THE NATIONALS will guarantee regional Victorians will get 25 per cent of all infrastructure spending if they win government at the next election.
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State party leader Peter Walsh made the pledge while criticising the Labor government as "city-centric".
"It's time for our fair share in regional Victoria," he said.
The Nationals say the pledge would be double the amount the current Labor government plans to spend next financial year under the latest state budget.
He said the government had only directly allocated $11.4 million for regional Victorian asset investment at the last budget and only 13 per cent in the one planned for 2022/23.
The government had cut regional Victorian funding at the same time that costs had blown out on Labor government projects, Mr Walsh said.
A quarter of Victorians live in regional areas and Mr Walsh said spending on roads, sports grounds, hospitals and other facilities should reflect that.
The pledge could set the stage for big promises in the Bendigo region in the lead up to the November election.
Premier Daniel Andrews has previously said the city could expect fresh builds if his government was re-elected.
"You can't be complacent, you must keep investing, you must keep building," he said in an interview last November.
Mr Andrews said building works would bolster confidence in an economy still shaking as it emerged from the COVID-19 crises.
Liberal party leader Matthew Guy threw his support behind the Nationals' regional guarantee on Saturday.
"New projects like the $750 million Mildura Public Base Hospital or a restored Country Roads and Bridges Program will deliver new and upgraded hospitals, schools and sports grounds, and the modern road and rail that we all deserve," he said.
The Bendigo Advertiser is reaching out to the ALP for comment.
Mr Walsh made the new pledge at the 2022 Nationals State Conference on Saturday, in the aftermath of the Coalition's drubbing at the federal election.
The Nationals were not hit as hard as the Liberal Party, which lost a slew of seats including in its leafy inner city heartlands.
But the loss has brought aftershocks for the Nationals too.
Gippsland MP Darren Chester announced on Friday he would challenge incumbent NSW leader Barnaby Joyce for the leadership in a party room vote.
It could change the balance of power in the Nationals towards a less conservative Victorian wing of the party.
"I'm not going to tip a bucket on current leader Barnaby Joyce," Mr Chester said in a Facebook post.
"I think Australians want a calmer, moderate and more respectful political debate which is focused on policies, and not personalities."
Mallee MP Anne Webster has also expressed a desire to be deputy leader but on Friday told the Bendigo Advertiser that could change if Mr Chester wins the top job.
She would have to consider whether the party would be best served having a deputy and leader from the same state.
"The leadership will be decided first, so we will just have to see what ultimately gets up," Dr Webster said.
"Darren has served in the parliament for a long time and I wish him well. May the best man or woman win."
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