Council
3 July, 2025
Drought, roads raised as big issues
ROADS, taxes, drought and a palpable sense of community frustration were among the biggest issues raised with Lowan MP Emma Kealy as she travelled across the region to speak with Victorians last week.
Ms Kealy, the deputy leader of The Nationals, spent time last week visiting towns across the electorate to hold listening posts.
Among the destinations was Clarke’s Pies in Mortlake, where she met with members of the community concerned with the direction of Victoria.
Ms Kealy said roads, the Emergency Services and Volunteers Fund (ESVF) and land taxes had formed the most frequently voiced concerns.
“It’s the frustration of a long summer with terrible dry conditions, bills coming in and the timing of having another tax coming in was the straw that broke the camel’s back,” she said.
“Seeing so many people from the western side of the state showing up to Parliament House to voice their concerns surrounding the ESVF showed where they’re at with it all – it simply won’t be tolerated.
“It’s not just people who live in rural areas – I do think there’s a genuine sympathy from people who live in Melbourne for farmers struggling with the dry conditions.
“We’ve got a lot piling on farmers – there is a lot of support and I think it’s important for local people to know they are not alone.
“There’s support and their voices have been heard – we got a stay of execution on the ESVF for 12 months, which is just for farmland so it will double for all landholders and businesses.”
Ms Kealy said the government was not moving fast enough on providing relief, which would only worsen the issue.
“It’s exceptionally limited when it comes to on-the-ground support that would take the pressure off farmers on a day-to-day basis,” she said.
“There’s not rate relief, no relief for water delivery costs, no rebates for delivery of fodder or water carting.
“Even the fall back for agistment of stock or looking to move genetic lines up to Queensland before bringing them back at the end of one of the most difficult seasons we’ve had.
“None of this has been looked at by the government – all we’ve really got is the Drought Infrastructure Grants, which is dollar for dollar but you’re not eligible if you don’t have the money to pay for it in the first place.
“I think that has been particularly difficult to navigate because farmers expect government to be there for them in their toughest hour – but they’ve been absent and only slugged farmers with a big, new tax.”
Ms Kealy said the deterioration of roads, and the lack of upgrades, had also been consistently raised.
“Excuses are running out – you can’t have endless excuses that it’s too wet, or there aren’t crews available, or we’re doing as much as we can,” she said.
“They say they’re doing more works than ever before while we’ve still got roads with crumbling edges and potholes.
“It’s frustrating for local people when they hear about massive cost blowouts in Melbourne when we don’t even get basic road maintenance in regional Victoria.
“It’s not just this area, it’s everywhere in the state, and you even hear about roads in Melbourne around Kew and Caulfield with potholes as well.
“I think it’s a reflection this government just can’t manage the road network.”
Ms Kealy also urged residents to double check their bills after a meeting with an elderly couple revealed they were entitled to a significant refund due to incorrectly classified land.
“Just today we had somebody eligible for a $94,000 refund because their land was incorrectly classified,” she said.
“It’s incumbent on the government and state revenue office that if they’re going to put out a massive tax bill, that they make sure the classification of the land matches what the council’s classification of the land is – and that isn’t property.
“I’d encourage people to look carefully at the Land Tax Bill and if it doesn’t feel like it’s right – reach out to my office, we’re more than happy to work through it and advocate on their behalf.
“If we can get $100,000 back in to the pockets of local people, that’s a good thing for everyone.”
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