Regions will be a priority if Libs elected

Regional cities like Gosford will be a priority for Opposition leader Peter Dutton if the Liberal National Party (LNP) Coalition forms government at this year’s Federal election.

Speaking to business leaders at a forum hosted by the Gosford Erina Business Chamber (GEBC) on Monday, January 20, Dutton said the potential to unlock growth through new infrastructure and greater connectivity presented an enormous opportunity for the Central Coast.

“The return on investment in regional centres is often underestimated,” Dutton said.

When asked specifically if the Coalition supported high-speed rail with a stop at Gosford, the Opposition leader said “yes and yes”.

Earlier, the LNP announced a new policy to cut red tape for small businesses by introducing a tax deduction of up to $20,000 for business-related meal and entertainment expenses.

The deduction will be offered to businesses with a turnover of less than $10M and will be exempt from fringe benefits tax.

Dutton said the initiative would not only allow small businesses to reward staff for their hard work but would flow through to the hospitality industry.

“Hospitality has been more impacted than most by rising wages, insurance and energy costs,” he said.

“It will have a big economic multiplier effect in places like the Central Coast where the hospitality sector is a big part of the local economy.”

Dutton said that more than 27,000 small businesses had closed their doors across the country in just the past couple of years and that a Coalition government would take a pragmatic approach to getting the country back on track.

“It’s time to stop pretending there’s not a cost-of-living crisis, or that energy prices haven’t skyrocketed,” he said.

“The cost of electricity in Australia averages around 45 cents a kilowatt hour, almost three times that of other countries (with similar energy sources).”

GEBC President Peter Lawley called upon Dutton, if elected, to support key projects on the Central Coast including the revitalisation of the Gosford waterfront as well as new and affordable housing construction.

“We’re all talking about it, but we need to see things start to happen,” Lawley said.

He called for the formation of a dedicated Central Coast Development Authority with stronger accountability bringing together local business, residents and community organisations to unlock stalled projects.

“It needs co-ordination with Council, State Government and the Federal Government,” he said.

Dutton said he was committed to working with the states to ensure an effective funding model for compelling projects but that the Central Coast would need to compete against other regions.

He also highlighted the Coalition’s $5B plan to work with councils to get through the housing development logjam.

“Our population has grown by some 1.8 million people in the past few years, but we’ve stopped building the infrastructure required to support that growth,” he said.

“Demand (for housing) is growing, but supply is being restricted.”

The Opposition leader was accompanied by Lucy Wicks, who was recently pre-selected by the Liberal Party to contest the seat of Robertson at the Federal election.

Wicks held the seat of Robertson for three terms prior to 2022 during which time she worked with the NSW State Government to establish the Central Coast Medical School, the Medical Research Institute and the Gosford university campus, among other things.

“It’s now time to realise Gosford’s place as a regional capital city,” she said.

Wicks said that if elected she would prioritise the things that were most important to the community and she would advocate strongly for those things in Canberra.

“We need to get the Central Coast back on track, term by term, piece by piece,” she said.

Ross Barry