Media Releases

Member for Swan Hill, Peter Walsh, has accused the Labor Government of either being extremely loose with the truth or totally ignorant of what is said in Parliament.
“The Liberal Nationals recently announced Regional Growth Fund of $1 billion is in addition to existing funding and this was clearly stated this in Parliament,” Mr Walsh said.
“Hansard, the parliamentary record of all that is said in Parliament, quotes Nationals Leader Peter Ryan saying three times that the Fund is additional money.
“However, to suit her own needs, Regional and Rural Development Minister Jacinta Allan has sent letters out to rural newspapers that are blatantly incorrect claiming the funding was not extra money.
“This typical Labor spin of only hearing what they want to hear shows just how out of touch the Brumby Government is with the Victorian electorate.
“We now have Labor’s so-called Blueprint for Regional Victoria which, aside from clearly not listening to the advice of regional and rural communities, includes funding that forms a normal part of core government expenditure,” Mr Walsh said.
“As an attempt to rebadge core government spending as new initiatives this Blueprint and Labor’s extremely loose use of what has been said in Parliament depicts a desperate and out of touch Government who will say and do anything to get re-elected.
“The Liberal Nationals have produced a very clear and detailed plan to support regional and rural Victoria.
“Labor’s mishmash of funding priorities contains no long-term plan for regional Victoria and, as such, overlooks major areas of disadvantage including healthcare services, early learning facilities and higher education opportunities for regional students.
“This cynical and manipulative attempt to mislead voters by Premier Brumby indicates his contempt for Victorians and is just another embarrassment for this Labor Government,” Mr Walsh said.