Photo caption: Federal Member for Parkes Mark Coulton pictured with Gunida Gunyah Aboriginal Corporation CEO Jane Bender.

The Labor Government continues to starve regional Australia of much-needed economic development funding with its failure to deliver on successful grant applications announced in May.

Five major projects in the Parkes electorate were approved for funding under the Growing Regions Program, including more than $10 million for the Brewarrina PCYC Youth Hub and Indoor Sports Centre, more than $9 million for the Moree Artesian Aquatic Centre Redevelopment, more than $7 million for the Wiradjuri Cultural Tourism Centre and Keeping Place, more than $2 million for the Gunida Gunyah Community Cultural Hub, and more than $1 million for the Narrabri Shire Tourism and Cultural Precinct stages two and three.

Federal Member for Parkes Mark Coulton said it’s now been three months since the Government committed to fund these projects, but Labor has refused to provide the funding agreements to enable these projects to start.

“Organisations are not allowed to commence local projects until such time as a contract has been signed with the Commonwealth, under rules set down by the Labor Government,” Mr Coulton said.

“As if it wasn’t bad enough that Labor has forced communities to endure an application process taking more than 40 weeks, there has been a further three-month wait for a contract to sign.

“Not only has Labor further delayed the delivery of these projects, the Government is adding extra red tape to projects by requiring state governments to become parties to the agreements.

“Emails sent to funding recipients last month said they would receive an update in early August. It’s now mid-August and recipients are yet to see a cent.

“There is no excuse for these ongoing delays given the Government’s own program guidelines required regional organisations to commence projects no later than 15 May 2024.

“The continued delays in Canberra are especially insulting given regional organisations were given just 20 working days to prepare and submit initial applications.”

Mr Coulton said this is just the latest insult to regional communities which are now into their third year of a funding drought imposed by the Labor Government.

“The Labor Government is starving the regions of funding,” Mr Coulton said.

“Opportunities to deliver regionally targeted programs have evaporated as a result of the Infrastructure Minister’s decisions to abolish programs designed to strengthen rural, remote and regional Australia and a failure to deliver new initiatives.

“The Labor Government promised programs to support the regions, but after more than two years there is nothing to show for it.

“Labor Ministers are sitting on grants programs, refusing to part with money promised for the regions, choosing instead to hoard the cash to prop up the budget surplus in Canberra.

“Labor is all talk, and this is further proof that this city-centric Government can’t deliver for our regional communities.”