The NSW Government released its much-anticipated Budget this week. I was excited. We had the recent signing of the Western Sydney City Deal. We saw a strong public discourse of governing ‘with heart’. And we have an election(s) looming. I was excited and keen to hear how this would all play out in reality, to get to the heart of priorities across Western Sydney and beyond, in NSW. What I found is that this Budget, in the main, begins to address some of the infrastructure priorities of the region but has some considerable way to go before it gets close to being a Budget that will foster, sustain and improve community wellbeing and liveability.