Category: NSW News

Sydney is a step closer to being the best walking city in the world, with new funding allocated for missing links of the  91km Parramatta to Sydney Foreshore Link, and the start of consultation on a NSW Walking Strategy.  

The 91km long route will connect Parramatta Park to the Opera House and Botanical Gardens. 68km of the walk is already accessible via shared pathways, while 23 km of missing links require planning and construction.  

The Minns Labor Government is investing $4.5 million to complete four missing links in the Canada Bay local government area:  

• New and upgraded shared paths, lighting, and raised crossings connecting Allison Park, Campbell Park and Lysaght Park in Chiswick.
• Upgraded path, lighting and a new raised crossing at Wire Mill Reserve in Chiswick.
• New shared pathways and lighting at Shadrack Shaw Reserve, Concord will improve the link between Majors Bay Reserve and the Mortlake and Breakfast Point peninsulas.
• Improved access to the Bay Run with one raised shared crossing with upgraded street lighting at Timbrell Drive and two extra raised pedestrian crossings and street lighting on Henley Marine Drive near Millar Street and Nield Park.   

The 3.5 metre wide shared pathways will be delivered by the City of Canada Bay Council who will deliver the projects, with a construction tender to be released in the coming months.  

$2.36 million of work on missing links in the City of Parramatta has already commenced, with improved lighting and a raised pedestrian and cyclist crossing on Brodie Street in Rydalmere and construction nearing completion for a new shared pathway along George Street East in Parramatta, through Queens Wharf. The Bennelong Parkway Bridge and Connecting Paths will start construction in mid-2026.  

$8.23 million has been invested in planning and design along the foreshore which has informed current projects and future stages of foreshore upgrades.

The Parramatta to Sydney Foreshore Link will build on an increasing number of dedicated walks throughout Sydney including the 80km Bondi to Manly walk that was opened in 2019 and the recent opening of the 6km GreenWay which connects the Cooks River Trail, Earlwood with the Bay Run in Haberfield.

To improve the way government and councils plan, fund and design public spaces to encourage walking, the Minns Labor Government is releasing the Walkable NSW Issues Paper, launching a consultation that will inform the development of NSW’s first ever Walking Strategy.  

Further updates on the Parramatta to Sydney Foreshore Link will be shared soon, as Transport for NSW continues to work closely with local councils, to inform the design and delivery of the next priority connections.  

Click here to see the Walkable NSW Discussion Paper.  
 
Minister for Transport John Graham said:  

“The success of the GreenWay and the Bondi to Manly walks, gives you a sense of what’s possible given our incredible geography and exercise culture.  

“Walking is the most popular form of transport in NSW, so it makes sense that we take a strategic approach to maximise our potential as a walking city.  

“The walking strategy will help state government and local councils do a better job of planning, funding and designing our streets and places in a way that encourages walking. We’re starting by asking the community what’s most important.”  

Minister for Planning and Public Spaces Paul Scully said:  

“This 91km connection will link a number of Sydney’s world class public spaces and encourage more people to get active and explore parts of the city on foot.  

“The new connections across the Inner West will complement plans for a new swim spot along the Bay Run and add to the work we’re already doing at Blackwattle Bay to complete the missing link in the 15-kilometre foreshore walk from Rozelle Bay to Woolloomooloo.”  

Parliamentary Secretary for Transport Dr Marjorie O’Neill said:  

“Whether its locals getting some exercise or international tourists in awe of our city, we have some of the most stunning urban walks in the world, we just need to connect them better.  

“These vital links in Canada Bay are crucial to the ongoing work of connecting this incredible walk.  

“We thank the Canada Bay Council for their work in delivering these projects to connect the existing walking paths along their part of the foreshore walk.”  

Mayor of the City of Canada Bay Michael Megna said:

“We are looking forward to delivering the first new connections of the 91km Parramatta to Sydney Foreshore Link following close consultation with our community.

“This project will bring to life our commitment to a fully-connected, accessible foreshore, as well as open up more opportunities for active transport across the City.”

The Minns Labor Government continues to turbocharge the state’s visitor economy, announcing today that it has partnered with the Professional Golfers’ Association (PGA) of Australia to secure the historic return of the Australian PGA Championship to NSW for the first time since 1998.

The 2026 BMW Australian PGA Championship will tee off from 26-29 November at The Lakes Golf Club in Sydney, which last hosted the tournament in 1987, becoming the latest major international sporting event to find a home in NSW.

The Lakes Golf Club has a proud history of hosting Australian golf majors, including the 1964 Australian Open won by the legendary Jack Nicklaus and most recently the 2023 Australian Open, demonstrating its capability to deliver a major international golf tournament.

This year’s Australian PGA Championship promises to be another outstanding display of golf that will not only attract the world’s best golfers, but also golf fans from across the nation and around the globe, highlighting Sydney’s reputation as one of the world’s great stages for major international sporting events and providing a significant boost to the NSW visitor economy.

Hosting the Australian PGA Championship in Sydney is estimated will attract around 15,000 visitors to the city, injecting more than $10 million into the state’s visitor economy. This adds to a growing list of 35 major sporting events secured for NSW in 2026 that are projected to attract around 295,000 visitors and inject more than $285 million into the NSW visitor economy.

Sports tourism is booming, with the World Economic Forum recently highlighting it as the fastest-growing segment of the global tourism industry.  

In 2025, sports tourism accounted for 10 per cent of global travel expenditure, with revenues growing at a compound annual rate of 28 per cent since 2020, above the 22 per cent growth seen across all tourism.

The Australian PGA Championship joins an unrivalled list of major sporting events for NSW in 2026, including Men’s and Women’s State of Origin, Tottenham versus Chelsea in the Sydney Super Cup, NRL & NRLW Grand Finals, Bledisloe Cup, Bathurst 1000, Rugby League World Cup, and TCS Sydney Marathon World Major, showcasing NSW as the nation’s home of major sporting event experiences.

Minister for Sport and Minister for Jobs and Tourism Steve Kamper said:

“The Minns Labor Government is thrilled to be partnering with the PGA of Australia to bring the nation’s most prestigious golf tournament back to Sydney for the first time in almost three decades.

“We can’t wait to welcome some of the best golfers on the planet for the Australian PGA Championship in November at The Lakes, one of our country’s most iconic golf courses.  

“This is a fantastic coup for our local golf-loving community. But most importantly it will provide a significant boost to the NSW visitor economy, attracting thousands of visiting fans, players and officials.

CEO of the PGA of Australia and the Challenger PGA Tour of Australasia Gavin Kirkman said:  

“We are delighted to have the opportunity to partner with the NSW Government in bringing the BMW Australian PGA Championship back to Sydney.

“The city is synonymous with world-class sporting events and we are thrilled that we are able to return to The Lakes Golf Club. The venue has a rich history in hosting Challenger

PGA Tour of Australasia events, so we know we are in for a warm welcome in November.” 

The Southern Tablelands is set to benefit from a boost to frontline emergency care, with an additional six paramedics starting work in the community from tomorrow.

These additional paramedics will be based at Yass Ambulance Station and will deliver emergency and out-of-hospital care across the Southern Tablelands as part of NSW Ambulance’s highly mobile workforce.

This increase in clinical staffing forms part of the NSW Government’s commitment to deliver 500 additional paramedics to rural, regional and remote areas.

The cohort is part of the third intake of 125 paramedics working across regional NSW as part of the regional 500 initiative. They join 125 paramedics who commenced across the state last year, and another 125 who began work in 2024. Under this initiative, an additional 41 paramedics are now working across the southern NSW region.

The Minns Labor Government will continue to roll out the additional 500 paramedics for regional NSW next year, with future locations determined through NSW Ambulance’s evidence-based, best practice service and workforce planning, as well as consultation with staff and the Health Services Union.

Minister for Regional Health, Ryan Park: 

“The Minns Labor Government is continuing to strengthen emergency health services in regional communities by delivering more paramedics for the frontline.

“These extra six paramedics in Yass will provide much-needed support and help ensure the local community receives optimal care when they need it most.

“The Coalition criticised the Government for hiring too many health workers, but we know that recruiting additional paramedics will allow the local community to continue benefitting from timely, high‑quality care.”

Labor Spokesperson for Goulburn, Bob Nanva, MLC:

“Six additional paramedics at Yass will strengthen frontline healthcare for patients throughout the Southern Tablelands.”

“Growing the ambulance workforce is improving access to emergency care across regional and rural NSW.”

NSW Ambulance Interim Chief Executive Clare Beech:  

“Boosting the paramedic workforce at Yass will strengthen our ability to respond to emergencies and provide enhanced support to teams across regional NSW.

“As demand for ambulance services continues to increase, these extra resources will help ensure we maintain a high standard of care for the community.”

Minister for Police and Counter Terrorism, Yasmin Catley, has been caught out misleading the public as part of a political stoush with Fairfield Mayor Frank Carbone over policing in the Fairfield Local Area Command. 
 
On Monday, Minister Catley told 702 ABC Sydney Breakfast that local police were not aware of, or involved in, a decision to fence off Fairfield’s Crescent Plaza in response to ongoing violence and anti-social behaviour. 
 
The Minister also called the Mayor’s claim that police in Fairfield were under resourced “absolute garbage” and pointed to 64 recruits being allocated to the Fairfield area on her watch. 
 
However, this morning on 2GB, Mayor Carbone called out the Minister, pointing to multiple emails showing local police were engaged with council and were aware of the decision to fence off Crescent Plaza well in advance. 
 
Mayor Carbone also pointed to analysis which shows police numbers in the Fairfield Local Area Command have fallen from 290 officers in 2021 to just 221 in 2025, a loss of 69 officers while the local population has only grown. 
 
Shadow Minister for Police and Counter-Terrorism, Anthony Roberts, said the Minister must come clean and owes both Mayor Carbone and the Fairfield community an apology. 
 
“Minister Catley has been caught out here and needs to front up and apologise for misleading the public,” Mr Roberts said. 
 
“The reality is police numbers are going backwards in Fairfield and across Western Sydney, and the Minister needs to stop pretending otherwise.” 
 
“This is about community safety. You cannot have fewer officers, a growing population, and claim everything is fine when people’s real experience is that crime is only getting worse.” 
 
Mr Roberts also pointed to broader concerns about police resourcing in the area. 
 
“Under this Minister, key local resources have been scaled back, including the reduction of operating hours at Weatherill Park Police Station from 24 hours to 12 hours.” 
 
“The people of Fairfield deserve honesty, accountability, and proper police resourcing, not blame games from an underperforming Minister.” 

Shadow Roads Minister, Mark Coure, has called for urgent action to address the state’s worsening road toll, following a tragic Easter period where 10 lives were lost on NSW roads. 
  
Mr Coure said the latest official figures reveal a crisis that is escalating, not improving. 
  
“103 people have tragically lost their lives on NSW roads in 2026 alone, up from 97 at the same time last year,” Mr Coure said. 
  
“Even more alarming, the 12-month road toll has surged to 362 lives lost, compared to 328 the previous year, which is a massive increase that shows we are going backwards.” 
  
“These are not just numbers, they are sons, daughters, parents and friends. Entire families are being torn apart.” 
  
Mr Coure said the shocking Easter toll highlights the urgent need for a stronger, more effective road safety strategy. 
  
“Ten deaths over Easter is a devastating toll. It should be a wake-up call to the Government that what they’re doing right now simply isn’t working,” Mr Coure said. 
  
“Year after year, we’re seeing more lives lost and more people seriously injured on our roads.” 
  
The latest data also shows serious injuries are rising sharply, with 11,667 people hospitalised in 2025, up from 11,120 the year before. 
  
Mr Coure said enforcement alone is not enough to reduce the road toll. 
  
“We need safer roads, more investment in blackspot programs, better signage, and strong education campaigns that actually change behaviour,” Mr Coure said. 
  
“You cannot fine your way to safer roads, you have to build safer roads.” 

Students in Hay and across the Southern Riverina can now access tertiary education closer to home, with a new Country Universities Centre (CUC) officially opened yesterday.

Co-located at the TAFE NSW Connected Learning Centre, the Hay CUC provides high-speed internet, dedicated study spaces and academic support – making it easier for students to undertake tertiary study close to home.

The new centre is part of a growing network that has supported around 7,000 students across NSW since 2017, helping to build a pipeline of skilled workers in areas such as health, education, and community services.

Students across the network are enrolled in more than 616 courses through 171 tertiary providers, with most graduates going on to live and work in regional communities – helping address local workforce shortages.

The Hay centre has been established through Australian Government funding, with support from the NSW Government, and demonstrates how co-locating university study hubs with TAFE NSW facilities can deliver more connected education pathways in regional communities.

Country Universities Centres also support greater participation in higher education among underrepresented groups, including students balancing work and family commitments, with many the first in their family to undertake tertiary study.

Minister for Skills, TAFE and Tertiary Education Steve Whan said:

“Students in Hay can now access hundreds of courses and study close to home, without the cost and disruption of moving away.

“These centres are delivering real results – helping more regional students get qualified and go on to work in their local communities, particularly in areas like health and education.

“By co-locating this centre with TAFE NSW, we’re making it easier for people to move between vocational training and university study, all in one place.”

The Minns Labor Government is backing councils to super charge their electric vehicle fleets, ensuring they have the workforce needed to service and maintain EVs into the future.

Twelve apprentice mechanics from six Sydney councils have undertaken hands-on training during a four-day EV workshop with TAFE NSW. The workshop in Western Sydney provided practical, on-the-ground training and the skills needed to power the shift to electric, keep services moving and fleets on the road.

The workshops are funded by the Minns Labor Government as part of the $252 million Fresh Start program which is enabling councils to hire an additional 1,300 apprentices, trainees and cadets in councils across the state.

The Fresh Start program is building a pipeline of skilled workers with over 1,100 already working in NSW councils. The program is providing careers for young people to work in their local community, which is particularly important for rural and regional communities.

The TAFE NSW EV workshops give council apprentice mechanics the specialist skills to inspect and service EVs as more councils move to electrify their fleets. The training includes:

• Depowering and reinitialising battery EVs
• Inspecting and maintaining battery EVs
• Diagnosing and repairing high voltage rechargeable energy storage systems in battery EVs
• Diagnosing and repairing system instrumentation in safety interlocks in battery EVs.

Training more regional mechanics and expanding the EV Fleets Incentive Program are key focus areas of the Minns Labor Government’s 2026 Electric Vehicle Strategy. Around $5 million will be invested in training around 2,000 mechanics in regional NSW to safely service EVs and charging infrastructure.

The NSW Government has invested in more than 3,300 EV chargers across 1,200 locations including service stations, regional visitor centres, holiday hotspots and residential streets.

Minister for Local Government, Ron Hoenig said:

“With the current fuel prices, councils need support to future-proof their workers and fleets – we’re delivering exactly that. The Minns Labor Government’s Fresh Start program is equipping mechanics to service electric vehicles and keep local services running.

“There’s never been a more important time to make sure local government staff have the skills they need to keep their fleets on the road. In uncertain times, the shift to electric is becoming a non-negotiable for councils needing a future-ready plan. This program delivers the skills and roadmap councils need to succeed.

“By upskilling council mechanics to work on electric vehicles, we can cut costs, keep jobs local and in-house to make sure councils are ready for the shift that’s already underway. It’s about doing things smarter and backing our workforce for the future.”

Member for Prospect, Hugh McDermott said:

“The Minns Labor Government is ensuring our local mechanics have all the skills they need to service the next generation of electric vehicle fleets.

“The innovative Fresh Start program ensures that TAFE continues to play a vital role in delivering capability for Western Sydney, future proofing our council fleets and giving our mechanics crucial expertise for the future of the industry.”

General Secretary of the United Services Union, Graeme Kelly said:

“The United Services Union wholeheartedly supports the Minns Labor Governments initiative investing in more than 1300 local government apprentices and trainees, particularly the Fresh start EV upskilling project that will ensure councils across NSW are well placed to meet the mechanical needs of the fleets of the future”.

Nurses and midwives will receive their largest pay increase in more than two decades after a ruling from the independent industrial umpire today, with the wage boost being an all-time record-breaker for the lowest paid amongst them.

The Minns Government welcomes the decision delivered by the Industrial Relations Commission, which was restored to resolve exactly this type of matter.

The ruling will see nurses and midwives receive an historic pay rise of between 16 and 28 per cent.

Backdated to July 2025, the pay rise will comprise a reset increase of between 10 and 22 per cent. This will be followed by a 3 per cent increase from July 2026 and a further 3 per cent from July 2027.

Labor was elected with a mandate to scrap the Liberals and Nationals’ unfair wages cap and restore the independent adjudicator. Since then, we have worked closely with workers and unions to rebuild the industrial relations system, putting fairness back at the centre of workers’ pay. This includes:

• Delivering record pay increases to paramedics, police, teachers and other essential workers.
• Making good on our commitment of ensuring a fair, modern and sustainable wages policy.
• Hiring more than 5,000 nurses, who are working in hospitals right now.
• Saving the jobs of 1,100 nurses the Liberals and Nationals would have axed.
• Helping attract and retain the essential workers NSW needs.

All this has been achieved through careful economic management, while putting people at the centre of decisions. Our approach has been in stark contrast to the Liberals and Nationals’ reliance on short-sighted privatisation and punitive wages freeze.

The Opposition must now come clean on whether it remains committed to a wages policy that leaves workers going backwards, after it suppressed pay and refused to introduce safe nurse-to-patient ratios while in government.

Treasurer Daniel Mookhey said:

“Nurses and midwives are the beating heart of our health workforce and while we acknowledge this was a hard-fought dispute, we believe it is a fair outcome.

“This pay rise is meaningful cost of living support that would have been impossible under the Coalition’s oppressive wages freeze.

“Bringing back the Industrial Relations Commission to serve as an independent umpire is a much better way to resolve a dispute than a blunt wages cap.”

Health Minister Ryan Park said:

“Nurses and midwives will receive one of the largest pay increases in a generation.

“This historic pay increase would not have been possible without the hard work undertaken between the Minns Labor Government and the union movement.

“Together, with the Nurses & Midwives Association, we have worked to recruit 1,200 nurses to roll out staff to patient ratios, saved 1,112 nurses that the Coalition planned to axe, and we will deliver one of the most significant pay increases for nurses and midwives in a generation.”

Minister for Industrial Relations Sophie Cotsis said:

“For too long, nurses and midwives have been held back by the former government’s draconian wages freeze.

“After 12 years of neglect, we promised to rebuild the state’s essential services and reform the state’s industrial relations system.

“The days of governments dictating wages are now over.

“We’ve introduced a modern bargaining framework, rebuilt the Industrial Relations Commission and we’ve changed the law to put the achievement of gender equity as an object of the Act.

“90% of nurses and midwives are women and today’s outcome demonstrates why gender equity matters.”

The Minns Labor Government has made it easier for commuters in rural and regional NSW to access public transport, with contactless payments now available on nearly 350 fare-paying buses across 47 local bus networks.

The tap and go payment system means commuters can leave their wallet at home, accepting payments from phones, smartwatches, as well as credit and debit cards.

The program has been delivered in just 10 months, from its launch in Wagga Wagga in July 2025 to completion in Queanbeyan earlier this month.

On the buses where Transport’s contactless ticketing technology has been installed, in total more than 140,000 tickets have been purchased, accounting for about 40% of journeys.

The Minns Government has partnered with 28 bus operators, ranging from small, single vehicle, family run businesses to larger multi-depot companies to deliver this upgrade, as well as software and hardware partners TransportMe and Littlepay.

The Contactless Ticketing Program does not include dedicated school services where students mostly use pre-paid bus passes or NSW TrainLink long distance coach services where tickets are pre-paid.

Minister for Regional Transport, Jenny Aitchison said:

“The Minns Labor Government has listened to regional communities who told us they wanted simple, modern ways to pay for their bus trips.”

“After over a decade of delay under the former Liberal and Nationals government, which failed to deliver contactless ticketing to the regions, we’ve rolled this program out right across rural and regional NSW, bringing these services in line with what city commuters have had for years.

“We’ve seen strong uptake where this technology has been introduced, with 40% of commuters choosing to tap and go.

“We know that making buses easier to use can help boost patronage and give families the option to leave the car at home, saving on fuel and everyday costs.

“Of course, cash is still available for those who’d like to use it, but this is an important change, giving regional communities more choice and making it easier to catch the bus.”

The Opposition welcomes a pay rise for NSW nurses and midwives but is calling on the Government to ensure there is no cuts to health services as a result of this decision.
 
While the Minns Labor Government is claiming an ‘historic’ win, the reality is they were dragged kicking and screaming to the state’s Industrial Court because they couldn’t reach an agreement with the union.  
 
Shadow Minister for Health and Regional Health, Sarah Mitchell, welcomed the pay rise for our state’s hardworking nurses and midwives, and called on the Minns Labor Government to guarantee that NSW patients and communities will not lose out.
 
“Our nurses and midwives do an incredible job in helping people in their most vulnerable moments and they have been consistently let down by a government that has repeatedly cut the health budget, forced regional people to travel further and wait longer to receive essential healthcare, and refused to have an inquiry into Western Sydney Health,” Mrs Mitchell said.
 
“The Government’s own lawyers argued in this case that service cuts may be required to fund any increase above what was already budgeted, and today the Health Minister failed to guarantee to patients and the wider community that no services will be cut and no hospital projects will be delayed by this decision.”
 
Shadow Treasurer, Scott Farlow, said that today’s IRC decision once again exposes Labor’s big pre-election lie that their wages policy would have no impact on the NSW budget.
 
“The NSW Treasury deputy secretary’s submission to the IRC raised concerns about the impact the union’s pay offer would have on the state’s return to surplus, that such an offer would have to be debt-funded and may negatively impact the state’s credit rating,” Mr Farlow said.
 
“While today’s decision is lower than the union’s demands, the Treasurer has failed to act in an economically responsible way by giving clear answers to taxpayers about what impact this decision will have on the state’s bottom line and has instead resorted to scaremongering.”
 
“Labor are trying to spin this decision as a win for their wages policy, but the reality is that they have fought this decision tooth and nail because their wages policy was built on a lie that it would come at no cost to the taxpayer.”