DEAR News Of The Area,
THIS week the Coalition announced a $20 billion “Regional Australia Future Fund” aimed at improving health, child care and infrastructure inequalities in non-urban Australia.
Perhaps they were listening to our MidCoast Council Mayor, Claire Pontin, who has been advocating a doubling of Federal funding to local councils.
The new Future Fund will be paid for with money taken from Labor’s “Rewiring the Nation Fund” which the Coalition will close on assuming government.
This fund seems to be the Coalition’s Magic Pudding; they have already signalled that it will be used to pay for their other expensive policy, “Zero-Emissions Nuclear Energy.”
However, they are also planning to close Labor’s Housing and Manufacturing Funds, which targeted regional Australia.
What funding does the Coalition now plan to make available for Australia’s ageing electricity grid?
Like all infrastructure, the current grid will require maintenance, renovation and upgrading as new technology becomes available.
And unless the Coalition intends to demolish all modes of renewable energy, the windfarms will keep twinkling on the ridgelines, the solar panels will keep sparkling on the roofs and the turbines will keep purring away in the gigantic caverns of Snowy Hydro I and II.
Do the Coalition have a rational scheme to continue the complex integration of renewable power and timely modernisation of the grid once they have closed Labor’s “Rewiring the Nation Fund”? If so, where will they find the money and how much money will they reserve?
Regards,
Marjorie SUTCLIFFE,
Hawks Nest.
