REGIONAL public transport, schools and roads are winner in the 2016/16 State Budget, announced on Tuesday.
The Premier, Daniel Andrews said that the Budget delivers jobs and prosperity for regional Victoria.
“All Victorians deserve decent services – no matter where they live,” he said.
The Budget includes:
* $325 million in jobs initiatives for infrastructure and services, with upgrades to irrigation, water security, mobile blackspots, street scaping and important planning work for local projects.
* Massive investment in public transport and roads, with more V/Line rolling stock ordered to support further Bendigo line services.
* $6.1 million to modernise, upgrade or regenerate two schools, and new Tech Schools in Bendigo and Ballarat.
* A $101 million Regional Tourism Infrastructure Fund, which will upgrade tourist landmarks and encourage the growth of the lucrative tourist dollar across the whole State.
* A payroll tax cut for about 36,000 businesses across Victoria, with the payroll tax-free threshold lifted to $650,000 over the next four years.
“In regional Victoria, safe and reliable transport is everything, and the Budget provides a massive investment to improve public transport and roads across rural and regional Victoria, as well as creating jobs,” Mr Andrews said.
“The Budget invests $1.3 billion to make regional rail services more frequent and reliable, and position the whole system for the longer-term expansion that our growing regions will eventually need.”
The Bendigo railway line will have an additional two off-peak return services every day and $2 million has been allocated to undertake the detailed planning needed to upgrade the Bendigo line.
The Budget provides $260 million to repair unsafe and deteriorating road surfaces across regional Victoria. Further investment will fund measures such as flexible road barriers and centre line upgrades.
Mr Andrews said that the Budget funds $427 million in road safety upgrades, most of which will be invested in regional Victoria, as well as a $52 million package of works for the smaller, local roads that people rely on every day. The Budget also provides $51.6 million to build overtaking lanes on other major highways.
The Premier said that the Government is investing $4.4 million to help struggling regional kinders keep operating and $133 million to make sure parents can access free maternal and child health services.
The health budget includes $200 million for the Regional Health Infrastructure Fund. Other investments include $132 million for clinical mental health services, $57.3 million to support vulnerable children and their families, and additional funding to confront the “ice” crisis that is gripping regional Victoria.
Local State politician, Nationals Leader, Peter Walsh said that rural Victoria will gain little from the Budget and country people will have to wait for some of the promised expenditure.
“The further you live from Melbourne the less you’ll get from the Andrews Labor Government,” he said.
“The 2016/17 Budget makes some big promises, but actually delivers little. It will make almost no positive difference to the lives of rural and regional Victorians in the coming year.”
Mr Walsh said that the few major projects promised for regional Victoria will not get the majority of their funding for years and will take even longer to actually be completed.
“A plan without funding is just a wish list,” he said.
“Rural and regional communities need infrastructure projects that start today, not five or 10 years down the track.”
