Goulburn Valley Vending Service (GVVS) and its owner, Greg Coghlan, are still waiting for answers from the Victorian Government after it announced the local business will be shafted from Shepparton Railway Station in favour of Coca-Cola Europacific Partners.
Mr Coghlan has owned, managed and operated the vending machines at Shepparton Railway Station for two decades, building GVVS into a business employing two full-time employees across Northern Victoria.
At the start of February, Mr Coghlan was informed his two-decade long partnership with V/Line would come to an end, with no opportunity for him to tender for the contract. In place of GVVS, the government entered an agreement with a global company, leaving just 30 days for Mr Coghlan to remove his machines.
The Nationals Member for Shepparton District Kim O’Keeffe said that after raising this issue in Parliament with the Minister for Public and Active Transport Gabrielle Williams, Mr Coghlan was informed verbally that his timeline had been extended to six months without any official date provided.
“I am appalled by the lack of certainty and dismal communication throughout the process. Greg is one of many fantastic small businesses operating across our region. After two decades servicing the Shepparton Station, V/Line informed Greg his time was up, and they’d be replacing his business with an international company,” she said.
“Not only was there no communication until the service was axed, but there’s also zero certainty for Greg and his staff with no date as to when they’ll be kicked out of the precinct. This decision impacts local jobs and fails a basic fairness test with the existing supplier not even given the chance to put a proposal forward to keep providing its services.”
The V/Line Procurement Policy includes commitments to probity, visibility and fair dealing, ethics Ms O’Keeffe argues they have failed to uphold.
“There’s been no visibility over how this decision has been made and absolutely no fair dealing for Goulburn Valley Vending Service,” Ms O’Keeffe said.
“I have called on the Minister for Public and Active Transport to retract this decision and provide a fair and transparent process.
“V/Line is a service that exists for the betterment of regional Victoria and its procurement processes should place regional people, jobs and businesses at its core.
“Leaving Mr Coghlan just hanging in limbo is appalling, and our small businesses deserve to be considered and informed, not just shoved aside and not communicated to. Mr Coghlan has written to the minister, and I have also urged the minister to communicate with Mr Coghlan so he can plan for his and the staff’s future.”