The Nationals Member for Gippsland Darren Chester has urged rural local government leaders to be persistent in their efforts to secure funding for their communities.
Mr Chester, who is the current Federal Minister for Veterans Affairs and the former Federal Minister for Infrastructure and Transport, told mayors, councillors and executives from rural Victorian councils that they needed to try again if their first funding application for a project was knocked back.
“I don’t think rural Victoria is getting its fair share of funding from the state or federal governments,” Mr Chester said.
“At a federal level, we are heading in the right direction. If we are to get programs like the Building Better Regions Fund, Roads to Recovery and the Bridges Renewal Program embedded in the budget, we need to ensure the demand is there.
“I think we are getting it right, but more needs to be done. It’s up to us to make sure we get our fair share and never give up.
“I don’t like seeing rural areas missing out just because they haven’t been persistent and are not asking for answers from departments when they are unsuccessful.”
Mr Chester made the comments during an address to local government leaders at Rural Councils Victoria’s Rural Summit, held over the past two days in Lakes Entrance.
Rural Councils Victoria represents Victoria’s 38 rural councils and supports sustainable, liveable and prosperous rural communities.
Mr Chester said small communities needed to work out how to get more people to relocate to rural and regional areas.
“There is a brain drain from our communities as our young people move to the city to study and experience life there,” Mr Chester said.
“We don’t want to stop them from getting that experience, but we need to do something to attract them back.
“We need to meet the expectations of the next generation of young Australians so they can live where they want to live and still be connected to the world. They need to be able to have the career they want and live in a small town.”