NSW Premier Rees is under pressure from all sides due to his mini-Budget this month. But largely unnoticed was his announcement a week earlier of a package of new funding programs to strengthen and sustain country communities. It totals $85 million over the next 5 years – and starts 1 January.
The Premier’s said “This is money for small projects to kick-start the bush and improve services for our rural families…many country towns are doing it tough…a package of new programs aimed squarely at giving bush communities a hand…country towns need real projects, real money that makes a difference now…these measures, which are just a beginning, are in response to the report of the recent Rural and Regional Taskforce’.
Leaving the rhetoric aside, this was a no-brainer – most other States have such programs, and regional NSW really had dropped off the radar under the Iemma/Costa stewardship. So congrats are due!
The new programs are:
• Local Infrastructure Fund, $52 million – projects need to be directly linked to economic development opportunities, creating more jobs and more economic growth for rural communities.
• Community Broadband Development Program, $11.6 million
• Country Libraries Fund, $9 million
• Country Halls Renewal Package, $2.5 million
• Water Adjustment Innovation Fund, $9 million
• Small Communities Awareness Fund, $450,000
• Small Chamber of Commerce Fund $450,000.
