The 2013-14 Victorian Budget has been disappointing for all Victorians, especially the people of Wyndham. Premier Napthine has cut more than $1 billion from services such as health and education whilst increasing fees, fines and taxes on Victorians. Some of these increases include:

• State taxes up $900 million.
• Stamp duty revenue up $290 million.
• Vehicle registration fees up $60 million.

Despite a commitment to bring down government debt, the Coalition Government has tripled Victoria’s debt in real terms since they came into office.

Transport Infrastructure

The Government announced with great fanfare that they have finally decided to implement a basic requirement of a complete interchange at Sneydes Road for an influx of 70,000 new people. However this project only addresses the minimum needs for the new growth, doing nothing to redress its neglect for the existing community.

The Coalition’s re-announcement of the Sneydes Road project comes after two and a
half years of inaction on addressing Wyndham’s transport congestion. In that time Wyndham’s population has grown by over 25,000 people and the roads are already straining under the pressure created by this growth.

The RACV estimates an additional $1.3 billion spent on transport infrastructure is
required in Wyndham alone. I note with concern that only $72 million has been earmarked for investment in this community.

The grade separation of the railway crossings at Werribee Street, Cherry Street and
Hoppers Crossing are all in the top twenty of the Department of Transport’s priority list, but have been ignored by this Government, yet again showing the low priority they give to the people of the western suburbs. 

 

East West Tunnel

The centrepiece of the Napthine Government’s 2013/14 Budget is its “East West”
tunnel, which despite its misleading name will do nothing for the West.

The project is only one third of a full East West Link, the section furthest to the East, and will not be completed until 2019. 

The western suburbs will not see its desperately needed West Gate Alternative for many years under this plan. This is despite the fact that transport planners almost universally believe that the West Gate Alternative is critically important. This is just another indication of the Napthine Government’s resolve to neglect the West.

 

Education and Training

 

Media announcements led us to believe that the west would see three much needed new
schools in this budget. Two of these were commitments from the previous Labor  overnment. But the Napthine Government has avoided any specifics about these new schools in their Budget Papers. We don’t know when they will start building: it may be years from now.

The Napthine Government has failed to meet the minimum of responsibilities in
Wyndham, with no funding committed to ongoing standard upgrades of existing schools, including no commitment to fund Stage 2 building works at Tarneit Senior College and Tarneit P-9, as both schools face huge growth in student enrolments.

For the third Budget running, Western Metropolitan MP Andrew Elsbury has failed to
deliver on his pre-election commitment for Stage 3 refurbishment at Werribee Secondary College.

Finally, the Napthine Government has yet again failed to commit any funds to transform the empty Glen Devon site to a Community Education Centre. This continues to be a disappointment within the Wyndham community. 

CUT: $69 million bringing the total to $625 million from Education since the Baillieu/Napthine Government took office.

CUT: Napthine has cut the Apprenticeship Completion Bonus, paid to apprentices as an incentive to complete their training.

UNDER THREAT: Funding cuts to education put $4 billion Gonski reforms at risk. 

Health

The announcement of $34 million for a new mental health facility the Werribee Mercy
Hospital in the 2013-14 budget is an overdue investment in mental health, although we will not see these new beds until 2016. 

CUT: $210 million from Health in the State Budget has taken the total over three years to $826 million in cuts. That is enough money to fund 165,000 elective surgery procedures.

Employment

The Napthine Government has failed to deliver a Jobs Plan to tackle the growing unemployment problem facing many Victorians. Growth in unemployment has disproportionately affected people in the outer western suburbs, with a rate of 6.8% compared to the state average of 5.8%.