Healthcare, infrastructure, the rising cost of living and government waste are among the key concerns impacting voters in regional towns like Naracoorte in the South East.
Some political leaders believe that addressing these issues with strong, practical policies could significantly sway voters in the area.
Independent member for MacKillop, Nick McBride; Naracoorte Lucindale mayor, Patrick Ross; State opposition leader, Vincent Tarzia. Photo: Vincent Tarzia/official website; Minister for primary industries and regional development, Clare Scriven. Photos courtesy The Naracoorte News
As the prime minister considers a date for the upcoming federal election and candidates shift into campaign mode, voters are asking critical questions.
In this edition of Hard Talk, The [Naracoorte] News spoke with several political leaders to gain insight into the major election topics that could determine the outcome.
We reached out to key political figures, including prime minister and Labor Party leader Anthony Albanese, opposition leader and Liberal Party leader Peter Dutton, South Australian premier Peter Malinauskas, state opposition and Liberal Party leader Vincent Tarzia, independent member for MacKillop Nick McBride, and Naracoorte Lucindale Council (NLC) mayor Patrick Ross.
Mr Ross, Mr McBride and Mr Tarzia shared their perspectives on the pressing issues affecting voters and what steps should be taken to address them.
State minister for regional development, Clare Scriven, responded on behalf of the government. No other responses were received by the time this edition went to press.
The [Naracoorte] News asked:
- In your view, what do you think are the three critical issues affecting voters in regional towns like Naracoorte in South Australia?
- What do you think are the factors that are causing these issues?
- How do you plan to address these issues faced by the voters?
- Do you think the state and/or federal government has failed country towns like Naracoorte in the South East of South Australia? If yes, why? If not, why not?
- If in power, what are your development plans and commitment for regional towns in the South East of South Australia?
The responses
Rare earth mining issue; State opposition leader, Vincent Tarzia
Mr Tarzia believes that a critical issue specifically for Naracoorte was rare earth mining on prime agricultural land.
“It is vitally important for regions like the Limestone Coast to protect and retain our highly productive land so we can feed our future generations,” Mr Tarzia said.
Apart from mining, Mr Tarzia said other issues affecting regional towns in South Australia were the cost-of-living crisis, health, and failing road infrastructure.
“Power prices and the cost of groceries are where the pressure points are for regional families throughout SA,” he said.
“We currently have a $2b backlog of road maintenance throughout South Australia. The former Liberal government invested a record $878 million of new funding for regional roads and infrastructure, but the current government has only announced “band-aid” fixes to regional road infrastructure.
“We know our regional road network is vital to ensure products get to market, and they must be safe and maintained to the highest standard to ensure the safety of rural communities.
“We know regional people have 30 percent poorer health outcomes than metro residents, and our regional health system has been left behind by the Malinauskas Labor government including their refusal to fund radiotherapy in the Limestone Coast.”
Mr Tarzia said the Liberal government was ready to fix these critical issues if elected.
“The opposition is focused on ensuring our regions are not forgotten. We have nine members of parliament in the Liberal Party who live in regional South Australia.
“There must be the political will to invest and grow our regions, and we are committed to doing that. We have committed to radiotherapy services in the regions, we have announced a regional main street revitalisation fund, and we will have a laser focus on developing our policies for regional road infrastructure, supporting regional small businesses, and our primary production sector as we approach the 2026 election,” he claimed.
Mr Tarzia said the newspaper’s readership would agree that country towns have not received the investment that they deserve.
“Our primary production sector continues to add $18 billion to our state economy, but we have not seen that kind of investment coming back.
“Labor has been in government in this state for 19 of the last 23 years. They took their eye off the ball long ago, and it simply isn’t good enough.
“A Tarzia Liberal government will not drop the ball in terms of the regions; they are too important to our state,” he claimed.
When asked if in power, what would be your development plans and commitment for regional towns in the South East, Mr Tarzia said his members of parliament have been working on a suite of policies across infrastructure, cost of doing business, health, housing, and primary production.
“We have already announced policies to exempt apprentices and trainees from payroll tax to assist tradespeople to get more people on the tools to build the homes we need; we will scrap the GP payroll tax brought in by Labor to make it cheaper to see a doctor; and we will invest in regional main street revitalisation,” he added to his list of claims.
What’s your plan for the region? Independent member for MacKillop, Nick McBride
Whether Labour or Liberal, the government needs to have a solid plan for the region, says Mr McBride.
He said the top three issues facing the voters were roads, mobile coverage, and health.
“These are the three at the top of the list, but that’s being mean to the fact that there are also housing, drought, and cost of living type constraints as well,” he said.
Mr McBride said it was a fact that the roads in the South East were not being maintained.
“So, we know that our roads are tired; they are being let go and not being maintained in the order that they used to be.
“We know that some of them (roads) in Mackillop and the Limestone Coast have been for 20 years and have gone past their use-by date,” he said.
Mr McBride said he was looking forward to the Intelligent Pavement Assessment Vehicle (iPAVE) survey that the government undertook to find out the state of the roads and where we sit in terms of the spend and the upgrades.
He claimed people were suffering from the poor mobile coverage, particularly from the conversion from 3G.
“There were already black spots before 3G was closed down and moved to 4G and 5G,” Mr McBride said.
“The 4G and 5G conversions have not been received well. I think it has made networks smaller and contracted, and people are suffering, particularly those grasping with aerials, radios, and receivers to get a service, and all of a sudden that disappears,” he said.
“So, that’s a very frustrating thing to have lost.”
On health, Mr McBride said he was very excited about the review of the Naracoorte Hospital but questioned whether the government had a future plan.
“We have had consultations about the hospital and what it means to the outer regions of Naracoorte, like Bordertown, Keith, Lucindale, Kingston, Millicent, and Penola,” he said.
“The review will tell us what the hospital could have, should have, or how it represents these areas, and hopefully we have got an idea of the future of the Naracoorte Hospital.
“We have many constituents coming to our office concerned about doctors, nurses, specialists, transport, and all those sorts of things.”
Mr McBride said there were various factors contributing to the challenges faced by the electorate.
“I think it’s a lack of traction through government. Everywhere else has had greater priorities than the Limestone Coast and MacKillop.
“I am hoping the fact that I am an independent, I have a good relationship with the government, that is the Malinauskas Labour government, that hopefully when we bring the facts and the science to the government, there is no further room to ignore or to delay.
“That is my wish, and that is what I am hoping for, and that’s why I would be saying that I want to run for the next state election based on that relationship, and hopefully that traction that I have with the Malinauskas Labour government.”
Mr McBride said it was all about getting traction in the government and making sure the money was spent in the region and on things like road upgrades and the health system.
Health, cost of living, and government waste; Naracoorte Lucindale mayor, Patrick Ross
Mr Ross believes the cost of living is a priority as people are not only talking about it, but also juggling their income to pay for services, have children at school and put meals on the table every day.
“This over time will affect the quality of life that we may have been accustomed to and will be a massive challenge,” Mr Ross said.
He said the cost-of-living crisis was a result of many factors, including the cost of energy, freight costs, and upward pressure on wages, which added to the cost of production and potential business failures.
He believes health is a constant crisis faced by everyone in the district.
“Health in all its forms is becoming unattainable for many, which leads to poor health outcomes over the long term,” Mr Ross said.
He said this would put increased pressure on emergency departments, which were already overworked and under-resourced, as there were not enough people within the system to cope with the daily load.
The mayor added government waste to his claims of top election issues affecting voters.
“Government waste—it is talked about at all levels, and all we see is increasing numbers of public servants, so much so that it is the growth industry in Australia where productivity and contribution to the economy may be questionable,” Mr Ross claimed.
He said the council would continue to assist ratepayers.
“The NLC will do what it can where it can within the financial capacity of the ratepayers. We will continue to do what we do best, and that is to ensure that the high quality of services will be maintained or renewed as required,” Mr Ross said.
“Both federal and state governments struggle to look after their assets, which are mainly roads and telecommunications and electricity, in rural and remote SA.
“We can be included, but we are continually let down by connectivity issues, and the road network is crumbling at the edges.
“I’m unlikely to be in a position of power; however, all governments need to be way more accountable for the waste when it comes to the way money is allocated both nationally and internationally.”
We acknowledge the challenges; Minister for primary industries and regional development, Clare Scriven
Responding to our questions on behalf of the state government, Ms Scriven said South Australia’s regions played a crucial role in the economy, and the government had invested heavily in the regional communities.
“South Australia’s regions play a crucial role in our economy, and our government has invested heavily into building our regional communities to ensure they attract and retain residents now and into the future,” she said.
Ms Scriven said Naracoorte was rich in agricultural land, and farming was a major contributor to the local economy.
“We acknowledge the wide variety of challenges that people are facing as our regional communities and towns continue to grow.
“In our 2022-23 state budget, the government of South Australia committed $1.49 billion for our regions to deliver on our election commitments that support primary industries and regional communities, and in last year’s 2024/2025 budget, a further $686.4 million in new measures was provided to support South Australia’s regions,” she said.
Ms Scriven said a suite of measures was underway in the South East, which included:
- The Malinauskas Labor government’s $8 million upgrade of Naracoorte Hospital, which will deliver much-needed new clinical and patient spaces for the community, including significant improvements in accident and emergency.
- One of the biggest investments in regional mobile phone coverage in the state’s history—providing $5.5 million to boost connectivity in the Limestone Coast.
- An unused former TAFE building in Naracoorte is set to be transformed into an early learning childcare centre with a $500,000 grant from the state government’s Enabling Infrastructure Program. The much-needed $2m facility will support local families by creating a safe, nurturing, and stimulating environment for 60 children in Naracoorte. It aims to provide a new, accessible, and reliable childcare option, addressing a significant shortfall in the region.
“We look forward to continuing to work with our Limestone Coast communities as we build a better future for generations to come,” the minister added.
This article appeared in The Naracoorte News, 26 March 2025.
