City puts case for Comcare

GEELONG civic leaders have met MPs in Canberra to push their case for the relocation of federal agency Comcare to Geelong.

Representatives from the City of Greater Geelong, G21 Geelong Region Alliance, Committee for Geelong and the TAC held a day of meetings with ministers and shadow ministers in a bid to bring Comcare to the city.

Acting Mayor Peter Murrihy said the group had a productive day of meetings with MPs including Opposition rural and regional Australia spokesman Joel Fitzgibbon and regional services, territories and local government spokesman Stephen Jones.

“The response to the economic development report has been immensely positive and it is clear that not only is there a strong case for Comcare to move to Geelong, but the ben- efits for the region in terms of jobs growth and economic outputs would be significant,” Cr Murrihy said.

“We now wait to hear the outcomes of the Federal Government’s inquiry into decentralisation of Federal Government agencies into regional cities, due for release in the near future.

“We’re feeling confident that we have proactively chased this opportunity and presented a really strong case for their consideration.”

The City of Greater Geelong-led delegation was timed to coincide with a House of Representatives inquiry into the decentralisation of Federal Government agencies into regional cities.

Comcare — which oversees workplace health and safety for federal employees, and employs more than 650 people across the country — is seen as a natural addition to Geelong’s growing social insurance sector.