Category: NSW News

The Minns Labor Government will invest $30 million in improving grassroots sports facilities to turbocharge the growth of women and girls sport across NSW through a brand new Level the Playing Field program.

This program will support the growth of women and girls sport in NSW after a recordbreaking FIFA Women’s World Cup during which the Matildas inspired the nation, and an unbelievable 12th World Cup championship win by the Diamonds at the Netball World Cup.

The Level the Playing Field program will allow grassroots sporting groups to access funding to upgrade and build sporting facilities for women and girls in their local communities.

The program is expected to fund 100 new and upgraded facilities and will contribute to fostering a safe and inclusive environment for women and girls to train and play, by delivering fit-for-purpose facilities and amenities such as change rooms, accessibility improvements, and improved lighting.

As part of the budget, the Minns Labor Government is also delivering on its promise to support local community and school sports through a number of other initiatives.

The Football in Schools Program in Western Sydney will also receive $14.5 million, partnering with the Western Sydney Wanderers and Macarthur Bulls to support local school sporting teams.

The Central Coast will receive $3.7 million to improve football infrastructure and programs.

This will include a synthetic playing field in Tuggerah, as well as training facilities for the new Central Coast Mariners A-Leagues Women’s team. Funding for these projects will be matched by the Central Coast Mariners.

This funding also includes $1 million for the Central Coast Mariners community programs for at-risk youth and disadvantaged adults.

The budget will more than double funding for state sponsored organisations (SSOs), such as Football NSW and Sport NSW, from $2.45 million to $5 million in 2023–2024, and $10 million in 2024–2025 and 2025–2026.

These new agreements will include incentives for SSOs to achieve specific outcomes in increasing female participation in their organisations and improving their governance.

The National Management Group (NMG), driving the Varroa mite program across Australia met yesterday, and has decided to transition its approach to addressing this biosecurity issue confronting the nation’s beekeepers and pollination industry.

After considering the latest scientific data and advice, governments and industry organisations have unanimously decided to move from an eradication program to a management approach.
 
The NSW Government has agreed with all industry and government partners that the potential to eradicate is no longer possible and that we now need to work collaboratively to manage and minimise the impact of varroa.
 
Despite the comprehensive $101 million spend and effort to eradicate the mite, the transition from an ‘eradication’ program to a ‘management’ program was concluded because of the many factors working against a possible eradication in Australia. 
 
The NSW Government will work with all the national players and reallocate resources to slowing the spread of the pest and providing management options to help minimising its impact. 
 
Communications are being developed by the NSW Department of Primary Industries and industry partners to explain to all stakeholders what this shift in program means and how the government will guide and assist affected stakeholders.
 
The NMG considered the following major factors for why eradication has not reached its desired objectives:
 

• Non-compliance by some bee industry actors with the NSW Movement Orders and the mandatory hive testing (alcohol washes), and evidence of illegal movement of bees resulting in further spread of the varroa mite. 
• The recent spike in new detections, have made it clear that the Varroa mite infestation is more widespread and has also been present for longer than first thought.
• The increase in new detections and generation of a control area greater than 16,000 km2, has stretched the eradication team’s responses to their technical limit.

 
Minister for Agriculture, Minister for Regional New South Wales, and Minister for Western New South Wales, Tara Moriarty said:
 
“The priority now is for the NSW Department of Primary Industries to communicate with all the stakeholders of the beekeeper and pollination sectors and advise them what the change in program means for their industry. 
 
“I’ve directed the Department of Primary Industries to immediately engage industry stakeholders and beekeepers to provide guidance and assistance so that they can quickly respond to the transition of the Varroa mite management program.”
 
Director General of Department of Primary Industries Scott Hansen said:
 
“The department will move swiftly to transition our team and all our stakeholders to this new approach and will be providing information and support to the industry.
 
“The 2399 DPI people and staff from supporting agencies and industry in the Varroa mite response team have been working around the clock since last year on this program and I thank them for their incredible effort. They have succeeded in delaying the spread of Varroa mite for more than a year which needs to be recognised.”
 
Chief Executive Officer of the Australian Honey Bee Industry Council, Danny Le Feuvre said:
 
“While eradication was the original goal, the focus will now shift to supporting beekeepers in the transition to management.
 
“I thank all the beekeepers for their cooperation throughout the response and especially those who have felt the emotional and financial impacts of this response.

“There is still lots industry can do to contain and slow the spread of Varroa mite, which is why NSW will operate under an interim management strategy until the National Management Plan for Transition to Management is agreed upon.
 
“At the same time, AHBIC will continue to work with NMG to ensure any support measures offered to beekeepers are fit for purpose.”

Additional taxes and charges in Labor’s Budget will make home ownership less achievable for the people of New South Wales.
 
Shadow Minister for Housing Scott Farlow said that more housing is a mirage under Minns. Labor’s best effort to build more homes is for Landcom to deliver a measly 88 affordable homes and 206 market homes per year through to 2039-40.
 
“Housing was supposed to be the centrepiece of this Budget, yet the Labor Government’s only answer is to impose more taxes for those building new homes, which makes homes less affordable. It also imposes more costs and increases the difficulty for the private sector, which provide the vast majority of housing supply, to deliver more homes,” Mr Farlow said.
 
“The Government’s infrastructure centrepiece is funded by a tax on new homes, with the associated infrastructure not tied to the area in which the development occurs.”
 
“Rather than outlining new vision and focussing on measures to increase supply, the Government has increased taxation.”
 
“The Housing and Productivity Contribution could add up to $37,000 to the price of a new home in Western Sydney if it attracts both a strategic biodiversity component and transport project component.”
 
“The money raised by this contribution isn’t tied to the geographic area, with the potential for funds raised from a new development in Penrith paying for a bike path in Petersham.”
 
“There has been no revised feasibility assessment of this charge since 2020 and since that time interest rates have risen by 400 basis points and construction costs have increased by 30%.”
 
“Worse still, the Government is not undertaking any further contributions reform and is applying this charge at the Construction Certificate stage, the point in the construction where financing is most difficult and will add additional financing costs on builders.”
 
“The Budget papers also reveal that Sydney Water’s development servicing plan (DSP) will not just be used for infrastructure recovery costs, but be used to increase Sydney Water dividends by 4.5 times over the forward estimates with no commensurate savings to consumers.”
 
“This is a great big tax on industry and consumers that will make new homes in Western Sydney more expensive and not save users any money on their water bills.”
 
“The last Liberals and Nationals budget delivered a $2.8 billion Housing Package that helped first home buyers, created a shared equity scheme, accelerated the delivery of new infrastructure to support housing and upgraded and enhanced NSW’s social housing stock,” Mr Farlow said.

The Minns Labor Government’s Budget fails to provide energy certainty for NSW, limiting energy relief, ripping away subsidies for EVs and failing to include any provisions for the extension of the Eraring Power Station, potentially risking a future energy blackhole.
 
As families and businesses struggle under Labor’s cost of living crisis, higher inflation and increased interest rates, 1.5 million households will miss out on energy bill relief, leaving people across NSW to fend for themselves.
 
There are also more than 500,000 small businesses in NSW that do not qualify for energy relief from the Minns Government.
 
“The Government have not provided a single cent to the ongoing operation of the Eraring Power Station which could cost up to $3 billion. This is completely at odds with their commitment pre-Budget to discuss extending the aging power station.”
 
“And despite allocating $1 billion to their state-owned energy corporation, Labor can’t explain how it will function or when it will begin providing relief.”
 
The CEO of the Electric Vehicle Council has said that he doubted the people who voted for this government thought they were voting to cut electric vehicle incentives to fund handouts to coal-fired power stations.
 
“Not only has the Minns Government put us in reverse when it comes to Electric Vehicles by scrapping the $3,000 rebate and reintroducing stamp duty, they continue to leave households in the dark by providing meagre relief from energy bills,” Mr Griffin said.

The Minns Labor Government’s first Budget lays a foundation for a better and more secure future for women and girls in NSW. 

By removing barriers that prevent women from realising their full potential we are paving the way for a more resilient economy.

We cannot take a siloed approach to address the various challenges women in NSW face.

The 2023-24 Budget takes a holistic view – from creating economic opportunities through participation and empowerment, to providing essential healthcare and appropriate support services.

Women’s health and wellbeing:

The NSW Government is increasing women’s access to healthcare with over $100 million to support new essential services including:

• $18.6 million for 29 new and eight existing McGrath Foundation breast cancer nurses.
• $34.3 million boost in support for 20 Women’s Health Centres providing health and mental health services for women.

$52.7 million for 48 new Sexual Assault Nurse Examiners and medical and forensic officers to fill critical gaps in healthcare services for victims of sexual assaults across New South Wales.

Responding to family and domestic violence:

• $13 million to expand access to the Shared Equity Home Buyer Helper trial to include domestic and family violence victim-survivors.
• Continued provision of free ambulance services for victims of sexual assault, domestic violence or child abuse.
• Private Rental assistance through Rent Choice, Advance Rent, Bond Loan and other programs to help eligible persons, including those escaping domestic violence, set up and maintain a tenancy in the private rental market.
• $4.4 million over 3 years, to establish a new specialist multicultural domestic and family violence centre in southwest Sydney which will be able to help over 4000 refugee and migrant women a year access services that are culturally responsive. To ensure sustainable results, the centre will also work with multicultural communities on primary prevention.

Improving gender equality:

• $13.8 million to improve Women’s participation and empowerment in the workforce through a Working Women’s Centre and a Future Women’s Jobs Academy.
• $30 million for the Level the Playing Field Facilities Fund for new and upgraded facilities to empower women to participate in sport.

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The Minns Labor Government is the first government in NSW with a Cabinet comprised of 50% women.

In addition to these commitments, the Budget has also delivered major commitments for female dominated sectors like health and early childhood education and care programs that support gender equality outcomes.

The Minns Labor Government is setting out a long-term plan to repair the budget so we can deliver essential services for women and progress gender equality across our State.

Every person across NSW should have access to a safe and secure place to call home.

Housing affordability and availability is the biggest single pressure facing the people of NSW, with mortgage payments or rent the largest expense for most households.

The Minns Labor Government recognises housing as essential infrastructure and the 2023-24 Budget, lays out a plan to rebuild a neglected system through immediate support and critical long-term planning.

Long-term housing supply

A $2.2 billion Housing and Infrastructure Plan is at the centre of this budget, to begin addressing the historic neglect of new housing supply.

The plan includes:

• $300 million reinvested in Landcom to accelerate the construction of thousands of new homes, with 30% of these to be affordable housing.
• $400 million reserved in Restart NSW to deliver the infrastructure that will unlock housing across the state.
• $1.5 billion committed for housing related infrastructure through the Housing and Productivity Contribution.
   

Faster planning program

The budget furthers our long-term reform in housing with the creation of the new $38.7 million Faster Planning Program.

This program delivers:

• $24 million for a NSW Building Commission to protect home buyers from substandard buildings.
• $9.1 million to assess housing supply opportunities across government-owned sites, including for new social housing.
• NSW Budget 2023-24 budget.nsw.gov.au.
• $5.6 million on artificial intelligence to make planning systems more efficient.
• Overhauling and simplifying the planning system by redirecting resources from the Greater Cities Commission and Western Parkland City Authority.
   

Homes NSW backed by the Essential Housing Package

The Minns Labor Government will establish Homes NSW to deliver better outcomes for public and social housing tenants, deliver more affordable and social housing and reduce the number of homeless people in NSW.

An investment of $224 million will support the Government’s Essential Housing Package which includes:

• $70 million debt financing to accelerate the delivery of social, affordable and private homes, primarily in regional NSW.
• $35.3 million to continue to provide housing services for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander families through Services Our Way.
• $35 million to support critical social housing maintenance.
• $20 million reserved in Restart NSW for dedicated mental health housing.
• $15 million to establish a NSW Housing Fund for urgent priority housing and homelessness measures to confront the housing crisis.
• $11.3 million to extend the Together Home program.
• $11 million urgent funding injection to Temporary Accommodation in 2023-24 to address rising homelessness.
• $10.5 million urgent funding injection to the Community Housing Leasing Program.
• $10 million Modular Housing Trial to deliver faster quality social housing.
• $5.9 million urgent funding in 2023-24 to allow Specialist Homelessness Services to address increasing demand.

In addition, the Commonwealth’s $610 million Social Housing Accelerator program will permanently increase social housing by around 1500 dwellings.

Rental reform

Renters are receiving immediate support with their rights bolstered right across NSW.

Tens of thousands of people renting will receive extra protection from the recent appointment of a state-first NSW Rental Commissioner.

The Commissioner will work with government to make renting fairer, more affordable and more secure.

We are committed to implementing a Portable Rental Bonds Scheme to ease financial pressure.

Renters will also be protected from unfair evictions by creating reasonable grounds for ending a lease. And we’re making it easier for renters to have pets in homes.

And new Build to Rent trials will be supported on the South Coast and in the Northern Rivers with $60 million.

First Home Buyers

From 1 July 2023 our First Home Buyers Assistance Scheme expanded stamp duty exemptions and concessions to help 5 out of every 6 first home buyers pay no stamp duty, or a concessional rate.

Early figures reveal this immediate support has been taken up by more than 1000 first home buyers purchasing in the $650,000 to $800,000 range, who enjoyed a full exemption from stamp duty in July alone.

Preliminary data also shows some 650 first home buyers received a stamp duty concession in the $800,000 to $1 million range in July.

These buyers would previously have had to pay full stamp duty or opt into an unfair annual property tax.

A foundation for a better and more secure future for NSW

Addressing a chronic housing shortage requires a long-term plan.

After 12 years of neglect, the Minns Labor Government is working to provide relief now while putting in the proper planning to ensure we’re ready for the challenges of the future.

We are a government with a clear focus – managing our finances responsibly so we can provide support when you need it most and improve the essential services that we all rely on, now and into the future.

Roads, rail and transport services are critical to life in regional NSW, connecting communities to one another and supporting the movement of goods produced in our regions to national and international markets.

Today, the Minns Government’s first budget has delivered on its commitment to ensure that the roads used by regional communities daily are reliable, and the essential transport infrastructure they rely on is safe and accessible. 

The 2023-24 NSW Budget includes: 

• $1.4 billion for the delivery of a new regional rail fleet to replace the ageing regional fleet. 
• $390 million to establish the Regional Emergency Road Repair Fund to support regional councils in managing existing roads and prioritising works based on the needs of their communities, particularly those damaged by natural disasters. 
• $334 million to establish the Regional Roads Fund to build new roads in rural and regional areas. 
• $333.9 million to replace ageing timber bridges through the Fixing Country Bridges program, providing improvements to regional bus services and supporting councils through the Fixing Local Roads Program. 
• $95.9 million for the Fixing Country Rail program, to deliver improved capacity and reliability to the regional rail network and deliver a highly functional network for moving freight in and out of regional areas. 
• $29.4 million to plan for the transition of fleet to Zero Emission buses, including trials, analysis and development. 
• $20.2 million to continue the Transport Connected Bus Program. 
• $10 million to improve the network of heavy vehicle rest stops across regional NSW. 

No matter where you live in NSW you should have access to safe, reliable transport options. The Minns Labor Government is setting out a long-term plan to repair the budget so we can deliver the essential infrastructure and services families across regional NSW rely on.

We know people are doing it tough and this budget provides responsible support to help with cost-of-living pressures.

In NSW the cost-of-living crisis is worse because of a decade of privatisation.

In 2023-24, the Minns Labor Government will provide more than $8.2 billion in support through more than 130 different measures.

Housing

Affordability and availability are some of the biggest pressures facing the people of NSW.

More than 1000 first home buyers have already saved thousands of dollars, paying no stamp duty under the new First Home Buyers Assistance Scheme. Hundreds more have received a concession.

The Government is providing private rental assistance through programs including Rent Choice, Advance Rent and Bond Loan to help eligible people get into or maintain a rental lease.

And the Pensioner Concession Rebate Scheme provides up to $250 on ordinary council rates and charges for domestic waste management services to eligible pensioners, jointly funded by councils.

Education / Early Childhood

A new program of $500 fee relief per child, will help with the costs of 3-year-olds in long day care at eligible preschools.

The Minns Labor Government is continuing relief of $4220 per child aged 3 to 5 attending community preschools. For kids aged 4 to 5 in long day care, that fee relief is $2110.

Additionally, there is access to fee free formal training in apprenticeships and traineeships and travel and accommodation allowances for apprentices or new trainees who travel more than 120km a day to attend training.

Energy

Bill relief will be extended from 1 July 2024 for families, seniors and households struggling with rising costs.

The Family Energy Rebate and Seniors Energy Rebate will both increase to $250.

The Low-Income Household Rebate and Medical Energy Rebate will rise to $350. And we’ll cover rising costs of equipment under the Life Support Rebate.

This is on top of the National Energy Bill Relief payment introduced in July 2023, where in partnership with the Australian Government, the NSW Government is providing support to:

• 1.6 million eligible households with a $500 electricity rebate automatically applied to bills before 1 July 2024.
• 300,000 eligible businesses with a one-off $650 bill relief payment.

Health

The 2023-24 Budget funds free ambulance services for certain concession holders, with other exemptions including for people who are victims of domestic violence, sexual assault or child abuse.

New parents will continue receiving a Baby Bundle of essential items, while children receive free dental care at schools with mobile dental clinics.

Additionally, there’s a $250 Pre-IVF Fertility Testing Rebate to help eligible people cover costs.

The Government is providing financial assistance towards travel and accommodation costs when a patient needs to travel long distances for treatment that is not available locally through the Isolated Patients Travel and Accommodation Assistance Scheme (IPTAAS).

Plus, accessing essential health care will be made easier with free parking at rural and regional hospitals for staff, patients and families.

Tolls

There’s relief on our roads too.

We’re delivering on the promise of a $60 weekly toll cap to begin in January.

The cap will take cost-of-living pressure off more than 700,000 motorists. This is on top of the ongoing Toll Rebate Scheme and the M5 South-West Cashback Scheme.

There is also some relief for the freight industry that keep our state moving.

We’re reducing the truck multiplier by 33% on the M5 East and the M8, providing relief and encouraging more trucks to use the motorway network.

Recreation

Responsible cost-of-living decisions will see the government roll out a new means-tested $50 Active and Creative Kids voucher in February 2024.

While there’s a $50 voucher per child aged 3 to 6 not yet enrolled in school to start swimming lessons.

Eligible seniors, pensioners and veterans will receive discounted or concessional National Park passes.

A foundation for a better and more secure future for NSW

This Budget begins a new era of responsible long-term investment to support NSW families with cost-of-living pressures and to rebuild our essential services.

We are a government with a clear focus – managing our finances responsibly so we can provide support when you need it most and improve the essential services that we all rely on, now and into the future.

The Minns Labor Government has delivered a budget to build more high-quality homes, and to ensure consumers are protected in a tough cost-of-living environment.

A down-payment of $24 million will establish the NSW Building Commission and let it hit the ground running.

An initial team of more than 400 dedicated staff will work with Commissioner David Chandler to drive dodgy builders out of the market and ensure buyers get the quality homes they deserve.

The NSW Government recognises the pressing need for more homes – to ease pressure in the housing market and keep young people in NSW.

The Minns Government is committed to ensuring the tens of thousands of new homes that NSW needs are quality homes.

The creation of a standalone Building Commission won’t just deliver better quality homes, it will also let NSW Fair Trading focus on its core business – protecting consumers.

It will do this by:

• Working with the NSW Rental Commissioner to better protect the rights of renters and modernise the system to make it fairer.
• Delivering an additional $1 million in funding for renters’ advocacy organisations.
• Making sure products are safe and holding businesses that break the law accountable.
• Working to resolve strata disputes before they end up in expensive legal battles.

The Minns Budget lays the foundations for a better consumer protections system.

We’ve made the careful decisions needed to reprioritise spending and resources so we can invest in and regulators people in NSW need.

The Minns Labor Government is investing more than $5.3 billion this year to ensure the NSW Police Portfolio has the strength and support it needs to keep communities safe.

The Minns Labor Government’s first Budget begins a new era of responsible investment in essential services.

For the NSW Police Force, this means ensuring they have the resources they need to prevent crime and remain a world-class policing organisation.

The 2023-24 Budget sets a strong foundation for a better and more secure force by making sustainable investments in staff and infrastructure.

Police officer turnover more than doubled during the last term of the former government from 513 separations in 2017-18 to 1,286 in 2021-22.

This Government is committed to the long-term plan of rebuilding our Police Force over the next four years. The Budget commits $4 million in 2023-24 to fund an additional 20 police recruits who will hit the beat in Western Sydney after attesting at the end of this year.

We know this region includes some of Sydney’s fastest growing areas, so this investment will help not only the people who live there, but the officers who work hard to serve the community.

New investment of $103 million in capital expenditure over four years will support the upgrade of police facilities and infrastructure across the state, including:

• $27 million for critical police operational radio communicating capabilities across the south, southwest and far west of New South Wales.
• $23 million uplift in minor capital works to ensure that police officers have appropriate infrastructure, facilities, technology and equipment to respond to crime and keep the community safe.
• $8 million for the construction of a new police wharf at Balmain to help ensure the NSW Police Force not only has the equipment but infrastructure it needs to keep our communities and waterways safe.
• $3 million to upgrade police facilities at Helensburgh.
• $8 million for repairs and refurbishments, including at Glebe Police Station and Nepean Police Area Command.
• $2 million to support the crucial role of the NSW Police Marine Command through the upgrade of the Nemesis vessel that is used in extended offshore operations, including search and rescue and targeting narcotic importation.

Further, organised crime has no place on our streets and this Government is cracking down, with $15.4 million to create the Criminal Assets Confiscation Team, which will target, investigate and seize the ill-gotten wealth of crime kingpins, seriously disrupting their criminal activity.

$12 million will also enhance the capacity of our DNA testing program and make sure police continue to have the resources to identify offenders and solve serious crimes.
The NSW Police Force serves our community day in, day out, from proactive policing and keeping our roads safe, to addressing domestic violence and targeting organised crime.

These are sustainable, careful but strong measures to ensure the NSW community is protected; we know a strong, well-supported and well-resourced police force is critical to achieving that.