A shared bicycle / pedestrian pathway from Marlo to Cape Conran will be a popular tourist attraction for the region.

Gippsland East Nationals MP, Tim Bull said the pathway, which will be part of the tourism upgrades he has called for in the area, is a great start, but there is much more that can be done.

“To have confirmation that our lobbying has been effective and the pathway will be built, along with potable water connection, is good news, but I am looking forward to seeing more fire recovery investment in the area.

“As is well known, three of the cabins in Conran were destroyed by fire and they need to be replaced with upgraded facilities as a matter of urgency, while those remaining cabins that were spared fire impact, should also be renovated as well.

“It is very unique area and anything that is done must fit in with the natural environment, but the fire has delivered an opportunity to build back better,” he said.

“I am advised that the partial opening of the camp ground area was planned for the September school holidays had COVID allowed this, but by now it should all be ready to be opened when restrictions ease - it’s been eight months.

“As soon as it is safe to lift restrictions and we can welcome back visitors to our area from other parts of regional Victoria (or the city when restrictions permit), we need to have all those sites open.

“There will be a lot of people with cabin fever looking for a break who want to get into the outdoors and we need to be able to welcome them to our area. Our economy is relying on it,” he said.

Monday, September 14, 2020

There is uncertainty with many in the Bairnsdale community around the pending move of Woolworths into the Kmart store announced late last week.

I was made aware of this on Thursday night (September 3).

It was pleasing to see Kmart management issue an immediate statement that it wishes to maintain a presence in Bairnsdale and is exploring potential sites for relocation this week.

Since Friday and over the weekend, I have been involved in discussions with the council, local real estate agents and potential landlords and discussions are well advanced.

Kmart management arrives in Bairnsdale this week and we look forward to working together to achieve a suitable relocation and save these jobs.

 Monday, September 7, 2020

East Gippsland businesses are being punished as a result of regional Victoria being considered ‘as one’ under the current Coronavirus restrictions.

Gippsland East Nationals MP, Tim Bull, said it was unfair this region was being thrown into the one basket with the likes of Geelong and Colac.

“Six weeks ago we had businesses like cafes, restaurants and pubs open for 20 customers. This resulted in no increased cases and it was seen as the first step back to recovery after the fires and Coronavirus.

“Then, after no fault of East Gippslanders, who were largely doing the right thing, we were forced into further restrictions because of problems in other areas. All the while, nothing has changed here, with rates either low or nil over the ensuing period.

“By all means, keep the strong travel restrictions in place until Melbourne gets itself under control, I strongly support that, but we need to allow East Gippslanders to support East Gippsland businesses as we were successfully doing without impact six weeks ago.

“I was expecting this to be announced on Sunday and am very disappointed we find ourselves, with very low active cases and no new cases, but still no clear way out,” said Mr Bull.

“When the Premier states numbers are still too high in regional Victoria, he is referring to the situations in Geelong and Colac. I don’t consider Geelong part of regional Victoria and we should not be aligned with what is going on in Colac.

“If you look at the thresholds the Government has set, much of country Victoria meets them, but we face the prospect of ongoing lockdowns due to outbreaks in places on the other side of the state. At the very least, the Government should be considering something such as western, northern and eastern Victorian regions.

Mr Bull said he would also ask the government to provide data on geographic location rather than postcode.

“If we are to meet a numbers criteria to get back on track, having cases aligned to home postcode is not accurate. I know of multiple cases where the person contracted Coronavirus in Melbourne, quarantined in Melbourne – but had their cases recorded here because they had a home address in East Gippsland.

“It is not fair that cases such as this are used to stop an area from hitting the required benchmark.

“The response needs to be measured and balanced with community health remaining the priority and that is why the travel restrictions need to be maintained, but we can do this by allowing the restricted opening of our local businesses as we had before and effectively managed,” Mr Bull said.

Monday, September 7, 2020