Albany MLA Peter Watson said Albany and the Great Southern’s big-ticket items have all missed out in the Liberal-National coalition State Government’s first budget.

Despite promises that some of the major items Albany has been waiting on for many years will eventually proceed, Mr Watson is concerned the region could again be subjected to lack of support by a Coalition Government.

“For 27 years we struggled to get things here, then we had seven and a half years of Labor Government when millions of dollars were spent,” he said.

“Now we’re going back to the old days.

“It’s very disappointing. We’ve built-up Albany to a city where things are really happening.”

Mr Watson said after a positive boom period, it appeared the government was intent on putting the brakes on.

“They’re just not interested in Albany. Bunbury and up north got looked after, but Albany’s gone on the back-burner again.

“It’s just not good enough.”

Mr Watson said it was obvious money promised for local projects had been taken to support the government’s surplus.

He said the hospital missed out as there appeared to be no money being spent.

“They said they were going to get onto it straight away, straight after the election,” he said.

“Now this year they’ve said they’ve spent $3m, and in the next 12 months it will be $8m on planning.

“I want to know what the $3m is, because I’ve been ringing up on behalf of local contractors, architects and everyone else to find out what is happening and been told they haven’t made a decision on the design yet.

“What they have done is pushed it to the out years to make them look good.”

Mr Watson said $60m had been promised from Royalties for Regions towards the hospital’s estimated cost of $135m when it was expected the money would come straight from the government’s health budget.