Energy prices, biodiversity, native vegetation reform, communication blackspots and rural crime were just some of the issues and concerns raised at the Loomberah Hall on Friday, as Deputy Premier John Barilaro took a whirlwind tour of Tamworth.
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The NSW Nationals leader met council to discuss two projects and announce more funding for local apprenticeships in the morning, before heading to the luncheon and Q&A session hosted by Farmers NSW.
Just three days after a surplus budget was announced the premier was mostly met with open arms, although the 30 primary producers attending the function didn’t hold back during question time.
During his opening address to the group Mr Barilaro championed the surplus budget, and the resulting investment into regional NSW.
“We wanted to see greater investment in regional NSW, and to do that we needed to make some tough financial decisions that allowed us to see surpluses in place,” Mr Barilaro said.
“Overall that budget saw $9.1 billion invested into regional NSW.
“We’ve got plenty of cranes in the sky in Sydney, now there are just as many cranes in the sky and boots on the ground in regional NSW.”
President of the Tamworth Branch of Farmers NSW Kevin Tongue was very pleased that the deputy premier made the time to come to Tamworth and listen to local concerns.
“Native vege is a high priority, the mapping side of things is going to be very hard, but it needs to be individualised because we have so many different landscapes,” Mr Tongue said. Energy prices are also very important, not just to farmers but to everyone.”
