David Littleproud says regional Australians should be considered at Labor’s jobs summit as he outlines vision to party faithful
The leader of the Nationals, David Littleproud, has said his party will make rebuilding trust with women a top priority, but rejected quotas for his party.
“I don’t believe in quotas,” he said.
Continue reading...Agriculture minister Murray Watt says federal government confident new biosecurity measures enough to protect livestock industry
The federal government is resisting calls to close Australia’s border to Indonesia over the foot-and-mouth disease threat, after more fragments of the potentially devastating livestock virus were detected in South Australia.
The agriculture minister, Murray Watt, said he was confident that new federal biosecurity measures would be sufficient to keep out foot-and-mouth disease, which could threaten Australia’s entire meat industry, as farmers call on the government to not overreact.
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Continue reading...Childcare workers have voted to strike in September, after years of poor pay and conditions
Linda Burney says she’s ‘not going to be rushed’ on Indigenous voice referendum
Linda Burney, the minister for Indigenous Australians, is on ABC radio speaking about the enshrinement of the Indigenous voice in the constitution.
This is not just symbolic, it is going to have real impacts on the lives of First Nations people.
I am not going to be rushed into timelines. We are going to do this properly.
I would find it incredulous for people not to support what is a very generous and gracious ask.
Remember that this is an advisory body only. It is not usurping the sovereignty of the parliament. Is is not a third chamber.
Continue reading...Officials raised concerns water level targets would not ensure river health or meet needs of downstream communities, documents show
The Perrottet government has been warned by its own advisers that proposed flood plain harvesting rules will not adequately protect the environment or the needs of downstream communities in the Murray Darling Basin.
Documents obtained through parliament by independent MLC Justin Field show the government received advice that proposed targets meant to ensure river health were too low.
Continue reading...Soaring cost of produce in Australia has ‘exacerbated health inequality’ and leads researchers to call for farmers to be subsidised
The price of food has continued to rise, with new data showing that every supermarket aisle has been hit by hikes, not just fruit and vegetables.
The soaring prices have led researchers to call on the federal government to help subsidise growers, amid concerns it’s costing some lower socioeconomic families 40% of their income to buy a week’s worth of healthy food.
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Continue reading...Regional residents at risk of being ‘last people in the world’ driving petrol cars due to misconception electric vehicle batteries lack range, study suggests
People living in regional areas are at risk of becoming the “last people in the world” left driving petrol cars because incentives for electric vehicles have been targeted towards city drivers.
Most EVs on the market are likely to have the battery range needed for those living long distances from urban centres, however Australian policy is currently geared only towards encouraging uptake among citydwellers, new research from the Australian National University has found.
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Continue reading...Housing market posts first monthly decline since September 2020; at least 52 Covid deaths recorded. This blog is now closed
Australian scientists celebrate world first
AAP is reporting that in a world first, Australian scientists have developed a device with “exquisite precision” that they say is a huge step towards a commercial quantum computer.
This is a remarkable piece of engineering. This experiment paves the way for larger and more complex quantum systems to be emulated in future.
It won’t be long before we can start to realise new materials that have never existed before.
All of this is just a fantasy because they don’t understand what actually happens at the bargaining table.
I think the Reserve Bank governor has weirdly changed his tune, he was the one who said so long as wages keep up with inflation and productivity, they are not inflationary.
Continue reading...Robertson might be tiny but for poet and schoolteacher Peter Ramm, it is the secret weapon that helped him win the UK’s biggest prize for unpublished poetry
Robertson is a small, pretty town perched on the edge of the New South Wales southern highlands, almost teetering on the escarpment that falls away to the Illawarra and Shoalhaven coasts.
It is most famous as the home of The Big Potato – an appropriately tuber-shaped concrete monolith on the main street – and a triumphant rugby league team called the Spuddies.
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Continue reading...Murray Watt hopes to break down misconceptions between the ALP and rural Australia
The Albanese government has a chance to break down the misconceptions between the Labor party and rural Australia, according to new agriculture minister, Murray Watt, who flagged the climate crisis as a key area in which to work towards common ground.
“There have been some in Labor who have viewed rural Australia with suspicion and think that we can never get people to support us. Equally I think there’s been people in rural Australia who have viewed Labor with suspicion,” Watt said.
Continue reading...With the Nationals now out of power, we examine the Albanese government’s promises and priorities for the bush
Anthony Albanese says his desire as prime minister is to unite Australia, with “no one left behind, no one held back”, but for many living outside the capital cities in Coalition-held seats, being left behind is exactly what they fear.
Chief executive of the Foundation for Rural & Regional Renewal, Natalie Egleton, says despite the federal election results indicating the Nationals’ base is declining, the party held all their seats, meaning “there’s still a sentiment in the bush about the need to have parties focused on rural communities”.
Continue reading...With around two-thirds of regional nursing homes operating at a loss, industry says ‘the crisis is upon us, but it’s going to get worse’
Many more rural Australians may have no choice but to spend their final years away from their families and communities given two-thirds of regional aged care homes are operating at a loss.
Closures are already happening and will accelerate if the next federal government fails to properly fund a pay rise for aged care workers, experts say.
Continue reading...John Barilaro and Barnaby Joyce were never shy in pleading the case for the regions. Can the party respond just as forcefully now?
Even their fiercest critics would likely concede that John Barilaro and Barnaby Joyce have been vocal and energetic advocates for regional Australia.
As the former deputy premier of New South Wales, Barilaro wore his ability to secure funds for regional parts of the state as a badge of honour, even when done in ways that have exposed him to criticism.
Continue reading...Issues include understaffing, poor access to services and discrimination towards First Nations people seeking medical help
People in rural New South Wales have “significantly poorer health outcomes” due to a system that is “failing” them, according to a scathing report handed to the state government on Thursday.
The report included 44 recommendations to fix the healthcare system in rural, regional and remote areas which it found was “in crisis”.
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Continue reading...Staff raise concerns after incoming chief executive Andrew McConville emphasises agricultural outcomes in introductory letter
The new chief executive of the Murray-Darling Basin Authority, Andrew McConville, has caused consternation after sending an all-staff memo outlining his approach to the job which failed to mention the regulator’s environmental role.
A former chief executive of the Australian Petroleum Producers & Exporters Association (APPEA), McConville was appointed to the top job at the MDBA by the Morrison government just days before the federal election was called.
Continue reading...Australian Rail Track Corporation proposal for 200 drainage control areas comes after years of local and expert concerns about flooding
The Australian Rail Track Corporation is capitulating to some community flooding concerns over parts of the inland rail raised seven years ago after record recent flood events in northern New South Wales and the start of the federal election campaign.
In late March landholders received correspondence from the ARTC identifying potential new areas for flood mitigation works after years of the organisation insisting it had “the utmost confidence” in the inland rail’s flood modelling.
Continue reading...Moriarty, 70, and his dog went missing from Northern Territory town Larrimah, 430km south of Darwin, in 2017 with police suspecting foul play
Secret police recordings in which a man claims to have killed Paddy Moriarty with a hammer have been heard at an inquest into the Northern Territory man’s disappearance.
Moriarty, 70, and his dog went missing from the town of Larrimah, 430km south of Darwin, on 16 December 2017, with police suspecting foul play.
Continue reading...When Anglican Care closes facility in Bulahdelah, some will have to travel over 75km to Taree to visit their partner
The closure of the Bulahdelah’s Cedar Wharf Lodge will see elderly couples torn apart, unable to visit each other as limited transport options hinder travel to the New South Wales Hunter region aged care home.
Since Anglican Care announced the closure of the town’s only aged care facility this week, some in the community will be left travelling over 75km to the nearest aged care facility in Taree to visit their partner.
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Continue reading...Virus spreads through mosquito bites and people in regional areas who are in contact with pigs may be at particular risk
Australia’s chief medical officer has beefed up the nation’s response to the Japanese encephalitis virus as New South Wales reports its first case.
NSW Health confirmed on Friday night a woman from the NSW-Victoria border region was in intensive care in a stable condition with the virus, marking the state’s first case after outbreaks in Queensland and Victoria.
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Continue reading...Heavy rainfall expected to continue overnight, with northern New South Wales next in the line of fire
Flood waters continued to rise across Brisbane, south-east Queensland and other parts of the state on Sunday night as a “rain bomb” dumped significant volumes of water into the city and put more than 1,000 homes at risk.
In some parts of Brisbane, flooding and damage has already been more severe than the 2011 floods, which killed 33 people and caused widespread damage.
Continue reading...An outbreak in a small regional community could leave locals unable to access pharmaceutical and banking services
Essential services in rural towns are under pressure due to Covid-19 and could leave locals unable to access pharmaceutical and banking services.
Katie Stott, together with her husband, pharmacist Fred Hellqvist, manage the only pharmacy in Dover, Tasmania, the southernmost town in Australia, servicing approximately 2,000 to 3,000 people.
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