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Penrith and Baulkham Hills ready for Junior State Titles

The State’s most promising and up-and-coming netballers will descend on the Penrith District and Baulkham Hills Shire Netball Associations this weekend for the 2024 HART Junior State Titles.

A flagship event on the Netball NSW calendar, the three-day tournament showcases the strength of grassroots netball with young players from all over the state coming together to play the game they love.

In total 2,344 players from 234 teams and 900 officials will hit the court with over 2,087 games to be played before State Champions are crowned.

In 2024, Penrith will host the following Divisions:

14U Divisions 1 & 2
13U Divisions 1 & 2
12U Divisions 1 & 2
14U Male Division 1
Meanwhile Baulkham Hills will welcome:
14U Divisions 3 & 4
13U Divisions 3 & 4
12U Divisions 3 & 4
The winners of Division 1 in each category will be named State Champions at the end of play.

“It is hard to express in words how much planning and effort goes into running an event of this scale across two venues, but netball has always been a leader in this space,” Netball NSW Chair Sallianne Faulkner said.

“It is the game’s huge volunteer workforce that merits special mention here, not just in Penrith and Baulkham Hills but at each Association represented at this year’s event.

“Many will travel huge distances to be here. They will do so with players, coaches, volunteers and supporters in hand. Of course, the weekend is just the culmination of many months of training and teamwork bonding they have been doing back home.

“And while there can only be one set of State Champions crowned in each category and age group, that shouldn’t detract from anyone’s enjoyment of this celebration of our game.

“I know some of the players we’ll see out on court will go on to become future stars of the NSW Swifts and GIANTS, perhaps even the Australian Diamonds or Aussie Kelpies. However, what is most important for now is that everyone enjoys the game.”

Netball NSW would like to thank HART Sport – Naming Rights Partners of the Junior State Titles – for their continued support of the game across the State.

Further thanks go to Penrith City Council who have partnered with Netball NSW for the delivery of the event at Penrith District Netball Association.

Man charged over alleged drug supply – Lake Macquarie PD

A man has been charged with several drug supply offences following an investigation into the supply of prohibited drugs in the state’s north.

In February 2024, police from Lake Macquarie Police District formed Strike Force Picatinny, to investigate the alleged supply of illegal drugs in the Lake Macquarie area.

On Wednesday 3 July 2024, following extensive investigations, police executed search warrants at homes in Windale and Gateshead, where they located a quantity of illegal drugs including commercial quantities of methylamphetamine, and other quantities of cocaine, heroin, 3,4-Methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA), cannabis, an amount of cash and other items which police will allege are proceeds of crime. The seized drugs have a combined street value of $150,000.

A 43-year-old man was arrested near the Gateshead property and was taken to Belmont Police Station where he was charged with thirty seven offences:

Thirty two counts of supply prohibited drug offences
Three counts of possess prohibited drug
Two counts of deal with proceeds of crime
He was refused bail to appear before Belmont Local Court today (Thursday 4 July 2024).

Sheriffs walk off the job over staffing crisis and poor pay 

Sheriffs in Newcastle, Gosford and the Hunter will stop work and protest outside Newcastle courthouse at 8.30am tomorrow over a staffing crisis and poor pay.

This action, which will last two hours, will have a severe impact on courts’ ability to function.

The Office of the Sheriff has difficulty recruiting and retaining Sheriffs due to the poor pay.

While Sheriffs’ duties have ballooned over the last decade their pay has failed to keep pace.

Sheriffs, (formally ‘Sworn uniformed Sheriff’s Officers’), both enforce the law and provide court security. 

Sheriffs are a crucial part of law enforcement. They enforce orders issued by NSW Local, District and Supreme Courts, the High Court, the Federal Court and Family Court.

Sheriffs enforce writs, serve warrants and Property Seizure Orders issued under the Fines Act 1996.

Their security duties involve maintaining the security of court complexes, many of which have airport-style perimeter security and scanning to ensure the safety of judges, magistrates, lawyers and the public. 

There are over 300 Sheriffs across the state attached to over 170 courthouses. Only 44 courthouses will be affected by tomorrow’s action.

Sheriffs have tried to play by the rules, said Stewart Little, General Secretary of the Public Service Association which represents Sheriffs, but they have just been ignored for over two years.

“In mid 2022 there was an agency restructure and the senior leadership of the Office of the Sheriff got a significant pay bump,” said Mr Little.

“In 2023 there was a review of Sheriffs’ pay but the report was never released under ‘cabinet in confidence’.

‘Sheriffs waited patiently, and were told the matter would be resolved in the 2024 budget, but when it was delivered in mid June nothing happened, and now they’ve been fobbed off again with some other made up bureaucratic process, so Sheriff’s have just had enough.

“Sheriffs are highly trained in what is risky and stressful work.

“Sheriffs need a solid pay bump to reflect the dangerous work they do, when enforcing court orders they’ll be entering people’s properties wearing stab proof vests, carrying capsicum spray, batons and handcuffs. It’s difficult work.

“Sheriffs put their lives on the line in courthouses to make sure judges, lawyers and members of the public are safe from crooks and criminals, yet they are paid the same as people with desk jobs and administration roles at the courthouse, it’s just not on,” said Mr Little.

Charge following unauthorised protest – Maitland

A man has been charged following an unauthorised protest near Maitland this morning.

About 4am (Wednesday 3 July 2024), police were called to the rail corridor at East Maitland following reports a person had allegedly entered the rail corridor and were causing obstruction to trains.

Officers attached to Port Stephens-Hunter Police District, with assistance from Police Rescue, attended the site and arrested a 22-year-old man from Queensland.

He was taken to Maitland Police Station where he was charged with enter enclosed non-agricultural lands – serious safety risk, cause obstruction to railway locomotive, and hinder working of mining equipment.

He was refused bail to appear before Maitland Local Court today (Wednesday 3 July 2024).

LABOR NOW ISOLATED ON SUPERMARKET DIVESTITURE

Labor is now isolated as the only party allowing the big supermarket corporations to continue to misuse their market power and price-gouge Australian shoppers, the Greens say.

“The Coalition’s support for divestiture powers in the supermarket sector makes this a moment of choice for Prime Minister Albanese. He can either keep holding hands with Coles and Woolworths, or he can side with Australian shoppers,” Greens Economic Justice Spokesperson Senator Nick McKim said.

“The Greens have long said that a more competitive supermarket sector would mean lower food and grocery prices. It is now only Labor standing in the way.”

“Cheaper food and genuine accountability for the anti-competitive behaviour of corporate supermarket giants is now within reach.”

“The Greens are proud to have led this debate, and to have helped highlight the need for divestiture through our recent Senate inquiry.”

“The numbers are now there to pass laws through the Senate. The Greens are ready and willing to work constructively to urgently deliver cheaper food and groceries.”

“Labor needs to stop supporting their corporate donors and actually work with the Parliament to deliver the powers we need to break up the supermarket duopoly, bring more competition to the supermarket sector and bring food prices down.”

Appointment of Ambassadors, High Commissioner, Consul-General and Special Representative

Today I am pleased to announce the appointment of five highly qualified individuals to lead Australia’s posts in Cambodia, Honolulu, Morocco, Nepal and Vanuatu.  

I am also pleased to announce the appointment of Ms Amanda McGregor as Australia’s next Special Representative on Afghanistan.

Based in Qatar, Ms McGregor will work with like-minded countries to call out the Taliban on its abuse of human rights and support the people of Afghanistan.

Our diplomats are the driver of Australia’s engagement with the world. They build influence and prosecute Australia’s national interests abroad.

These individuals will take up the following positions:

I thank the outgoing heads of mission, consul-general and the former Special Representative on Afghanistan for their contributions to advancing Australia’s interests.

Albanese failing to deliver 500 DV workers

The Albanese Government has again failed to meet its targets to deliver the 500 new frontline domestic violence workers it promised at the election.

After originally pledging to have 200 new workers on the ground by 30 June 2023, and delivering none, the Government revised that number to a target of 352 by 30 June 2024.

The Department of Social Services’ updated figures released today show the Albanese Government has failed to meet this target with only 94 of the promised 352 workers in place. This means only around a quarter of promised workers are in place against the revised targets.

There has been no change in the numbers in Victoria, New South Wales, Tasmania or the Australian Capital Territory since last month’s update. No state or territory has hit its targets.

This means despite repeated assurances from Anthony Albanese and the Minister for Social Services Amanda Rishworth, and universal calls from the community for increased spending on domestic violence supports, hundreds of critical domestic violence worker roles remain unfilled.

Deputy Leader of the Opposition and Shadow Minister for Women, Sussan Ley, called on Anthony Albanese to take responsibility for this failure.

“It has been over 770 days since Anthony Albanese took office and he has failed again and again when it comes to delivering the 500 domestic violence workers he promised,” the Deputy Leader said.

“Anthony Albanese needs to stand up and accept responsibility for failing to deliver the promised 500 new domestic violence workers and fix this. Regardless of your political views, if you care about action on domestic violence, you should expect the Prime Minister to deliver on his commitments here.

“As it stands it is unlikely we will see all 500 promised workers on the ground by the next election and that would be a black mark on this Prime Minister’s record.”

Shadow Minister for Child Protection and the Prevention of Family Violence Senator Kerrynne Liddle said every day without the promised frontline workers is a day too many.

“We know in households across Australia, people are experiencing greater intensity of violence or violence is new to their family experience. They should have had the resources that were announced to get their vote in 2022 to assist them,” Senator Liddle said.

These are not just figures, these are workers that should be on the ground supporting women and children experiencing family, domestic and sexual violence – supporting the LGBTIQA+ community, women with disability, culturally and linguistically diverse women and children, and First Nations people.

Australians were told women’s safety would be a priority for this government but instead we see a consistent failure to deliver the workers as promised. This is unacceptable.

Keeping supermarkets in check

The Coalition will stand up for Australian small businesses, farmers, and consumers by delivering stronger penalties for anti-competitive behaviour in the supermarket and hardware sectors.

Today, we announce the Coalition will introduce sector-specific divestiture powers as a last resort to manage supermarket behaviour and address supermarket price-gouging.

Divestiture powers will address serious allegations of land banking, anti-competitive discounting, and unfairly passing costs onto suppliers.

The time for this policy has come.

Inflation in Australia is high and rising, putting pressure on household budgets, and forcing families to make tough decisions.

Under the Albanese Labor Government – which promised the Australian people that life would be “cheaper” under Labor – food prices have actually increased by 11.4 per cent. The cost of everyday essentials at the supermarket checkout has increased. And this winter, many Australian families are choosing between heating or eating.

It doesn’t have to be this way.

The measures we announce today are about restoring fairness for consumers, for families, for suppliers, and for farmers.

The Coalition’s divestiture powers will have appropriate safeguards in place, ensuring divestiture won’t lead to a loss of jobs and services.

The Coalition will also strengthen the Food and Grocery Code by making it mandatory for supermarket chains with annual turnover of more than $5 billion for the current signatories – Woolworths, Coles, Aldi and Metcash. Supermarkets will face infringement notices of up to $2 million for contraventions of the Code.

Tougher civil penalties for supermarkets will apply to contraventions of the mandatory industry code, starting from $10 million.

These punitive penalties will be backed by a Supermarket Commissioner, who will act as an impartial confidential avenue for farmers and suppliers.

This new appointment will be created to address the fear retribution for speaking out against supermarkets. A Supermarket Commissioner will provide information and receive complaints, which can then be provided to the ACCC.

The Coalition believes families and consumers deserve access to affordable fresh food, and farmers and suppliers deserve fair prices – without supermarket interference or price-gouging.

The Coalition is committed to delivering competition policy which supports consumers and smaller businesses – not the big corporations and lobbyists.

Competitive markets benefit everyone by ensuring lower prices, creating more employment opportunities, and fostering innovation.

This policy aligns Australia with our major trading partners, ensuring Australians get a fairer go.

This is part of the Coalition’s plan to get Australia’s economy back on track.

City of Newcastle strengthens ties with three of its neighbours

City of Newcastle will take on greater leadership in NSW through new accords with Upper Hunter, Muswellbrook and City of Coffs Harbour councils. 

Newcastle has entered memoranda of understanding (MoU) with two of our Hunter neighbours, as well as fellow regional coastal council Coffs Harbour. 

IMAGE CAPTION: (l-r) Newcastle Lord Mayor Nuatali Nelmes, Upper Hunter Shire Mayor Maurice Collison and Muswellbrook Shire Mayor Steve Reynolds at a recent meeting of the Hunter Joint Organisation.Newcastle Lord Mayor Nuatali Nelmes, Upper Hunter Shire Mayor Maurice Collison and Muswellbrook Shire Mayor Steve Reynolds at a recent meeting of the Hunter Joint Organisation.

Newcastle Lord Mayor Nuatali Nelmes said the four councils will gain valuable expertise and a stronger collective voice from each MoU. 

“We’re in a unique position to both be a leader in the local government sector and to learn from the successes of other councils,” Cr Nelmes said.  

“As a financially sound and well-resourced council, we have plenty of success stories that are worth sharing and I look forward to exploring new opportunities through closer ties with our neighbours.

“Newcastle, Coffs Harbour, Muswellbrook and the Upper Hunter are each vital parts of our state, and we’re stronger, smarter and better off when we collaborate.” 

City of Newcastle Acting CEO David Clarke said the accords would pool the knowledge of each council in many areas of expertise.  

“We’re exploring opportunities to share insights and capabilities, as well as the potential for staff exchange program with our MoU partners, which is a golden way to share the rich expertise of each council and just one of the many benefits of these agreements,” Mr Clarke said. 

“We’ve already applied for grants in partnership with some of the councils to fund projects together and had had success working with the NSW Government. City of Newcastle’s CEO Jeremy Bath has worked hard on this and deserves a lot of credit.” 

As part of the MoU, City of Newcastle’s planning team has already met with their Muswellbrook and Upper Hunter counterparts to outline Newcastle’s award-winning Accelerated Development Assessment program. 

City of Newcastle has applied for grant funding to roll out Accelerated Development Assessment – its streamlined determination tool for low-impact developments – to its three new MoU partners over the next 12 months. 

In the past year, Newcastle and Coffs Harbour have worked together on a range of submissions to the NSW and federal governments on issues that affect both large coastal councils. 

Coffs Harbour Mayor Paul Amos said the coastal council areas’ similarities made them logical partners.  

“This is a tremendous opportunity for Coffs Harbour to work closely with Newcastle on all manner of things, and the MoU will be of particular advantage in areas where challenges are common to both councils,” Cr Amos said.  

“It makes every sense for Coffs and Newcastle to align as two major regional, coastal cities – each with ambition for continual improvement.  

 “While the MoU is non-binding on either council for any actions, it paves the way for a mutually beneficial partnership.” 

Muswellbrook Shire Mayor Steve Reynolds said his council saw its Newcastle MoU as mutually beneficial. 

“We look forward to working with the City of Newcastle and exploring opportunities for joint advocacy and funding prospects to benefit the region and enhance our capability,” Cr Reynolds said. 

“Improved efficiencies and learnings will support better outcomes across the board.” 

Upper Hunter Shire Mayor Maurice Collison said his council’s new accord would bring a suite of benefits.  

“By collaborating across boundaries, we can share valuable knowledge and resources, leading to enhanced service delivery and sustainable regional growth,” Cr Collison said. 

“This MoU represents our commitment to working together for the economic and social prosperity of our communities. Our combined efforts will ensure that we are better equipped to address the complex issues facing local government.” 

Six projects declared critical for NSW’s clean energy future

The NSW Government has declared six renewable energy projects Critical State Significant Infrastructure (CSSI) given their potential significance to the NSW economy.

The new projects, if approved, will help maintain the state’s critical energy security and continue the essential energy supply to homes and businesses during peak-demand periods as coal-fire sources close.

A CSSI declaration means a project is deemed essential to NSW for economic, social and environmental reasons with the Minister for Planning and Public Spaces being the consent authority.

A comprehensive all-of-government assessment will still need to be undertaken on the projects including exhibition and an opportunity for submissions from the public.

The three proposed transmission projects will connect additional renewable energy generators into the National Energy Market to attract further investment in NSW, while the three proposed pumped hydro projects will provide reliable energy generation, capacity and dispatchable power when solar or wind resources are unavailable.

The six CSSI projects are:

  • New England Renewable Energy Zone (REZ) Transmission:  Electricity transmission infrastructure to connect renewable energy generation and storage projects within the New England REZ to the existing electricity network.
  • Victoria NSW Interconnector:  Electricity transmission infrastructure to connect the HumeLink Project in NSW with the Western Victoria Transmission Network Project.
  • Mount Piper to Wallerawang Transmission: Electricity transmission infrastructure to strengthen connections between areas of renewable energy generation in the Central West Orana REZ and major electricity demand centres.
  • Stratford Pumped Hydro and Solar:  Pumped hydro and solar power facility which will take advantage of existing mine voids and infrastructure associated with Stratford Mining Complex due for closure in 2024.
  • Muswellbrook Pumped Hydro: Pumped hydro facility to use an existing mine void at the closed Muswellbrook Coal Mine site as the lower reservoir and a proposal to use an upper reservoir at Bells Mountain.
  • Lake Lyell Pumped Hydro:  Pumped hydro facility which will take advantage of existing infrastructure associated with the Mount Piper Power Station due for decommissioning in 2040.

Following the CSSI declaration, the Department of Planning, Housing and Infrastructure (DPHI) will issue Secretary’s Environmental Assessment Requirements to the proponent so they can prepare an Environment Impact Statement (EIS) for community feedback.

Since 2023, the Minns Government has approved 24 renewable energy State Significant Development assessments with a combined energy capacity to power 1.5 million homes.

There are currently up to 30 renewable energy projects under assessment. If approved, these projects could produce up to 12.1 GW of energy to power about 5.6 million homes.

A further 87 projects, including solar, wind, battery storage and pumped hydro projects are at various stages in the planning pipeline.

Minister for Planning and Public Spaces Paul Scully said:

“I have declared these six important projects as Critical State Significant Infrastructure as they are significant to the NSW economy, society and the environment.

“The substantive increase in renewable energy proposals signals trust from the wider industry in our Government’s capacity to move projects through the planning system.

“These projects will be subject to a comprehensive assessment which will include a period of public exhibition seeking submissions from the community.”