Advocating for better health services and improved ambulance response times have long been at the top of our list of priorities for this community.
On Tuesday night, Council agreed to elevate those efforts by participating in the first ever tri-council meeting with Towong and Alpine to discuss taking a collective stance on the future of health services, specifically a new Albury Wodonga hospital.
All three Councils have now agreed to the meeting, which we will host in Beechworth on Tuesday 13 August at 11am.
While our Council has been vocal in its support for a new hospital built on a greenfield site, this will be the first time that all three Councils will come together and discuss a collective approach for advocating to the Federal and State Governments to abandon plans to upgrade the existing Albury hospital in favour of a new single site facility.
Our three Shires rely heavily on the services provided by Albury-Wodonga Health. We know that quality health services are a key determinant in building thriving and liveable communities, and we need to ensure that what is developed today has the capacity to service our communities well into the future.
We look forward to hosting the meeting and on reaching a resolution that will carry some weight in convincing the Federal, Victorian and NSW Governments to immediately redirect their efforts towards a new single site hospital.
Earlier in the week, we were extremely saddened to hear the news that Billson’s in Beechworth has entered voluntary administration, with more staff losing their jobs.
This is such a devastating blow for the owners and everyone associated with the business, which has been one of our region’s greatest success stories.
We are pleased that the venue will continue to operate as normal and we trust that a positive outcome can be reached to ensure that Billson’s remains an important contributor to our local economy. We wish Nathan and Felicity and all involved the very best.
Take care everyone and have a great weekend.