Liberal policies to "make life easier" for seniors, parents, carers and small business owners in Port Stephens and to "supercharge" jobs and growth in Williamtown have been outlined by Jamie Abbott in the final week of the state election campaign.
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The Port Stephens Liberal candidate said she was excited by the party's plans to introduce a new travel card for seniors, extend before and after school care hours, implement a range of cost-cutting measures to assist small businesses and to turn Williamtown into a Special Activation Precinct.
SAPs are regional areas that have been identified by the NSW Government as places where businesses across many sectors will thrive.
"This government is serious about attracting businesses and jobs to Port Stephens," Ms Abbott said.
"The NSW Liberals are already investing $11.7 million in the Williamtown aerospace precinct, which is creating a transformational defence, aviation, aerospace and technology precinct set to generate over 5500 jobs in the Hunter region.
"Making Williamtown a SAP will provide a myriad of opportunities with industries beyond defence.
"If I am elected as the member for Port Stephens, I will work with the state government, Newcastle Airport and Port Stephens Council to establish a SAP in the region including addressing necessary PFAS remediation work."
Port Stephens Mayor Ryan Palmer said the Williamtown SAP could incorporate an upgrade of the Newcastle Airport runway and terminal, extension of the M1 to Raymond Terrace and upgraded road links to the airport and to the Port of Newcastle.
"The SAP will provide an immense benefit to our region, and I welcome any steps towards implementing such a precinct at Williamtown," Cr Palmer said.
A re-elected Liberal government has said it will introduce a new Senior Savers Card and a $250 Regional Seniors Transport Card through the NSW Seniors Card program, which could be used for fuel, taxis from participating providers in rural and regional NSW and pre-booked NSW TrainLink services.
The Senior Savers Card would become available from July 1 for senior residents who were not yet eligible for the existing Seniors Card.
"The new Seniors Card will been a huge help for Port Stephens senior residents, because they will no longer be missing out on discounts on products and services offered by businesses," Ms Abbott said.
The Liberal Party has also committed to extending on site care at public primary schools from 7am to 6pm, starting 2021.
NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian announced on March 14 that a re-elected Liberal government would invest $120 million to expand before and after school care, including reducing the cost of before and after school care by up to $225 per child per year.
Ms Abbott said the plan would remove "a lot of the stress at drop off and pick up time, helping to ease the juggle between work and school hours".
Furthermore, the party plans to undertake a number of measures to assist small businesses including making insurance premiums cheaper, providing access to the Energy Switch program and payroll tax cuts.
"Port Stephens' economy and our local jobs rely on the success of our small businesses, and only the Liberals & Nationals are able to understand their needs and help them succeed," Ms Abbott said.
"As someone who operates her own business, I know the how stressful it is - from making sure that you can cover your expenses, to making sure that you're keeping up with the all of the regulatory demands.
"These measures will help small businesses to prosper and create local jobs, continuing to build our region's economic success."
The latest policies come on top of the party's election commitments to Port Stephens including allocating $205 million to complete the duplication of Nelson Bay Road between Williamtown and Bobs Farm, $188 million to build the Fingal Bay Link Road, $7 million for a Nelson Bay TAFE and making Port roads a priority in the $500m Fixing Local Roads program.