Millions promised if Coalition can win

Five candidates will contest the Narracan electorate, which incumbent Gary Blackwood holds by a comfortable 11.3 per cent margin.

A new West Gippsland Hospital has undoubtedly been the hot topic over recent months, while calls for improved train services on the Gippsland line have been directed at the Labor government throughout its term.

A $217 million commitment to further expansion of the Latrobe Regional Hospital was not well received by the local Where’s The Funding lobby group who have been pleading its case to the government for the past six months.

ALP candidate Christine Maxfield said the current government had not neglected Narracan.

The opposition has extended the purse strings to multi million dollar announcements including more than $300 million for a new hospital at Drouin East; $7 million for a new Drouin Police Station; $3 million to upgrade Neerim District Secondary College; $2 million for a new Drouin ambulance station: and

Ms Maxfield warned voters the opposition had a history of not delivering and questioned if the promises could be delivered. She said the current government had not neglected Narracan and local people had benefitted from announcements made in the Morwell and Bass electorates.

“The Coalition only remembers where Narracan is come election day. Most of their announcements are broken promises.

“Voters need to look at what’s been delivered in the past and they haven’t delivered in the past,” she said.

Ms Maxfield said the ALP had delivered $9.6 million to emergency and theatre upgrades at the West Gippsland Hospital; improved train times and services following closure of a number of level crossings on the Traralgon line; improved ambulance response times; and, more than 500 new jobs in the Latrobe Valley.

But, Mr Blackwood said Labor had held government in 15 of the past 19 years but Narracan had not received the attention it deserved.

“All our pre-election commitments will have funding priority in budgets if we are elected.

“Our pre-election budgets have to be scrutinised.

“We have made commitments based on need not political outcomes and they have been based on their understanding of what the community needs.

Mr Blackwood said he was disappointed the Labor government had announced major hospital projects around the state yet ignored the needs of West Gippsland despite two years of planning.

“That is an indication of political promises made on political outcomes in marginal seats not genuine need,” he said.

The five candidates, in ballot paper order include Guss Lambden, Mr Blackwood (Liberal), William Hornstra (Australian Greens), Carlo Ierfone (independent) and Ms Maxfield (ALP).

In its 51-year history, Narracan has been held by a Labor member for a seven-year period between 1999 and 2006, when Ms Maxfield’s husband Ian held the seat.

Narracan profiles – p23-24