Thursday, 2 April 2026

 Tom McINTOSH (Eastern Victoria) (10:03): It was great to be in and around Yarram for a couple of days last week. We had the sod turn of the CFA. It was great to be there with the CFA when we announced the money for the new station and great to be there for the sod turn. I look forward to being there later in the year when we open it. The volunteers and the members have done such a great job fundraising over time and identifying the land when they did, so it has made it all possible. I also got out talking to dairy farmers on their farms about issues they have had with the rise in diesel prices and with diesel availability. We know that those costs flow on to all of us. So I am glad that subsequently there have been announcements this week to help ease the pressure on diesel pricing and supply.

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I also got to the Alberton hotel. Thank you to Sue Casey for arranging a community lunch. It was good to hear from people about the opportunities but also the challenges in town with the sawmill closure and everything that farmers are facing at the moment, but there were plenty of good things to talk about. We have the new kinder spots at the early learning centre, 66 spots there. There will be more kinder spots going in at the primary school. The pool is covered, the new ambulance station was fantastic to open last year and there is the rail trail and all the work that the Future of Yarram are doing, identifying new opportunities for industry. So anyone that has not been to Yarram for a while, get in there. The pub was packed on Monday night. There are murals all over town. Get amongst it.