Mayor's Message
This week, the Mayor discusses meeting key decision makers in Canberra.
By Cr Clare Le Serve
Meeting key decision makers in Canberra
Last week I visited Canberra with Deputy Mayor Cr Rochelle Halstead, CEO Greg Box and Council’s Advocacy Advisor to advocate for key projects and initiatives for Bass Coast. We met with eight Members of Parliament and two Ministerial Advisors. The purpose of this visit was to foster and strengthen our relationships with key decision-makers at the national level.
Advocacy to the State and Federal Governments is an essential aspect of our work at Bass Coast Shire Council. By effectively communicating our local needs and priorities, we can influence policy decisions, funding allocations, and take actions that directly benefit our community, businesses, organisations, and visitors.
Australian and Victorian Government funding helps to realise key projects including new sporting, cultural, education and health facilities. Recent successful grant funding has been achieved for the award-winning Berninneit in Cowes, Wonthaggi to Inverloch Shared Path and Cowes to Ventnor Foreshore Trail.
Our discussions were comprehensive and touched upon various critical issues that are vital to the development and prosperity of Bass Coast Shire including safer roads, expanding tourism and the economy and protecting our natural environment
A highlight of our visit was the participation in the 2024 National General Assembly of Local Government. This conference provided an excellent platform for networking and engaging with fellow councillors from across the country. This was a valuable opportunity to exchange ideas, share experiences, and learn from each other’s successes and challenges.
The promising discussions we had in Canberra have laid a solid foundation for future collaborations and initiatives. We will continue to advocate vigorously for the priorities of Bass Coast Shire, ensuring that our region receives the attention and resources we deserve.
I am confident that these efforts will lead to positive outcomes and we will continue to advocate to secure the resources and support needed for our community projects and infrastructure.
You can read more about our advocacy priorities at basscoast.vic.gov.au/advocacy.
I look forward to sharing more positive developments as we continue our advocacy efforts and I hope you all have a wonderful week ahead.
