State Budget: What it means for the Peel region

The State Government has delivered a record investment for the Peel region in the 2020-21 State Budget.

Along with the $600 WA Household Electricity Credit, the region will also benefit from the recruitment of 800 more police officers throughout the State, on top of the 300 new officers already being delivered.

“Peel region households are big winners in the State Budget," Premier Mark McGowan said.

“I’m also pleased to announce that the local community will benefit from our major boost to police officers. This is the largest increase on record, placing more officers out on the beat and keeping the community safe."

The Budget will also fund a raft of projects in the Peel region under the $5.5 billion WA Recovery Plan.

“The State Budget fully delivers on the $5.5 billion WA Recovery Plan, which includes major upgrades to infrastructure and services in the Peel region, driving economic recovery and creating a pipeline of local jobs," Mr McGowan said.

PEEL RECOVERY PLAN

EDUCATION & TRAINING:

• $10.4 million to Pinjarra Senior High School for a new Performing Arts Centre and Sports Hall
• $9.17 million to South Metropolitan TAFE’s Mandurah Campus for a new Hospitality and Tourism Training Centre to deliver training for a range of courses including commercial cookery, tourism and events management
• $25 million for free TAFE short courses to upskill thousands of West Australians, with a variety of free courses available at South Metropolitan TAFE’s Mandurah campus
• $32 million to expand the Lower Fees, Local Skills program and significantly reduce TAFE fees across 39 high priority courses
• $4.8 million for the Apprenticeship and Traineeship Re-engagement Incentive that provides employers with a one-off payment of $6,000 for hiring an apprentice and $3,000 for hiring a trainee, whose training contract was terminated on, or after, 1 March 2020 due to the economic downturn

TOURISM:

• $1.19 million for upgrades on the Bibbulmun Track and Munda Biddi Trail including renewing camp sites, bridges and sections of the track in the Peel region
• $750,000 to replace the ageing timber boardwalk in Lake Goegrup Nature Reserve in the Mandurah region
• $350,000 for upgrades to buildings, new facilities and services across national parks in the Peel region, including Serpentine Falls National Park

INDUSTRY:

• $8.65 million to upgrade infrastructure including roads and drainage in East Keralup
• $116 million for the Regional Land Booster Package that will make residential, commercial and industrial lots more affordable including residential lots in Mandurah Junction and Ranford and industrial lots in Pinjarra
• $8 million to the Offsets Funds for Recovery program that creates green jobs by supporting conservation groups to carry out on-ground works such as fencing, seeding and planting across regional WA including the Peel region
• $15 million for the Native Vegetation Rehabilitation Scheme that delivers revegetation and habitat restoration across WA while providing employment and training opportunities for untrained workers including in the Peel region
• $25 million towards the Healthy Estuaries WA program that will work towards improving the health of at-risk regional estuaries including in the Peel Harvey system and provide a number of local green jobs
• $10 million towards the Clean Energy Future Fund to invest in clean energy technologies

INFRASTRUCTURE:

• $2 million for upgrades at Mandurah Police Station
• $141.7 million to refurbish social housing across WA’s ageing housing stock, including properties in the Peel region
• $6 million for the installation of rooftop solar PV on social housing in WA, meaning lower power bills for residents
• $210,000 for upgrades at Waroona Volunteer Fire and Emergency Services
• $2 million to provide water tanks to volunteer bushfire brigades across regional WA

COMMUNITY:

• $2 million for the expansion of the Peel Therapeutic Women’s Refuge to double the capacity of the Peel Refuge currently under construction
• $8.6 million of funding for additional outreach workers across WA, including 9 workers based in the Perth and Peel region, to provide support to women and children experiencing or at further risk of family and domestic violence
• $6.7 million to bolster the State’s family and domestic violence response teams, including an additional community sector team member in the Peel region, to support victims of family and domestic violence after a police call-out
• $1.1 million over two years for counselling, advocacy and support services across WA, including a service in the Peel region
• $9.77 million for Aboriginal regional suicide prevention plans in each region of WA, prioritising Aboriginal-led and locally endorsed initiatives that accommodate a culturally informed social and emotional wellbeing approach to suicide prevention
• $4.2 million to continue the Aboriginal Governance and Leadership Development program to help increase economic participation of Aboriginal people in regional WA
• $1.5 million to deliver financial counselling services in regional WA