Tuesday, 7 March 2023

 Ros SPENCE (Kalkallo – Minister for Prevention of Family Violence, Minister for Community Sport, Minister for Suburban Development) (14:26): Today I rise to update the house about the Andrews Labor government’s investment in community sport across regional Victoria. Last month I was thrilled to open the latest round of the popular country football and netball program, with grants of up to $250,000 available to support regional club facilities. Since coming to government we have invested over $16.2 million in this program, supporting 157 projects. This is just one part of our investment of well over $300 million in community sport infrastructure across our regions, and we are not stopping there. At the last election we committed to bigger and better community sport facilities across regional Victoria, including up to $20 million for a world-class aquatic centre in the Bellarine electorate, up to $8.4 million in upgrades at Marty Busch Reserve in the Wendouree electorate, up to $3 million to upgrade Wangaratta Netball Association’s netball courts in the Ovens Valley electorate and up to $15 million for a better Benalla indoor recreation centre in the Euroa electorate.

But it is not just about infrastructure. We are also supporting kids across the state to get involved in sport through the Get Active Kids voucher program, introduced by this government in 2020, with vouchers of up to $200 for families who need the most help. We have already provided almost 80,000 vouchers in the first five rounds of the program, and in the first two weeks of round 6 more than 18,000 families have applied, with regional Victorians benefiting most, particularly in communities across Geelong, Mildura, Ballarat, Latrobe Valley and Bendigo. Community sport is at the heart of so many of our communities, and the Andrews Labor government is delivering the infrastructure and the programs that regional Victoria deserves.