“Labor has delivered more for the ACT in the last two years than the Howard government did in thirteen. Since February this year alone the ACT has received over $669 million in funding for the ACT community under the Rudd Labor Government,” Senator Lundy said.
Since February this year under the economic stimulus the ACT has received over $457 million ($457,495,069):
- $242,705,282 (over $240 million) for 257 projects across ACT private and public schools
- $9,589,337 (over $9 million) for ACT TAFE facilities (including $3.1 million for Canberra CIT under the Better TAFE Facilities program and $6,184,218 to the CIT campus in Bruce[1])
- $705,000 for the Alcohol and Drug Foundation, Communities@Work, Belconnen Community Service, Companion House, Marymead Child and Family Centre, Sing Australia and the Uniting Church under the Community Investment Program
- 57 new social housing homes to the value of $4,947,000
- 10 Defence houses to the value of $2,678,000
- $6.4 million has been set aside for repairs and maintenance for 243 ACT social housing dwellings
- $600,000 outdoor performance stage in Glebe Park
- $1.4 million Eddison Park youth plaza in Woden (ACT Government funded $400,000)
- $800,000 in extra funding to assist in building new or upgrade existing community facilities such as libraries, community centres and sports grounds[2].
- $122 million for local ACT roads
- $30 million for a road upgrade in the Canberra Airport precinct,
- $28 million for black spots
- $7.5 million for Tharwa Road/Lanyon Drive
- $170,450 to install directional signage at Cooyong Street- Mort Street Braddon;
- $287,450 to upgrade road surface and improve signage at Hindmarsh Drive – Darymple Street Red Hill;
- $340,000 to install traffic signals at Luxton Street- Lathlain Street Belconnen;
- $15, 450 to construct high angle approach for left turn from Morphett Street to Northbourne Avenue Dickson;
- $70,450 to upgrade edge lines at William Hovell Drive – Coppins Crossing Road to Drake Brockman Drive Belconnen;
- $524,000 to install traffic signals at Yamba Drive – Mawson Drive Mawson.
In addition since February this year the ACT has received over $211 million ($211,899,727) for community projects and investments:
- $27.9 million integrated Cancer Centre for Canberra and the surrounding region.
- $6,339,500 for ACT government and non-government schools under the National School Chaplaincy Program (NSCP)
- Mackillop Catholic College, St Francis Xavier College, St Clare’s College and Merci College received up to $6,000,000 each in funding under Round Two of the Trade Training Centres in Schools program
- Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO), the Australian National University (ANU) and the University of Canberra (UC) received $40,742,839 to fund 107 research projects from the Rudd Government.
- $5,000,000 to help improve the higher education facilities of the University of Canberra (UC) as part of the Government’s National Early Years Workforce Strategy
- Under the Australian Government’s Fresh Ideas for Work and Family program $2,000 Agile Digital Engineering Pty Ltd Kingston , $3,000 Interaction Consulting Group Phillip , $8,250 Property Works Pty Ltd Phillip , $1,388 Provident Financial Planning Pty Ltd Deakin , $7,803.53 Take a Break Away Pty Ltd Fisher , $8,013.30 Threesides Pty Ltd Jamison and $4,312.26 Viridis E3 Pty Ltd Phillip.
- $485,000 to help rehabilitate drug and alcohol addicted prisoners at the Alexander Maconochie Centre.
- $496,211 for 3 projects to help people in the ACT with chronic diseases
- $88,000 additional funding for 8 projects as part of the National Emergency Volunteer Support Fund (NEVSF).
- $14,361 in funding for ACT projects which honour Australia’s wartime heritage.
- funding by the Australian Government to the Richmond Fellowship to establish a Personal Helper and Mentors Service in Belconnen/Gungahlin.
- $550,000 towards necessary assessments of bridges along four priority freight routes within the ACT under the Heavy Vehicle Safety and Productivity Program
- more than $2.7 million in funding over two years from the Rudd Government for the ACT Regional Investment Strategy through the Caring for our Country program.
- $74,000 in Community Care Grants for the ACT and $80,000 in Flexible Care Grants will be allocated to the ACT under the Community Care and Flexible Care Grants
- $1.5 million will contribute to the establishment of a trial legal clinic for homeless persons in the ACT.
- $125,080 funding to support Woden Community Service and Barnados in Canberra under the ‘Protecting Australia’s Children’ program
- Australian National University and the University of Canberra received $1,772,238 to fund nine world-class research projects from the Australian Government.
- $1.2 million over the next two years to continue to support young people in the ACT who are homeless or at risk of being homeless, through the Reconnect program.
- $10 million ‘Walk-in Centre’ at the Canberra Hospital
- up to $54,000 for Charles Conder Primary School, Birrigai Outdoor School, Bonython Primary School , Gordon Primary School , Lanyon High School and Hindmarsh Education Centre (Quamby) under Australian Government’s Values in Action Schools Project
- $1,871,329 from the Rudd Government to reduce the greenhouse gas emissions of their office buildings as part of the Government’s Green Building Fund
- $592,402 in funding for four community projects in Canberra under the new Family Support Program
- $64,000 grant to local company Cubbyhole Pty Ltd on being awarded a Commercialising Emerging Technologies (COMET) AusIndustry grant by the Australian Government
- Approval of the HACC Triennial Plan for 2008-09 to 2010-11 will provide approximately $86 million for ACT HACC services over three years. This is an increase in annual funding from over $26 million in 2008-09 to over $31 million by 2010-11.
“This infrastructure is creating hundreds of jobs for builders, plumbers, carpenters, electricians, brickies, carpet-layers, kitchen manufacturers and many more in the building and construction industry in the ACT. This stimulus has also helped keep the ACT unemployment rate the lowest in the nation at just 3.5%,” Senator Lundy said.
“In addition all areas of the ACT will be covered under the super fast National Broadband Network (NBN).”
“Under the NBN, no area in the ACT will miss out and all areas of the ACT will have improved internet speeds of at least 10 times their current internet speeds (a minimum of 12 megabits per second), and in many cases up to 100Mb/s.”
Media contact: Annika Hutchins (Senator Kate Lundy) 0407 458 882
[1] This funding builds on $3.1 million investment CIT received under the better TAFE Facilities Program.
[2] The extra funding will build on the projects already funded under the Community Infrastructure Program in the ACT, which includes Glebe and Eddison Park
