St Vincent’s Care Services will accommodate the newly-arrived refugees from Syria and Iraq, who are mainly women and children.

Mr Wynne fast-tracked the planning approval so people can be housed in the unused and refurbished Rundle House in the coming weeks.

This approval will be in place for two years and there will be no displacement of existing tenants.

Planning approval was needed for the site as it came under a floodway zone, however the building has been in place for many years and Melbourne Water had no objections to the change.

Already, Victoria expects to settle up to 4000 Syrian and Iraqi refugees as part of the Federal Government’s move to allow another 12,000 refugees into Australia.

The Andrews Labor Government’s support for refugees means new residents have access to Victoria’s first-class health and education systems through specialised programs, counselling, educational support and language services.