Regional Victorian communities hard hit by COVID, drought and bushfires yet playing a key part in Australia’s economic recovery are being backed, and thanked, in the federal Budget, Nationals Senator Bridget McKenzie said.
A wide range of funding programs and measures were announced in the Budget focused on jobs, skills and training; backing business and industry; tax relief; and investing in infrastructure and childcare.
Budget measures that will benefit regional Victoria include:
Training and employment
- A new JobMaker hiring credit of up to $200 a week to encourage businesses to hire younger apprentices.
- A JobTrainer fund that will create up to 340,000 free or low-cost training places in areas of skills need, for school leavers and job seekers.
- An additional $1.2 billion to create 100,000 new apprenticeships and traineeships, with a 50 per cent wage subsidy for businesses who employ them.
- New cadetships and apprenticeships for women in science, technology, engineering and mathematics.
- 50,000 new higher education short courses including in agriculture, health, IT, science and teaching.
- 12,000 new Commonwealth supported places for higher education in 2021.
Tax Relief
- An additional tax cut for low to middle income earners worth up to $1080 for individuals and $2160 for couples.
- A tax cut for small to medium businesses, reducing the rate from 30 to 25 per cent from 1 July 2021.
- Building on the successful Instant Asset Write Off for business until June 2022, meaning a trucking company can upgrade their fleet, a farmer can buy a new harvester and a manufacturer can expand their production line.
Agriculture
- $385 million for biodiversity to safeguard farmers from pests and diseases.
- $87.7 million for businesses and farmers to expand and diversify their export markets.
- $162.5 million to continue the Future Drought Fund to build resilience.
- $237.9 million to help famers better understand and manage soil health, leading to higher yields and improved productivity.
- $1.3 billion to recover water for the environment in the Murray Darling Basin while maintaining water for irrigation.
- $22.3 million from the National Water Grid to develop business cases for water infrastructure projects to help secure Australia’s water future including the Coliban Regional Rural Modernisation and Sunbury-Bulla-Keilor Agricultural Rejuvenation projects.
- AgMove support including relocation assistance to get workers into jobs on farms to address labour shortages.
Manufacturing and industry
- $2 billion in additional Research and Development incentives to build on Australia’s manufacturing capacity.
- $275.5 million to develop regional clean hydrogen hubs including one based in Wodonga.
Building Infrastructure:
- An additional $3.4 billion towards Victorian infrastructure projects.
- Includes $203.5 million for Local Roads and Community Infrastructure projects, and $170 million for Road Safety projects in Victoria.
- A further $84.8 million to deliver improved broadband and telecommunications through the Regional Connectivity Program.
Recovery In Our Regions:
- $2 billion in concessional loans to support farmers through drought recovery.
- $350 million to support regional tourism and a further round of the Building Better Regions Fund.
- $5.7 million to deliver a new Rebuilding Regional Communities Program to help communities recover from COVID.
- $317 million to help exporters continue to access global supply chains.
- Building water infrastructure, and security, as part of the National Water Grid.
- Establishing the National Resilience and Recovery Agency to coordinate locally-led recovery and driving efforts to reduce the impacts of future large-scale disasters such as bushfires and floods.
Health:
- Medicare subsidised telehealth services for GPs, allied health and specialist services extended until the end of the year.
- $42.5 million for community health, hospitals and infrastructure projects.
- $11.6 million to extend rural training and retention of health workers in remote, rural and regional areas.
- $65.8 million to support to rural-based GPs through increased rural Bulk Billing incentive payments.
- $5.7 billion for mental health support including for critical frontline services and suicide prevention.
Veterans:
- Establishment of a Royal Commission into Defence and Veterans Suicide.
- Includes $94 million to improve mental health outcomes and ensure high-quality care for older veterans and their families.
Women and families:
- $1.7 billion investment in childcare to make it more affordable for low to middle income earners.
- $1.1 billion through the Women’s Safety Package to address and prevent family and domestic violence and enhancing law enforcement.
The 2021-22 Budget also has record funding for schools, childcare, aged care and disability services.
“This budget gives confidence to our regions in knowing the Liberal and Nationals Government is backing them in their recovery from turbulent times,” Senator McKenzie said.
“Yet business, industry, manufacturing and our farmers get on with the job, contributing enormously to regional economies and collectively the national economy.
“Recognising this, and the important role they’ll play in helping to drive the national recovery, this budget contains a range of measures to support the growth and prosperity of our regions.
“This is an exciting time to be in regional Victoria with what’s offered in the Budget and the opportunities that await.”
For more details on Budget measures, visit: www.budget.gov.au.
ELECTORATE OF INDI
Funding for the electorate of Indi from the 2021-22 Federal Budget includes:
• $400,000 for safety improvements on the Midland Link Highway and Midland Highway to Magills Lane ($3.2 million already contributed towards the $4 million project).
• $9 million for North East Rail Line supporting infrastructure.
• $700,000 towards pedestrian and safer schools ($5.2 million already contributed towards the $6.5 million project).
• $2.4 million allocated for rural intersection safety upgrades ($16 million already contributed).
• $5 million towards the McKoy Street – Hume Freeway intersection upgrade ($168 million already contributed towards the $210 million project).
• $16 million towards Victorian Faster Rail Corridor investigations ($16 million already contributed to $32 million project).
• $239,000 for Lake Road Murray Valley Highway at Old Tallangatta as part of the Black Spot Program.
• $1.25 million for Mansfield Shire Council – Mansfield Heavy Vehicle Bypass Upgrade as part of the Heavy Vehicle Safety and Productivity Program (total cost of the project is $2.5 million).
• $850,000 for the Great Valley Trail ($1.3 million already contributed towards the $2.6 million project).
• $4,450 towards Demystifying Mountain Biking and Enabling Communities Workshops.
• $845,000 to Beechworth to Yackandandah Epic Mountain Bike Trail ($1 million already contributed to the $2 million project).
• $104,409 to Kinglake Streetscape ($750 thousand already contributed to $1.7 million project).
• $280,000 to Colac Colac Caravan Park Revitalisation ($400,000 already contributed to $800,000 project).
• $3 million for Baranduda Fields Sporting Complex ($10 million already contributed to $20 million project).
• $500,000 to Wodonga Senior Secondary College School Hall refurbishment ($5 million already contributed to $7 million project).
• $50,000 for Veterans Integrated Support Service / Post Traumatic Stress Wellness Centre (total cost of project is $75,000).
• $1.02 million for Mansfield Indoor Sports Centre ($3.4 million already contributed to $7.3 million project).
ELECTORATE OF BENDIGO
Funding for the electorate of Bendigo from the 2021-22 Federal Budget includes:
• $60 million for the Bendigo-Echuca Rail Line upgrade ($158.7 million already contributed towards the $176.2 million project).
• $70.2 million for the Murray Basin Freight Rail project ($440.4 million already contributed towards the $689 million project).
• $700,000 for pedestrian and safer schools ($5.2 million already contributed towards the $6.5 million project).
• $2.4 million towards various rural intersection safety upgrades ($16 million already contributed to the $20 million dollar project).
• $9.5 million for overtaking lanes from Melbourne to Mildura.
• $3.5 million towards the project development and preconstruction of Melbourne-Mildura.
• $16 million for Victorian Faster Rail Corridor investigations as part of the Major Projects Business Case Fund.
• $370,000 for Coliban Regional Rural Modernisation Preliminary Business Case as part of the National Water Grid Fund (total cost of the project is $520,000).
• $278,500 for Macedon Ranges Livestock Exchange and Truck Park – Stage 1 ($878,500 already contributed to the $1.75 million project).
• $174,819 for VGR Service Reorientation Project (SRP) – Construction Stage ($995,000 already contributed to the $2 million project).
ELECTORATE OF MCEWEN
Funding for the electorate of McEwen from the 2021-22 Federal Budget includes:
• $5 million for Melbourne Intermodal Terminal – Planning and Development ($61.8 million already contributed to $123.6 million project).
• $7.5 million to improve passenger rail services from Northern Victoria to Melbourne.
• $900,000 for Pedestrian and Safer Schools ($6.5 million already contributed to $13 million project).
• $160 million for the Toowoomba to Seymour corridor, including the Goulburn Valley Highway (includes $31 million allocated for projects in the 2021-22 Budget).
• $10 million for a detailed business case to investigate the planning, design development and delivery along Melbourne’s Outer Metropolitan Ring and E6 Corridor to support the future construction of the proposed transport link (Victorian Government contributing $10 million).
• $400,000 for Calder Freeway – Gap Road to the M80 Ring Road.
• $20 million for commuter carpark upgrades – northern lines (Craigieburn and Hurstbridge). ($70 million already contributed to $140 million project).
• $16 million towards Victorian Faster Rail Corridor investigations ($16 million already contributed to $32 million project).
• $783,000 towards Wildwood Road and Somerton Road at Bulla as part of the Black Spot Program.
• $110,000 allocated for Sunbury-Bulla-Keilor Agricultural Rejuvenation Preliminary Business Case as part of the National Water Grid Fund ($250,000 already contributed towards the $500,000 project).
• $18,800 to Mitchell Tourism Excellence Program (total project cost is $37,600).
Communities in regional Victoria will also benefit from:
• The further $250 million towards a sixth round of the Building Better Regions Fund.
• $6.2 billion to the Roads to Recovery Program from 2013-14 to 2023-24, with an ongoing commitment of $500 million each year following.
• An additional $1 billion to the Local Roads and Community Infrastructure Program to support local councils deliver priority road and community infrastructure.
• $4.9 billion in the Roads of Strategic Importance initiative to fund upgrades to key freight corridors to help connect regional businesses to local and international markets and better connect regional communities.
• $1 billion under the COVID-19 Relief and Recovery Fund.