Cathy McGowan (Indi, Independent) Share this | Link to this | Hansard source

I would like to welcome to this chamber today CEO, Marg Bennett, and board chair, Brendan Schutt, from Northeast Health, based in Wangaratta and servicing most of north-east Victoria. Their purpose here today is to advocate for $22.5 million to support the long-term strategic approach to deliver services in north-east Victoria. I am delighted to have you here and I thank you for your time and effort.

Northeast Health won the Victorian Premier's award in 2014 for Regional Health Service Provider of the Year. It provides 220 hospital beds, services over 85,000 people, operates a 24/7 emergency service and a whole swag of other services to my community. I am proud to host essential services providers like Northeast Health in parliament. This is the Indi way: to come to the people's house to meet with ministers and staff, making the case for significant investment in our health services. I also welcome today two members of the 304 'friends of health', Helen and Adrian Twitt. It is great to have you here as part of the Indi volunteer team. Also, to Jude and Emma: thank you.

In closing, I call on the government, I call on my colleagues opposite: do not cut health funding for capital works in the next budget; make it a priority. Communities in north-east Victoria, like Wangaratta, need more money. We need to develop our service providers. Please, please, please.