The Andrews Labor Government is getting on with delivering on its election promises for our community – investing in what matters for the people of Dandenong.    

We haven’t wasted a day delivering the services and projects that matter to Victorians. With the Victorian Budget 2023/24, we’re getting on with doing what we said we’d do.    

Every Victorian should be able to get the healthcare they need, when they need it, close to home. That’s why we’re investing in an upgrade to the Dandenong Hospital.  

This Budget will get started on service and capital planning and early works, to ensure the new and upgraded facilities meet the needs of our growing south eastern suburbs. 

Victorians remember the State Electricity Commission (SEC): it meant a fair deal on your power prices and good, stable jobs for workers.      

That’s why we’re bringing it back – to drive down power bills and create thousands of jobs in renewable, government-owned energy.      

An initial $1 billion investment in the SEC will help deliver 4.5 gigawatts of power – the equivalent replacement capacity of Loy Yang A – through renewable energy projects.     

Bringing back the SEC won’t just mean more renewable energy, lower power bills and reduced carbon emissions – it’ll also help create 59,000 jobs.  

As part of a more than $2 billion investment in schools across Victoria, this year’s Budget includes $116 million to open six new cutting-edge Tech Schools, including one in Dandenong.  

We know many apprentices scrimp and save as they start out in their careers. But when you rely on your vehicle to do your job every day, costs can quickly add up. We’ll ease the cost of living pressure for our hard-working apprentices, making rego free – saving eligible trade apprentices up to $865 every year. 

With 90 per cent of a child’s brain developing before the age of five, early education has the most profound impact on how our kids develop.  

That’s why we’re delivering Free Kinder for three and four-year-olds, establishing Pre-Prep, and upgrading or providing new equipment to kinders across the state to make sure Victorian kids can get the best start for the best life. 

We’ll give more families across Victoria access to local, affordable childcare – investing to establish the first of 50 government-owned and operated, affordable integrated childcare centres, which will open in 2025. 

Women and girls make up half more than half of our population – but for too long, their healthcare concerns have been seen as a niche issue.  

We’ll invest more than $153 million to establish 20 new women’s health clinics, an Aboriginal-led clinic and a mobile health clinic, nine new women’s sexual and reproductive health hubs, scholarships to expand the women’s health workforce, an inquiry into women’s pain management and 10,800 extra laparoscopy surgeries. 

CFA volunteers work hard to keep our community safe. We’ll make sure they have the facilities and equipment they need to stay safe, too. We’re investing in planning for an upgrade of Keysborough Fire Station so our hardworking volunteers can continue keeping Victorians safe. 

We’ll keep backing the successful Noble Park Suburban Revitalisation program, building on previous funding that has already seen improvements to the Noble Park Community Centre, better lighting and public seating, tree planting and the popular “Noble Park Big Day Out” festival. 

Community events like the Tamil Festival Australia help Tamil Victorians stay connected to their culture, traditions and heritage. We’ll support the Tamil Festival with an investment of $100,000 per year for the next four years. 

Every community deserves great spaces to come together to celebrate and share in culture and tradition. We promised to build, upgrade and renovate community infrastructure and we’re doing just that right across Dandenong and the South-East, including: 

• $400,000 towards the establishment an Albanian Community Centre in the South East 

• $250,000 towards the upgrade of the Antiochian Community Support Association’s community kitchen 
• $750,000 for upgrades to the Victorian Tamil Association community centre and carpark  

We’re also investing $5 million towards two Indian community centres – one in the western suburbs and the other right here in the South-East. 

We’ll keep backing the community organisations that provide care, support and services to help Victorians when they need it the most.  

Locals know what a massive contribution groups like South-East Community Links and Community Abundance make to our community, and we’re backing each with $100,000 grants. 

These are the things that matter – and the things we promised to Victorians.  

And with this Budget, we’re getting on with delivering every election commitment we made at the last election.

 

Quotes attributable to Member for Dandenong Gabrielle Williams  

“Our South Eastern suburbs are booming, and our local hospitals need to keep pace. The commencement of Dandenong Hospital Upgrades is the first step to ensuring locals get the quality care they need, closer to home.”