Rick Wilson promises $450K for Laverton Training Centre and $20b regional fund from Dutton Liberal Government

Incumbent Liberal MHR for O’Connor, Rick Wilson, hit the campaign trail in the Goldfields this week, announcing a $450,000 election promise in Laverton on Friday. Chasing his fifth consecutive term in the seat, Mr Wilson travelled to the Goldfields community to announce a Dutton Liberal Government would provide $450,000 across three years to support Laverton Training Centre, boosting vocational training and improving local employment and social issues in the community. Mr Wilson said the funding — provided through a revitalised Safer Communities Fund — would enable the centre to expand its offerings to help more local people complete training which would lead to meaningful employment. “This investment is a direct response to what I’ve heard on the ground in Laverton,” Mr Wilson said. “Community safety and long-term opportunity go hand-in-hand. “By backing the LTC, we’re backing local people to gain the skills, support, and employment pathways they need, and creating a safer, more stable Laverton in the process.” The Laverton promise followed Mr Wilson’s announcement on Thursday of a $20 billion Regional Australia Future Fund election promise which would deliver a guaranteed annual funding stream in perpetuity for regional, rural and remote areas in Australia. The promise would see a Coalition Government preserve a portion of commodity windfall receipts towards the establishment of the fund and to grow it to $20b. Mr Wilson said the fund would invest a “fair share” of the profits created through the hard work of regional Australians back into the O’Connor electorate. “This is an historic moment for the one third of Australians who live outside the big capital cities — a perpetual fund to future-proof regional Australia against short-termism and governments who leave regions behind,” he said. “This will give confidence to regional communities, by investing in their economic future over coming decades, not just each electoral cycle. “Geography should not be a determinant of success. Families and businesses in O’Connor contribute significantly to our national story and economy. “This fund will ensure towns such as Esperance, Collie, Albany, Kalgoorlie, Manjimup and everywhere in between can take advantage of opportunities and overcome the challenges that the coming decades bring.” Mr Wilson said the fund would have clear investment principles and would sit under the Future Fund structure. “The fund will be transparent and benchmarked with a legislated State of the Regions review by an independent committee, which will inform each four-year investment plan,” he said. Key priorities identified for the fund include fixing local road and transport networks, growing the regional health workforce, developing regional industries to drive economic growth and create secure jobs, and delivering flexible childcare solutions for families in regional, rural and remote areas. Growing regional tourism opportunities, supporting regional businesses to market and export their products, improving regional mobile and internet services, and building and upgrading economic and community infrastructure, facilities and services were also identified as initial priorities.