It’s the political silly season as the rush to get elected hits full steam. Once dormant pollies spring to life with promises of shiny beads and mirrors, and a promise that this time it will be better.
With the country’s national debt spiralling to almost a trillion dollars in the last 25 years, there appears to be little interest in slowing down. To conceptualise the scale of this number, one million seconds is about 11 and a half days, one billion seconds is about 32 years, and one trillion seconds is 32,000 years!
Independent candidate for Farrer Michelle Milthorpe said the budget falls short on regional support.
“I welcome the inclusion of things like childcare subsidies, investment in infrastructure for child care centres, and commitments to women’s health—areas that are often overlooked,” Mrs Milthorpe said.
However Milthorpe believes the funding for regional areas is superficial.
“It’s a short-term fix for long-term problems, without a real plan for lasting solutions,”
“It’s one thing to offer subsidies for child care, but that only helps if you actually have a child care centre in your town. If you don’t, then a subsidy does nothing for you. That’s the reality for many regional, rural, and remote communities in Farrer,” she said.
Mrs Milthorpe also pointed out a major gap in healthcare funding, particularly for emergency care.
“The new Urgent Care Clinics announced in the budget will improve healthcare access for many Australians, but not for the majority of people in Farrer. Unless you live in Albury, you miss out—again. These clinics will be available to four out of five people in Australia, yet in our region, where access to healthcare is already limited, we’ve been overlooked. For communities without hospitals or after-hours care, this is just another example of the city-first approach that ignores the reality of living in regional Australia,”
Federal Member for Farrer Sussan Ley was also disappointed with the Labor budget.
“The label I’m mostly hearing on this latest Labor budget is ‘underwhelming’. I would add the word ‘staggering’”. said Ms Ley
“In over 20 years, I am staggered to see a Federal Budget which completely forgot to include anything for regional Australia.”
“There is no ongoing funding for the vital Growing Regions program, Stronger Communities program, Local Roads and Community Infrastructure program and the Regional Precincts and Partnership program.”
“There was literally nothing extra for the road work and maintenance NSW and our local councils are crying out for.”
“The Albanese Government is continuing with wildly expensive water buybacks instead of allowing us to get on with farming and food production. And they remain hell bent on a renewable energy path instead of a sensible energy mix.”
“So, what’s Labor’s answer? A tax change giving you 70 cents a day in ONE year’s time, and an energy rebate which is a fraction of the cost of your power bill.”
“Under a Coalition Government, regional Australia will again receive its fair share of funding and get back to the core business of good government, for all Australians.”
This article appeared in The Koondrook and Barham Bridge Newspaper, 3 April 2025.
