What to expect following the announcement of the Victorian State Budget

15 May

The 2024-25 Victorian State Budget was delivered on Tuesday 7 May.

In his Treasurer’s Message, Tim Pallas, stated “from cost of living relief, to schools and healthcare, road and rail – this budget is all about helping families”.

"It’s an investment that will help young Victorians be their best, while also making life that little bit easier for families”, stated Mr Pallas in his Treasurer’s message.

We’ve compiled the highlights from the announcement below.

Education

Within this budget, $1.8 billion has been invested to continue building the Education State and building a better future for Victoria’s children.

→ A one-off $400 School Saving Bonus for every student enrolled at a government school and eligible families at non-government schools

→ $1.8 billion to build, maintain and upgrade schools across our state, and deliver on our promise to build 100 new schools by 2026

→ $555 million to build the workforces we need for the future, including support for skills and TAFEs

→ Continued investment in delivering free three and four year old kinder for families

→ $19 million to help kinders renovate and upgrade their facilities and learning spaces

→ $129 million to continue the statewide rollout of our early education reforms, including universal Three-Year-Old Kinder and supporting families with Free Kinder

→ $139 million to back the work of our teachers, with more professional development, more mental health and wellbeing support, and improve workloads with more flexible working arrangements and additional recruitment

→ 100 new schools to be built by 2026, with a pledge to upgrade existing ones as well

→ $753 million to maintain and upgrade schools including school maintenance, classroom upgrades, creation of learning spaces, building upgrades and increasing accessibility for students with disabilities.

Regional

→ Four brand new primary schools in Greater Geelong, Wodonga and Mitchell Shire so more kids can learn close to home

→ $394 million to boost access to vocational training and Free TAFE, including for those in regional Victoria

→ $113 million for TAFEs to provide support services, training delivery, and help students get the most out of their training, with the regional TAFE network getting a share of this funding

→ $40 million for seven regional school upgrades, providing new and upgraded facilities, such as libraries, sports grounds, and learning spaces

→ $14 million for our Tech Schools to help students find their passions – including outreach for country students via regional science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) camps

→ $6 million to expand the subjects on offer for rural and regional students by supporting collaboration and planning in clusters of schools.

Healthcare

Recognising the impacts of the pandemic and addressing the increased running costs of the health care system.

→ $11 billion for our healthcare system, helping our hospitals care for their patients and continue to recover from the impacts of the pandemic

→ $1.7 billion to build and improve our hospitals and health facilities, including new emergency departments for the Northern and Austin Hospitals, and a new inpatient tower for the Monash Medical Centre

→ $18 million to build and upgrade community sport infrastructure and create more opportunities for Victorians to get involved

→ $41 million to deliver maternal, child and fertility healthcare to more families and bubs.

Regional

$117 million to operate and begin expanding facilities at health services, including the Latrobe Regional Hospital, with capacity for 44 inpatient beds, 14 medical and surgical beds, a new emergency department resuscitation bay and a medical imaging pathology unit

→ $28 million to deliver high-quality care in regional public sector residential aged care facilities

→ $11 million for Priority Primary Care Centres in regional areas → $10 million to provide additional mental health care to regional communities through support in Youth Prevention and Recovery Care (YPARC) beds, Mental Health and Wellbeing Hubs, and suicide prevention services

→ $6.9 million to deliver new early intervention for Victorians with an eating disorder, including an Eating Disorders Day Program in regional Victoria

→ $5.7 million to provide improved care to new mums in rural and regional areas, ensuring they have the best support possible during and after their pregnancy

→ $5.4 million for the Ballarat Base Hospital, to build a mental health, alcohol and other drugs emergency department hub

→ $1.6 million to increase the number of people with cancer receiving early palliative care in our regional communities, ensuring the dignity of end-of-life care closer to home.

Families

The budget aims to address and relieve the cost of living pressures for families, delivering tangible support for families to address the costs of all of the little things that add up along the way including uniforms, sports, camps and more.

→ $6.8 million to triple our free Glasses for Kids program

→ $6 million to continue our Get Active Kids vouchers – providing up to $200 to eligible families to help with the cost of their kids’ sport

→ $374 million to protect children and support families, including early intervention to keep families together, and assistance for carers

→ $273 million to support Aboriginal families and communities, alongside our nation-leading Truth and Treaty work

→ $211 million to help keep women and children safe and support victim survivors of family violence

Regional

→ The Bendigo Sports package, which will deliver major upgrades for Bendigo Stadium, Bendigo Showgrounds and Bendigo Bowls and Croquet clubs.

→ $18 million to build and upgrade community sport infrastructure and deliver sporting programs across Victoria

Victorians

→ $700 million to extend the Victorian Homebuyer Fund, helping thousands more Victorians to purchase their own home

→ $156 million to strengthen our state’s emergency response, including support for emergency service volunteers and firefighters, new fire trucks, and Life Saving Victoria

→ $38 million to continue the success of Solar Victoria, with an extra 35 000 energy efficient hot water rebates. By switching to a heat pump or solar hot water system, the average household will save up to $400 on their electricity bills every year

→ $302 million to support fire and flood impacted communities – helping them recover and rebuild for the long term, including repairing the roads most damaged by flooding earlier this year

→ $5.3 billion Big housing Build helping ensure Victorians have a roof over their head

Travel and tourism

Continuing to invest in making our roads safer.

→ $996 million to switch on our Big Build transport projects, including the Metro Tunnel and the West Gate Tunnel

→ $208 million to repair and improve our roads and intersections

Regional

→ $133 million to support the regional rail network, including operating newly delivered train stabling yards, stations and VLocity trains, and upgrading the 150-year-old historic rail tunnel between Geelong and South Geelong

→ $104 million on works to keep rail freight moving across Victoria, with maintenance works and encouraging operators to take up rail

→ $41 million to continue train timetable services, including running additional weekday return services for the Warrnambool and Echuca lines

→ $30 million for improved bus and ferry services, including more frequent bus services for Leongatha and Yarram and continuing the Portarlington ferry service

→ $33 million to continue marketing Victoria as a leading tourism and events destination

→ $11 million to support the work of the Great Outdoors Taskforce, which will work on developing future uses of our state forests

→ $4.5 million for the Victorian Festivals Fund, further strengthening our state’s events calendar

→ $3.3 million to support Victoria’s regional tourism boards and visitor economy partnerships, backing their work to grow local tourism and local jobs.

Businesses

Backing our Victorian businesses, creating more jobs and opportunities for Victorians.

→ From 1 July, 2024, thousands of Victorian businesses will start saving from tax reforms announced in last years budget including gradual abolishment of business insurance duty and lifting the payroll tax-free threshold.

You can read the entire budget announcement here - 2024-25+State+Budget+-+Budget+Overview.pdf

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