Mrs PHILLIPS (Gilmore) (19:35): The Gilmore electorate takes in a 200 kilometre stretch of the New South Wales South Coast, with 180-odd towns and villages across the three local council areas of Kiama, Shoalhaven and Eurobodalla. Gilmore has a lot of roads, a lot of bridges, a lot of pathways, so many roundabouts, thousands of potholes, dozens of landslips and, unfortunately, far too many lives lost.

I drive these roads every day, so I know firsthand how our local roads are impacted by natural disasters. I get caught in traffic when an accident has occurred and the Princes Highway is closed again. I talk with families that have lost loved ones and people in communities that have been impacted again and again by road trauma.

Road safety is a top priority for people in my electorate, and that's why I have fought so hard to deliver more than a billion dollars to get important road projects off the ground. In this term, I will continue to fight for better roads in my region.

Even before I was elected as the federal member for Gilmore in 2019, I pounded the pavement collecting signatures, attended rallies and meetings, and shouted from the rooftops, calling for improvements to the Princes Highway and, of course, to our local roads in the Shoalhaven, Eurobodalla and Kiama areas.

Now six years later, when I drive around Gilmore, I'm immensely proud to see roadworks, completed or underway, that I have championed, such as major infrastructure projects like the Far North Collector Road at Bangalee, near Nowra, and the Jervis Bay flyover, and many smaller but just as important roads that connect our villages and towns.

Just last month I took a tour of the Jervis Bay intersection worksite and was amazed to see how fast it is progressing. Work is now underway on the massive overpass and two roundabouts that will make this important intersection smoother and, importantly, safer for local residents and visitors. To the south of the Jervis Bay turn-off, the wheels are turning on the upgrade of the six kilometre stretch of the Princes Highway to Hawken Road, which will become dual carriageway with a safer interchange.

This crucial road project is finally underway thanks to a $400 million injection of funding from this government. I'm delighted to see the Nowra bypass moving forward with $97 million in federal funding. The Milton-Ulladulla bypass is moving forward with $752 million in federal funding, with a contract awarded for the next phase.

These are some of Gilmore's big ticket items, but just as important are the smaller road projects that are happening across my electorate thanks to an injection of federal funds. I've delivered $40 million for the Shoalhaven local roads package, and, on top of that, this government is providing an additional $8.1 million to improve the Shoalhaven road network. Preparatory works have begun on six roads earmarked for upgrades, including Forest Road, Callala Beach Road, Callala Bay Road, Culburra Road, the intersection of Worrigee and Greenwell Point roads and the Callala Bay Road and Forest Road intersection.

Further south, in the Eurobodalla, work is underway on a new roundabout at the intersection of George Bass Drive and Broulee Road at Broulee with the help $2 million from the black-spot program

A new $4 million roundabout on the Princes Highway at south Moruya will provide safe access to the Moruya TAFE campus, the new Eurobodalla Emergency Services Precinct and future housing developments. In the Kiama council area, a string of natural disasters has led to devastating landslips around Jamberoo, and I'm proud to say Jamberoo Mountain Road is now open to traffic following the completion of repair works helped along by federal and state disaster recovery funding.

I'm really looking forward to the completion of additional repair work on Wallaby Hill Road, Foxground Road and another section of Jamberoo Mountain Road thanks to over $4 million in funding through the Albanese and Minns Labor governments' Infrastructure Betterment Fund. I'm deeply committed to addressing longstanding problems on local roads caused by extreme weather events and to futureproofing the local road network for expected population growth in the region.

Finally, the government's decision to increase the funding for the Black Spot Program to $150 million per year and to progressively double Roads to Recovery funding means our local councils can fix even more local roads to ensure we all get home safely.