Family funding promises and radio hosting as election campaign heats up
Election campaigning is ramping up with another promise to help families rolled out by the Premier after he first took over the microphone to launch KIIS 102.3.
Premier Peter Malinauskas hosted the inaugural hour of the new KIIS 102.3 from 8am to 9am – it officially relaunched from MIX 102.3 – before heading to a press conference to announce more funds for children and families in crisis.
In the northern suburbs, he announced if Labor won the March state election the party would stump up $500,000 for a new headquarters for charity Backpacks 4 SA Kids.
It would be built at Rundle Reserve in Salisbury South on land provided by the local council for a peppercorn rent – the project already has more than a million dollars contributed toward the build after the organisation was forced to move to a temporary headquarters.
The program started in 2012 and has delivered more than 110,000 programs to support children and young people forced out of their homes over family and domestic violence, neglect, homelessness and poverty. The backpacks support young people living rough or couch surfing.
It comes after another promise over the weekend of $8 million to help Ronald McDonald House secure land to build a bigger accommodation service located off Port Road at Southwark, 600 metres from the new Women’s and Children’s Hospital.
Ronald McDonald House currently supports almost 350 families a year – and its new purpose-built facility is expected to triple capacity.
If re-elected, the Labor party would also invest $16 million over four years to expand the Patient Assistance Transport Scheme (PATS), nearly tripling an existing accommodation subsidy and broadening eligibility for a fuel subsidy to help even more regional South Australians with out-of-pocket costs when travelling for specialist healthcare.
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Opposition leader Ashton Hurn announced over the weekend that a Liberal government would invest $1 billion over four years to “break the back of South Australia’s growing road maintenance backlog – the biggest investment of its kind in the state’s history”.
State Liberal Leader Ashton Hurn said South Australians were fed up with rough, poorly maintained roads.
“Families and businesses are paying fees and charges through the nose to the state government and yet local roads continue to deteriorate before their eyes,” Hurn said.
“This $1 billion investment will begin the huge maintenance task now to ensure our roads are safer and more reliable, whether you live in the city or the country.”
