SA

There is very little in the federal budget for towns like Naracoorte in regional South Australia. And with the new budget, the government has put the heavy lifting at the feet of the community, with very limited spending in the region to counterbalance the increasing costs. That’s how the shadow minister for finance and tax reform, Heidi Girolamo, has described the new budget, claiming it would only “bring economic hardships”.

The Tatiara District Council is headed for a $2.9million loss this financial year, thanks to some “extraordinary circumstances”. The loss, which the council administration says is “largely due to grants not received yet,” was discussed at the council’s meeting in Bordertown on June 13.

It was not just an ordinary bus tour of the district. It was a tour that included some of the elected counsellors of the Naracoorte-Lucindale Council on a bus, witnessing the various conditions of some of the roads in the district. As fascinating as it sounds, Cr Peter Ireland described the tour as an important one, giving elected members the opportunity to be “out in the field and not just be making decisions from the council chambers”.

The Naracoorte Lucindale Council will do what it can within all townships of the district to provide an environment where business can thrive. That’s the assurance from mayor Patrick Ross to all businesses in the district, which are still recovering from Covid-19 and now feeling the pinch of inflationary pressures. While many businesses in the district failed to remain open after the pandemic, Mr Ross says small businesses in town were “very risky”.

Naracoorte and Lucindale have been nominated for South Australia’s Agricultural Town of the Year Awards 2023, pinning the importance of the district’s $411million primary production sector. Public voting is now open to choose the top 10 agricultural towns in the region, and the Naracoorte Lucindale Council is encouraging locals to register their votes for the towns ... “...and highlights the practises of those within the agricultural sector and the benefits that flow onto communities”: Council chief executive officer Trevor Smart.

Treasurer Stephen Mullighan said the state government had learned much from its visit to Yorke Peninsula, even if it wasn’t addressed in the budget ... "I know in a state budget, whether you’re from a particular area in South Australia or particular interest group you look and find, what do we get new. But I don’t want people to think that just because something hasn’t been specifically funded, there isn’t effort going into that."