Photo caption: Federal Member for Parkes Mark Coulton is concerned Labor’s proposed Vehicle Efficiency Standard will add thousands of dollars to the cost of cars that regional Australians drive.

Further Inland Rail uncertainty

Last week I was terribly disheartened to hear that there are currently no plans to continue work on the Inland Rail north of Parkes.

Under questioning at Senate Estimates, Australian Rail Track Corporation executives conceded the Government hasn’t provided funding to deliver the Inland Rail north of Parkes and had been forced to break contracts entered into for sections of Inland Rail between Parkes and Brisbane. Officials confirmed the Labor Government has no plan for when construction will begin on the Narromine to Narrabri section, despite the recent environmental approval of the project.

This is another set-back for communities along the route, but I will continue to advocate for this nation-building project to be delivered in full.

Grants to strengthen our communities

I’m pleased to welcome funding for several groups in the Parkes electorate under rounds 18 and 19 of the Australian Government and FRRR Strengthening Rural Communities program.

These grants are awarded for projects that support small yet vital community needs, disaster resilience and COVID-19 recovery initiatives. Recipients include:

• Boggabri Women’s Shed – $1,900 for a sewing room
• Leaderlife Limited Dubbo – $10,000 to purchase an outdoor barbecue and meat smoker
• The Youth Impact Foundation Limited on behalf of The Catalytic Impact Institute – $10,000 to support engagement with young people in Moree
• Moree Cultural Art Foundation Limited – $10,000 to provide free art classes for people living with a disability or mental illness
• Isolated Children’s Parents Association (ICPA) of NSW Incorporated on behalf of ICPA Walgett Branch – $20,000 for an ICPA Garden Day
• Anglican Community Services – $24,940 to distribute waterproof preparedness packs at workshops and recovery events across the Moree Plains Shire in 2024
• Wiradjuri Condobolin Corporation Limited – $9,922 for the Miima Warribinya Skyfest 2024 astronomy festival in Condobolin

Meanwhile, Round 20 applications close 26 February 2024. For more information and to apply, visit: https://frrr.org.au/funding/place/src-rebuilding-regional-communities/

Drop in trainees and apprentices

New data has revealed a nearly six per cent drop in the number of apprentices and trainees taking up a new trade or learning a new skill in the Parkes electorate.

These figures come after just one year of Labor being in government and compare to a 20 per cent increase in the number of apprentices and trainees in the Parkes electorate during the final year of the Coalition Government.

This is a blow to communities throughout my electorate which need more people, not less, upskilling to meet the ever-growing skills shortage in our rural areas. Labor promised they would skill more Australians, but their programs are not delivering and we are suffering the consequences.

Number Apprenticeships and Trainees In-Training by electorate (QON:Department of Employment and Workplace Relations Question No. SQ24-1)

	Electorate	June 2021	June 2022	June 2023	Party	Final Year of Coalition June 2021-22  (% change)	First Year of Labor June 2022-23 (% change)
Parkes		2,850	3,430	3,225	LNP	20.35	-5.98

 

Family car tax to hit hip pockets of regional families

At a time when families and small businesses are already struggling, Labor’s proposed Vehicle Efficiency Standard will add thousands of dollars to the cars that regional Australians love to drive – SUVs, utes and 4WDs.

Under the proposed new standard, Labor will place penalties on new petrol and diesel vehicles over a certain emissions limit to subsidise electric vehicles and make them relatively more affordable.

While it might be good for those who live in the city, this policy will particularly hit us in regional Australia. Many people in my electorate – like farmers and tradies – rely on utes and 4WDs to do their jobs, while others simply can’t afford the cost of an EV – let alone the impracticality in the bush where we drive large distances, often hundreds of kilometres from a charging station.

This is yet another example of a Labor Government that is out of touch with the needs of regional Australia.