Victorian Liberal MP visits West Wimmera Shire to discuss border headaches
APRIL 23 2021 - 10:00AM
Border Chronicle
Liberal Member for Western Victoria Bev McArthur has long been a passionate spokesperson for the state of Victoria.
While most of her battles are on Melbourne-centric decisions, she has found some time to travel to the West Wimmera Shire to see first-hand how border closures have affected small cross-border communities.
Ms McArthur, along with Shadow Minister for Local Government David Morris, spoke with the West Wimmera Shire Council last week, and was worried about the situation that residents have faced over the year.
"I frequently fight Melbourne-centric decisions, which have little regard for rural and regional Victoria. But the situation in West Wimmera, five hours from the state capital, is even worse," she said.
For many West Wimmera residents living in towns such as Kaniva, Edenhope, Goroke and Apsley, travelling across the border is crucial to their everyday life.
While residents are able to travel into South Australia without many restrictions, the travel permit system is one that Ms McArthur still finds perplexing.
"It is extraordinary that new permits are still required every two weeks if residents wish to return to their homes from trips to friends, family, workplaces or healthcare facilities just over the border," she said.
"It is even worse when the area has never had a COVID case, and yet now watches Melbourne and the rest of the state return to pre-COVID normality."
She also believes that continued border restrictions are having a negative effect on travel and tourism.
"Continued border restrictions and the collapse of interstate travel are ruining the tourist economy and damaging residents' quality of life," Ms McArthur said.
Being able to speak to people who have experienced the hardships that border closures have created first-hand, allowed both MPs to truly understand the pain the closures have caused.
"Government decisions in these communities have severed farms and families, seen the withdrawal of healthcare services and the closure of local sports clubs," Ms McArthur said.
"With Shadow Minister for Local Government David Morris, Member for Mornington, I heard a great deal from the mayor and councillors about the constant and crippling interference farmers face from productivity paralysing pen-pushers, and how the priorities of rural councils continue to be completely overshadowed by their better resourced urban counterparts."
While the many towns that make up the shire are experiencing a much improved "normal" when compared to last year, plenty of work is still being done to make sure regional Victorians are not disadvantaged.
Politicians like Ms McArthur will continue to be a voice for residents living in Western Victoria, and with a little luck true normality will resume for the country sooner rather than later.