1. NEWS WEEKEND NEWS SATURDAY, MAY 2, 2015 5
How Nationals lost seat
PARTY LEADER WALSH BELIEVES NOT SELLING ACHIEVEMENTS ENOUGH LED TO SHOCK SHEPPARTON LOSS
ELAINE
COONEY
elaine.cooney@
sheppnews.com.au
IT’S FRUSTRATING GOING FROM GOVERNMENT WHEN YOU CAN
BE PROACTIVE, TO OPPOSITION WHEN YOU CAN JUST LOBBY FOR
SOMETHING TO BE DONE. — PETER WALSH
Peter Walsh
Nationals leader Peter
Walsh has spoken about
how he felt his party went
awry after five months of
reflection on losing the
‘‘safe’’ seat of Shepparton.
He told the News the
party did not sell what they
had achieved during the
past four years effectively
enough and its candidate
Greg Barr needed more
opportunity to sell himself.
With Jeanette Powell
retiring, he said it was
always challenging when a
seat changed from a long-
serving member of a party.
‘‘In the four years in
government we did good
things for Shepparton,’’ he
said.
‘‘Obviously we didn’t
explain it enough.’’
He said previous leader
Peter Ryan secured the SPC
Ardmona funding.
‘‘Barnaby (Joyce’s)
interjection at the last
minute wasn’t helpful,’’ he
said, referring to an ABC
interview where the federal
agriculture minister claimed
SPC was the Liberal Party’s
responsibility because it had
the seat of Shepparton.
He felt the wider media
took Mr Joyce’s comments
out of context.
Mr Walsh said had the
Nationals won the seat of
Shepparton, there would be
$75 million for the
Goulburn Valley Base
Hospital, $178 million for
revamped V/line services
from Shepparton to
Southern Cross and
$1 million for a feasibility
study into a Shepparton
bypass, plus other projects.
He plans to fight for these
pre-election promises with
the Labor Party and said
Goulburn Valley Health was
his priority.
His vision for the budget is
$25 million for initial works
that needed to be done and
$200 million in the forward
estimates to help with the
hospital’s redevelopment.
He said there was no
discussions about who the
Nationals’ next candidate
would be for Shepparton.
Mr Walsh is open to a
three-cornered contest in
Shepparton for the next
election and said the
Nationals did not have any
specific arrangement with
the Liberal Party.
After four years in
government, Mr Walsh
found opposition a
completely different game.
‘‘It’s frustrating going
from government when you
can be proactive, to
opposition when you can
just lobby for something to
be done,’’ he said.
Hazardous trees getting chop
By Chloe Warburton
Greater Shepparton
City Council will
remove eight plane trees
along High St before the
end of the financial
year.
The trees are among
163 tree-related hazards
identified for repair
works in the Shepparton
central business district,
which will fix damage to
roads, kerbs, footpaths
and street furniture cau-
sed by some of the
trees.
Most of the hazards
relate to damage caused
by the aggressive root
systems of plane trees,
which line many of the
city’s streets.
The works will involve
replacing asphalt,
enlarging granitic sand
surrounds, and replac-
ing damaged kerbs and
footpaths to minimise
disruptions to the trees
that will remain.
Council’s infra-
structure director
Steve Bowmaker said
the eight trees mar-
ked for removal had
outgrown their sur-
rounds.
‘‘My teams have
come up with some
innovative treatments
to reduce hazards and
conserve as many
trees as we possibly
can, but eight of the
trees need to be
removed to limit
damage to public as-
sets and private prop-
erty,’’ Mr Bowmaker
said.
‘‘A qualified arbor-
ist will be on site dur-
ing these works to
ensure that tree con-
servation measures
are used at all times.’’
Works will begin
next Saturday in High
St, with tree removal
and repair works to
replace concrete and
add granitic sand to
be completed by
June 30.
Pedestrians will
still have access to
shops, though park-
ing will be affected in
sections being
worked on.
EXPECTED DISRUPTIONS FROM THE WORKS
Lane closure —
eastbound along High
St: The left-hand lane
from Wyndham St
eastbound along High St
to North St will be
closed from May 4 in
sections as the work
crews move along High
St. Works are
anticipated to be
completed along this
section on Friday,
May 15.
Lane closure —
westbound along High
St: The left-hand lane
from North St
westbound along High St
to Wyndham St will be
closed in sections from
May 15 as the work
crews move along High
St. Works are anticipated
to be completed along
this section on
Wednesday, May 27.
Wyndham St to
Welsford St:
Maintenance works along
this section of High St will
start on Wednesday, May
27, and will be minimal
with little disruption to
traffic expected. Works
along this section are
anticipated to be
completed on
Wednesday, June 8.
Maude St Mall:
Maintenance works are
scheduled to start in the
Maude St Mall on
Thursday, June 4. The
planned works are
minor in nature and
should have minimal
impact on pedestrian
and shopkeeper
activities. Works in the
Maude St Mall are
anticipated to be
completed by Tuesday,
June 30.
Scholarship
pupil meets
supporters
Bright future: Wilmot Rd Year 6 student Rabab Altimimi and Dawes and Vary Lawyers lawyer Matthew Jones. Picture: Holly Curtis
Wilmot Rd Primary
School’s top scholarship
student had the chance to
meet with her sponsors on
Wednesday.
Year 6 student Rabab Alti-
mimi received a $500 schol-
arship from Dawes and Vary
Lawyers.
Wilmot Rd Primary
School’s scholarship pro-
gram is funded by its eight
community partners.
‘‘The purpose of the
scholarships is to provide
our students inspiration and
motivation about their
future and to realise that
their dreams can come
true,’’ school student well-
being and community rela-
tionships co-ordinator Paul
Greenwood said.
The school’s community
partners include Bendigo
Bank, The Good Guys,
Shepparton Professional
Women’s Network, the
Apprenticeship Factory,
McGuire College, M and S
Accounting Services and
Goulburn Broken Catch-
ment Management Author-
ity.
Rabab said receiving the
scholarship for civic leader-
ship was a surprise.
‘‘The money will help with
all the school things I use,
like my school photos (and)
uniform,’’ she said.
Rabab said in order to be
eligible for the scholarship,
she had to fill out a form
from Mr Greenwood and
answer questions about
how it would help her.
‘‘I want to be a nurse and
help others,’’ she said.
Dawes and Vary Lawyers
lawyer Matthew Jones said it
was great to be able to meet
Rabab.
‘‘She’s a bright young girl
and I think she’s going to go
places, it’ll be fantastic to
see where she is in a few
years time,’’ he said.
Mr Jones said the law firm
had been involved with the
scholarship program for
about three years.
‘‘The scholarship is just
one aspect of our involve-
ment with Wilmot Rd,’’ he
said.
‘‘We also help out with the
breakfast program. . . a cou-
ple of the staff will go down
there and help out cooking
the toast and making the
drinks. For us it’s just great
to give back to the
community.’’