Opposition leader Jess Wilson makes her pitch to local voters

Opposition leader Jess Wilson says the Geelong region has been forgotten and neglected, and a Liberal National government will take action.

Making her pitch to the region’s voters in Mount Duneed on Tuesday, Wilson said the Coalition would focus on reducing crime, easing cost-of-living pressures, tackling corruption and repairing roads if elected in November.

“We’re going to give Victoria the fresh start it desperately needs,” she said.

“I know Victorians right here in Geelong feel forgotten, they feel neglected by this government, they’re sick of the rising costs, they’re sick of the rising crime.”

She said the Coalition would recruit 3,000 police officers, overhaul Victoria’s bail and sentencing laws and deliver tax relief to help ease living costs to ensure “Victorians get to put more money back in their own pocket”.

Wilson also pledged to establish a royal commission into corruption and invest $5 billion to improve road maintenance across the state.

 

 

The Coalition’s Fair Share Guarantee, she said, would also see 25 per cent of new infrastructure spending directed to regional Victoria, helping deliver funding for local projects.

“Right now, [the spending on regional infrastructure is] 12 per cent. That’s less than half of what it should be, because regional Victoria represents 25 per cent of the population,” Wilson said.

“It means more money for roads, more money for education, like right here at Mount Duneed, to ensure people in Geelong and the Bellarine are getting their fair share of the infrastructure spend, which they’re not getting at the moment.”

With fewer than 140 days until Victorians head to the polls on 28 November, the Liberals have endorsed candidates in Bellarine, Geelong and South Barwon, while the party continues the process of preselecting a candidate for Lara.

Despite Labor holding three of the four seats on comfortable margins, Wilson said the Liberals’ local candidates would be campaigning hard over the coming months and remained confident all four electorates could be won.

“They’re going to be on the ground, they’re going to be knocking on doors, they’re going to make sure they meet the local community where they are and have those conversations, understanding the issues but most importantly, sharing our plans and our solutions for Geelong,” she said.

Wilson would not confirm whether she supported the Geelong council’s election priorities, including a proposed Special Economic Zone for the CBD, but said she had discussed ways to improve central Geelong with mayor Stretch Kontelj and local traders.