I congratulate members of the Colac community, who are thrilled that their outdated 1930s police station will be replaced thanks to a commitment by the Andrews Labor government to spend $11.7 million on a new complex — a new police station that the previous government talked about but could never deliver. Colac residents have long recognised the need to upgrade their police station so that the local police officers can operate in a better and safer workplace while they get on with the most important job of safeguarding their community. I was very pleased to visit Colac and take part in the announcement. Locals were ecstatic to find that the Colac police station will become the modern facility that they deserve.
On another note, the Cobden community was delighted to be told that funding has been announced to improve the Cobden police station to make it a secure and modern facility. The refurbishment of the police station at Cobden is yet another investment in public safety to ensure that Cobden police are better equipped to support victims and hold perpetrators to account to assist officers in carrying out their critical work.
The Andrews Labor government believes that community safety is paramount in regional Victoria and is also delivering on its commitment to the residents of Colac and Cobden to provide better resources for a modern police force. Both projects are part of a $36.8 million package for regional and rural facilities, which will see the replacement or refurbishment of regional and rural police stations across the state. This clearly shows that this government is committed to having a stronger police presence and better resourced police force in country Victoria.
