Australia to invest A$82b in roads as part of 'contribute and build' budget

The Australian government will co-fund an A$82 billion (HK$595 billion) road infrastructure plan to help stimulate investment and create jobs as the impact of the country's mining boom fades, the Treasurer Joe Hockey said yesterday.

In a television interview before his government's first annual budget, to be delivered tomorrow, Hockey announced the plan to spend more than A$40 billion on roads over the next six years, to be topped up by some A$42 billion from state governments and private investors.

"We are laying a plan for the biggest increase in road expenditure in Australian history," Hockey said in an interview with the Channel Nine Network.

"That is tens of thousands of new jobs, but most importantly, it is going to address the significant drop-off in investment in construction in Australia associated with mining investment coming off."

He dubbed the economic blueprint his government will deliver as a "contribute and build" budget.

Australia's A$1.5 trillion economy sailed through the global financial crisis, but a slump in mining investment and a sluggish response to record low interest rates has hit government tax income as expenditure continues to grow.