Dubbo will be the new home to a detoxification and residential rehabilitation facility after the NSW government announced they would be allocating $7.5 million to the project in the upcoming budget.
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Dubbo MP Dugald Saunders was joined by Deputy Premier John Barilaro and Treasurer Dominic Perrottet to make the announcement on Monday, and said the facility will be a lifesaving project that will create real change in our region.
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"Unfortunately, too many people in the community are either directly or indirectly impacted by drug addiction and the associated societal problems, and this is a huge step forward in providing access to services that will help people," Mr Saunders said.
"There has been plenty said and written about the need for a facility in Dubbo and I have always supported the concept. I fought hard to secure this funding, but it is also important that we provide the appropriate services that ensure this isn't just bricks and mortar.
"This money, along with $3 million from the federal government, will ensure the facility is constructed, but we have also committed to recurrent funding for those services."
Mr Barilaro said this centre would be an example of the NSW government bridging the gap in health services between those living in the city and those in the bush.
"Addiction doesn't identify postcodes and regional communities suffer the same health and social problems created by drugs as those in the city," Mr Barilaro said.
"People in the bush deserve access to the best quality healthcare and this centre will genuinely change lives for those people living in our regional communities who have been directly or indirectly affected by the impacts of substance abuse."
Mr Perrottet said the NSW government is delivering the new centre as part of the 2020-21 Budget, which will provide $305 million for drug and alcohol related services.
"This new treatment centre will help the Dubbo community meet the challenges of alcohol and drug addiction head on," he said.
- MORE TO COME