Steve Price: Time for a new number plate slogan as we make Victoria great again

After a decade of Labor and Daniel Andrews’ Covid torture, it’s time for a new number plate slogan for our state as I reveal what I love and loathe about living in Victoria.

Steve Price wants a new number plate slogan for Victoria.

Number plate slogans say a lot about the Australian state you live in.

From 1977, Victoria’s old green plates simply stated: The Garden State. By 1985 the activists took over and we became Nuclear Free State. We turned into The Place to Be in 2000 and by 2015 Victoria plates said the Education State.

Queensland has always been the Sunshine State, NSW arrogantly the Premier State and my birth state, South Australia, the Festival State.

After 10 years of state Labor and Daniel Andrews’ Covid torture, followed by the even less competent Jacinta Allan, I think it’s time for a new slogan and an honest personal assessment from me on what we love and hate about Victoria.

The new number plate slogan, I think, should be VICTORIA OUR STATE. So here are my own 10 loves and hates about living in Victoria as we all work together to make our state great again.

Loves

Neale Daniher’s epic fight against MND epitomises all that is great about the real fighting spirit of Victorians and shines a light on our world-leading medical research facilities.

Australian of the Year Neale Daniher. Picture: Martin Ollman

Food markets, from lobster rolls at the South Melbourne market to the mushroom man and fresh seafood at Prahran market and the bacon and egg rolls at Preston. Unique to our city and so much choice, including Vic market, Footscray and Dandenong.

Local Melbourne radio, including 3AW, SEN and ABC on AM, talking about our city and turning their backs on networked shows out of Sydney that have no place here – trust me, I tried it.

Victorians’ obsession with AFL – massive club membership numbers not seen anywhere else in Australia and the glue that binds our state and city.

Regional Victoria, from the Mornington Peninsula where I live, with world class golf, wineries and beaches, to northeast Victoria, the King Valley and the wine producing gem Rutherglen.

The Good Friday Appeal, where Victorians open their hearts and wallets for such a great cause every Easter.

Victorians open their hearts and wallets every year for The Royal Children’s Hospital Good Friday Appeal. Picture: David Caird

Melbourne characters dead and alive, liked and just tolerated in no particular order – Bert and Patti Newton, Derryn Hinch, Eddie McGuire, Lindsay Fox, Neil Mitchell, Carrie Bickmore, Kath and Kim, Mick Molloy, Sam Pang and Molly Meldrum – too many to mention.

Our hospitality giants that have made Melbourne Australia’s food capital – Ronnie Di Stasio and Mallory Wall, Flower Drum founder Gilbert Lau, Chris Lucas from Maison Batard and Bar Americano, Peter Rowland, Stephanie Alexander and the Grossi family at Florentino.

Melbourne’s pubs from O’Connell’s and Lamaro’s in South Melbourne to the Railway Hotel and Rubira’s in Port Melbourne, the Sorrento Hotel and so many more.

Two old mates of mine Andrew Rule and John Silvester documenting the Melbourne Underbelly crime wars and putting a face to deadly crooks like Carl Williams and Tony Mokbel.

From the loves to the not so keen aspects of living in Melbourne and Victoria.

Flinders St and Southern Cross train stations that are a national disgrace – dirty, dark, smelly and a tourism disgrace – send the transport minister to Sydney for a look at what they should look like.

The tobacco wars with nightly arson attacks on retail shops caused by greedy federal government taxes on legal cigarettes – needs fixing now.

Absurd 40km/h speed limits and calls to drop to 30km/h on suburban streets – simply a revenue raising exercise from a broke state government.

Pot-holed local and regional roads again being ignored and creating dangerous driving conditions for everyone.

Poor road conditions have overtaken dangerous driver behaviour as the biggest concern on Victorian roads. Picture: Jake Nowakowski

The modern Victorian political leaders in our state who have sent us broke, from Dan Andrews to Jacinta Allan, Tim Pallas and Lily D’Ambrosio and others – whatever happened to the likes of Steve Bracks and Jeff Kennett.

Station Pier at Port Melbourne. How can a city that hosts a grand slam tennis tournament and an F1 Grand Prix dish that up as a cruise ship arrival point?

Commuter-killing freeways and arterial roads like the Monash, Tullamarine, the M80 ring road, anything west of the Westgate Bridge, the Eastern Freeway and Nepean Highway – gridlocked morning and afternoons.

Melbourne’s major freeways are gridlocked during peak hour. Picture: Jason Edwards

Once great shopping strips like Chapel St, Bridge Road, Swan Street and Toorak Road stripped dry by Westfield shopping centres and Chadstone and now a haven for homeless drug addicts and vape shops.

Sprawling housing estates in outer Melbourne as far as the eye can see missing parks, schools and retail shops and even trees – a social disaster waiting to happen.

Melbourne streets filled with dangerous fast food delivery electric bike riders breaking the road rules and all for lazy people at home in bed.

Victoria is OUR STATE. Let’s make it great again together.

Originally published as Steve Price: Time for a new number plate slogan as we make Victoria great again