The matter is currently with the Senate where it has been opposed by Labor, The Greens, the Australian Conservatives and some other crossbenchers.

Cr Kidd agreed with comments from Deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce bringing the RIC to Orange would create a hub.

He acknowledged there were other regional centres, but the issue at hand was rural finance and Orange played a major role in the sector.

“When you’ve got Paraway Pastoral, that’s the investment arm of the Macquarie Bank, the DPI and a number of the other banks have their rural divisions here, this is a real hub, centrally located, it’s getting Australia-wide and overseas [business] so it’s the obvious place for it to be,” he said.

“Forget the politics of it, just think about what is good for rural and regional NSW and this works – 20-odd years ago, people were saying [the DPI] won’t work, you go over there now and ask them do they want to move back to Sydney and I’ll guarantee that the 100 per cent response [will be] no.”

Cr Kidd said he planned to seek a meeting with Agriculture and Water Resources Minister David Littleproud, but he would understand if the RIC ended up in Dubbo or Armidale.

“I believe so strongly in decentralisation – you’ve got to walk the talk, not just talk to the talk,” he said.

Member for Calare Andrew Gee hoped the RIC could be passed in the next parliamentary sitting. 

“But the changing composition of the Senate because of the citizenship issue makes it difficult to predict,” he said.

He called on Orange’s Labor, Greens and Australian Conservatives members to urge their federal counterparts not to block the bill and the jobs it would bring.

“The Regional Investment Corporation will promote decentralisation and growth across country Australia and for the life of me I can’t understand why all MPs aren’t backing it,” he said. ​