One Gippsland Welcomes Regional Recovery Budget

One Gippsland has today welcomed the release of the 2020-21 Federal Budget, which includes a range of regional recovery initiatives that will allow Gippsland to thrive.

"This budget will ensure we can begin to address the impacts of drought, fires and COVID-19 restrictions and head towards a strong path of recovery," stated One Gippsland Spokesperson and South Gippsland Shire CEO, Ms Kerryn Ellis.

Investments announced as part the budget (including those that have been made in recent weeks) include:

National Connectivity

Roads and Rail:

  • Local Roads and Community Infrastructure Program: $1 billion over two years from 2020-21 to extend the program;

  • Small Scale and Road Safety Projects: $2 billion over two years from 2020-21 to deliver small-scale road safety projects;

  • Roads to Recovery Program: $400 million;

  • Bridges Renewal Program: $60 million;

  • Black Spot Program: $60 million;

  • Bonang Road Upgrade (East Gippsland): $7 million;

  • Roads To Recovery Top Up: $138.9 million for additional funding for the Local Government Areas affected by drought;

  • Princes Highway East: $70.6 million;

  • Targeted Road Safety Works: $71.5 million; and

  • Regional Rail Revival Projects: $178.2 million.

National Digital Plan:

  • $4.5 billion NBN network investment plan to improve broadband speeds;

  • $30 million top-up of the Regional Connectivity Program to support the delivery of reliable and affordable digital services in regional Australia; and

  • $300 million of co-investment funding for NBN Co: to partner with governments and local councils to further improve broadband services in regional Australia.

National Emergency Response

  • Strengthening Telecommunications Against Natural Disasters Package: $37.1 million.

National Education 

  • Job Ready Graduates Program: Aimed to deliver more job-ready graduates in the disciplines and regions where they are needed most. A $5,000 Tertiary Access Payment is available Outer Regional, Rural and Remote students as apart of these measures;

  • $400 million committed to the Higher Education Reform: over four years from 2020-21 to increase higher education access and attainment for regional Australians; and

  • Boosting Apprenticeship Commencements Wage Subsidy: $1.2 billion allocated that will support 1000,000 new apprentices.


National Waste Policy Action Plan 

  • $59.6 million: over four years from 2020-21 to implement commitments under the National Waste Policy Action Plan; and

  • $190 million Recycling Modernisation Fund (RMF): over four years from 2020-21 to generate co-contributions from industry and State and Territory governments leading to $600 million of recycling infrastructure investment that will transform Australia’s waste and recycling capacity.


Agriculture

  • $328.4 million Busting Congestion for Agricultural Exporters: over four years from 2020–21, will reform export systems and regulation and contribute to the goal of $100 billion in farmgate production by 2030;

  • $9 million to support the Seasonal Worker Programme: over three years to ensure the welfare of Pacific and Timor Leste workers and that Australia farmers have access to the workforce they need; and

  • Top Up of $17.4 million over two years to Relocation Assistance to Take Up a Job program: to allow individuals who temporality relocate to a regional area to take up short-term agricultural work.


Health 

  • Extend Telehealth Services: $2 billion to extend Medicare-subsided telehealth and pathology services, GP-led respiratory clinics home medicines delivery, public and private hospital services.

  • Expansion of the Rural Health Multidisciplinary Training (RHMT) Program: $50.3 million over four years from 2020-21 (and $11.0 million per year ongoing) for capital works and expansion of the Rural Health Multidisciplinary Training (RHMT) program to improve training for students across a range of health disciplines; and

  • Community Wellbeing and Participation: Investing $13.4 million over two years from 2020-21 to roll out the program which includes delivery to the Gippsland region.


National Regional Recovery

  • $100 million Regional Recovery Partnerships: over two years for 10 regions to coordinate investments with other levels of Government to support recovery and growth. Gippsland has been announced as one of the 10 regions; and

  • $5.7 million Building Resilient Regional Leader’s Initiative: support building the capacity and capability of local leaders by funding training in 10 pilot regions (yet to be announced).

 
National Tourism 

  • $50 million Regional Tourism Package to assist businesses in regions reliant on international tourism;

  • $200 million top-up for the Building Better Regions Fund, $100 million will be dedicated to tourism-related infrastructure; and

  • $50 million Business Events Grants Program to generate demand for events, conferences, and trade exhibitions, particularly in regional Australia.

National Energy

  • Australian Gas Plan: $10.9 million in 2020-21 to progress an Australian Gas Plan to support investment to increase supply;

  • Investing in New Technologies:

    • $1.9 billion investment package in future technologies to support jobs, strengthen the economy and reduce emissions (details below)

    • An additional $1.62 billion for the Australian Renewable Energy Agency (ARENA) and the Clean Energy Finance Corporation (CEFC)

  • New and emerging priority technologies: $5.2 million over four years from 2020-21 to accelerate deployment of new and emerging priority technologies that have the highest abatement and economic potential for Australia.

"We congratulate the Federal Government for initiatives that will support regional communities in recovery," said Ms Ellis.

"One Gippsland will now work together to ensure we put forward exciting projects for our region to access these funds that will allow us to move towards a strong recovery," Ms Ellis concluded.

Collective Position