Category Archives: New South Wales politics

Kellie Sloane is tipped to replace Mark Speakman as NSW Liberal leader. That should make life tougher for Chris Minns

Posted on by

Sloane, an ex-journalist, is good at delivering lines. But if the state Coalition tears itself apart over net zero, she could be left talking up a fractured opposition

Compared with their federal colleagues, the New South Wales Coalition has been a relatively collegial conservative political grouping. But no more.

Over the next fortnight, the NSW Liberals could well dump their leader, Mark Speakman, and face the almost impossible task of reconciling divergent positions on net zero emissions with junior coalition partner the Nationals. There is a real prospect that the state opposition could fracture.

Continue reading...

Strap in for a feral lead-up into Christmas in the NSW parliament

Posted on by

The Minns government has two major pieces of legislation it desperately wants to pass – but to do so it needs to woo some crossbenchers

As the New South Wales parliament draws to a close at the end of November, expect it to be dominated by feral horses, feral pigs and feral politics.

The Minns Labor government has two major pieces of legislation it desperately wants to pass before parliament rises. But it faces obstacles in the upper house where a clutch of minor parties hold the balance of power.

Continue reading...

Name of suspect in Cheryl Grimmer cold case revealed in parliament by NSW MP

Posted on by

Girl’s family had told the man, known by pseudonym ‘Mercury’, to meet with them by Wednesday midnight or they would make his identity public

A New South Wales MP has used parliamentary privilege to reveal the identity of a man who was previously charged by police over the alleged abduction and murder of a UK-born toddler, Cheryl Grimmer, 55 years ago.

Cheryl vanished from outside a shower block while with her mother and three older brothers at Fairy Meadow beach in the Illawarra region of NSW on 12 January 1970.

Continue reading...

NSW government rejected expert advice before failed koala reintroduction that left more than half dead

Posted on by

Exclusive: Documents reveal state environment department had ‘reckless indifference’ to fate of individual koalas, Greens spokesperson Sue Higginson says

The New South Wales government rejected advice from an expert scientific panel before it attempted a failed reintroduction of koalas to a forest in the state’s south that resulted in the death of more than half the animals.

Internal documents show most members of a panel advising the state environment department on plans to relocate endangered koalas as part of a conservation strategy recommended against moving marsupials from forest near Wollongong to the South East Forest national park near Bega, a five-hour drive away.

Continue reading...

‘We want our stories to be told’: NSW Labor pledges $3.2m to support writing and literature amid AI onslaught

Posted on by

Stories Matter strategy responds to urgent pressures such as declining reading rates and growing impact of digital media on publishing, minister says

It is a sector that delivers $1.3bn annually to the New South Wales economy and supports up to 22,000 jobs, yet the average writer earns just $18,200 a year from their creative practice.

To counter this stark disparity, the NSW government is launching the state’s first ever writing and literature strategy, and has committed $3.2m to support and expand the sector.

Continue reading...

From protest laws to deaths in custody, Minns’ rush to claim the conservative high ground is clumsy and costly

Posted on by

At almost every opportunity, the NSW premier chooses a conservative path: get the cops on side and let nobody fault Labor’s toughness on crime. It’s not working

There is a lesson for Chris Minns in the NSW supreme court’s declaration that police powers to deal with protesters near places of worship are invalid: laws curtailing civil liberties should never be rushed.

They should certainly not be pushed through in an atmosphere of panic and incomplete facts such as existed in the fevered days after the now notorious Dural caravan incident.

Anne Davies is Guardian Australia’s NSW state correspondent

Continue reading...

NSW urged to stop strip-searches of young people after court ruling spotlights police conduct

Posted on by

Supreme court rules police suspicion that a person is in possession of a prohibited drug ‘is not sufficient to conduct a strip-search’

Advocates are calling on the New South Wales government to scrap strip-searches of young people altogether, saying a landmark court ruling found “systemic” issues with the way police have been using their powers.

Justice Dina Yehia handed down her findings in the NSW supreme court on Tuesday in a class action brought by Slater and Gordon Lawyers and the Redfern Legal Centre against the state of NSW.

Continue reading...

Ausgrid slashes safety inspectors after report finds cheaper to pay permanent disability injury compensation

Posted on by

Secret report from CutlerMerz finds yearly cost of inspections – $520,219 – is more than cost of paying compensation – $28,375 a year

Ausgrid cut safety inspector numbers by more than half after receiving a secret report that said it was cheaper for the company to pay compensation for a permanent disability injury than to continue paying for the inspections.

The secret report, conducted by consultancy CutlerMerz and seen by Guardian Australia, recommended Ausgrid slash the inspections it was doing by as much as 55%, saying the cost – $520,219 per year – was “grossly disproportionate to the cost of the consequence being managed”.

Continue reading...

The question for the NSW Liberals after the Kiama drubbing is: can anyone do better than Mark Speakman?

Posted on by

Kellie Sloane has ruled out moving a spill and James Griffin isn’t eager. Alister Henskens is thought to lack the numbers. So, for now, the leader might be safe

Byelections are usually a referendum on the government. But Saturday’s Kiama byelection – and the poor performance of the New South Wales Liberals – has deepened angst within the opposition party regarding Mark Speakman’s leadership.

In Kiama, Labor increased its primary vote – a feat in itself in a byelection – and looks set to achieve an impressive swing on a two-party-preferred basis. Labor’s Katelin McInerney is on track for a thumping 60% to 40% 2PP victory over the Liberal candidate Serena Copley.

Anne Davies is Guardian Australia’s NSW state correspondent

Continue reading...

Proposed ‘nation-leading’ NSW childcare reforms to include $500,000 fines

Posted on by

Greens welcome Minns government’s ‘bare-minimum’ changes but say more work is needed to restore faith in the sector

Large childcare providers found in breach of safety directives will face $500,000 fines – a 900% increase – under new laws to be introduced by New South Wales parliament on Wednesday.

The proposed legislation will grant greater powers to the early childhood regulator to suspend educators and revoke quality ratings in a suite of measures addressing grave concerns about safety in the sector.

Continue reading...

Minns’s $140m great koala national park will ‘obliterate’ regional towns, Coalition claims

Posted on by

Labor’s koala strategy doesn’t go far enough, Coalition says, but environmentalists hail park a ‘once-in-a-lifetime’ decision

The long-awaited great koala national park in the north of New South Wales, celebrated by wildlife groups, has drawn a mixed reaction from the state’s Coalition.

The opposition leader, Mark Speakman has hedged his party’s support, saying while he “supports the ambition of protecting koalas”, he was concerned about job losses and the cost of the park.

Continue reading...

NSW locks in great koala national park and brings in immediate ban on logging

Posted on by

Minns government to create one of the largest national parks in the state as forest advocates welcome ‘historic’ victory

The Minns government has confirmed its long-awaited great koala national park, announcing it will add 176,000 hectares of forest to existing reserves in mid-north New South Wales to create one of the largest national parks in the state and protect more than 12,000 koalas.

The premier, Chris Minns, and environment minister, Penny Sharpe, said the government would put an immediate moratorium on logging within the park’s boundaries and roll out a jobkeeper style support package for workers at affected timber mills in the region.

Continue reading...

Lobbying rules in NSW are woefully inadequate but Icac’s calls for reform keep getting ignored

Posted on by

The state’s corruption watchdog is up against the age-old dynamic of cosy relationships: no one on the inside of politics wants to change

Australia’s parliaments aren’t just filled with MPs, staff and media – but also armies of lobbyists seeking an audience or a coffee with the people who can affect their interests with the stroke of a pen.

Millions of dollars are at stake. Will the government rezone land? Tweak a law that makes an activity legal? Exempt an activity from tax or grant an environmental approval?

Continue reading...

Northern Beaches hospital agrees settlement after claims newborn left with lifelong disabilities

Posted on by

Exclusive: Child was born via emergency caesarean at 25 weeks after mother says hospital initially failed to diagnose her appendicitis, court documents show

Sydney’s Northern Beaches hospital has settled outside court with a family after claims their baby was born by emergency caesarean at 25 weeks and left with lifelong disabilities.

Court documents seen by Guardian Australia reveal the baby’s mother presented to the hospital’s birthing unit in 2022, complaining of lower abdominal pain on her right side. The woman – who cannot be named for legal reasons – says she was sent home without being given an ultrasound or undergoing any further investigation.

Continue reading...

Climate wars are simmering among the NSW Liberals – and they could pose a problem for Mark Speakman

Posted on by

Energy policy had been an area of mostly bipartisan agreement for the NSW opposition – until now

The never-ending war within the Coalition over energy policy and climate targets appears to have infected the New South Wales Liberals as they struggle to restore the administration of their branch and get traction with voters.

It’s bad news for the NSW opposition leader, Mark Speakman, whose hold on the leadership is being increasingly questioned.

Continue reading...

Sea of people march across Sydney Harbour Bridge calling for an end to killing in Gaza

Posted on by

NSW police estimate 90,000 walked despite force and premier opposing rally, while Palestine Action Group claims up to 300,000 peacefully protested

At least 100,000 pro-Palestine marchers, including Julian Assange, the former foreign minister Bob Carr and the government MP Ed Husic, have marched across Sydney Harbour Bridge in the rain to protest against Israel’s conduct in Gaza and to speak out about the children starving there.

The world-famous landmark was closed to traffic at 11.30am on Sunday, with protesters gathering in Lang Park in the city centre before enduring heavy rain as they walked across the bridge.

Continue reading...

Bad men problem: Gareth Ward and Mark Latham leave NSW parliament in unchartered territory

Posted on by

The two MPs’ cases are vastly different but the issue is the same: parliament’s rules to enforce standards of behaviour are hopelessly outdated and ineffectual

The New South Wales parliament has a problem with men behaving badly. But more to the point, it seems to have an inability to deal with it.

On Tuesday, the parliament will try to deal with two very different cases that share a common consequence: damage to its reputation as an institution.

Continue reading...

Decision delayed for pro-Palestine protest on Sydney Harbour Bridge as police warn of possible crowd crush

Posted on by

Group’s lawyers say demonstration ‘cannot be stopped’ as Christian-led group protesting antisemitism plans rally for same day

Pro-Palestine protesters will have to wait until Saturday to find out if they can legally march across the Sydney Harbour Bridge this weekend, but organisers are vowing to go ahead regardless of the court decision.

However, the court heard the protest organisers are willing to postpone the march if police agree to work with them.

Continue reading...

Pro-Palestine protest group says ‘we will see them in court’ after police block Sydney Harbour Bridge march

Posted on by

Sydney-based group say weekend demonstration ‘must go ahead’ despite police knocking back application

Organisers of a pro-Palestine protest have vowed to fight the New South Wales police in court after police decided to not facilitate a march across the Sydney Harbour Bridge this weekend.

On Tuesday afternoon, the deputy police commissioner, Peter McKenna, said police had rejected an application from the organisers proposing a route across the bridge to the US consulate, citing safety risks as the reason. But he said police were open to negotiating alternative routes.

Continue reading...

Sydney mayor Clover Moore says pro-Palestine march across Harbour Bridge would be ‘powerful symbol’

Posted on by

NSW Labor MP Anthony D’Adam rejects premier’s claim march would cause chaos and says it should take place in ‘two to three weeks’

Get our breaking news email, free app or daily news podcast

The Lord Mayor of Sydney, Clover Moore, has said a pro-Palestine protest involving a march across the Sydney Harbour Bridge would be a “powerful symbol” and should go ahead at some point “if the community sentiment is significant enough”.

A New South Wales Labor MP has also rejected the premier’s claim a march across the bridge would cause chaos and urged police to facilitate the demonstration “within two to three weeks”.

Continue reading...