POOR phone connectivity in the Loddon Valley has been raised in State Parliament by Western Victoria Regon MP Joe McCracken.
He took aim at the Government for breaking a promise to improve connectivity for Newbridge.
“Labor has broken another promise and the people of Loddon will suffer as a result ... the Labor Party does not care about country people. They don’t care about regional communities,” he said.
Mr McCracken has called on the Government to deliver outcomes for the regions and not focus so heavily on city-centric projects like the Suburban Rail Loop in Melbourne.
The Government last month told a community meeting in Newbridge that the promised improved service would not happen. 
Ripon MP Martha Haylett sent her office manager to the meeting attended by more than 60 people venting frustration with poor phone connectivity. They were told that promised new infrastructure in the region would now not benefit the town.
They had been told in 2022 that projects in Big Hill, Wilsons Hill and Marong would improve service. 
The original announcement said: “Coverage will span Golden Square, Flora Hill and Kennington, as well as Epsom, Eaglehawk and Kangaroo Flat, and out to Newbridge”.
However, two years later at the meeting a statement from Ripon MP Martha Haylett, read on her behalf by office manager Jarrah Storey has informed townspeople “projects will not provide the direct mobile improvements we anticipated” in a  backflip on the original message. 
Ms Haylett in her statement to the meeting said she had raised concerns with both state and federal governments.
 “I will continue to fight for better mobile reception across the Loddon Shire, especially from the Federal Government.”
Ms Haylett later said the Government’s pledge to improve mobile phone services had been made on coverage maps that had proven inaccurate
Loddon residents have aired their grievances many times but say they have been left feeling ignored both by service providers and the government. 
Mayor Dan Straub spoke on the topic after the summer storms, saying it was time to take rural communities off the telecommunications backburner. 
“We have very poor connectivity that is inhibiting residents and the day to day running of business” Mayor Straub said. 
Wehla farmers Darren and Stacey McCoy have been told they live in a technical blackspot by Telstra.
“We cannot rely on our phones to make and stay connected to calls, … run a business or most importantly call for services when we need to call for help,” Stacey told the Loddon Herald in February. 
Concerns about connectivity in an emergency have been raised numerous times since the government announcement in 2022. Newbridge resident Matt Davies said: “The best way to make people safe is by fixing the service” earlier this year when speaking with the Loddon Herald.