Protesters gather for Victorian Premier Jacinta Allan's Rural Press Club address

ABC NEWS (Australia)

The Victorian premier has been mobbed by hundreds of protesters in her hometown today after a speech at a regional press event. The demonstration comes after the government continues to defend its infrastructure spending spree.

Transcript

00:00Amidst the mayhem is the Premier's getaway car, in a slow crawl away from hundreds of

00:10fed up farmers.

00:14People from right across regional Victoria, right now they are feeling ignored.

00:19The protesters gathered in East Bendigo, the Premier Jacinta Allen's home town and electorate.

00:26The protest was against government plans to build renewable energy projects on private

00:30farmland and their right to appeal it in courts.

00:34Family farms are being destroyed by this reckless rollout of renewables.

00:39The Premier was there to give a speech at a rural press gathering and was shepherded

00:43away from the farmers into the private event.

00:46Firstly it's important that people can have the opportunity to have their say.

00:50Secondly, in terms of the issue itself, I do respectfully disagree.

00:55I feel sick in the guts, because they're not consulting, they're just drawing lines

00:59on maps.

01:00Politicians need to understand that these people here are the ones that are actually

01:06bringing the funds in to this country.

01:09Some of the protesters expressed frustration over what they say is a lack of support for

01:13regional Victorians, called upon the government to halt major city based projects like the

01:18suburban rail loop and reinvest some of that money back into the bush.

01:23The Premier doesn't have the money to build it, can't assure communities around Melbourne's

01:28growth corridors and regions that it will not mean they are further neglected than they

01:32already are.

01:33The major projects minister today dismissed reports the $34 billion dollar SRL mega project

01:40is losing support in the cabinet.

01:42I think all of my colleagues are really excited about this project for what it's going to

01:46deliver for Melbourne.

01:47Do you want it administered?

01:48Not that I'm aware of.

01:50From farmers to finances, the government has its work cut out.

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