Luke speaks with Cr Mathew Dickerson, mayor of Dubbo Regional Council & Chair Regional Cities New South Wales, who have put regional population growth on the election agenda, saying that the current models used to forecast growth haven’t kept pace with the COVID-led migration boom.

Currently, the State Government forecasts regional growth using a top-down modelling approach and 2016-based assumptions regarding migration.

“Clearly the State Government’s current methods of projecting population growth haven’t kept up with the real experience of what is occurring in the regions,” Cr Dickerson says.

“This creates a real headache in terms of planning for housing, services, infrastructure and securing funding to support growing regional areas.”

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