GSEM seeks to speed up sluggish City Deal process
Greater South East Melbourne – which represents communities across the shires of Cardinia and Mornington Peninsula, and the cities of Casey, Frankston, Greater Dandenong, Kingston, Knox and Monash – is seeking to speed up the creation of a City Deal for southeast Melbourne to assist with the recovery from the pandemic.
GSEM Chair Simon McKeon said:
“Greater South East Melbourne is disappointed that the City Deal isn't further advanced.
“We have held constructive meetings with local Federal Coalition MPs Gladys Liu and Jason Wood.
“GSEM has also sought meetings with Cities Minister Paul Fletcher and Alan Tudge MP in his capacity as the federal member for Aston, which covers part of Knox which is a key member of the GSEM region. We sought those meetings to further build support for the City Deal.”
“GSEM acknowledges that the pandemic has impacted priorities but now is the time to get the City Deal moving because jobs are on the line and we must be prepared to be competitive as the local, national and global economies recover.”
“Southeast Melbourne produces $85 billion in Gross Regional Product and is one of Australia’s largest manufacturing regions. It has more manufacturing jobs than greater Adelaide and Western Sydney.”
“We need the City Deal and associated investments to maintain jobs and continue to compete with overseas manufacturers and in global markets,” Mr McKeon said.
City Deal delay costing investment and jobs, says Cardinia Mayor
Cr Brett Owen Mayor of Cardinia Shire said the failure of the federal government to conclude the Greater South East Melbourne City Deal was concerning.
“We need the Federal Government to activate the City Deal as a matter of urgency.
“The Greater South East Melbourne Region has lost 12,700 jobs in the construction sector, while employment across the metropolitan region for the industry increased by 2,800 jobs in the period from February 2020 to August 2021, according to Australian Bureau of Statistics figures.”
“That is a 17 per cent plunge in construction jobs in the region and action needs to be taken,” the Mayor said.
“It is time for the Federal Government to stop dragging its heels in the Greater South East Melbourne City Deal.”
“There are fears locally that the City Deal might fall over because of an apparent lack of commitment by the Federal Government.”
“It has been more than two years since the then Cities Minister Alan Tudge committed to a City Deal for Greater South East Melbourne,” Mayor Owen said.
“If the City Deal fails to go ahead, then more than $1 billion dollars of investment promised by this Federal Government that will be lost to the Greater South East Melbourne region, which would be nothing short of a disgrace.”
Mayor Owen said the promises yet to be delivered include:
$475 million for Monash/Rowville Rail, which was the federal contribution (to build a heavy rail line from Huntingdale Station to Monash University).
$229 million for the Frankston Rail extension (for a business case and part funding).
$70 million for Thompsons Road. The money was withdrawn from the project and redirected to Monash Freeway upgrades).
The mayor said: “According to the federal government’s own figures, a City Deal is worth anything from $350-$450 million, taking the potential investment lost to more than $1 billion.”
The Mayor said: “The City Deal offers an opportunity for long term outcomes that have a lasting impact by addressing real problems. We continue to stand ready to work with the federal government on making the Greater South East Melbourne City Deal a reality that brings jobs and quality of life for the 1.5 million residents of the region.”