Media Releases

Member for Swan Hill, Peter Walsh, has welcomed the announcement of greater co-operation between the Victorian and NSW Governments on energy efficiency schemes, skills and training arrangements and economy-boosting reforms.
The agreements were announced this week by the Premiers of Victoria, Ted Baillieu and NSW, Barry O’Farrell.
“These announcements are extremely significant steps in the development of a formal Interstate Reform Partnership,” Mr Walsh said.
“One of our pre-election commitments was to address the issues of co-operation on matters of shared concern and these announcements signal the development of a joint reform agenda between Australia’s two most populous and economically important States.”
The agreements are the first outcomes of the Reform Partnership and aim to:
• promote economic growth and competitiveness,
• make it easier to do business and invest in both states, and,
• put downward pressure on the cost of living and the cost of running a business.
The reforms aim to align the energy efficiency schemes in both states which, although broadly similar, have various differences which add costs for participants operating across both states.
The move will place downward pressure on energy cost increases by reducing energy retailers’ compliance costs.
The Premiers also agreed to jointly pursue skills reforms, particularly in the area of apprenticeships, to benefit employers and apprentices and improve productivity by matching qualified apprentices with areas of unmet demand.
As a first step, the Premiers agreed to various actions to improve the take-up of competency based completions and transferability and alignment of training contracts between jurisdictions.
Noting the importance of international students to the economies of both states, the Premiers agreed to maximise opportunities to reduce red tape, including extending streamlining visa applications for high-quality, low-risk education providers like TAFE
institutes.
“This is a great step forward in interstate co-operation and I look forward to further developments in the near future,” Mr Walsh said.