Category: NSW News

One of Ryde’s premier sporting facilities, the University Oval at Macquarie Park, is getting a five million dollar funding boost.

Liberal Candidate for Ryde, Jordan Lane, said the Perrottet Government’s multi-sport community facility fund is helping local communities get amenities that help make sport more accessible and enjoyable.

“The Ryde community absolutely loves sport – whether playing or supporting – and our aspiring world cup champions and Brownlow winners will benefit greatly from this investment in our local facilities,” Mr Lane said.

“Sports keep people healthy, active and socially connected, and this funding will make the University Oval one of the best places for footy in Sydney. This funding will modernise University Oval, upgrading the playing surface, change rooms, lighting, community areas and match day amenities.”

Member for Ryde, Victor Dominello, said the project will receive $5 million from the NSW Government’s Multi-Sport Community Facility Fund, to upgrade amenities and enable the ground to host elite women’s AFL matches.

“Sport is part of the fabric of our community and the NSW Government has a strong track record of investing in community sporting infrastructure to deliver modern, accessible facilities,” Mr Dominello said.

“The upgrade will be a huge coup for local footballers and also enable University Oval to host AFLW night games.”

The Multi-Sport Community Facility Fund provides grants between $1 million and $5 million for new or upgraded sport facilities.

Minister for Sport Alister Henskens said the program prioritises projects that provide inclusive and accessible facilities that enable more people to play sport.

“These projects will not only provide more opportunities for people to play sport, but they will also generate a local sports facility infrastructure boom, creating jobs and delivering an economic boost for the community,” Mr Henskens said.

“This multi-million Government investment is delivering game-changing projects that promote participation and secure a brighter future for local communities across NSW.

NSW businesses seeking to commercialise their innovative ideas can now help tackle some of the State’s most complex challenges through the second round of the NSW Government’s Small Business Innovation and Research (SBIR) program.
 
As part of the program, NSW Government agencies outline specific problem areas that need to be addressed, with small business given the opportunity to propose solutions.
 
Minister for Science, Innovation and Technology Alister Henskens said the $12 million program would provide small businesses with grants of up to $100,000 as part of the first phase, to work alongside government and undertake feasibility studies into their proposed solutions.
 
“This program is about leveraging our incredible local businesses to improve social, environmental, health and economic outcomes while also creating high-value jobs, which will help grow the economy and secure a brighter future for NSW,” Mr Henskens said.
 
“The SBIR program has already seen 10 exciting new technologies, addressing a wide range of issues, progress to a proof-of-concept phase. This next round of the program will deliver more solutions and outcomes for our community.”
 
Challenge areas outlined for round two of the program include:
 

• Biosecurity Surveillance Challenge – NSW Department of Primary Industries is seeking innovative technology solutions that leverage the power of citizen surveillance to more accurately identify and validate threats to the biosecurity of primary industries and the environment in NSW.
• School Zones Alerting System Challenge – Transport for NSW is seeking innovative solutions to improve the existing School Zones Alerting System to further improve road safety around schools.
• Vital Sign Monitoring Challenge – Corrective Services NSW is seeking non-invasive technology solutions to monitor the vital health signs of inmates while in their cells. This technology will be used to monitor ‘at-risk’ inmates and help prevent inmates committing self-harm, which could result in suicide.
• Recycled Content Verification Challenge – The Office of Energy and Climate Change is seeking a solution that could trace and verify recycled material to help NSW Government agencies procure local recycled products.
• Waste Recovery and Management Challenge – NSW Health is seeking resource recovery technologies and waste management solutions that: offer an innovative design for new facilities; redesign and reconfigure existing facilities; and uncover ways of modernising our waste collection and processing systems separation and collection of waste that can be implemented across NSW Health.
• Cultural and Linguistic Diversity Services Challenge – NSW Health is seeking Artificial Intelligence powered solutions to support the delivery of health services to Culturally and Linguistically Diverse communities. 
• Urban Heat Island Challenge – the Greater Cities Commission is seeking innovative solutions that could be trialled at the Westmead Health and Innovation District to mitigate urban heat island effects and/or improve the resilience of our systems in response to extreme heat events.

 
Minister for Small Business Victor Dominello said the program is harnessing the power of local innovation and supporting small businesses by investing in ideas to grow high-tech industries now and into the future. 
 
“Small businesses are a vital pillar of our economy, and this funding will help many SMEs to realise their potential and make the difficult leap from great ideas to commercial products and services that meet critical needs,” Mr Dominello said. 
 
Proof-of-concept grants will be available to businesses that complete a successful feasibility study. Full details of the program and how to apply can be found online.

A $7.9 million investment will help the dairy industry recover and rebuild from floods, and better prepare for future natural disasters.
 
The Dairy Sector Recovery Strategy will help the dairy industry recuperate and build long-term resilience after the February-March flooding event earlier this year.
 
Funding provided from the jointly Commonwealth and NSW Government-funded Storm and Flood Industry Recovery Program (Sector Recovery and Resilience Grants) under the Disaster Recovery Funding Arrangements and $1.6 million from industry co-contributions will help the sector get back on its’ feet.
 
The funding will deliver 12 projects across three working packages focusing on:

• Better Response and Short-Term Recovery
• Better Preparedness, Lower Risk and Improved Resilience
• Supporting Industry Development

For more information about the Dairy Strategy for Sector Recovery Program, please visit: www.nsw.gov.au/regional-nsw/regional-recovery-programs/storm-and-flood-recovery/sector-recovery-and-resilience-grant

More students than ever before are set for a cooler summer as the rollout of the first dedicated school air-conditioning program continues to deliver for public schools across NSW. 
 
The $500 million Cooler Classrooms Program, which began in 2018, is being rolled out to 1,000 NSW public schools and prioritising those in the hottest parts of the state. 
 
Minister for Education and Early Learning Sarah Mitchell joined Member for Holsworthy Melanie Gibbons at Lurnea High School, which was added to the program earlier this year. 
 
Ms Mitchell said the five-year program has prioritised some of our hottest schools, improving the learning environments for both students and teachers. 
 
“So far through our Cooler Classroom Program we’ve delivered air-conditioning to more than 7,100 learning spaces and 460 libraries,” Ms Mitchell said.  
 
“We know how important it is to provide students with a comfortable learning environment and this investment has seen works completed at more than 570 schools, with another 420 underway.” 
 
Ms Gibbons said this ensures that students in Lurnea, and right across NSW, are benefitting from this investment.
 
“Students at Lurnea High School students will soon have to access to more comfortable learning spaces in the summer and winter. 
 
“It’s all thanks to the Liberals and Nationals in government, investing in every aspect of our public schools. From fresh paint jobs to air-conditioning and security fencing to accessibility works, this government understands the importance of maintaining and upgrading our schools.” 
 
The program also improves the air quality of indoor spaces and libraries with “smart systems” that offer heating, cooling and the provision of outside fresh air to ensure adequate ventilation at all times.  
 
Where feasible, solar PV systems and battery storage technology is being installed to offset energy usage. More than 210 systems have been installed with a further 460 underway. 
 
The NSW Government is investing $8.6 billion in school infrastructure over the next four years, continuing its program to deliver 160 new and upgraded schools to support communities across NSW. This builds on the more than $9.1 billion invested in projects delivered since 2017, a program of $17.7 billion in public education infrastructure. This is the largest investment in public education infrastructure in the history of NSW. 

Documents reveal executive positions within the Education Department has ballooned from 305 in 2019 to 354 in 2022 – a 16 per cent increase in the last 3 years, at the same time as they are unable and unwilling to deal with the teacher shortage crisis and teacher pay.  
 
The number of executive directors increased from 34 to 58 in the span of three years, while there has been an additional Deputy Secretary added since 2019. The midpoint salary of an Executive Director is $324,250 while the midpoint for a Deputy secretary is $435,275.
 
The ballooning bureaucratic team contrasts with Minister for Education Sarah Mitchell and her department’s teacher recruitment program. The number of teachers in schools grew just five per cent, from 66,801 to 70,279.
 
In September 2021 the NSW Government promised under their Recruitment Beyond NSW that “460 teachers will be recruited between 2022-23”.
 
However as of Term Four 2022, only three teachers had successfully been recruited.
 
As at 10 October 2022 (start of Term 4, 2022) there were 2,458.70 FTE vacant permanent teaching positions.
 
In Parliament, the Minister for Education Sarah Mitchell defended the program saying: “The reality is that this is a good program.” 
 
In fact, Sarah Mitchell even tried to refute her own Government’s data saying: “For Labor to use these to claim that there is some kind of shortage of thousands and thousands of teachers is just not true. The data doesn’t stack up”
 
Well, as they teach you in school, the numbers don’t lie.
 
Only 27 teachers have been hired across all 2,216 public schools under the entire Teacher Supply Strategy. We now also know that:

• 20 of these are existing teachers in the FASTstream program, a program which includes reducing teachers to a part-time teaching load while putting them on a pathway to become principals.
• The remaining 7 are casual teachers working under the Casual Supplementation Program – a program that is meant to provide 260 remote, regional and rural NSW schools with a “dedicated local pool of relief teachers”.
• Minister Mitchell also refused to confirm if any of the teachers hired has a maths speciality, despite the current shortage of maths teachers.

NSW Labor Leader Chris Minns:
 
“This is just proof that after 12 years in power the Perrottet Government has run out of ideas on how to fix the teacher shortages.”
 
“The Perrottet Government has been great at recruiting department staff, and abysmal at getting teachers into classrooms.”

NSW Labor has a plan for a better NSW education system for a better future for our kids.

 “Labor will stop the class cancellations by making 10,000 existing casual teachers permanent to give them the security of job they are asking for to stay in teaching.”And we’ll reduce the admin burden of teachers by 5 hours a week to ensure teachers are in classrooms not bogged down by paperwork.”

NSW Deputy Labor Leader and Shadow Minister for Education Prue Car:
 
“The results speak for themselves – this tired  12-year-old government has become internally focused and lost sight of the severity of the teacher shortages”
 
“Every day across NSW classes are being merged or cancelled and children are sitting on playgrounds instead of learning maths or English – yet Minister Mitchell and her bureaucratic team continue to oversee an exodus of teachers from classrooms.”
 

Liberal candidate for Ryde, Jordan Lane, welcomed the Perrottet Government’s announcement of a new high school and primary school for Macquarie Park. Jordan said that the local area has been experiencing rapid growth, and a lot of effort is required to ensure that services and infrastructure keep up.

“As Ryde grows, local families need more amenities, green spaces and school spaces,” said Mayor Lane. “We are incredibly fortunate to have had a strong local representative in Victor  Dominello, who’s been able to recognise what our community needs and deliver it.”

“The Perrottet Government has recognised this community’s need, and has committed to delivering the Macquarie Park Education Campus, providing a new K-12 school in the growing area.”

The Liberal Member for Ryde, Victor Dominello, said the school developments in Macquarie Park would further transform Ryde into an education and employment powerhouse.

“We want to broaden the options for educational facilities so that the schools can be located in the optimal place to meet student demand,” Mr Dominello said.

“There is also tremendous opportunity for these schools to support their surrounding communities and to be part of a diverse mix of cultural, health and community facilities along with developments for commercial and residential use,” 

“The need for this education campus is all the more pronounced given the former Labor Government closed Peter Board High School and sold the land.” 

The Department of Education is partnering with Landcom to build the two schools as the Lachlan Line site offers the best location to:

• meet population growth demand in Macquarie Park
• cater for forecasted student enrolment to 2036
• take advantage of strong public transport links.

Minister for Education and Early Learning Sarah Mitchell said that the development of the Macquarie Park Education Campus is a priority for the NSW Government.

“Development of the campus will also provide opportunities for the government to partner with the private sector to drive the transformation of Macquarie Park, creating new jobs and investment opportunities for business, innovation, research and education,” Ms Mitchell said. 

“The NSW Government continues to invest in public education infrastructure with 118 new and upgraded schools under way, including the new Macquarie Park Education Campus.” 

The NSW Government is investing $8.6 billion in school infrastructure over the next four years, continuing its program to deliver 160 new and upgraded schools to support  communities across NSW. This builds on the more than $9.1 billion invested in projects delivered since 2017, a program of $17.7 billion in public education infrastructure. This is the largest investment in public education infrastructure in the history of NSW.
 

Road safety will be the focus of a new Parliamentary Inquiry as part of the NSW Government’s commitment to zero road deaths by 2050.
 
Minister for Metropolitan Roads Natalie Ward said the NSW Government will initiate an inquiry in the next term of Government to look at whether the Road Transport Act 2013 can be improved, particularly when it comes to dangerous drivers.
 
“This inquiry will hear directly from those impacted by dangerous driving so we can ensure this legislation is fit for purpose on an issue that is devastating for victims, families and the wider community,” Mrs Ward said.
 
“In 2021 we recorded the lowest road death toll in NSW in 99 years but every death is still one too many, which is why we’re committed to doing everything we can to prevent deaths and serious injury on our roads.
 
“I thank the Road Trauma Support Group NSW for its valuable feedback and advocacy on this important issue on behalf of families and victims of serious road crime.”
 
Minister for Regional Transport and Roads Sam Farraway said the inquiry will consider the current licensing system in NSW.
 
“Country people make up around a third of NSW’s population but over the past five years, deaths on country roads have made up 67 per cent of lives lost on all roads,” Mr Farraway said.
 
“A death in a country town extends beyond the immediate family to the local cop who attends the scene, to the community who sees one less familiar face around.
 
“These are the impacts that I want drivers on our regional roads to think about the every time they get behind the wheel.
 
“Our aim is to prevent drivers from committing offences and engaging in dangerous behaviour in the first place to stop these preventable deaths.”
 
The Inquiry will complement the Law Reform Commission’s review of serious road crime and the experiences of victims of serious road crime and their families, announced by the Attorney General on 11 November 2022. 
 
In addition, on 17 November 2022, the NSW Government passed the Motor Accident Injuries Amendment Bill 2022 which enables the State Insurance Regulatory Authority to establish a trauma support service for families of those who have been injured or killed because of a motor accident. This new service will provide support in the period after the accident and will connect and guide those impacted by the incident.

All 101 recommendations of the Infrastructure NSW State Infrastructure Strategy 2022-2042: Staying Ahead will be supported in full or in-principle by the NSW Government.
 
Minister for Infrastructure Rob Stokes said the nine key strategic directions and 89 recommendations would be supported in full, while the remaining 13 recommendations are supported in-principle.
 
“The fortunes of NSW have been transformed on the back of this  government’s 11 years of infrastructure delivery, with more than $178 billion in projects built since 2011 and another $112.7 billion in the pipeline over the next four years,” Mr Stokes said.
 
“Throughout that time, the Government has sought the clear-eyed and independent advice of Infrastructure NSW to guide the allocation of taxpayers’ funds towards the projects that are needed most.
 
“By accepting the recommendations of the strategy, NSW will continue to enjoy the economic benefits that infrastructure creates.”
 
Transformative megaprojects will continue in addition to a wide range of less complex projects which can be delivered more easily by local construction companies.
 
“We are determined to transform NSW through infrastructure that creates opportunity, improves access and makes people’s lives better,” Mr Stokes said.
 
The State Infrastructure Strategy sets out the government’s priorities for the next 20 years, and combined with Future Transport 2056, The Greater Cities Region Plan and the 20-Year Economic Vision for Regional NSW, brings together infrastructure investment and land-use planning for our cities and regions.
 
The Government’s response to the Strategy is available online here.

From the sandstone-studded streets of Balmain to the vibrant nightlife of Newtown, motorists can now pay and top up for parking at almost 1800 parking spots with just the tap of a button as the Inner West Council becomes the latest to integrate the Park’nPay app.

Minister for Customer Service and Digital Government Victor Dominello said the innovative app has transformed the way motorists pay for parking and offers a simple solution for a better way to park.

“Park’nPay will take the hassle out of parking for visitors to the Inner West by eliminating the need to go to a parking meter and allowing motorists to pay and top up for a space with just the tap of their phone,” Mr Dominello said.

“The Inner West has an incredibly diverse range of shops, restaurants, and music venues and this technology will make it easier for people to get out and explore everything the area has to offer.”

Mr Dominello said the app has been downloaded more than 135,000 times since its launch in 2019 with more than 91 per cent giving the technology the thumbs up.

“Whether you’re catching up for coffee with friends in Rozelle or going out for dinner with family in Leichardt, the app will save motorists time and provide them with more convenience.”

“I would like to sincerely thank Inner West Council for getting on board and supporting this important technology.”

Park’nPay is available in a number of locations including The Rocks, Ryde, Cumberland, Liverpool, Mosman, Central Coast, Hunters Hill, Burwood, The Northern Beaches, Port Stephens, Willoughby, Armidale and NSW National Parks.

The app also provides information on real-time parking availability for 21 Transport for NSW Commuter Carparks, locations of electric vehicle charging stations and more than 18,000 private driveways to rent. 
For more information visit: https://parknpay.nsw.gov.au

Adopting emerging technologies could boost Gross State Product (GSP) by an additional 11.8 per cent to 2035, which is equivalent to $11,600 per person or $27,400 a household.

New technologies could lift the state’s productivity growth to two per cent a year, whilegovernment annual own-source revenues could also grow by as much as $4.5 billion by 2034-35.  

Treasurer Matt Kean said the new Adaptive NSW: How embracing tech could recharge our prosperity report outlines how harnessing technology can raise living standards for people across the state.

“NSW, like much of the world, faces a productivity challenge due to declining workforce participation caused by an ageing population and interrupted migration due to COVID-19. This is why we need to look at new ways to foster economic growth,” Mr Kean said.

“The world is on the threshold of enormous technology opportunity and a suite of emerging technologies could recharge NSW’s productivity growth for years to come.

“This improved productivity could deliver additional revenue for the state to invest in new schools, hospitals and other infrastructure.” 

Emerging tech could power over a decade of robust economic growth, lifting GSP growth to three per cent a year until 2034-35, according to the joint report released today by the NSW Productivity Commission and the NSW Innovation and Productivity Council.

Minister for Science, Innovation and Technology Alister Henskens said the report shows that as more organisations adopt automation, new jobs will be created across NSW in expanding and new industries, which will help grow the economy and secure a brighter future for NSW.

“Equipping a tech-focused workforce and encouraging the adoption of emerging technology sits alongside our government’s strong support for a world-class research and innovation ecosystem,” Mr Henskens said.

“There is a growing need to improve our digital readiness and through programs such as Driving Digital Skills and TAFE NSW’s Institute of Applied Technology, we are equipping the next generation with the skills they need to ensure NSW remains at the forefront of the booming tech industry.”

NSW Productivity Commissioner Peter Achterstraat AM said the report shows that a forward-looking approach is needed to encourage rather than stifle the uptake of emerging technologies. 

“This means embracing technology to improve public services and supporting private sector tech adoption with smart regulation,” Mr Achterstraat said.

For the full report, please visit: https://www.productivity.nsw.gov.au/adaptive-nsw-embracing-tech.