With the Australian Labor Party holding its national conference in Queensland this week, independent MP for Mayo Rebekha Sharkie asks if Labor has forgotten rural and regional Australians?

She has raised concerns that the party of government’s policy platform – its vision for the future – contains some glaring omissions.

She says references to rural communities have been cut and key commitment it took to the last election have been discarded.

These include supporting the availability of high-quality aged care services in rural, regional and remote areas; committing to regional economic development; and parity and equity in crucial education, health care and community services.

“It is well known Australians living in rural and remote areas often experience lesser access to health, aged care, education and other services than people living in metropolitan areas,” Ms Sharkie says.

“However since their taking office, I have had to challenge this government for unpicking initiatives designed to help address adverse regional, rural and remote outcomes.

“We have seen grant programs designed to support the regions shut down or redirected to non-regional centres. 

“Distribution Priority Areas designed to attract overseas doctors to sparsely-serviced rural and regional areas have been extended to outer metropolitan areas. 

Ms Sharkie has called on the federal government and the ALP National Conference to reinstate Labor’s 2021 commitments to rural and regional Australians.

“As the representative of one of the oldest and most populous electorates in the country, it is my job to go into bat for our regional, rural and remote communities.

“As the 2021 Conference resolved, we must not forget that ‘rural and regional Australians [should] receive a fair share of the prosperity they create’.”