Member for Burnett Stephen Bennett has labelled the Palaszczuk Government’s ‘Building our Regions’ program a sham, and called on the Member for Bundaberg and her government to stop misleading the Bundaberg community.
“With the resurgence of some infrastructure projects in the Wide Bay Burnett region underway, what we need is the Palaszczuk Government to stop misleading the Bundaberg region, and bring forward funding through a program that stalled in its first year, leaving a huge gap in the pipeline of infrastructure projects delivered in rural and regional communities across the Wide Bay-Burnett region,” Mr Bennett said.
Mr Bennett said this week’s announcement that $70 million would be made available for Round 3 of Labor’s dodgy Building our Regions program would be met with skepticism and disappointment by local councils.
“After the Member for Bundaberg spent $10 million dollars on reviewing the already completed flood mitigation options from 2014, we see $70 million only being made available to all local councils, effectively eliminating any flood mitigation projects for Bundaberg. Was flood mitigation not a key election promise of the Member for Bundaberg’s?” Mr Bennet said.
“Despite claiming Labor ‘topped up’ the Building our Regions program in last year’s state budget, it still falls a huge $120 million dollars short of the former LNP Government’s landmark $495 million Royalties for Regions program – $120 million that we desperately need.
“The Palaszczuk Government’s program is a pale, cheap and nasty replacement for the LNP’s hugely successful Royalties for Regions program and it’s failed dismally to deliver much needed infrastructure projects and jobs in the bush.”
Mr Bennett said while in Government, the LNP delivered the Gayndah, Monto and Mundubbera Aerodrome upgrades, the Maryborough CBD Flood Resilience project and the Monto-Mount Perry Road project.
“Labor’s smaller, shorter and narrower program stalled in its first year, with the Palaszczuk Government’s own 2016-17 budget papers revealing the Building our Regions program had a 99 per cent underspend in its first year – it was a flop,” he said.
“The Member for Bundaberg and her Labor government can’t turn around now and say she is bringing forward Round 3 when Round 1 never really happened and no-one knows where Round 2 is up to – Labor is tripping over the paperwork, but can’t deliver any projects.
“Labor’s Building our Regions program has been a disaster for local communities and councils but the LNP had committed to reinstating its effective Royalties for Regions program if it is returned to office at the next state election.
“The LNP’s original Royalties for Regions enabled us to fund and deliver critical infrastructure for the Bundaberg and Burnett region, including numerous vital flood mitigation projects.”
Projects delivered to the Wide Bay-Burnett region through the LNP’s Royalties for Regions program:
– Maryborough CBD Flood Resilience project – $6 million
– Fraser Coast FIFO Hub – $700,000
– Technology Park Flood Protection Levee – $600,000
– Bartholdt Drive Evacuation Route – $1.4 million
– Gayndah, Monto and Mundubbera Aerodrome upgrades – $13.2 million
– Splinter Creek Bridge Replacement – $1.5 million
– Monto-Mount Perry Road project – $15.8 million
*Between 2012 and 2015 Royalties for Regions invested in 147 regional community infrastructure, road and flood mitigation projects with a combined value of more than $790 million.
Wednesday 18 January, 2017