Independent Member for Shepparton District Suzanna Sheed says it is vital for the future of local food production in Northern Victoria that no additional water is taken out of irrigated farming communities.

Ms Sheed said while she was pleased to see the Australian Senate this week vote down a Greens’ disallowance motion on the Murray Darling Basin Plan to allow 605Gl of important environmental projects to proceed, she remained extremely concerned at a side deal done to ensure delivery of an additional 450GL of water.

“I was very disappointed to see that the Australian Agriculture and Water Resources Minister David Littleproud did a deal with the federal Labor Opposition to all but guarantee the recovery of an extra 450GL,” Ms Sheed said.

“It was always understood that this additional water would only be considered once the 2750GL of the original plan was achieved, and should only go ahead if there were no further negative socio-economic impacts to communities.

“Victoria has already given up 800GL of the most expensive high-reliability water and what many of the decision makers are failing to understand is that any further on-farm efficiencies in the Southern Basin will end up ripping water out of the Goulburn Murray region because of how water is traded.”

When pressed by Ms Sheed in Question Time yesterday, Victorian Water Minister Lisa Neville reiterated that Victoria is a signatory to the original 2750 GL plan and said she was concerned by some of the proposed changes to the Plan outlined in the Federal Government deal.

The Minister pointed out that the Plan was an agreement by the states and the Federal Government and so any changes would have to be approved by all parties at the Ministerial Council.

She also confirmed the Victorian Government would not agree to the current Goulburn Constraints Project, which she said delivers very little water to the river and potentially impact 570 landowners.

Ms Sheed said she welcomed the Minister’s comments and was confident she would continue to strongly protect the Victorian food-producing communities in Northern Victoria.

“The Minister is well aware of the serious socio-economic impact the Plan has had on our communities to date and it was encouraging to hear the Minister speak so strongly on behalf of Victoria’s food producers,” Ms Sheed said.

“She understands that the socio-economic neutrality test must be a community-wide test that reflects the impact of water removal across the community and confirmed that it is not simply whether or not a farmer wants to sell off his water.

“Any further water extracted from farms in the Goulburn Murray region could be disastrous for our communities.”

 

ENDS

Media contact

Riahn Smith 0419 138 978│riahn.smith@parliament.vic.gov.au

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Independent Member for Shepparton District Suzanna Sheed has welcomed funding to support local Neighbourhood Houses in this year’s State Budget.

The 2018/19 Victorian Budget has earmarked $21.8m for the Victorian Neighbourhood Houses program, with three houses in Shepparton District now eligible for increased funding to bring them in line with others in the region.

Nathalia District Community Association, the Numurkah Community Learning Centre and Tatura Community House are each eligible for an additional 260 funded hours a year – a boost of $14,760 in their annual funding.

Ms Sheed said she met with representatives from all six local Neighbourhood Houses earlier this year to hear their concerns about the lack of appropriate funding and other matters and had raised the issue with the Victorian Government.

“Neighbourhood Houses do such positive work in our communities, and it was disappointing to see that their financial support from Government was so adhoc,” Ms Sheed said.

“While all the six houses in our electorate provide a large range of services, their funding provision varied considerably.”

“Following those meetings I raised these concerns with the Minister for Families and Children, Jenny Mikakos, and the Treasurer, Tim Pallas, and urged the Government to consider an immediate funding boost in this year’s Budget.”

Ms Sheed said it was important for the work of Neighbourhood Houses to be appropriately recognised.

“The scope of services provided by Neighbourhood Houses in our communities is extensive, and often far beyond what you might expect,” Ms Sheed said.

“In addition to more mainstream social, educational, childcare and health services, in small towns the co-ordinators and volunteers often pick up the work that other organisations are unable to offer.

“Some of that work can really be quite challenging, such as working with local police to support victims of family violence in crisis, enabling community members to meet their commitments in relation to Corrections Victoria and Work for the Dole programs, or transporting people to medical appointments.

“The contribution of Neighbourhood Houses in our electorate is invaluable, and I am so pleased to see their work acknowledged with this additional funding.”

The year’s Budget also includes funding for an additional 4,800 hours per year for mobile neighbourhood house networkers, allowing them to spend more time with individual house to improve access to key services and activities.

 

ENDS

Media contact

Riahn Smith 0419 138 978│riahn.smith@parliament.vic.gov.au

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Independent Member for Shepparton District Suzanna Sheed says the $313 million committed to the Shepparton train line in this year’s Victorian State Budget is game-changer for the region.

The 2018/19 Budget, handed down on Tuesday, is set to enable nine VLocity return services to run between Shepparton and Melbourne each day by 2021 and shave 20 minutes off the travel time.

With $43.5m of works on stabling and a passing loop to allow a fifth service to begin by the end of the year already underway, it brings the total investment in the Shepparton train line to $356.5 million in the past two years.

Ms Sheed said the announcement was a record windfall for the region’s rail infrastructure and would change the face of Shepparton District.

“To see $313 million for the Shepparton Train Line in this year’s Budget is just astounding,” Ms Sheed said.

“Our community has been calling for a better, faster and more frequent train service for so long and we have now been heard.

“This truly is a momentous turning point for the region and will open up so many opportunities – for increased business investment, for better access to health and education and a bigger slice of Victoria’s tourism pie, just to name a few.”

Ms Sheed said the money would fund track and signalling works on the line between Shepparton and Seymour, including upgrades to 54 level crossings, platform extensions at four key stations and further stabling for the additional trains.

“This is a huge project and there is so much work to do to ensure the modern VLocity trains can run on the line at speeds up to 130km/h,” Ms Sheed said.

“This second package of works is also expected to pave the way for a feasibility study into a third stage of line upgrades, so there’s hopefully much more good news to come.”

“So much community effort has gone into achieving this incredible win for our region and I look forward to continuing to work together to ensure the Government delivers these outcomes as soon as possible.”

 

ENDS

Media contact

Riahn Smith 0419 138 978│riahn.smith@parliament.vic.gov.au

Click here for PDF version.