NSW Deputy Premier, Leader of the NSW Nationals, Minister for Trade and Investment, Minister for Regional Infrastructure and Services and Member for Oxley, Andrew Stoner, writing in Lismore’s The Northern Star on 26 June 2013:
Funding for regions
IF regional communities need more proof that the NSW Liberals and Nationals government is committed to improving their infrastructure and services, they need look no further than the NSW Budget 2013-14.
I was recently pleased to announce that more than a billion dollars worth of state funds would be delivered to regional hospitals, schools and roads and to crucial services like transport, education, training and emergency services.
These communities are finally getting the funding they deserve from this government, unlike the 16 long years of neglect under Labor.
For regional mining affected communities in particular, it is important they get a fair return of the riches their local lands produce when their infrastructure needs are put under pressure by extra heavy vehicles and industrial activities, whether directly or indirectly.
That is why the NSW Government's Resources for Regions program was established - to relieve infrastructure constraints and support communities in regional areas affected by mining.
This year, eight local government areas were eligible for assistance under the program; from Muswellbrook, Singleton and Newcastle in the Hunter to Narrabri in the North West, Cobar in the West, Lithgow in the Central West, Wollongong in the Illawarra, and the Mid-Western Regional Council area including towns like Mudgee and Gulgong.
These eight areas were identified as needing funding most urgently and they had the opportunity to share in up to $120 million on offer.
I look forward to announcing the successful infrastructure projects these communities applied for later this year, with around $40 million on offer in the initial round of the fund.
And now I look forward to inviting more applications from these communities in a supplementary round of Resources for Regions, thanks to the additional funds from Restart NSW made available by the proceeds from the long term leases of Port Botany and Port Kembla.
Around $80 million will be available for successful applications received in the supplementary round that will open in September. With this additional funding on offer, I encourage the eight areas eligible under this year's program to put forward an application.
This opportunity shows that the NSW Government will continue to deliver for regional communities by ensuring they receive a fair share of this state's wealth, with a further round under Resources for Regions in 2014-15 providing other eligible local government areas with the chance to apply for funding next year.
Andrew Stoner
NSW Deputy Premier
Unfortunately funding available under the Resources for Regions program in 2013/14 do not apply to the Northern Rivers region – so Mr. Stoner’s letter is a complete waste of space and one wonders why it was published at all.
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