A Regional and Rural Summit meeting organised by the NSW Local Government Association was held in Sydney last week for rural councils to hear various political parties’ 2023 State Election priorities.
Cobar was represented by deputy mayor Jarrod Marsden who filled in for Mayor Peter Abbott.
Cr Marsden said it was good to hear from a number of Ministers and Shadow Ministers as well as key note speakers on a range of topics.
The speeches were also followed by Question and Answer sessions.
“Among the key points were, the Federal Minister for Regional Australia Kristy McBain announcing that doctors who choose to practice in regional areas will have their HECS debt waived,” Cr Marsden said.
“There was a massive push on housing in all areas—public affordability housing, police housing, council staff housing and health housing.”
Cr Marsden said he believes this is a matter that council should also workshop ASAP.
“Labour (if elected) is committing to covering all 44 recommendations from the Regional and Rural Health Inquiry.
“The Liberal/Nationals, if re-elected, will only commit to 41 of the 44.
“Australia’s number one breast cancer doctor has recently relocated to Griffith which is a massive win for our region,” Cr Marsden said.
“It was very clear that councils who choose to stick to the old “rates, roads, and rubbish” are being looked down on.
“Councils like ours, who are very diverse and provide a multitude of services to the community, are very much in favour and encouraged to do more,” he said.
“Deputy Premier Paul Toole spoke very well and I believe he had a much better grasp of rural and regional NSW issues than the other party representatives.”
Cr Marsden said the meeting had been a good networking opportunity.
“I think it is very underrated in how beneficial it can be for Cobar.
“It’s amazing how much you can learn about how others have tackled the same issues we face, and how getting our issues and ideas out there can come back in a positive manner.
“I was able to speak to a lot of great people including Ian Chaffey, who is the mayor of Snowy Valley Council who is a wealth of knowledge on local government.”
Cr Marsden said “a fair bit of political backwards and forwards” took place at the Country Mayors meeting held on the second day of the summit .
“Unfortunately it was a bit like watching [Parliament] Question Time!” he said.
“Mark Latham (One Nation) was very, very impressive as a speaker and stood out over the rest by a mile.
“Paul Toole and Jenny Aitchison from Labor basically stated the same stuff from the previous day,” he said.
“Greens representative Cate Faerhmann spoke very confidently but their push for zero coal, zero diesel, and zero emissions (by any means necessary and at any cost) by 2030, but to me it just seems unachievable especially with the current technology and infrastructure.”
