The dangerous tyre pile finally being taken care of is a big victory for the people of Stawell.
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People power has won out; I would like to personally thank the 998 residents who signed the petition that I sent out earlier this year calling on the Andrews Government to stop holding up progress on the Stawell Tyre Pile.
Had an out of control fire ignited in those tyres, the results would have been devastating for our region.
That fire would have burned for weeks with toxic fumes choking our beautiful towns.
It is very reassuring that the nine million tyres are now being removed. However, it is a shame that we had to wait so long for something to happen.
During this whole drawn out process, the Andrews Government refused to take action, slowing down progress through paperwork, red tape and not granting permits or approvals.
The independent EPA has now been forced to intervene.
Due to the failure of the Andrews Government to act, the Tyres will now no longer be processed in Stawell and are being carted to a processing centre in Melbourne, costing even more local jobs.
During the 2014 election campaign, Premier Daniel Andrews promised to bring 440 extra jobs to Stawell. However, employment continues to go backwards in the Northern Grampians with the latest data showing there are 669 fewer people with jobs since Daniel Andrews took over.
Based on those figures Mr Andrews has much catching up to do.
One of the biggest financial burdens we face each year is paying for car registration.
Adjusting for rising living costs under the Andrews Government is already hard enough, let alone trying to fit in a large, inconvenient, lump sum car registration payment.
Victoria is the only state in Australia that hasn’t introduced the ability to pay your car registration in convenient instalments.
We can pay many other expenses such as council rates and insurances in instalments, so why not rego?
It is time to fix this. Show your support by visiting our online petition at www.carregoinstalments.com.au.
If you would like to discuss any state government issue with me, please contact my office or call 1300 Staley (1300 782 539).
Louise Staley is state Ripon MP