There was no political agenda when NSW Governor Margaret Beazley AC KC visited the region last week, just a desire to get to know the community.
Deniliquin was the final stop of a four day tour of the Southern Riverina region, which started in Corowa on Wednesday and also included Tocumwal and Finley.
Her Excellency started her Deniliquin leg on Friday morning with a breakfast meeting with Edward River Council, where she said housing and labour concerns were a strong discussion point.
She followed this up by learning about the programs being delivered by Yarkuwa Indigenous Knowledge Centre in a tour of their developing new home on Hay Rd in north Deniliquin.
Then it was on to the centre of town, where Deniliquin High School students, staff and Kolety Landcare Group partners showed the Governor how the children are helping to maintain the health of the wetlands system and improve others.
She assisted students with a count of aquatic wildlife at the edge of the McFaull Park lagoon, before continuing her visit with Deni High by going to the ag farm in east Deni and the school itself to learn about the sustainability project.
Mrs Beazley also spent some time with the teams at Australian Food and Agriculture in the afternoon, before exploring cultural projects with South West Arts, youth radio station ENDFM and attending South West Music’s 2024 live music series launch concert.
Before leaving Deniliquin on Saturday, Mrs Beazley had breakfast with NSW SES, NSW Rural Fire Service and NSW Fire + Rescue volunteers and staff.
“It’s been very interesting and very enjoyable,” Mrs Beazley told the Pastoral Times part way through the visit.
“One of the discussions I had (with council) was about centralised decision making.
“One great advantage of coming to the regions is picking up the nuances, which can be a valuable tool for me.
“When I do come to the regions I don’t come with a pre-planned agenda but I do plan visits across a range of programs and projects so I can get a feeling of what is happening in the community.”
Mrs Beazley said while she has no influence over government decision making, being across the issues in NSW communities does allow her to direct attention toward certain matters.
“There is no direct way I can provide assistance (on issues raised with me), but I do meet with the minister of the government each week and I often raise these matters with them.
“I can also encourage councillors here to be sure to talk to a minister, which I am sure they are already doing.”