Sunshine Coast MPs have expressed their dismay after the region’s major projects were shunned in the federal budget.
And the local council has vowed to keep pushing for infrastructure funding that the community “needs and deserves”.
Federal LNP MPs Andrew Wallace and Ted O’Brien have said they are disappointed in the lack of national support for key schemes including The Wave – a planned multibillion-dollar train and metro vehicle route – and the Mooloolah River Interchange Upgrade.
The federal government announced a raft of measures for Australians, including tax relief for workers and a clampdown on property investment that is expected to help first-home buyers.
Public transport initiatives in several cities also were revealed.
But there appears to be nothing in this year’s budget for the big infrastructure projects that are expected to cater for rapid growth on the Coast and were scheduled to be completed by the 2032 Brisbane Games.
Member for Fisher Andrew Wallace says the region is “being overlooked and left behind”.
“The Sunshine Coast is one of the fastest-growing regions in Australia, yet there is not a single dollar specifically committed to the critical projects our community desperately needs,” he says.
“These are essential projects for a rapidly growing region preparing for the 2032 Olympics and trying to keep up with population growth and pressure on local infrastructure and services.”
Sunshine Coast Mayor Rosanna Natoli says the council “would have liked a stronger commitment to our priority projects”. – WORDS: Steele Taylor.
