PUTTING PATIENTS FIRST IN MELTON

The Andrews Labor Government is putting patients first in Melton.

Across our nation – and around the world – the pandemic has put unprecedented pressure on health systems. From a sharp increase of critical COVID patients to disrupted care, resulting in longer hospital recovery time, the last two years have really knocked our health system around.

When we came to government, we put an end to the war on our paramedics. We took ambulance response times from the worst in our history to the best. Now – just like we did before – we’ll ease the pandemic pressure on our hospitals and our healthcare workers.

The Victorian Budget 2022/23 will invest over $12 billion to put patients first, with a Pandemic Repair Plan for more staff, better hospitals and first-class care.

Our healthcare workers have been on the frontline of this pandemic, and we know how important it is that we support them into the future.

We’re backing our healthcare workers with training and the extra pair of helping hands they need, so they can give you the very best care.

That’s why the Budget is delivering funding to train and hire up to 7,000 new healthcare workers, including 5,000 nurses.

We’ll provide 1,125 new Registered Undergraduate Nursing Positions and 75 new Registered Undergraduate Student of Midwifery roles over the next two years, and we’re also recruiting up to 2,000 ex-pat and international healthcare workers through a global workforce recruitment drive.

Right around the nation, demand for emergency services is at an all-time high. Our Triple Zero call-takers and dispatchers are dealing with unprecedented call volumes.

But when you call for an ambulance, every Victorian should have the confidence one will arrive. That’s why we’re delivering another 90 paramedics – which means we've added 790 extra paramedics to the workforce since we came to government.

And to help our frontline workers reach Victorians who need help faster, we’re investing $333 million to add nearly 400 new staff to increase Triple Zero call-taking and dispatch capacity for Triple Zero services, including ambulances, and training more operators to allocate calls across the state.

We’re also going to make sure that every local community gets the health infrastructure and services they deserve. That’s why this Budget invests $2.9 billion to build new hospitals and deliver upgrades to health services in every corner of our state.

By expanding our emergency departments, adding more surgical beds to get more elective surgeries done and increasing maternity care services – this Budget will ensure more Victorians get the very best of care, close to home.

In 2018, we promised we would build a brand-new hospital for families living in Melton. In this year's Budget, we will deliver on that promise with an investment of more than $900 million, giving Victorians living in our west a 24-hour public hospital that will get patients home from hospital sooner.

As we roll-out our Pandemic Repair Plan to make sure people in Melton get the care they deserve, we're also getting on with delivering the schools, roads and public transport services they rely on.

Local families deserve great local schools, and in Melton they will get one. We’re building the brand new Brookfield Primary School (interim name), opening Term 1, 2024, in the growing community of Brookfield, giving kids great classrooms for a great education – and at the same time creating local jobs to build them.

We’re getting on with planning for the future of Victorian families in the growing suburbs of Cobblebank and Weir Views, securing land for the future Cobblebank Secondary College (interim name) and Toolern Waters Primary School (interim name), so that more kids get to go to a great school, with great teachers, close to home.

You can't get a first-rate education, in a second-rate classroom. That’s why we’re committing to a major upgrade of Staughton College, with $31.7 million to get students and teachers out of portables and into permanent classrooms.  The upgrade will also add an additional 400 spaces in permanent facilities to meet growing demand. But that’s not all – we’re also upgrading Darley Primary School with $10.7 million to build better learning spaces for students, because under an Andrews Labor Government, we're giving every child the opportunity to achieve their full potential.

To make sure every young Victorian gets the education they need for the career they want, the new VCE Vocational Major and Victorian Pathways Certificate will replace VCAL, offering students more choices, a higher-quality curriculum and better workplace experiences – preparing students to jump into further study, training at TAFE or work as soon as they leave school.

The VCAL reforms will save many Victorian families up to $1,000 by cutting out-of-pocket costs, with students no longer having to pay for essential learning materials for VET studies.

Local communities deserve great places to play sport and under the Andrews Labor Government, they will have them. We're investing $88 million to build, upgrade and renovate community sporting infrastructure delivering bigger, better change rooms, club rooms and community spaces for our community to enjoy. Locally, we’re also supporting children and people with disabilities with safe spaces to play, investing $1.25 million to deliver an All-Abilities Adventure Playground in Maddingley.

In an $111 million boost to tourism, we're welcoming visitors back to Victoria in a big way and promoting Victoria to the world. By supporting more major events and attracting tourists – and their dollars – we'll make sure the visitor economy stays strong, while supporting and creating jobs for Victorians. As part of this boost, we’re spending $2.1 million to build a new sculpture trail at the summit of Bald Hill in Bacchus Marsh to give both local families and tourists an even better weekend walking activity to do together.

We know better roads get us where we need to go sooner and safer - and building them creates new jobs for Victorians. It's why this Budget delivers $14.9 million to upgrade part of the Melton Highway in Plumpton improving safety and connectivity for local commuters.

We know that many Victorians are still paying too much for their energy bills – that’s why we’re stepping in to help families get the best deal. We're providing a once-off $250 payment for all Victorian households that use the Victorian Energy Compare (VEC) website – the Victorian Government’s independent price comparator website – to search for the cheapest electricity plan that suits their needs.

With this Budget, we’re getting on with delivering for all Victorians.

Quotes attributable to Member for Melton Steve McGhie

“We did the business case, we bought the land and now we’re getting on with building the world-class, 24-hour hospital that families in Melton deserve – just like we said we would.”

“I’m proud to be part of a government that’s building the schools we need – now and into the future. These new schools will give children in our growing community every opportunity to succeed.”