by admin | May 29, 2015 | Media Release
A $10 admission should be charged to visitors to the iconic 12 Apostles, says Member for Western Victoria James Purcell. Mr Purcell said there were millions of visitors to the Great Ocean Road each year and the potential to generate millions of dollars for south-west Victoria. “Our roads and rail are in disrepair and we find it extremely difficult to attract adequate funding for both these areas,” said Mr Purcell. “An admission charge to the 12 Apostles would generate many millions of dollars, which could be returned to south-west roads and rail. “At the very least it will help alleviate a massive problem for the residents of south-west Victoria.” Mr Purcell has been actively seeking funding for an additional train service for south-west Victoria and funding to extend the Warrnambool station platform. “It’s time we got the ball rolling on these issues and if funding is problem we need to think of innovative ways to generate more finances. “Funds generated from an admission fee to the 12 Apostles could be used to upgrade the Warrnambool train station and establish passing loops, which would facilitate four return services per day. “Alternatively the funding could go into our road network. VicRoads estimates $220 million is needed to bring Western Victoria’s road network up to the same standard as elsewhere in the state – anything will help at this point in time.” ...
by admin | May 27, 2015 | Media Release
Member for Western Victoria James Purcell has called on the State Government to work with the Moyne Shire to solve the Port Fairy tip issue on East Beach. Mr Purcell told Parliament on Tuesday night the problem was too big to be handled by a small rural council without help. “While acknowledging Council is – and needs to – take control of this issue, it is apparent that it is a critical and massive situation that will need help from all levels of government,” Mr Purcell said. “If it does cost $30 million to remove the tip and waste there will have to be government help to fund this – $30 million is obviously an impossible figure for a small rural council. “However, I would hope the State Government may be able to provide additional support to resolve the issue – not just monetary – and we could reduce this figure.” Mr Purcell said the temporary fixes to date had been a band aid fix and it was time for a permanent rectification. “If this situation is not resolved the future of Port Fairy as a tourist destination, its economic security and the happiness of residents and visitors is hugely under threat. “This situation needs to be resolved ASAP and needs State Government support to allow this to happen.” Mr Purcell said he would work with the government and Moyne Shire to resolve the...
by admin | May 22, 2015 | Media Release
A state based Renewable Energy Target opens the door for south-west Victoria to become a hub for renewable energy generation in Australia, says Member for Western Victoria James Purcell. In Parliament on May 6 Mr Purcell called on the State Government to establish a state target and provide security and certainty for the renewables industry. Mr Purcell welcomed the Labor Government’s commitment this week to a Victorian Renewable Energy Target (VRET), saying it offered much needed stability to regional businesses suffering from the uncertainty surrounding current renewal energy projects. And while this week’s federal bipartisan agreement of a 33,000 gigawatt hours national RET was welcomed, there was still more to be done, he said. “Without states being able to top up the RET with their own state based targets, a number of major renewable energy projects won’t go ahead, costing jobs and growth in our region,” Mr Purcell said. “Every state has different natural energy resources and should be able to tailor a program to work to their individual strengths and weaknesses. “It also provides security to the industry if the national RET should fall over.” Mr Purcell said the uncertainty around renewable energy in the region had already cost jobs and investment. “Western Victoria has the potential to become the renewable energy hub of Australia, but the lack of action by all levels of government is wrecking the industry,” he said. “Hundreds of jobs and hundreds of millions of dollars in investment have been lost in my electorate alone due to the lack of support for renewable energy.” For example, Keppel Prince in Portland put off 100 workers late...
by admin | Apr 17, 2015 | Media Release
Duplication between state and local government is leaving businesses overburdened with rising costs and increasing red tape, says Member for Western Victoria James Purcell. Mr Purcell raised the matter in Parliament this week, calling on the government to reduce duplication and review the existing structures of local and state government. “A number of farmers have told me they are individually paying rates of $20,000 to $30,000, and this is becoming a significant portion of their costs,” Mr Purcell told Parliament. “For our businesses to be world competitive, we need to make certain that all levels of government are efficient and that they are structured so that businesses are not overburdened with costs and red tape. “State and local government must be restructured to give businesses a fair chance.” Mr Purcell called for a review of the “duplication, overlap and inefficiencies that exist because of the structure of government we currently have in Victoria”. “The sustainability of local government has been put under further pressure by the state government capping rates and the federal government not indexing financial assistance grants. “If we also take into account the scrapping of the country roads and bridges program, which was worth $1million to rural councils, we find that a significant number of these councils that were previously financial will become unsustainable. “This triple whammy is likely to be the straw that breaks the backs of these councils.” Mr Purcell said he also believed the super council approach had merit, where large councils would be established to cover the areas currently incorporated by catchment management authorities and water boards, and would incorporate the work...
by admin | Feb 11, 2015 | Adjournment, Media Release
MEDIA RELEASE Western Victorian MP James Purcell has called on the State Government to overturn the incomprehensible adverse possession decision on 107 Gipps Street Port Fairy. Mr Purcell has used his first adjournment debate to raise the controversial issue directly with the government. “Without the knowledge of most of my community the Victorian Titles Office has recently made an incomprehensible decision to award this land to an opportunistic blow-in,” Mr Purcell told the Parliament. “This land is and always has been regarded by my community as common open space and been regularly used as such by the fishing community and general public for many decades. “I will be seeking to have the horrible adverse possession decision overturned and the land returned to my community as public open space.” Mr Purcell said he had already raised the issue directly with the Premier and had used his first adjournment debate to ensure it was officially listed on Hansard. “The government has 30 days to respond to an adjournment debate so I would be hoping to have further feedback on the issue early to mid March. “It will be a real win for Port Fairy if we can have this decision overturned and the land rightfully returned to the community.” ADJOURNMENT TRANSCRIPT – Port Fairy adverse possession claim Mr PURCELL (Western Victoria) My adjournment matter is for the attention of the Premier. This issue is extremely important to my community of Port Fairy. In December 2012 the Victorian titles office accepted an adverse possession claim for 107 Gipps Street, Port Fairy, from a Melbourne-based individual, despite the opposition of Moyne Shire Council. This...
by admin | Nov 28, 2014 | Media Release
MEDIA RELEASE DAIRY FACTORY WILL CLOSE IF FOREIGN BUY UP GOES AHEAD ONE of south-west Victoria’s four dairy factories will close and a quarter of the district’s dairy industry jobs will be lost if the Chinese government’s plans to buy up our prime agricultural land go ahead, says Vote 1 Local Jobs founder James Purcell. Linear Capital, an investment company with links to the Chinese Government, is planning to buy dozens of south-west dairy farms. Mr Purcell said it is understood the proposal involves an entire controlled production line that would see hundreds of millions of dollars of infant milk formula sent straight to China. “The 50 south-west dairy farms Linear Capital is planning to purchase contribute 500 million litres of milk per year, a quarter of the south-west’s annual milk supply,” Mr Purcell said. “The direct export plans we understand the proposal involves, will see the milk product directly removed from our economy. “Due to the model they are proposing there will be very little benefit to south-west Victoria, or Australia as a whole. “The whole production line, from the farm to the international customer, could be totally invisible to us.” Mr Purcell said the proposal was deeply concerning for the south-west’s economy, future jobs and the status of our agricultural sector. “If you take out a quarter of our product and a quarter of our income, a quarter of our jobs will also go. “We have four dairy factories locally. Take away 25% of our milk and one of our dairy factories will be without product. “This is hugely concerning for south-west Victoria.” Vote 1 Local Jobs...