Thursday, 5 October 2023

 Paul MERCURIO (Hastings) (14:47): (345) As part of the 2023–24 state budget there was money put aside for the planning of the cross-Mornington Peninsula bus service. This is a service that many people in my electorate have been asking for for many years. Unfortunately, my electorate had been under Liberal representation for the last 16 years, and this obviously was not part of their agenda. I campaigned on getting the cross-peninsula service front and centre to the relevant minister, and I am glad to say that as soon as I had a seat at the table I was able to do so, ensuring that the voices of my community were well and truly heard. So my constituency question is to the new Minister for Public and Active Transport: can the minister please provide an update on the planning work currently being done for this cross-peninsula bus service? This service could cut travel time from Hastings to Mornington from over 2 hours to 20 minutes. May I also take this opportunity to congratulate the minister on her new portfolio, and I look forward to working with her closely on this project.