Ms SPENCE (Yuroke) — (12 684) My adjournment matter is for the attention of the Minister for Health and Minister for Ambulance Services, and the action I seek is for the minister to provide an update to Yuroke residents on the time line for construction of the new Craigieburn ambulance station. As the minister is no doubt aware, Craigieburn is a rapidly growing community that has welcomed many thousands of new residents over a fairly short period. Our community has a terrific team at the current Craigieburn ambulance station, both paramedics and an outstanding community emergency response team. However, as our community continues to grow, the announcement of a new ambulance station, additional staff and a new vehicle is warmly welcomed. I thank the minister for her tireless efforts to improve ambulance response times across the state and look forward to an update from her on this vital piece of local infrastructure.

Response:

The department is actively working with Ambulance Victoria to progress planning for the new ambulance station in Craigieburn.

The current focus for Craigieburn is to identify a suitable parcel of land which will ensure the best possible Ambulance service delivery to the local community. A number of sites have been investigated. The new station is targeted for completion by June 2019.

The government continues to support Ambulance Victoria and its planning for future investment needs. The Andrews Labor Government has recently announced record funding – the biggest investment in ambulance services – to employ 450 more paramedics, put more new ambulances on the road and build 15 new and upgraded stations across Victoria.

Hon Jill Hennessy MP
Minister for Ambulance Services