The Corangamite Shire mayor says her council has been “completely ignored” in this week’s state budget.
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Jo Beard said the council’s ongoing campaign for better roads and tourism infrastructure had fallen on deaf ears.
“I’m gutted,” she said.
“We’re fed up with political games. When is common decency going to come into how south-west residents are treated?”
Cr Beard said most of the cash announced for the region’s roads was old money that was being delivered across four years.
“For Corangamite Shire we need $55 million straight up, that’s just for maintenance,” she said.
“This budget does nothing to address the poor condition of so many state-funded roads in our shire that are falling into disrepair.
“It’s completely unfair that south-west residents are being treated this way.”
Cr Beard welcomed the state government’s commitment to fully fund SES units was welcome, but described its “spruiking” of the move as a “cop out”.
Corangamite Shire was one of many councils across the state to cut budget funding to SES units – citing state government cost shifting and the pressure of rate capping.
“The state government should have been funding SES units all along, just like it does the police, CFA and ambulance service,” Cr Beard said.
