealth and security of our country, as well as that of our global neighbours and allies. It is time to upgrade the northern vocabulary. We as the coalition will always defend and promote northern Australia, but it's urgent that we convert the long-discussed potential into the here and now of current reality. Now is the time to fulfil the potential that was first documented so many years ago. It's time to translate the talk into urgent action. As an opposition, our commitment to ensure the continued prosperity and defence of Australia involves keeping government policy and decisions accountable and keeping northern Australia front and centre on the decision-making table. To conclude, the federal coalition stands proudly with northern Australia. Our commitment to this unique and abundantly rich part of our nation is proven, resolute and unflinching because we on this side of the House know that delivering a stronger northern Australia will deliver a stronger Australia.