Budget scraps hospital builds says Bath

State Nationals MP Melina Bath has slammed the Allan Labor Government for failing to fund the promised Wonthaggi Hospital stages 2 and 3 redevelopment and new West Gippsland Hospital in the 2026-27 state budget, saying four-year-old election commitments worth a combined $965 million have been effectively abandoned.

Ms Bath said despite Labor promising $290 million for Wonthaggi Hospital and $675 million for West Gippsland Hospital before the 2022 election, the budget contained no construction funding for either project with only $3.69 million allocated which she said represented just 5.6 per cent of what was promised to voters.

"The absence of funding for Wonthaggi Hospital stages 2 and 3 and a new West Gippsland Hospital shows Labor will not deliver its election promises," Ms Bath said.

"It is an absolute farce that a four-year-old election commitment has been given mere peanuts.

"Labor is attempting to hoodwink voters with sugar hits and fake freebie headlines but no amount of spin can hide the fact this budget makes life harder not easier."

Ms Bath said the budget only provided for Wonthaggi Hospital medical imaging, pharmacy and pathology upgrades and temporary fixes for the old Warragul Hospital which would not be completed until 2030.

Liberal shadow health minister Georgie Crozier said three major hospital upgrades promised before the 2022 election including Maroondah, West Gippsland and Wonthaggi had been shelved and three community hospitals promised in 2018 at Torquay, Eltham and Emerald Hill had vanished from the books entirely with not a single dollar allocated for construction on any of them.

"After years of promises and millions spent on planning, Victorians are left with fewer projects, fewer beds and no clear plan to meet rising demand," Ms Crozier said.

"How can you trust a government that continually fails to deliver on its promises.

"These projects were promised and expected to be under construction by now, instead there's no funding and no clear plan.

"This government promises the world, wastes millions and then walks away."

The state government's 2026-27 budget references a $370 million investment in upgrades at Dandenong, West Gippsland and Wonthaggi hospitals.

Minister for Health Infrastructure Melissa Horne said the government was building and upgrading hospitals so Victorians could access world-class care no matter where they lived.

In April the government committed $65 million for the next phase of work across Bass Coast and West Gippsland including a new pharmacy, pathology clinic and medical imaging suite at Wonthaggi and critical infrastructure upgrades at the West Gippsland Hospital and Cooinda Lodge aged care facility in Warragul.

Bass MP Jordan Crugnale said those upgrades were part of the stage two redevelopment commitment and meant even more specialist services and healthcare could be delivered locally.

The Victorian Health Building Authority says planning continues for a further expansion of the Wonthaggi Hospital to include two new wards with up to 64 beds, a new labour and delivery complex, a new outpatient clinic and extra car parking.

Ms Bath said the budget also forced Victorians to shoulder a $6.87 billion emergency services tax, more than double the previous levy, burdening families already stretched to breaking point while net debt headed towards $200 billion by 2030 with interest costs alone running at about $28 million a day.