Central NSW councils mayors and general managers have given unanimous support for another Canberra meeting in 2015, following the success of the Centroc Board held in Parliament House last week.
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The regular board meeting was broadened in scope and opportunity to include a number of ministerial meetings strategically targeting key regional issues such as water security, health workforce, agricultural competitiveness, the NBN and mobile black-spot funding. Rail and the future of freight was also a key issue on the agenda.
"The value of having our collective voices heard in Canberra cannot be overemphasised," said Centroc chair and mayor of Parkes Shire, Councillor Ken Keith.
"All the Federal Ministers we spoke to agreed that, as the front line of our communities, we could provide them with invaluable insight into the real needs and concerns of Central NSW."
Ministers who met with Centroc representatives include Deputy Prime Minister Warren Truss, Minister for Agriculture Barnaby Joyce, Minister for Industry Ian Macfarlane, Assistant Minister for Health Fiona Nash and Parliamentary Secretary for Communications Paul Fletcher.
Member for Calare John Cobb was instrumental in coordinating the meetings, supported by Member for Parkes, Mark Coulton, and Member for Hume, Angus Taylor.
"This was an opportunity to speak directly to individual ministers about key issues for our region," said Cr Keith.
"As a result of the meeting we are now investigating further regional infrastructure funding opportunities and have built on critical relationships with our federal counterparts."
