Our plan for a better future for the Parkes electorate
Federal Member for Parkes Mark Coulton has welcomed the 2022-2023 Federal Budget, which he said will drive the growth of towns and communities across the Parkes electorate.
The Budget, which Treasurer Josh Frydenberg handed down on Tuesday evening, focuses on providing cost of living relief, creating more jobs, guaranteeing essential services and keeping Australians safe.
This Budget marks the next stage in leading Australia’s strong economy into the future and proves the Coalition Government continues to deliver for the people of the Parkes electorate.
With the pandemic and the invasion of Ukraine, Australian households are under pressure due to the cost of living. We’re helping Australians deal with these costs by delivering more jobs and putting upward pressure on wages, providing a one-off cost of living tax offset and a one-off cost of living payment for Australians most in need. By reducing the stress of high fuel prices on household budgets, reducing out-of-pocket expenses for child care, delivering more affordable energy, helping aspiring home buyers and reducing the cost of and increasing access to medicines.
We’re also making record investments in health, education and other essential services; building roads, rail, dams and the renewable energy technology we’ll need for our future; and investing in stronger defence, borders and security.
For more information about the Budget, please visit http://www.budget.gov.au/
Orana Designated Area Migration Agreement strengthened
The Australian Government has strengthened the Designated Area Migration Agreement (DAMA), ensuring it remains fit for purpose in light of the labour-market challenges in the Orana region of NSW.
Businesses now have access to use the DAMA to source overseas workers across 65 occupations. Some of these occupations are not otherwise accessible through the standard Skilled Migration program. This is one of the real benefits of DAMAs – providing a complementary option for businesses to employ overseas workers in jobs critical for the region.
The Orana region, which covers a vast area of approximately 200,000 square kilometres of central and north western NSW, is home to approximately 123,000 people and boasts an impressive $18.445 billion in annual economic output from major industries including mining and agriculture.
The inclusion of more flexible permanent residency pathways under the Orana DAMA will incentivise overseas workers to set down roots in the region and make long-term economic and social contributions, including through transferring skills to local workers.
One of the biggest issues currently facing our region is the labour shortage, with jobs vacancies across a range of different occupations. I’m hopeful that these changes to the DAMA will bring more workers to our region to fill these vacancies.
For more information on DAMAs, please visit https://immi.homeaffairs.gov.au/visas/working-in-australia/regional-migration/dama
Vietnam signs up to Ag Visa
Primary producers in the Parkes electorate are a step closer to benefitting from the Liberal National Government’s Australian Agriculture Visa, with Vietnam signing a Memorandum of Understanding with Australia on 28 March 2022.
The Minister for Agriculture and Northern Australia, David Littleproud has welcomed the formal agreement as Vietnam becomes the first country to participate in the Agricultural Visa.
We already have a good relationship with Vietnam, and I look forward to seeing more Vietnamese workers call the Parkes electorate home as a result of this partnership.
Australian farmers need certainty around their workforce – certainty that this visa, secured by The Nationals, provides.
Under the Australian Agriculture Visa program, employees will be recruited to work across a range of agriculture sectors, including horticulture, dairy, wool, grains, fisheries and forestry, including support services and primary processing.
The Government is working with industry to bring the first cohort of workers into Australia as soon as possible.
