Environment groups, the community legal sector and those fighting for affordable housing say they have been left behind by Victoria’s budget handed down by the state treasurer, Tim Pallas, on Wednesday.
The budget saw record investments in health, education, public transport infrastructure, and the family violence system, thanks to the state’s strong financial position and projected budget surplus of $2.9bn for 2016-17.
But Victoria’s national parks and reserves needed a significant injection of funds, and the $20m over four years offered in the budget fell short, said the executive director of the Victorian National Parks Association, Matt Ruchel.
“Victoria’s parks service has been severely damaged by savage staff cuts over many years,” Ruchel said. “It needs at least $30m a year for core operational funding just to reverse the damage caused by former state government cuts.
“Controlling weeds and feral animals, maintaining walking tracks and picnic grounds are all key housekeeping tasks that need to be funded properly if we’re to avoid running Victoria’s parks system into the ground.”
However, the budget does provide $222m to improve the environmental health of waterways and $33.4m in new funding for threatened species protection and biodiversity.
“Victorians love their national parks and are rightly proud of them. They provide billions of dollars in environmental services to the community and economy every year, are critical to threatened wildlife and offer an escape from busy lives,” Ruchel said.
The environment group Friends of the Earth described the government’s budget commitments on climate and renewable energy as “modest”. Its renewable energy spokesman, Leigh Ewbank, said the group welcomed the $27m of funding allocated towards the Latrobe valley to improve health outcomes in the region following the 2014 Hazelwood mine fire.
But the government was yet to address big-ticket environmental policy items on onshore gas and renewable energy, Ewbank said, with no detail about how the Victorian government would support the renewable energy industry at large.
“It’s our expectation that the soon-to-be-released renewable energy policy will lay out plans to develop a strong renewable energy sector in Victoria,” he said.
The Victorian Greens leader, Greg Barber, told reporters: “This is not a green budget.”
“The government is absolutely rolling in cash, which means the time for excuses is over,” he said.
“On global warming, they’ve simply ducked the problem. The small amounts they’ve allocated for energy programs contrasts with the billions they are spending on mega-tollroads. They’ve got no plan to cut greenhouse gas emissions.”
While the budget includes more than half a billion dollars in funding for family violence services, the $2.5m allocated towards community legal centres, which provide advice and support to victims of family violence through the court process, was not enough, Barber added. The Federation of Community Legal Centres also said it was disappointed.
“The Victorian government can do more to support vulnerable people who turn to community legal centres because they can’t get free legal help from legal aid and can’t afford a private lawyer,’ the federation’s acting executive officer, Katie Fraser, said.
“With the state set for a surplus of $2.9bn in 2016–17, there’s a strong case for increased and ongoing funding that is small in the context of the overall budget, but would make a big difference to vulnerable people who need free legal help.”
The Victorian Council of Social Service (Vcoss) praised the budget overall. They particularly welcomed $185m for the construction of new schools, $200m for a regional health infrastructure fund to improve health facilities, including community health, $35m to support vulnerable children and $25.3m to aid the introduction of the National Disability Insurance Scheme.
However VCOSS said it considered the development of an overarching affordable housing policy a key priority for the future. There was also little in the budget to reduce cost of living for Victorians.
“Affordable housing for all Victorians is the state’s next great social and economic challenge,” said the chief executive of Vcoss, Emma King.
“It’s hard to get a decent education, hold down a job or raise your kids if you don’t have a steady home. Ensuring a steady supply of suitable and affordable housing will also help address a raft of other social and economic problems facing Victoria.”
However, the budget was widely applauded overall. It introduced $1.9bn of new investment allocated for public transport and a separate $1.3bn directed towards improving the state’s embattled regional public transport system, on top of $3bn allocated towards the Melbourne Metro.
There will be a $1.3bn overhaul of the regional public transport system, a $6.2bn package to ease congestion on major roads, $924m towards building new schools and upgrading existing classrooms, a record $2.45bn investment in health funding, and a separate $356m for mental health.
The chairman of Beyondblue and former premier Jeff Kennett praised the government’s goal of halving the number of suicides in Victoria through its mental health funding.
“The most recent Australian Bureau of Statistics data shocked us all, revealing there are now eight suicides every day in Australia,” Kennett said.
“This is simply unacceptable as most suicides are preventable. I congratulate the government for showing mental health continues to be a priority.”
Investments in housing for people who have experienced family violence, a $32m expansion of the drug court, and funding for suicide prevention would steer vulnerable people towards economic and social inclusion, the chief executive of Jesuit Social Services, Julie Edwards, said.
“We are also pleased that the government has recognised the need to prevent young people from being involved in the criminal justice system by funding an expansion of the youth diversion pilot program.”
The program works with vulnerable young people to keep them away from future involvement in the justice system, and works to reduce reoffending.
