WANNON MP, Dan Tehan has represented the people of Wannon for over a decade, and he is not done yet – Mr Tehan will recontest the seat in the upcoming election, when it is called by the Prime Minister.
Mr Tehan said it was a great honour to serve the people of Wannon as their representative in Canberra.
“I will contest the seat of Wannon on behalf of the Liberal Party at the upcoming election,” he said.
“I work hard to represent the interests of our local communities and I look forward to asking the people of Wannon to put their trust in me again at the next election.”
Mr Tehan said he would continue to work every day for his electorates to demonstrate that the government has a strong plan for the future.
“I will continue to fight for our community to ensure: more funding for our roads and rail infrastructure, securing good jobs and reducing the cost of living, delivering regional services, delivering community projects, and caring for our beautiful environment.
“The Morrison Government is completely focused on keeping our economy strong, keeping Australians safe, and keeping Australians growing together.”
Mr Tehan also said the government was proud that female employment had increased by over a million since they came into power, especially after the Jenkins Review, which detailed widespread issues in parliamentary workplaces.
“The landmark 2021-22 $3.4 billion Women’s Budget Statement included $1.9 billion to support women’s workforce participation and economic security,” he said.
“This includes an additional $1.7 billion to improve the affordability of childcare and provide greater choice for women and men as they balance their home and work lives.
“The Morrison Government has also invested a record $2 billion in women’s safety initiatives since 2013, including more emergency accommodation, more financial support, including cash payments for those escaping abusive relationships, more legal assistance, and more counselling.”
The issue of youth mental health has been a point of concern among the medical fraternity and wider community for some time.
Conversations about mental ill health have become more common since the start of the pandemic, in turn more people have sought help and mental health services have been put under unprecedented pressure to meet the demand.
Mr Tehan said the government was working to provide support for people that need it, with $6.5 billion in support for mental health.
“The government is expanding the total number of headspace services across Australia to 164, including services in Hamilton, Colac, Warrnambool, and Portland,” he said.
“More funding is also being provided for Lifeline, Beyond Blue, ReachOut, Kids Helpline and the Butterfly Foundation.”
Young Australians have been hit hard throughout the pandemic, as lockdowns and restrictions saw casual employment dry up, and learning move from the classroom to the home.
Mr Tehan said as the economy recovered, young people were getting back into work.
“Recently youth unemployment has fallen to below 10 per cent for the first time since 2008,” he said.
“Through our 50 per cent wage subsidies program, the Morrison Government will support more than 170,000 new apprenticeships and traineeships, this builds on the 100,000 new apprenticeships already supported.
“The 2020-21 Budget also doubles the government’s commitment to the JobTrainer Fund – supporting more than 450,000 new training places for school leavers and job seekers.
“The recent Budget provides more than $19 billion in funding for universities in 2021-22 and as a result of decisions made during the pandemic, there were 30,000 more university places at Australian universities in 2021.
“In addition, the government has funded 50,000 short courses at universities and vocational education providers, to help young people get the skills to find a job.
“Every Australian, whether young or old, female or male, living in the country or the city, will benefit from our plan to create more jobs and support more businesses and that includes our tax cuts which will leave more money in people’s pockets.”
