Photo caption: Federal Member for Parkes Mark Coulton, Nathan Cubby and Charlie McHughes at the Clontarf Foundation Central West Employment Forum in Dubbo last week.
Back to business
With the election campaign now over, it’s back to business as usual for me, meeting with constituents and attending various events across the electorate.
Although last week was a bit quieter than usual, I enjoyed spending time catching up on work in my offices in Dubbo and Broken Hill. It was great to bring all my staff together in Broken Hill for a planning day and debrief following a very busy few months. I’m incredibly lucky to have such a hard-working and dedicated team behind me, and together we’re looking forward to continuing our work trying to get the best outcomes for the people of the Parkes electorate.
Supporting events in Dubbo
I’m a big supporter of the Clontarf Foundation, so it was an honour to attend the Central West Employment Forum for year 12 Clontarf students in Dubbo last week.
It was great to see so many engaged and enthusiastic Clontarf boys come together from across the region, and good to see so many businesses there. One of the ways we can reach our full potential in the regions is to ensure our young people have the opportunity to finish school and gain the skills needed to fill local jobs. These young men have a bright future ahead of them thanks to the great work of the Clontarf Academy.
I was also pleased to be able to spend some time at the Dubbo Show on Friday, catching up with locals. Based on the large number of people who attended on Friday, it was shaping up to be a wonderful weekend for the Dubbo community.
Indigenous tourism grants closing soon
The second round of the Tourism Grants for Indigenous Business Program is now open, providing funding to help Indigenous tourism businesses grow, improve their products and attract more visitors to regional and remote Australia.
Red Chief Local Aboriginal Land Council in Gunnedah received $76,000 under the first round of the program, and I encourage other Indigenous businesses in the Parkes electorate to apply now for funding to help promote the rich tourism opportunities we have in the region.
Up to $50,000 is available for Indigenous-owned tourism businesses and up to $100,000 will be available for Indigenous-owned community organisations for activities including the acquisition of small plant and equipment items; minor capital works; tourism product development; IT equipment, software and software development; and the production of marketing and promotion materials linked to a tourism experience.
Applications close on Tuesday 14 June. For more information and to apply, visit the GrantConnect website.
