Nationals candidate for Euroa Annabelle Cleeland has pledged to be innovative in addressing mobile black spots in the electorate if successful at next month’s state election.
Ms Cleeland said if the Liberal-National Coalition formed government Victorians in areas with poor mobile coverage would be eligible for a rebate to install mobile boosters in vehicles, homes and businesses.
The subsidy is part of the opposition’s $150 million Connecting Country Communities program which aims to boost mobile coverage and broadband services in regional and rural areas.
“Parts of our region have put up with second-class mobile coverage for too long, and more towers isn’t the only way to help solve this problem,” Ms Cleeland said.
“We need innovative technology to deliver better coverage to country communities who rely on mobile services for everything from business to keeping in touch with their loved ones.
“It’s particularly important for smaller rural communities where we’ve seen banks and government services move to online-only – it leaves people who can’t get a signal behind.”
Ms Cleeland said the Connecting Country Communities program would also fund works to strengthen mobile towers, allowing people to stay in touch during emergencies.
“We have towns across the electorate of Euroa like Redesdale, Balmattum and Strathbogie with serious black spots that are concerning for residents particularly as we come into the summer months,” she said.
“Regional Victorians have been short-changed through Labor’s Connecting Victoria program, with 28 of the program’s 88 projects located within metropolitan Melbourne.
“Daniel Andrews was gold-plating the city to shore up votes – all at the expense of people who live in smaller towns.
“As people increasingly flock to regional areas we need this investment to support hybrid working models and increase economic productivity.”
