Category: NSW News

Business owners in Sydney’s CBD and surrounding suburbs are today invited to get involved in the largest light festival in the Southern Hemisphere, Vivid Sydney, and apply for the Vivid Sydney’s Local Business Program.
 
Minister for Tourism Ben Franklin said Vivid Sydney’s Local Business Program would support the local business community and encourage festival attendees to dine, shop, spend, stay and experience the Harbour City.
 
“Sydney is well and truly open for business, and we’re calling on our retailers, hoteliers, hospitality groups, entertainment, travel and tourism operators in the Sydney CBD and surrounding suburbs to join the Local Business Program and truly immerse themselves in Vivid Sydney,” Mr Franklin said.
 
“Each year, Vivid Sydney brings something bigger and brighter to wow the hundreds of thousands of people who visit each year. This program is a fantastic opportunity for business owners to expose themselves to a large audience of potential new customers.
 
“Nominations open today and interested parties are invited to present ideas, special offers and experiences for inclusion in the 2023 Vivid Sydney Local Business Program.”
 
Participants are encouraged to host a one-of-a-kind Vivid Sydney experience, exclusive offer or light up building façades or Harbour vessels over the festival with assistance from Vivid Sydney.
 
The return of Vivid Sydney in 2022 saw Sydney hotels experience their best weekend occupancy rates since 2019, according to figures released by Tourism Accommodation Australia, with bookings jumping to above 80 per cent for the first time since the pandemic began.
 
In 2022, more than 650,000 Vivid Sydney attendees dined out in a CBD restaurant or hotel while 2.1 million enjoyed a sit-down or takeaway meal.
 
Vivid Sydney 2023 will light up Sydney from Friday 26 May to Saturday 17 June. Applications can be made here and closes on 17 November 2022.

Families across NSW will be able to access cheaper, high quality childcare after the legislation underpinning the Government’s landmark women’s economic opportunity reforms passed Parliament.
 
The NSW Childcare and Economic Opportunity Fund Act 2022 will drive up to $5 billion of investment in the sector over 10 years to support NSW families with access to childcare.
 
Treasurer Matt Kean said the legislation would provide long-term certainty to the sector and boost women’s workforce participation as part of the NSW Government’s $15.9 billion investment in childcare and early childhood education.
 
“We have enshrined this fund into law to give more NSW families access to high quality, affordable childcare. Importantly, it will boost women’s economic security by dismantling the barriers for mothers wanting to take on more paid work,” Mr Kean said.
 
“These landmark reforms will help create new places in childcare deserts for parents who face the highest disincentives to work.”
 
The NSW Government’s investment in childcare and early childhood education, delivered alongside the Commonwealth’s childcare reforms, are expected to allow up to 95,000 women to enter the workforce or take on more hours and boost affordable childcare supply by up to 47,000 places.  
 
Minister for Women Bronnie Taylor said the Fund added to other measures announced in the 2022-23 NSW Budget to transform women’s economic opportunity, boost women’s workplace participation and tackle the gender pay gap.
 
“This fund will help close the gender workforce participation gap by up to 14 per cent within a decade and give more women the genuine choice to re-enter the workforce when they want,” Mrs Taylor said.
 
Minister for Education and Early Learning Sarah Mitchell said the Fund will allow the early childhood sector to expand and innovate by establishing new services, growing existing services, and supporting the sector more broadly.
 
“Access to high quality early childhood education and care is one of the most important things we can do to give children the best start in life, helping young children develop their social skills and open up lifelong opportunities from their earliest years,” Ms Mitchell said.
 
“This fund will guarantee investment in this key sector, supporting it to provide the highest quality of education and care during the formative years of a child’s life.”
 
The NSW Government will conduct extensive consultation with families and the sector to design the rollout of the Childcare and Economic Opportunity Fund. A board will be established to oversee funding decisions about projects. 
 
The fund is due to open for applications mid-next year.

At least 10,000 temporary teachers and support staff across the state will be offered permanent roles as part of the NSW Government’s plans to shift surplus teachers into permanent positions.  
  
A successful pilot scheme last year saw temporary teachers offered permanent roles in schools where there was demand. 
  
Minister for Education and Early Learning Sarah Mitchell confirmed that from early next year, temporary teachers in areas of need will be offered permanent roles once again. 
  
“This is an issue that has been raised with me by teachers and principals alike, including our Ambassador School Principals when we met earlier this year, and I made it clear that I wanted to have more teachers in permanent roles,” Ms Mitchell said.  
  
“As such, the Department of Education has been working to identify teachers and support staff in temporary roles who could be transitioned. At least 10,000 roles have been identified and the Department will continue to work directly with principals to identify more. 
  
“The pandemic allowed us to bypass the existing staffing agreement to work on responsible ways of converting excess temporary teachers to permanent positions.
  
“We have more teachers working in NSW public schools than ever before, and we need to ensure they are working in the places we need them most.  
  
“Progress in this area has been hampered due to the current Staffing Agreement with the union, which has limited the ability to offer temporary teachers a permanent position. However, I am determined to see more teachers in permanent roles across the state and will press ahead regardless. 
  
Ms Mitchell also confirmed plans to convert temporary Student Learning Support Officers (SLSO) roles into permanent positions.  
  
“Our Student Learning Support Officers are critical – they play a vital role in our schools alongside our teachers, often working with our more disadvantaged students and those who have additional needs.  
  
“We want to give those SLSOs on temporary contracts more certainty by also offering them permanent roles.” 
 
This latest action is in addition to the NSW Government’s ongoing $125m Teacher Supply Strategy to attract and retain more teachers in our schools.  
  
The Government has already announced programs to fast track high-calibre graduates and experienced professionals into our classrooms, recruit more teachers from overseas and plans to reward our best teachers with higher salaries in order to keep them in the classroom.   

The NSW Government thanks the more than 850,000 carers across NSW for their significant work as we celebrate the 30^th anniversary of National Carers Week.
 
Minister for Families and Communities and Minister for Disability Services Natasha Maclaren-Jones said National Carers Week is an opportunity to recognise the crucial support that carers provide and to thank them for their contribution to our community.
 
“This year’s theme ‘Millions of Reasons to Care’ is a testament to the endless hours of support NSW carers provide,” Mrs Maclaren-Jones said.
 
“Caring for a loved one takes unimaginable dedication and patience and this is a week to highlight the vital work they do.
 
“These selfless individuals in our community don’t look for thanks and praise but their incredible efforts need to be celebrated.”
 
In NSW, carers provide help to people with disability, mental illness, chronic illness, frail age, dementia or drug and alcohol dependency. Almost 80,000 carers are young people 25 years or younger.
 
NSW carer Levina provides care and support for her younger brother.
 
“My little brother has autism and is non-verbal. I’ve basically been his carer all his life. There are some tough moments but nothing brings me more joy than seeing him live his life to the fullest – happy, healthy and thriving. He’s my best friend,” Levina said.
“Carers should know they’re not alone. There are so many of us out there who are in the same boat as you. Just remember your wellbeing is as important as the person you care for.”
 
The NSW Government has committed $4.9 million to support carers as part of the NSW Carers Strategy 2020-2030.
 
Support is available through the Carers Gateway. Visit www.carergateway.gov.au or call 1800 422 737.
 
National Carers Week runs from Sunday 16 to Saturday 22 October 2022.

The latest State of the Beaches report has revealed 94 per cent of monitored ocean beaches and 80 per cent of all monitored swimming spots are graded as good or very good.
 
The annual report provides an overview of water quality at 214 swimming locations across the State, which are monitored under the NSW Government’s Beachwatch and Beachwatch Partnership programs.
 
Minister for Environment James Griffin said State of the Beaches has five categories of water quality rating: very good, good, fair, poor or very poor.

“Despite the wettest summer in a decade, and Sydney’s wettest year on record, there’s been only a slight decline on last year’s results,” Mr Griffin said. 
 
“In 2021–22, 172 (80 per cent) of the 214 swimming sites in NSW were graded as good or very good, indicating they were suitable for swimming most of the time.
 
“With more than 85 per cent of people in NSW living within 50 kilometres of the coast, heading to a local swimming spot is a way of life for many of us.
 
“We’ve been running the Beachwatch monitoring program since 1989, and we know how important it is for providing confidence to the people of NSW, which is why we announced in the NSW Budget that we’re expanding the Beachwatch Partnership program with $18.5 million over 10 years.” 
 
Rainfall is the major driver of pollution in recreational waters, as it generates storm water runoff and triggers discharges from wastewater treatment systems.
 
Many estuarine, lake and lagoon swimming sites did not perform as well as ocean beaches as they are more susceptible to wet weather impacts.
 
State of the Beaches 2021-22 found:

• 94 per cent of the 123 ocean beaches were graded as ‘good’ or ‘very good’
• all five ocean baths were graded as ‘good’ or ‘very good’
• 68 per cent of the 69 estuarine swimming sites were graded as ‘good’ or ‘very good’
• 24 per cent of the 17 lake/lagoon swimming sites were graded as ‘good’ or ‘very good’.

 
The Beachwatch program works by routinely collecting water from swimming sites and testing for bacteria as an indicator of contamination.
 
Beachwatch also issues daily early morning forecasts for the predicted water quality at 160 swim site in Sydney, Hunter, Central Coast and Illawarra regions.
 
The 2021-22 State of the Beaches report can be viewed at: https://www.environment.nsw.gov.au/topics/water/beaches/reporting-beach-water-quality/state-of-the-beaches
 
Daily Beachwatch pollution forecasts and weekly star ratings for beaches across NSW can be found at www.environment.nsw.gov.au/beachwatch and on Twitter and Facebook.

Camden and Campbelltown residents will benefit from new walking trails and bike tracks, refreshed high streets, an educational animal hub and a huge new sports complex thanks to the $5 billion WestInvest Fund.
 
Premier Dominic Perrottet, Treasurer Matt Kean, Minister for Western Sydney David Elliott and Minister for Local Government Wendy Tuckerman today announced the City of Campbelltown Council and Camden Council will receive more than $50 million in WestInvest funding for 13 transformational projects.
 
In Camden, $24 million has been allocated to two projects:
$14 million for the Cut Hill Reserve Sports Field Redevelopment project that will renew 18.5 hectares of public open space to deliver new recreation opportunities.
$10 million for the Camden Animal Shelter and Community Education Hub project to transform an industrial area into a community-focused shelter.
 
In Campbelltown, $26 million has been allocated to 11 projects:
$7.5 million for the Campbelltown City Centre Transformation project to revitalise the Queen Street precinct with new pedestrian links and event spaces.
$3.8 million for Macarthur Recreation Trail – Australian Botanic Garden, Mt Annan to Campbelltown project to enhance the green trail.
$2.5 million for the Glenfield Town Beautification project to reinvigorate the city centre and provide a safer, more inviting and engaging environment.
$2.3 million for the Connected Campbelltown – A network of shared use pathway links and circuits project to deliver 7.75km of recreation trails
$2.2 million for the Hurley Park – Early stories of Campbelltown’s Resilience project to restore one of the last convict-built structures in NSW
$1.5 million for the Simmos Beach Parklands – Activating the Upper Georges River project to enhance quality green space and support recreation
$1.4 million for the Kanbyugal Parklands – Mountain Bike Park project to convert an underutilised parcel of land into an inclusive mountain bike facility
$1.3 million for the Leumeah Youth Precinct project, a vibrant and active hub
$1.3 million for the Glenfield Urban Bike Park to deliver a BMX track for more facilities for wheeled activities
$977,880 for the St Helens Park Youth Space to deliver four BMX tracks
$681,063 for the Outdoor Fitness Facilities Program – For a Fitter Healthier Campbelltown project to upgrade outdoor fitness equipment at four sites.
 
Campbelltown City Council will contribute $460,480 towards the Macarthur Recreation Trail and the Simos Beach Parklands projects.
 
As part of the WestInvest Fund, $2 billion was reserved for priority Community Projects. This included $400 million for 15 Local Government Areas (LGAs) in West and South West Sydney, with each local council eligible for between $20 million and $35 million, depending on population size.
 
Mr Perrottet said the projects put forward by the Camden and Campbelltown councils would help build a brighter future for the people of Western Sydney.
 
“The Cut Hill Reserve Sports Field Redevelopment project will renew 18.5ha of green space with two double playing fields to support the many nearby sporting codes including archery, AFL, soccer, rugby and cricket clubs,” Mr Perrottet said.
 
Mr Kean said the Connected Campbelltown project will deliver 7.75km of new recreation links between key open spaces in highly-populated areas to allow more locals to get active.
 
“The Macarthur Recreation Trail project will build on existing links to connect Camden CBD, through the Australian Botanic Garden Mt Annan, to Campbelltown Train Station and CBD via Bow Bowing Creek, Western Sydney University and Macarthur Station,” Mr Kean said.
 
Mrs Tuckerman said the Camden Animal Shelter and Community Education Hub project in Smeaton Grange will transform an industrial works depot into a sustainable animal shelter.
 
“Councils have responsibility for pounds and animal shelters, so this project will set a new national standard for sustainable shelter design, embody shelter medicine principles and have a significant focus on community outreach.”
 
Mr Elliott said the funding for Simmos Beach Parklands will enhance the popular spot along the upper Georges River Corridor.
 
“The project will deliver viewing decks to ensure Simmos beach parklands remains a favourite destination to relax, exercise and cool down in summer,” Mr Elliott said.
 
Member for Camden Peter Sidgreaves said it is great to see WestInvest delivering community projects for Camden, Macarthur and Western Sydney.
 
“These projects are fast tracking council projects that support the local residents in our communities,” Mr Sidgreaves said.
 
Camden Mayor Therese Fedeli said the council is grateful the NSW Government is supporting it in delivering such key facilities and spaces.
 
“The Camden Animal Shelter and Education Hub will create employment, volunteer and partnership opportunities for our community and the Cut Hill Reserve project will extend the space’s capacity for use for new and existing users,” Cr Fedeli said.
 
Campbelltown Mayor George Greiss said his council is looking forward to getting the work underway to deliver 11 great projects across the city.
 
“Our community has told us that they want more greenery and active spaces in our public domain that respect and honour the heritage of our region,” Cr Greiss said.
 
“These projects reflect those community aspirations while increasing connectivity across the city, delivering recreation and lifestyle benefits for our new communities and also embellishing established suburbs.”
 
Announcements on other LGAs will be made soon.
 
The $5 billion WestInvest program was made possible by the Government’s successful WestConnex asset recycling strategy.
 
A further $1.6 billion from the $2 billion Community Project Grants is available to local community groups. A total of $3 billion is also set aside to deliver transformational projects that will benefit local communities, led by NSW Government agencies.
 
To find out more about WestInvest visit www.nsw.gov.au/grants-and-funding/westinvest

A Minns Labor Government will build new trains right here in New South Wales and will begin the procurement process for the next set of trains to replace the ageing Tangara fleet in its first term.

This will create at least 1000 secure, long-term jobs during the design and build phase, and many more in maintenance jobs over the design life of the new trains. 

It will also be the beginning of a long-term pipeline of manufacturing work and form the basis for the return of a sustainable rail manufacturing industry in New South Wales which will continue after the replacement of the Tangara fleet.

The Tangaras have already had their service extended by ten years beyond their design life and will reach their final end of service life by 2027.

The pipeline will continue once the Tangaras are replaced with the replacement of the Millennium Trains which will reach their end of life by 2035.

Labor’s plan to bring back manufacturing to New South Wales stands in stark contrast to the NSW Liberal and National Government. 

Instead of backing domestic manufacturing, the NSW Government has chosen to purchase from overseas – leading to NSW missing out on thousands of job opportunities, and costing NSW taxpayers up to 40 to 50 per cent cost increases and delays.

What’s more, we’ve missed out on 4,000 more jobs due to offshoring of major infrastructure and transport projects as a result of decisions by the NSW Liberals.

This has to stop. We can’t rebuild an entire sector overnight – but we have to start somewhere.

It’s taken Victoria 7 years, but they have now supported 40,000 local jobs since 2014 as a direct result of their local procurement policies. It’s time for a new direction in New South Wales. 

Both the replacement of the Tangaras and the eventual replacement of the Millennium Trains will be guided by NSW Labor’s framework which will set a target of 50 per cent minimum local content for future rolling stock contracts by the end of Labor’s first term.

However, Labor’s 50 per cent local content targets will act as a floor, not as a ceiling, and any tender applicant that demonstrates that they will use a higher percentage of local content, or create more jobs in NSW, will be looked on favourably by the government in the tender process.

Labor will begin extensive consultation with the manufacturers across NSW to support local jobs, a thriving local manufacturing industry, and get better value for money for taxpayers, and will work with suppliers to help them establish more onshore capability which will lead to a thriving manufacturing industry with competition and longevity. 

NSW Labor Leader Chris Minns said:

The Liberals have always said that New South Wales is not good at building trains. They are wrong. NSW workers are great at building trains and under a Labor government we will build trains here again. 

“I am determined to bring back rail manufacturing to New South Wales after a decade of the Liberals sending thousands of jobs offshore and buying trains, trams and ferries filled with defects, faults and failures.”

NSW Shadow Minister for Transport Jo Haylen said:

“The choice for the people of New South Wales is clear. These new trains will need to be built one way or another. 

“If you vote Labor they will be built here in Australia and in NSW. If you vote for Dominic Perrottet and the Liberals, they will be built overseas, like all their other failed trains, trams and ferries.

“The list of defects, faults and failures in the government’s overseas built trains, trams and ferries is now beyond a joke and is causing cancelations, delays and serious passenger safety issues.

“Buying supposedly cheap overseas built transport infrastructure is simply not working. It hasn’t just cost thousands of NSW manufacturing jobs but has also cost NSW taxpayers billions of dollars.”

NSW Shadow Minister for Industry Anoulack Chanthivong said:

“This is part of Labor’s plan to revitalise our manufacturing industry and provide long term certainty and a pipeline of work for rail manufacturers across NSW.

“Labor’s plan will have a minimum 50 per cent local manufacturing content target when it comes to building the replacements for the Tangara and Millennium Train fleets, but that is a floor, not a ceiling and we want to reward companies that offer to do better.”

A Minns Labor Government will create 10,000 more permanent teaching roles in NSW by shifting temporary positions into permanent roles in a bid to stem teacher attrition rates.
 
This will give teachers the job security they need to stay in the profession; give schools the flexibility they need to deliver lessons; and give parents the confidence that their children will be taught by a teacher and not spend time in a merged classroom.
 
Under Labor’s plan, current resources that are going to temporary positions can be used to give teachers permanent places in the education system, and schools will have the ability to bring in the teachers they need based on their requirements.
 
This policy will ensure more teachers are readily available to fill gaps, helping to prevent the increasing teacher shortages schools are facing after 12 years of the NSW Liberals.
 
Temporary and casual teaching roles rise under Liberals
 
Since 2011 the NSW Liberal-National Government has moved to casualise the teaching profession.

Through policies such as Local Schools, Local Decisions, the Liberals and Nationals shifted responsibility of running the education system away to individual schools, leaving thousands of teachers without knowing whether they’d have a job next term, next year or even next week.
 
As a result the prevalence of temporary teaching roles has ballooned over the last decade.
 
In 2011, there were 11,695 full-time equivalent (FTE) temporary teaching positions in New South Wales.
 
But under the NSW Liberals, FTE temporary roles surged to 21,366 by 2021 – an 82 per cent increase.
 
Temporary or casual roles represent more than one in three of all teaching positions in the state – or 37 per cent.
 
Job insecurity cause of teacher attrition
 
Job insecurity is cited by more than a half of teachers – or 58 per cent – as a contributor to workforce problems, according to a NSW Parliament survey of teachers.
 
For young teachers without a permanent position, it makes it much more difficult to get finance for a home or a car – to lay down roots and to start a family.
 
60 per cent of teachers were also considering leaving the profession within the next 5 years, the survey also found.
 
In fact, just last year one in nine young teachers left the profession.
 
Declining education outcomes under the Liberals and Nationals
 
Between 2006 and 2018, NSW students have dropped from 6th to 23rd in reading, dropped from 9th to 31st in maths and dropped from 3rd to 23rd in science.
 
Chris Minns, NSW Labor Leader said:

Labor’s plan to bring permanency back to the NSW teaching workforce will help bring an end to the Liberals’ and Nationals’ teacher shortage.
 
“The parents and students of NSW deserve a government that will take decisive action to stop merged classes and turn around declining education outcomes.”
 
“We can’t have a situation where teachers are leaving our schools because they don’t know whether they will have a job next term, or next year. Teaching should be a job you want to stay in for your entire career.”

Prue Car, NSW Shadow Minister for Education said:
 
“The Liberals and Nationals have overseen the casualisation of the teaching profession on an industrial scale.
 
“This disastrous policy has led to a decline in education outcomes, student wellbeing and talented individuals leaving the profession in their thousands.
 
“Labor’s plan to boost permanent teaching roles will give teachers the confidence to remain in the profession and focus on delivering the best education for our children.”

Every child has the right to an education of the highest quality every day. That is what Labor believes and what has always guided us in the decisions we make.
 
Unfortunately, this government’s neglect and inaction has led to widespread teacher shortages which are having a detrimental impact in schools every single day.
 
If nothing is done these shortages will only worsen and more children will miss out.
 
At a time of rising enrolments there has already been a 30 per cent slide in the number of people studying to become teachers. Sixty per cent of teachers say they plan to leave teaching within five years.
 
This is a crisis that this government created and has no plan to fix.
 
It is a government that won’t listen to teachers, won’t address the real causes of the shortages and is unwilling to take the decisions necessary to secure the teaching workforce we need for the future.
 
The ongoing attempt by the Government to impose a three year Award on teachers at 2.53% on teachers while also failing to act on the excessive workloads experienced by teachers is wrong and will make an already bad situation worse.
 
This will not be the approach of a Labor Government. We are committed to putting forward a comprehensive education plan in the lead up to the March election.
 
We will listen to teachers and we will work with the union to address the teacher shortages and the crippling workloads that are forcing more and more people to walk away from the profession.
 
Over the last 10 years, the Liberal-National Government has undermined the independence of the Industrial Relations Commission (IRC). Labor has already committed to scrapping the Perrottet Government’s wages cap.
 
If we are elected in March, Labor will also instruct the Department of Education to immediately begin negotiations with the union. We expect a full bargaining period with a view to reaching a comprehensive agreement to reduce workloads and make salaries more competitive while protecting the NSW budget.
 
This can be achieved, if necessary, with the assistance of an independent Industrial Relations Commission who will have the capacity to assess salaries based on the changing nature of teachers’ work and its value to our society, using an interest-based bargaining framework.
 
The Crown Employees (Teachers in Schools and Related Employees) Salaries and Conditions Award would be reopened to reflect the agreement reached with the union.
 
The excessive administration workloads of teachers cannot be allowed to continue.
 
The blueprint for the change needed to rebuild and reposition the teaching service back to its rightful place is well documented in the Gallop Inquiry report.
 
We will have more to say before the election on the steps we will take to remove the red tape burden, give teachers the time to plan and allow teachers to focus on delivering the best education for every child.