Consultation for the Loddon Campaspe Regional Partnership’s 2017 assembly has begun, ahead of the meeting to be held in Bendigo on August 17.
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The partnership’s priorities last year included improving digital connectivity and rail services, growing the regional economy and promoting better health outcomes for residents, with the latter still in sharp focus this time around.
LCRP chair Nigel McGuckian said health and wellbeing would be high on the agenda at next month’s assembly.
“Two things we’re pushing hard on are early years disadvantage, so kids before they go to school or kinder, making sure they get a good start in life, and lifestyle disease, what that means is obesity, diabetes, those health issues are really serious problems in our communities and we want our region to be the healthy heart of Victoria,” he said.
“There’s some areas of the region where that disadvantage is really serious and what we’ve got to have is communities that help us find the best solutions for them.”
Mr McGuckian said the last assembly’s focus on rail services had paid off, with a strong response from the state government in this year’s budget, and the organisation was optimistic it would see a similar response to the August meeting.
”In the last budget we’ve had money go towards starting off some projects around tracks and trails around the region, we’ve had staged money for the digital economy, we’ve had upgrades to rail between Bendigo and Echuca, the improvements to the Bendigo-Melbourne line and extra trains to Maryborough,” he said.
“Those are some of the responses, but this year’s assembly will help us put a strong case for the next budget.”
Along with the health focus, Mr McGuckian said the meeting would also attempt to address the region’s telecommunications woes – even though the federal government’s NBN was outside its remit.
“At the moment the regional partnership wants to understand where the problems are and that’ll be discussed at the assembly,” he said.
Central Victorians will have their chance to weigh on on the assembly’s deliberations at a workshop in Castlemaine on July 20.
To register to attend the assembly or regional workshop visit www.engage.vic.gov.au/loddon-campaspe