Northern Metropolitan Region
Evan MULHOLLAND (Northern Metropolitan) (12:43): (366) My constituency question is related to my electorate. It is to the Minister for Tourism, Sport and Major Events. On 22 June the people of Wallan were promised by the Labor member for Kalkallo that the organisers of the Wallan Winter Wonderland were to receive a $25,000 grant under the government’s small and medium events program. The local member for Kalkallo was quoted in her media release as saying this funding is ‘a big win’ for the community. This is quite surprising, because as was reported in the North Central Review, the Department of Jobs, Skills, Industry and Regions had been informed on 13 June by the organisers, prior to Ms Spence’s funding announcement, that the event would no longer be going ahead. Many locals took to social media expressing their confusion, thinking the event was back on. This begs the question: why is the Labor member for Kalkallo making funding promises and press releases for event grants in the minister’s portfolio that the Labor government knows are not going to happen? The Commonwealth Games is not too dissimilar – a multiyear press release campaign that never happened.