Thursday, 16 October 2025

 Harriet SHING (Eastern Victoria – Minister for the Suburban Rail Loop, Minister for Housing and Building, Minister for Development Victoria and Precincts) (12:13): During the parliamentary recess while some were in Barbados I was in Geelong with the member for Lara and the member for Geelong to see firsthand how the Allan Labor government is building homes, infrastructure and community right across Victoria. At Armstrong Creek we are building a brand new sports centre. At Ormond Road we are replacing 18 ageing dwellings built in the 1950s with 54 bright, modern and accessible new homes thanks to an investment of $36 million under the Big Housing Build. In Newtown 77 social housing homes are under construction, with $22 million from the Social Housing Growth Fund. In Geelong, Bendigo, Morwell, Ballarat and Wodonga we are transforming underutilised land with new homes, parks and places for people to come together. We are not just building homes but building communities in every single corner of our state. Together these developments will deliver more than 830 homes across regional Victoria, including 10 per cent affordable and social housing.

Development Victoria, the state’s property developer, is progressing planning approvals for housing at Waurn Ponds, Bendigo and Morwell, with work set to commence later this year and into 2026.

We are not stopping at housing. Through the regional sports infrastructure program, Development Victoria is delivering 16 new and upgraded sports facilities across regional cities and towns, making them even better places to live, work, stay and play. So as well as Armstrong Creek Sports Centre, we are delivering upgrades to Mars Stadium in Ballarat, the Bendigo showgrounds and Bendigo stadium, the Morwell Gun Club and the Gippsland Sports and Entertainment Park; a new multipurpose sporting complex at Waurn Ponds; and improvements at the Stead Park Corio hockey facility. These are investments that foster community pride, support local jobs and keep kids active and healthy. The choice is clear: we have a plan, they do not. While the Liberals cut and the Greens picket, we deliver. We are building a better future for every Victorian, no matter their postcode, and we will not stop.