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NSW Government Weekly Update – 13 August 2021

For the latest COVID-19 advice & information please visit www.nsw.gov.au/covid-19

LAND TAX RELIEF TO HELP LANDOWNERS AND TENANTS AFFECTED BY COVID-19 RESTRICTIONS

  • Applications are now open for eligible commercial and residential landowners who provide rental reductions to tenants in financial distress due to COVID-19 to claim land tax relief or a tenancy support payment.
  • Through the package:
  1. residential landlords can choose between applying for land tax relief or a payment of up to $1,500 per tenancy if they agree to reduce the rent for COVID-19 impacted tenants from 14 July 2021 to 31 December 2021.
  2. eligible NSW landowners may receive a reduction of up to 100 per cent of their land tax liability for 2021.
  3. residential landowners can receive the land tax relief or, may elect to claim a payment of up to $1,500 per tenancy agreement if they provided a reduction in rent from 14 July 2021 to 31 December 2021, to a residential tenant who has lost 25 per cent or more of household income due to COVID-19.

HUNDREDS OF NEW EXPERTS TO LIFT LITERACY AND NUMERACY

  • Hundreds of new literacy and numeracy experts will join NSW public schools as part of the NSW Government’s continued focus on lifting student results.
  • As part of a $256 million investment, every public primary school across NSW will receive a dedicated Curriculum Assistant Principal.
  • More than 1,300 new positions will strengthen a continuous focus on literacy and numeracy and support curriculum implementation with the new K-2 English and Mathematics syllabuses rolling out from 2022.
  • The new positions have an explicit focus on leading schools with evidence-based teaching and assessments to improve student outcomes.
  • The leadership roles will support a strong instructional leadership model in all schools, coordinating professional learning for teachers, monitoring student outcomes, and supporting families to be key partners in student learning.
  • The new program will begin from 2022, with all positions in place ahead of full implementation of the new K-2 English and Mathematics Syllabuses in 2023.

IMPROVEMENTS MADE TO COVID-19 CHECK IN SYSTEM

  • Checking into venues and managing your check in history has become easier thanks to a new COVID-19 check-in card and suite of updates to the Service NSW app.
  • Customers can now register for a COVID-19 check-in card which they can present to supermarkets and other essential retail businesses to scan as a faster and safer way to complete the self-service webform check-in or paper sign-in currently used by customers without a smartphone.
  • Customers can download and print their COVID-19 check-in card or have a plastic card mailed to them. Their contact details will be securely stored within the QR code, which will prepopulate the webform when scanned by the business.
  • In response to customer demand Service NSW is also rolling out two further enhancements to the Service NSW app. The first allowing customers to review their check out history and add check out times and the second to make it easier for customers to sign into the Service NSW app wearing a mask.
  • Customers will be able to register for their COVID-19 check-in card via the Service NSW website or by calling 13 77 88 from 13 August and can opt to receive it via email to print at home, or via postal mail.

$10 MILLION BOOST TO SOCIAL SERVICES SECTOR

  • A variety of free online tools, courses and resources is being rolled out to organisations working in the social services sector as part of a $10 million investment which aims to support non-government providers through the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond.
  • The NSW Government’s Social Sector Transformation Fund (SSTF) is delivering a $50 million boost to not-for-profits during the pandemic.
  • The SSTF will support organisations to improve how they do business by giving them access to better technology, free legal services, workforce development opportunities, practical support and resources to strengthen governance and strategy.
  • The Social Sector Transformation Fund assists organisations to improve outcomes in homelessness, disability, health, and child and family services.
  • For more information, visit https://www.facs.nsw.gov.au/providers/deliver-community-and-sector-assistance/social-sector-transformation-fund.

SUPPORT FOR LEGAL AND DOMESTIC VIOLENCE GROUPS

  • More than 70 organisations providing legal advice or domestic violence support have now been awarded $4.45 million in grants to modernise and expand their operations.
  • A total of $2.06 million has been granted to 44 organisations that provide family and domestic violence services, while 28 groups, which deliver legal services, will receive $2.39 million in total.
  • This initiative will help these charities and not-for-profits increase capacity, provide better digital service delivery, and enhance remote working options. It will help future-proof their operations and enable them to remain efficient, effective and viable so they can continue their invaluable work to support domestic violence victim-survivors.
  • The funding comes from the NSW Government’s $50 million Social Sector Transformation Fund (SSTF) announced in the 2020-21 State Budget.

LOCKDOWN SUPPORT – NSW GOVERNMENT BOOSTS VIRTUAL SERVICES FOR NEW PARENTS STRUGGLING IN LOCKDOWN

  • Parents of newborns and toddlers impacted by the current COVID restrictions can access a range of free virtual early childhood health services, thanks to a $348,000 NSW Government grant to Karitane.
  • The not-for-profit parenting support service has recorded its highest ever number of referrals in the last four weeks, many from parents struggling to cope with recent restrictions.
  • This grant will allow Karitane to expand its virtual services to affected parents, including home visits, residential stays, breastfeeding clinics, mental health consults, toddler behaviour programs, playgroups and daily parenting workshops.
  • This is in addition to the recently announced joint Commonwealth and NSW Government COVID-19 mental health support package worth $17.35 million.
  • For information on Karitane’s services, please visit: https://www.karitane.com.au/.

PARRAMATTA ROAD PLANS READY TO PROGRESS  

  • The revitalisation of Sydney’s oldest road with thousands of new homes and jobs is one step closer following changes to accelerate the planning process.
  • The changes mean planning proposals for the Parramatta Road corridor can now be lodged and progressed to public exhibition to coincide with the completion of traffic studies.
  • The NSW Government is now welcoming proposals to deliver up to 27,000 new homes and 50,000 jobs along Parramatta Road. The changes will allow proposals to be assessed in consultation with the community, fully informed by the transport studies now being finalised.
  • The Ministerial Order is accompanied by an updated implementation plan to guide the preparation of planning proposals and development along the corridor.
  • The Department of Planning, Industry and Environment will now work with relevant councils to progress planning proposals already in the system to Gateway determination.
  • For more information visit www.planning.nsw.gov.au/parramattaroad.

YOUNG NSW RFS VOLUNTEERS HONOURED

  • The achievements of young members of the NSW Rural Fire Service (NSW RFS) have been recognised with the announcement of two Young Volunteers of the Year and the NSW Secondary School Cadet of the Year.
  • The 2021 Young Volunteer of the Year recipients are Tim Hearn of Llandilo Brigade (Cumberland District) and Lavhynnia Lowe from Bathurst Brigade (Chifley District), while the Secondary School Cadet of the Year for 2021 is Nathan Hindmarsh from Braidwood Central School/Krawarree Brigade.
  • The effort and enthusiasm of young members in the NSW RFS is significant and these awards acknowledge their hard work, camaraderie and community participation.
  • These young people have demonstrated the commitment and enthusiasm that ensure our great volunteer emergency services will go from strength to strength in coming years and I congratulate each of them on their well-deserved awards.

Statement from Commissioner Mick Fuller regarding Leichhardt business closure

Officers from Leichhardt Police Area Command have served a business on Norton St, Leichhardt with an order to close this morning (Saturday 14 August 2021) due to alleged repeated breaches of the public health orders.
The closure order follows a number of previous interactions with the business owner due to numerous complaints from members of the public.
Police have attended the café a total of ten times in the past two weeks and issued the owner five PINs for breaching the public health orders. The owner has also been arrested and charged on two separate occasions with a number offences relating to alleged breaches of the public health orders, and those matters remain before the courts.
Police will allege the owner has been seen on a number of occasions preparing and serving food without a mask and allowing customers to sit inside and outside the café, in contravention of the current rules.
He has also allegedly refused to produce a COVID-19 Safety Plan when asked, as required under the public health order.
This café owner, a 44-year-old man, has shown a blatant disregard for the health and safety of his community for an extended period of time, and his business will now stay closed until I’m satisfied there is no further risk to public health.

NSW Police Force to launch Operation STAY AT HOME

The NSW Police Force will launch Operation STAY AT HOME from 12.01am Monday 16 August 2021, in a significant boost to public health order enforcement efforts across the state.
The operation will utilise resources from all Police Districts and Police Area Commands under Metropolitan and Regional Field Operations alongside officers attached to Traffic and Highway Patrol Command, Police Transport Command, Dog and Mounted Unit, and a number of other specialist commands as required.
Significantly, 1400 officers attached to Traffic and Highway Patrol Command will be dedicated to both static and mobile COVID-19 compliance operations on the state’s roads.
A further 500 Australian Defence Force troops, in addition to the 300 already deployed, will assist with compliance checks and patrols.
Operation STAY AT HOME will be coordinated from the Police Operations Centre (POC) in Sydney under the command of Acting Assistant Commissioner Andrew Holland.
Minister for Police and Emergency Services David Elliott said the NSW Government was supporting the Commissioner’s call for assistance in the most practical way.
“The Commissioner asked for tighter Public Health Orders and the government agreed, the Commissioner asked for higher fines and the Government agreed, and the Commissioner asked for more ADF personnel and we have an additional 500 highly-trained ADF personnel arriving to assist,” Mr Elliott said.
“We’ve had to tighten the current public health orders because of the minority who exploited them. Enough is enough. If you do it, you will get fined.
“The only way out of this COVID-19 crisis is if we support each other and support the NSW Police-led compliance operation, Operation STAY AT HOME.”
Deputy Commissioner Mal Lanyon, Metropolitan Field Operations, said the operation would see more police on the ground across Greater Sydney, utilising some of the strongest powers ever given to police.
“The level of non-compliance by some members of the community is unacceptable and we will be doubling down with compliance and enforcement to make sure we get ahead of the Delta strain,” Deputy Commissioner Lanyon said.
“It only takes one person to do the wrong thing to facilitate considerable spread of the virus.
“We will be issuing $5000 fines to people and closing any businesses which continue to breach the health orders, and will not apologise for these increased enforcement efforts going forward.”
Deputy Commissioner Mick Willing, Regional NSW Field Operations, said preventing movement to regional areas from Sydney, and between regional areas, would be a key focus of the operation.
“There will be more roadblocks on main arterial roads and backroads from tomorrow, and these operations will continue to expand throughout this week in order to enforce the permit system announced by the NSW Government this morning,” Deputy Commissioner Willing said.
“There will be nowhere to hide if you are doing the wrong thing. If you travel anywhere beyond your LGA at the moment, you are putting everyone else in NSW at considerable risk.
“From the start, this has been about reducing movement across the state and protecting the health and safety of everyone, and this operation significantly strengthens those efforts.”
Anyone who has information regarding individuals or businesses in contravention of a COVID-19-related ministerial direction is urged to contact Crime Stoppers: https://nsw.crimestoppers.com.au. Information is treated in strict confidence. The public is reminded not to report crime via NSW Police social media pages.

Government ordered to produce documents relating to dodgy fracking grant

The government must release documents relating to the awarding of a $21 million grant to Liberal Party-aligned fracking company Empire Energy, after the Senate this afternoon supported a Greens’ motion.
The order compels the government to produce by 9.30 am on Thursday, 12 August, all correspondence, lists of applicants and grant guidelines related to its Beetaloo Basin grant scheme, in addition to details of any meetings between Ministers Angus Taylor or Keith Pitt and Empire Energy.
Greens deputy leader and spokesperson on resources Senator Larissa Waters said:
“The Morrison government has handed over $21 million of public money to Empire Energy – a company whose chairman is a huge Liberal donor – to open up a massive climate bomb in the Northern Territory’s Beetaloo Basin.
“Last week, the Greens’ Senate inquiry into the government’s $50 million Beetaloo slush fund, from which this grant came, heard evidence that Empire Energy met with Energy Minister Angus Taylor in the months before the grants program was announced.
“The Department confirmed that the grants were issued not on merits, but on a ‘first come, first served’ basis… and Empire Energy just happened to be the first to apply!
“This government has serious questions to answer about its relationship to Empire Energy and its chairman Paul Espie, and why it’s throwing public money at its donor mates and thumbing its nose at Traditional Owners and future generations.
“Opening up a massive gas operation in the Northern Territory, when the IPCC has in the past 24 hours confirmed the sheer folly of continuing to burn fossil fuels, is condemning Australia and the world to irreversible climate catastrophe.
“The Greens won’t let them get away with it.”

Tomago and world call time on coal as Morrison keeps selling it to China

Australia’s biggest electricity consumer, stationed right next to a major coal field, is getting out of coal. The announcement comes as nations are rallying around the world to put an end to coal.
The Greens called on Scott Morrison to exercise real climate pressure on China and other countries by lifting our 2030 targets and stopping selling them our coal.
Greens Leader Adam Bandt said:
“Tomago’s announcement is huge. The biggest user of electricity in the whole country is saying no to coal.
“Tomago going renewable exposes the Morrison/Joyce lie: we already have the technology to cut emissions by 75% by 2030, but what’s lacking is leadership.
“Overnight, a number of key world leaders outlined in the clearest language yet that coal is dead. Boris Johnson called on the world to ‘consign coal to history.’
“If Scott Morrison really wants to pressure China to reduce emissions, he should join the nations who are doing just that by increasing their 2030 targets.
“If China’s excessive coal use is harming Australia, as Scott Morrison is starting to admit, then we should stop selling it to them.”

 

ParentsNext has done enough damage

The Greens say they are extremely disappointed that the disallowance to make ParentsNext voluntary did not succeed.
The Greens are now calling on the Government to withdraw the regulation making ParentsNext compulsory following the Joint Human Rights Committee finding that it is incompatible with the human rights of parents and their children.
“ParentsNext is a degrading, punitive and coercive program”, Senator Rachel Siewert said.
“I’m very disappointed and distressed for the parents stuck in this punitive program.
“I tried to disallow this program back in 2018 and it’s devastating to think of the harm this program has caused since then.
“The Government needs to reconsider, look at the very clear evidence and withdraw the regulation and make the program voluntary.
“This program punishes and stigmatises single mothers.
“Rather than being supported to raise their children women are being subjected to a mandatory program that is resulting in adverse outcomes such as having to give up work days and study to meet program requirements or lose their payments because their children’s medical appointments conflict with appointments with providers.
“This Government has an ideological approach to people on income support and it was heartbreaking to read the submissions to this inquiry, because the same issues we examined during the 2018 Senate inquiry are happening over and over again.”
 

Senate Committee tables fourth interim report into robodebt

The Senate Community Affairs References Committee has tabled its fourth interim report into the Government’s robodebt scheme.
“The Committee does not accept the Government’s ongoing claim of public interest immunity in regards to the legal advice on the illegal robodebt scheme”, Senator Rachel Siewert said.
It is very clearly in the public interest for the Government to release this legal advice and Government Ministers are simply avoiding accountability by hiding behind this claim.
The court case is over. There is no longer an excuse to hide this information.
People in the community want justice, people lost their lives and many more were ruined because of this illegal program and they deserve to know who knew what and when.
The information the Committee is seeking is vital to the conduct of this inquiry as it goes to the legal foundation of the Income Compliance Program and its administration and the Minister has shown a blatant disregard for the Senate as well as the Committee process.
The Senate supported the Committee’s resolution for a number of documents related to legal advice be laid on the table by August 25th 2021.
The Committee will continue to pursue this matter with hearings scheduled for later this month.
The report can be found here.

Kids must be part of national vaccine target

Kids and teenagers must be included in the government’s national vaccine targets, Greens leader, Adam Bandt, said today. Young people deserve protection and without high rates of vaccination of the whole population, we will never get out of rolling lockdowns.
The Prime Minister’s current targets exclude children and most teenagers. The PM’s 80% target is really a 65% target of the whole population.
There are reports that kids and teenagers make  up a third of cases in NSW and outbreaks in schools are happening across the country. Over 5000 children and teenagers have contracted the virus since the pandemic began in Australia, with the numbers of children contracting the delta strain growing.
Greens Leader Adam Bandt said:
“I am again calling on the National Cabinet to include children and teenagers in the vaccine targets and rollouts.”
“The Prime Minister might want to exclude kids and teenagers so that his vaccination targets are easier to meet, but National Cabinet should not let him.”
“National Cabinet can’t let Scott Morrison fudge the numbers by excluding children from vaccine targets.”
“These current outbreaks are a pandemic of the unvaccinated, but if we leave kids out of the national targets it will become a pandemic of children.”

Additional vaccines and support for regional NSW outbreak

To respond to the current outbreak in Far North New South Wales, the Australian Government will provide an additional 7,680 Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine doses immediately for use in the eight affected local government areas, including Walgett.
Expected to arrive in regional communities tomorrow, the delivery includes 4,800 vaccines for use across general practices and Commonwealth Vaccination Clinics (CVCs) and 2,880 for use in Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Services (ACCHS). This includes activating three additional general practices and an additional Aboriginal Community Controlled Health Service (ACCHS) in Bourke.
In line with the ‘New South Wales COVID-19 Vaccine Implementation Plan’, the Government is working directly with the New South Wales Government, ACCHS, the National Aboriginal Community Controlled Organisation (NACCHO), local stakeholders and the local community to provide immediate support to outbreak impacted communities. These areas include Bogan Shire, Bourke Shire, Brewarrina Shire, Coonamble Shire, Gilgandra Shire, Narromine Shire, Walgett Shire and Warren Shire.
The Australian Government has also activated an Incident Management Team to respond to this situation, providing additional support to the remote communities in the area.
Minister for Health and Aged Care, Greg Hunt, said the additional doses will help provide protection to those living in the area, including Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people.
“This is a whole-of-government effort to support these communities and ensure that people can be protected through vaccination, while also having access to additional health support and testing services,” Minister Hunt said.
“We are also ready to provide additional AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccines for general community vaccinations.”
The National COVID Vaccine Taskforce has also engaged the Royal Flying Doctors Services (RFDS) for emergency response and evacuation, Personal Protective Equipment drop offs and additional vaccine capacity where needed.
As part of the Commonwealth’s Point of Care Testing Program the Government has expedited more cartridges and another testing machine to the Walgett ACCHS to meet testing demand in Walgett and surrounding regions.
In addition, NSW Health has advised they are committed to a whole-of-community vaccine blitz in Walgett.

Local Champion to Fight for WA as Labor Candidate for Pearce

WA Labor has announced high profile City of Wanneroo Mayor Tracey Roberts will contest the electorate of Pearce at the upcoming federal election.
Since being elected to Council in 2003, Tracey has been a local champion for almost 20 years. She sits on a number of school boards and is patron and committee member of dozens of community organisations.
Tracey is a strong advocate for Western Australia as President of the Western Australian Local Government Association and Vice President of the Australian Local Government Association.
In the mid-1980’s, Tracey emigrated to Australia from the UK like many people in Perth’s northern suburbs. She lives in Mindarie with her husband, Pete, and has two sons.
In 2008, Tracey was diagnosed with breast cancer. It was the Wanneroo community who got her through these challenging times, and that support has driven her to give back.
Tracey has a proven track record of delivering for the City of Wanneroo, and has worked side by side with Premier Mark McGowan to deliver key infrastructure projects for Perth’s northern suburbs.
In 2020, Tracey was appointed by the State Government to the State Recovery Advisory Group to drive the economic recovery from COVID-19.
Voters in Pearce have not forgotten that Scott Morrison and Christian Porter attacked Mark McGowan and sided with Clive Palmer to open our borders at the height of the pandemic.
Tracey will be a part of an Albanese Labor Government that will work with Mark McGowan – not against him – to stand up for WA.
 

Anthony Albanese MP

“I’ve known Tracey for years – she’s a fierce advocate for her community, who knows how to work with the Federal and State Governments to get things done.
“Tracey will be an important member of my team in WA – standing up for WA, and working with the McGowan Labor Government to create new jobs and protect your health.
“Scott Morrison and Christian Porter have let down Pearce and WA. They sided with Clive Palmer against Mark McGowan on the borders, and they failed to deliver quarantine facilities and to effectively roll out the vaccine.”

Labor Candidate for Pearce Tracey Roberts

“I have represented my community as the Mayor of Wanneroo for 10 years. In that time, I have secured more than $1 billion in investment for the City.
“For too long, Scott Morrison and the Christian Porter have neglected WA.
“We need ambitious, job-creating infrastructure projects from the Federal Government. I will stand up for Pearce in Canberra to make sure we see that investment right here in our community.”