NSW Budget: What new funding means for regional NSW
Regional and rural healthcare, higher education and fast rail between Sydney and the regions are among projects set to benefit from a major cash splash in this year’s state budget.
Local
Don't miss out on the headlines from Local. Followed categories will be added to My News.
New ambulance stations, a Central Coast university campus and fast rail from Sydney to NSW’s regions are among projects receiving a cash splash in the 2022-2023 NSW Government budget.
NSW Treasurer Matt Kean’s first budget has secured a massive $3.2 billion over four years for the Great Western Highway Upgrade through the Blue Mountains in an effort to “reduce congestion and deliver a safer, more efficient and reliable journey”.
Mr Kean said the 2022-23 Budget “continues to focus on delivering infrastructure in regional and rural NSW”.
“The Government’s significant regional infrastructure investment responds to the challenges that confront the people and towns of regional New South Wales, including flood, bushfires, drought and the COVID-19 pandemic,” he said.
Regional healthcare is a major focus in the budget, with $1.8 billion dedicated to recruit 2128 new NSW Ambulance staff and build 30 new ambulance stations.
Warilla, Kincumber, Lisarow, Gateshead and Swansea are among the first locations which will receive a new ambulance station in the funding program’s first year.
Meanwhile, $835.0 million was secured by Mr Kean for the John Hunter Health and Innovation Precinct to provide “industry-leading facilities and transform healthcare services for Newcastle, the Greater Hunter region and northern NSW communities”.
Other key funding commitments for regional health include $200 million for Bathurst Health Service, $45 million for Albury Hospital, $110.2 million for the Cowra Hospital redevelopment, and $5.3 million for Gunnedah Hospital.
It also includes $28.8 million for continuing works at Shellharbour Hospital and car park, and $73.2 million for key health worker accommodation in Far West, Hunter New England, Western NSW, Murrumbidgee and Southern NSW Local Health Districts.
A $2.4 billion investment over 10 years to increase the regional workforce will also include health training positions locally in rural areas, professional development for the rural workforce, and recruitment and retention incentives to support sustainable work supply.
In Lake Macquarie, $40 million funding for the new Sports and Recreational Centre project has been secured.
The project will see the construction of the new Lake Macquarie Centre at the old Morisset Hospital site, to replace the old Myuna Bay Centre and to support the needs of the local community.
A massive $885.1 million over four years was also allocated for the Newell Highway Upgrade, including 40 new overtaking lanes, New Dubbo Bridge and the Parkes Bypass.
Mr Kean said new investment in regional schools hard arrived in droves, including funds for the Gillieston Public School redevelopment, the new primary school in Albury Thurgoona, the Dubbo Primary School Community Group Renewal and the Bathurst Secondary School Community Group Renewal.
Another $149.5 million will boost patient travel and accommodation assistance by improving access to timely health care and reduce out-of-pocket costs for patients.
Overall, a boost to frontline services will fund 10,148 more health staff which include 600 nurses, allied health professionals, doctors and support staff to support palliative care and 550 more police.
The multimillion-dollar investment in across the regions comes as Treasurer Matt Kean reveals an additional $1.2 billion in funding for schools across the state.
Meanwhile, the Treasurer also forecast hundreds of millions of dollars in funding secured for “key education and skills projects” across the state.
A massive $139 million will be funded in the TAFE Asset Renewal Program, aimed at ensuring the “timely replacement of assets across TAFE campuses, enhancing student experience and creating modern learning spaces. The program will improve facilities, upgrade teaching equipment, and support overall sustainability of TAFE’s asset portfolio”.
Meanwhile, an additional $173.8 million will fund 200 additional firefighters and 50 bushfire conservation staff.
A $70.9 million investment under the NSW Bushfire Inquiry will provide safety upgrades and new vehicles for bushfire fighting response, along with additional trucks for crews involved with hazard reduction works across the state and further funding for the National Parks and Wildlife Service.
A $50 million spend on the Fire + Rescue NSW Fit for Purpose project will increase women’s participation in the FRNSW workforce and enhance workplace safety, including upgrades and installing new female bathrooms at fire stations across NSW.
In transport, a $274.5 million commitment to the Fast Rail program funded by NSW and the federal government will help deliver faster connections between Sydney, Canberra, Bomaderry, Newcastle, the Central Coast and the Central West.
In another major win for the Central Coast, the region will receive its first ever tertiary education campus as the government commits $18.2 million in a co-investment to develop a University of Newcastle location in the Gosford CBD.
Another $391.3 million will be dedicated to the Snowy Mountains Special Activation Precinct, which will support the development of the regional visitor economy and transition the region to a year-round destination to increase investment and jobs in the area.
The government will also devote $15.3 million to support Stolen Generations survivors to establish memorials and keeping places, including on the sites of former Aboriginal Children’s Homes in Bomaderry, Cootamundra and Kinchela, and Keller House in North Parramatta.
In roads and infrastructure, the government has dedicated $1.9 billion for Jervis Bay to the Victorian border to continue the transformation of the Princes Hwy from south of Nowra to the Victorian border.
This will include the delivery of the Milton-Ulladulla Bypass to improve safety, journey times and freight efficiency.
In environmental news, a $2 million commitment will support a long-term strategy to build offshore reefs to promote ecological sustainable development, conserve biological diversity and enhance recreational fishing opportunities with the creation of additional habitats for local aquatic organisms.
‘More than 160km/h’: 14-year-old rider allegedly ‘baited’ police chase
A 14-year-old boy has been accused of fleeing police for almost two hours across Sydney’s southwest, allegedly riding a stolen motorbike with a passenger hanging off the back at one point.
‘So, so devastating’: Mainstay deli shuts after 70 years
The closure of an iconic southwest Sydney deli has prompted its legion of customers to express how the institution – treasured like the Opera House – meant more than prosciutto and panini.