REPRIEVE FOR AVENUE ELMS (Weekly, March 11)
■ Yep, let’s spend millions on Woolpack Road and then not extend it to the freeway. You have to be kidding, Damien Strangio. Wait until after the election and, no matter who wins, they will now be able to justify a much-needed truck bypass. Traffic lights will appear, a couple of trees will be moved and you will disappear from the scene.
BOB SURETE VIA WEB
BULMANS ROAD (Weekly, March 11)
■ Bulmans Road is important to Melton residents, but Caroline Springs is the priority for council. It appears the residents of Melton are only good for paying their rates to improve Caroline Springs.
RJS VIA WEB
PUTTING THE RECORD STRAIGHT
■ Unfortunately, opposition employment spokesman Tim Pallas is seeking to mislead readers of this paper with alarmist claims on Victoria’s economy (Letters, March 4).
The facts are that since December 2010, Victorian employment has grown by 64,200 workers. In western Melbourne, which includes the Melton area, employment has grown by 7.2 per cent in that time, slightly more than 23,000 people.
This encouraging growth in employment has not happened by accident.
The state government is working hard to encourage business and employment. Since December 2010, we have facilitated more than
$7.4 billion in new projects which are creating more than 15,000 jobs.
Maintaining a strong budget position has allowed us to make investments that will serve western Melbourne for generations. These include infrastructure improvements that generated thousands of jobs and boosted the local economy, such as the $4.8 billion Regional Rail Link and the $505 million Western Highway duplication. The government has invested $11.5 million for a primary school at Melton North West and upgraded the Ferris Road interchange.
And we are ensuring young Victorians have the skills they need to secure sustainable jobs. Victoria invests more in vocational training than any other state, with a record $1.2 billion provided in 2012-13. Our reforms mean that the vocational training sector is not only financially sustainable, it is training students to work in industries where there are genuine skill shortages.
SIMON RAMSAY WESTERN VICTORIA MP
