Fed: Govt preparing for regional policy backflip: Ferguson

AAP General News (Australia)
08-20-2001
Fed: Govt preparing for regional policy backflip: Ferguson

CANBERRA, Aug 20 AAP - The federal government was preparing for another policy backflip
on regional development, the Labor Party said today.

Opposition regional services spokesman Martin Ferguson said that after abolishing regional
development policies when it took office, the government was now about to reinstate the
same programs.

His comments come as National Party leader John Anderson prepares for a major address
next week in which he is expected to outline a $120 million series of regional programs.

Apart from money targeted to regional areas facing difficulties because of structural
change, Mr Anderson is also expected to announce limits on the impact of national competition
policy.

He is aiming to set a third term agenda specifically for the National Party and regional
areas where the government is facing substantial threats at the upcoming election.

But Mr Ferguson said Mr Anderson was trying to make up for poor policy decisions when
the government won power.

He said the government abolished all of Labor's regional development programs worth
$220 million, replacing it with the regional solutions program worth just $12.6 million
last year.

Mr Anderson's address next week would be a policy backflip the same as the government's
changes to its taxation laws, Mr Ferguson said.

"Now that the regional backlash is on, the Liberal and National parties are getting
desperate and are preparing for yet another policy backflip," he said in a statement.

"After five and a half years in government, the Liberal and National parties have now
decided that they need a regional development policy.

"But people will see that for what it is - five and a half years too late."

Mr Ferguson said the National Party had left many regional areas to go it alone without
any assistance from the government.

AAP sw/daw/ldj/bwl

KEYWORD: REGIONS

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