Pat Conaghan Federal Member for Cowper took the opportunity on the floor of Parliament to once again shine a spotlight on the need for focus and funding for the alternative route to Waterfall Way in the wake of the most recent landslip.

In his speech he highlighted Waterfall Way’s critical importance in connecting community and industry to essential services as well as the ineffectiveness of continued band-aid roadwork solutions.

“Waterfall Way has been a personal priority for me since becoming the Member for Cowper in 2019, and I will continue to remind the Federal Ministerial teams that this issue remains unresolved and that the communities in and around Dorrigo continue to be impacted multiple times a year,” Mr Conaghan stated.

“In 2022 it finally felt like we were getting some momentum with all levels of Government coming together to agree the best way forward and plot funding tangible requirements. But with the change of Government at both a State and Federal level, this progress has stagnated.

“While I was pleased to see Jenny Aitchison NSW Minister for Roads visiting after the latest major slip, and I absolutely welcome and appreciate her attention, announcements for funding support were ultimately not made.

“Given the scale of the solutions required both in the short and long term, joint Federal and State funding is required. It is my job to make sure that the Dorrigo communities are heard, recognised and ultimately supported on a Federal level. And I will continue to champion those needs in Canberra.”