Riordan makes pitch to new constituents

POLWARTH Liberal MP Richard Riordan is making planning reform a major part of his pitch to Torquay, Juc and Bellbrae voters as he tries to hold his seat at the 2022 Victorian election.

Finalised in October but not taking effect until the November 26 poll, an electoral redivision moved Torquay, Jan Juc and Bellbrae out of South Barwon (presently held by Labor’s Darren Cheeseman) and into the rural seat of Polwarth.

Mr Riordan said the Liberals wanted to open up new opportunities in places such as Winchelsea and Colac.

“Clearly everyone who wants to live on water or near the sea or outside of Melbourne is not going to fit in Torquay or Anglesea; we don’t have more spaces for them.

“The one single bit of infrastructure I want is the water pipeline – let’s get water in Modewarre, let’s give people an alternative to all having to be here (in Torquay).

“We have to sit and have mature conversations over the next four years about what are the limits we’re going to put on our townships.

“I’m not proscribing anything, I don’t live here, but what do people want? Do they want their kids to live here or not? Are they prepared to have more dense living in certain areas?”

He said the Surf Coast Distinctive Area and Landscape program (which is still running) should have been finished by now, and this was an example of the need to improve planning processes and the release of land for development.

“We have the essential problem in regional Victoria that everyone wants to live here and we’ve now denied our local communities of land and housing opportunities, there’s shortages of staff – these are critical issues.

“With a combination in this area of no action on DAL and zoning, the town’s locked up, businesses are screaming for more staff … in two years, we now have people who were 16 that are now 18 who want jobs, and people who were 18 that now probably at the stage who are looking to buy a house or find affordable accommodation.

“If they released everything tomorrow, they’d still be years behind.”

He said the Liberals wanted to be “a guiding light, not a blinding light” in government.

“When I’ve been around here already, just talking to people in the couple of months I’ve been here, Torquay is full of innovative, entrepreneurial people.

“The government needs to let those people get on and grow their businesses and do the things they need to do. Constantly, people are telling me about over-regulation.”

Mr Riordan has held Polwarth for the Liberals since 2015.

He said the new part of the electorate, which traditionally voted for the left side of politics, made up about a third of Polwarth’s voters so would eat into his margin, but he was looking forward to the campaign as he sensed a “genuine mood for change”.

“I think it’s going to be a great test.”