Geraldton MLA Lara Dalton says important progress made under challenging conditions in 2022, with more to come

2022 was a year that demanded patience with its many challenges and difficulties, according to Geraldton MLA Lara Dalton. The Labor MP said she was proud of the progress that she and the State Government had made during the year, despite criticism from the Opposition about delays to several projects. Last year was Ms Dalton’s first full year in office and she said it was far different from 2021 when she was elected. “That first year certainly felt like a baptism of fire. Coming in after the election, we had cyclone Seroja, COVID, the general work of an MP, so it was very busy, while this year (2022) you realise that not everything is going to happen immediately,” she said. “You realise you’ve got to keep at things; most things work out when you keep pushing for what you need.” Some of the heaviest criticism from the Opposition directed at Ms Dalton has been over delays to the upgrades at Geraldton Health Campus. Ms Dalton defended the decision by the government to delay the process for finding a tender at the start of the year, reiterating the government’s position that the pandemic had caused labour and supply costs to be greater than expected. “We had the perfect storm of COVID and the cyclone happening as we were moving into the second stage of development,” she said. “We decided we couldn’t continue in good faith, knowing we couldn’t build the upgrades with what we budgeted for, so we stopped the tender process. It became a major process and that came with more scrutiny because it is public money.” Expressions of interest have opened once again and Ms Dalton is confident there won’t be more delays after speaking with others in government. “I’m assured because (the department of) finance has assured me … I don’t think we will go back to what we had before,” she said. “Past governments have made promises for the hospital and haven’t delivered anything. We have delivered the first stage and now we are moving on to the next stage.” Aside from work on the hospital, Ms Dalton listed addressing housing issues and seeing progress continue on the Oakajee Strategic Industrial Area as key areas of focus in 2023. “I do think we are making progress; if you look around town more construction is under way, we are on the right track,” she said on housing. Ms Dalton said she had told Housing Minister John Carey about the situation in Geraldton and asked him for more help alleviating pressure. On the Oakajee project, Ms Dalton said she “understands the scepticism” from some critics given the long history of delays, but assured the public the level of commitment from government and private business was unlike anything seen in the past. “People often roll their eyes with Oakajee because of the past history, but I don’t we’ve ever had this level of certainty,” she said. “The renewable energy market is real and we all have to get on it, and Geraldton and the Mid West are prime for it.” She said the project’s legacy would be felt for a long time. “There’s an employment future here, and with opportunities like that other things come up: schools are built, more services are provided, and we will grow as a town and community,” she said. The Port Maximisation Project is another piece of work Ms Dalton recommends keeping an eye out for, while the situation with Qantas’s flight schedule is something she says she wants to continue looking at. “I’ve been working with minister’s office, but it does seem we may not have normal flights until March or April, which is disappointing,” she said. On her own political future, Ms Dalton did not dismiss the possibility of becoming a minister but said her focus for now was on representing Geraldton. “If that opportunity came up I would be very happy to take it, but it is competitive and we have a very talented Caucus,” she said. “When I was asked to run for local member, I took a crack and I think I would have to if the opportunity came here as well. “I do feel it would be a lot of extra responsibility. For now, I’m very happy to be the member for Geraldton.” She said it was a job that had many demands but was ultimately worth it. “People ask me if it is how I expected it to be and in some ways it is — long hours, stress, the ups and downs — but it’s also always on my mind, Geraldton’s always on my mind and you don’t realise how much space the job takes up,” she said. “You’re a public servant. Not everything will go your own way, but you work hard to try to make it happen and mostly it’s very rewarding.”