Mildura’s achievements come with collective effort

It’s all people want from their elected leaders and it’s the philosophy that guides me every day.

As we pass the halfway mark of this parliamentary term, with two budgets down and two to go, it’s worth reflecting on achievements that were hard fought for and made possible by a community that knew its worth and took a leap of faith for a better deal.

Since November 2018, our electorate has secured more than $200 million of investment. Our advocacy has resulted in the return of Mildura Base Hospital to public hands, airconditioning in public housing, new industries in hemp and medicinal cannabis and planning amendments in the Mildura Older Irrigation Area.

We have secured tens of millions of dollars each for roads, schools and public housing, for job-creating infrastructure in sports and tourism, and for our small towns.

We launched the biggest campaign on regional rate reform the state has seen. This week Mildura Rural City Council followed the lead of Swan Hill by voting to formally endorse the RateGate campaign. The voice of rural and regional ratepayers will be critical to the campaign’s success. If you haven’t signed the petition, you can find it at www.alicupper.com.au.

Early discussions with Local Government Minister Shaun Leane suggest the government is listening. This is the biggest achievement – that the government finally recognises that we are Victorians too. Our region contributes billions of dollars to the economy. We deserve a fair share of the state’s resources.

These wins belong to all of us.

The return of Mildura Base Hospital to public hands is a prime example. This was made possible only by the collective efforts of the people who signed the petitions, attended the rallies and ran the campaigns and the man who risked his job to blow the whistle on the catastrophic failure of the privatisation experiment, Kevin Chambers.

For the rest of this term, I will lobby for a range of priority projects. Among those will be the development of a world-class hospital facility that meets the needs of a modern regional community and honours Kevin’s legacy. The people of my electorate deserve nothing less.