To the surprise and dismay of our Federal and State Members of Parliament, the South Coast has been excluded from the Commonwealth’s Regional Recovery Grant fund.

The fund was established to support communities impacted by drought, bushfire, flood and COVID.

The ten priority regions chosen to share in the $100 million over two years are: the Snowy Mountains, the Hunter/Newcastle, the Parkes region, Cairns/FNQ, Gladstone, Mackay/Whitsundays, Tasmania, Gippsland, Kangaroo Island and South West Western Australia.

“The Government’s excuses and buck passing on why the South Coast has missed out on this funding program are nothing short of appalling,” says the Member for Gilmore, Fiona Phillips, who has raised concerns with the Prime Minister directly.

“There is no doubt our community has been one of the hardest hit by drought, bushfire and flood this year and the Government must reverse this decision now.

“This is yet another example of the Government leaving our community behind, along with the rest of the budget where the South Coast has largely missed out altogether.”

The Member for Kiama, Gareth Ward, says, “I have expressed to the Prime Minister my deep disappointment with this decision and I have asked for his help to ensure our region is eligible for these funds so we can progress vital job-generating infrastructure projects our region needs.”