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NSW Government removes roadblock for rural firefighters protecting communities

The Minns Labor government has made it easier for the NSW Rural Fire Service (RFS) to close roads in fire emergencies ahead of a dangerous bushfire season, with legislation passing through NSW Parliament this week.

The approval of the Emergency Services Legislation Amendment Bill 2023 removes a requirement for the RFS to seek permission from Transport for NSW to close roads. It will see a return to the previous arrangement when the RFS only needed permission for closures relating to rail corridors.

In a previous amendment to the Rural Fires Act 1997, made under the Transport Administration Amendment (Transport Entities) Act 2017, Transport for NSW was listed as a “rail authority” under the Act. This change widened the requirement for the RFS to seek permission for emergency road closures to roads not associated with the operation of railways, creating operational consequences.

Identifying whether a road was under the control of Transport for NSW was an additional and complicating factor for the RFS to manage in protecting communities from fires.

While the RFS will no longer need to seek permission before closing roads, it will need to notify Transport for NSW in a timely manner after a road is closed.

The change comes as NSW enters what is expected to be the most challenging bushfire season in years, with hot and dry conditions predicted for summer and several bush and grass fires already burning across the state.

Minister for Emergency Services Jihad Dib said:

“This is a sensible move that removes a burdensome requirement for the RFS, which has the very important job of keeping communities safe this summer.

“We have already seen the early signs of a challenging fire season, with serious fires in the north and south of the state which have sadly resulted in the loss of 3 lives.

“This bill removes a requirement that was, in the first place, an unintended consequence of a legislative change. It makes sense to change it back.

“I am very proud of the work the more than 70,000 RFS volunteers do, and we are making sure they won’t be held up by an unnecessary administrative hurdle.”

NSW Government announces landmark industrial reforms

Nurses, paramedics, police, child protection workers, firefighters, cleaners and many more essential workers are set to benefit from landmark industrial reforms that will be introduced into Parliament today.

The reforms will remove the power to cap wages for good, future proofing the New South Wales industrial system against wage suppression.

The reforms will bring in a “mutual gains” model of negotiation, where agencies and unions will be required to sit down together to find mutually agreed improvements to the working lives of essential workers.

It will be supported by the Treasury’s productivity unit to link pay rises to improvements in public services.

The Industrial Relations Commission will instead be required to take into consideration the Government’s fiscal position and outlook.

The Industrial Relations Commission will also facilitate improvements to conditions while taking into account the fiscal position and outlook of the state.

As part of the reforms, an Industrial Court will have the power to bring unions and government agencies together at the negotiating table to resolve disputes.

Specialised judges will be appointed to hear and resolve workplace health and safety matters and underpayments. As of 18 October, 49 people have already died in workplaces in NSW, more than one death a week.

The reforms will lead to safer and more productive workplaces for every person in New South Wales.

Summary of Industrial Relations Amendment Bill 2023

  • Abolish section 146C which provides the government the power to regulate a wages cap.
  • Require the Industrial Relations Commission to consider “the fiscal position and outlook of the New South Wales Government”.
  • Establish a specialised Industrial Court and Commission, whose jurisdiction will include:
    • Issuing orders to resolve a dispute and issuing fines to ensure parties comply with those orders
    • Workplace health and safety
    • Underpayments
  • Establish a cooperative model of negotiation – “Mutual Gains Bargaining”.
  • Introduce a new objective for the Commission to consider attraction and retention issues.

What is Mutual Gains Bargaining?

Mutual Gains Bargaining is a new cooperative negotiation model for the government and the unions which represents the state’s workforce. It will be supported by the Treasury’s productivity unit to link pay rises to innovation and productivity in the delivery of essential public services.

Mutual Gains Bargaining is defined under the Act:

  • Mutual gains bargaining is to be a collaborative approach to bargaining
  • Parties to the bargaining are to identify and communicate their key needs to reach an agreement that maximises common interests and reconciles conflicted interests
  • The negotiations as consensus-seeking and the parties work together to solve problems
  • The bargaining aims to create, maintain or strengthen good relationships between parties

Minister for Industrial Relations, Sophie Cotsis said:

“Paramedics, nurses, teachers, police, firefighters, cleaners and many more workers are furious after having their pay capped for 12 years under the Liberal-Nationals. This reform stops that from happening again and delivers on Labor’s election promise to scrap the wages cap once and for all.

“Better public sector workplaces means better public services. If these reforms pass, schools, hospitals and many more public sector workplaces are set to improve. 

“These reforms won’t just benefit the state’s essential workers, they will improve workplace safety for millions in NSW by providing specialised health and safety judges.

International Men’s Day celebrations are a success

Over the weekend (Sunday 19 November), One Nation MPs and supporters gathered in both Adelaide and Brisbane to celebrate International Men’s Day.  

Both Senator Pauline Hanson and One Nation’s South Australian MP, Sarah Game, have called for a specific Minister for Men.  

All of our events were a huge success, with sold-out rooms and riveting speakers.  

The Brisbane event was hosted by Senator Malcolm Roberts, and the guest speaker was war veteran and hero, Heston Russell.  

Sarah Game hosted the Adelaide event with guest speakers Jim Whalley AO of Nova Systems, Prof Gary Wittert from the University of Adelaide, Will Frogley of Master Builders SA, Zane Kirkwood of Breakthrough Mental Health Research Foundation, and Chris McDermott from the Little Heroes Foundation.  

Senator Hanson and Sarah Game have called for a Men’s ministry in response to terrible anti-male decisions from successive governments, including the messy and unproductive Child Support System to the general erosion of many men’s rights, especially concerning family law.  

Sarah Game has focused on the importance of recognising men’s mental health and ensuring all Aussie men have access to the support and treatment they need to make them productive members of our community. Sarah has also championed the cause of eliminating parental alienation, highlighting the harm it is doing to the children of our society. 

SECRECY OFFENCES OVERHAUL RISKS ENTRENCHING PROBLEMS

Greens Senator David Shoebridge has expressed concerns that the outcome of the review of Australia’s oppressive secrecy scheme runs the risk of increasing the reach of secrecy laws, even as it usefully reduces the number of criminal secrecy offences.

The announcement from the Attorney General today of the next stage of the secrecy offences review notes support for retaining political oversight of prosecutions of journalists. 

The review recommends the removal of criminal sanctions from 168 secrecy offences out of the 875 while at the same time proposing a new overarching offence targeting public servants who breach confidentiality where this causes harm. 

Greens Senator and Justice Spokesperson David Shoebridge said:

“The collective outrage at the steady creep of secrecy laws has clearly been heard by this Government, but unfortunately this review doesn’t yet deliver the scope of change needed to get the balance right. 

“The fact that there are 875 secrecy offences on the books is evidence of a culture of concealment that needs fundamental root and branch reform not a quick trim. 

“We welcome the proposed removal of criminal sanctions from 168 secrecy offences as a step in the right direction but it’s far from enough. 

“The newly proposed overarching secrecy offence targeting public servants is extremely concerning when public servants are already being prosecuted as whistleblowers under existing laws. 

“If the trials of David McBride and Richard Boyle demonstrate anything it’s that we need less oppressive secrecy laws, not a brand new catch all secrecy offence.

“We know secrecy laws have a massive impact on press freedom and whistleblowers and any reform must start from this essential fact,” Senator Shoebridge said. 

AUSTRALIAN GREENS RESPOND TO MINISTERS SUGGESTED CHANGES TO NDIS + AUTISM

Senator Jordon Steele-John, Australian Greens spokesperson for Disability Rights and Services and Health said:

“Minister Shorten’s comments about the future of supports for autistic people available through the National Disability Insurance Scheme will send shivers down the spine of neurodivergent people and their families. 

“The NDIS is a vital support for disabled people. The Greens are resolute in our view that the NDIS should continue to be a support for people with psychosocial disabilities. 

“It is abhorrent that a Labor government seeks to balance their budget bottom line off the back of disabled people’s access to vital services. We thought this cycle of fear and worry was over when we kicked out the liberals, we were wrong. 

“Despite a Labor government we’ve never seen less access to GPs, we’ve never seen public schools so under-resourced, and now the government is threatening to take away a lifeline for autistic kids and their families: their NDIS supports. 

“The lack of comprehensive community support for neurodivergent people would see these changes remove the lifeboat and actively push disabled people into the sea. 

“To support people in this country we need levels of government to work together. The disabled community are calling on all levels of government to properly fund the NDIS, expand investment in Medicare and resource our public schools.”

“Labor can’t just shunt the responsibility for supporting kids with psychosocial disabilities from the NDIS to the school system.

“Public schools are already on their knees, thanks to a bipartisan refusal to adequately fund the sector for decades.

“We heard during the Senate inquiry into school refusal that neurodiverse students aren’t being adequately supported in the school system as it is, so Minister Shorten’s comments will be causing anxiety among parents, carers and teachers across the country.

“We need a properly funded NDIS to support autistic kids, and a fully resourced public school system where teachers have the time and facilities they need to provide care and attention to every student.”

STUDENTS STRIKING FOR PEACE IN GAZA DESERVE SUPPORT

Australian school students walking out of the classroom tomorrow and Friday to call for peace in Gaza should be encouraged to exercise their democratic right to protest, the Greens say.

With the number of people killed in Gaza now over 13,000, including 5,500 children, thousands of students will strike tomorrow in Melbourne, and in Sydney and Wollongong on Friday, to demand Labor join growing international calls for an end to the violence.

Australian Greens spokesperson on Education (Primary & Secondary), Senator Penny Allman-Payne said:

“Australian school students are seeing kids their own age pulled from the rubble of Gaza. Is it any wonder that they want the government to do something about this horror?

“Telling kids to stay in the classroom while their political leaders endorse Israel’s massacre of Palestinians is completely out-of-touch with the public mood and ignorant of how informed students are.

“If the government really wants kids to stay in the classroom, they should simply demand a permanent ceasefire, like the majority of Australians are calling for.

“I urge students to ignore condescending calls from Labor and the Liberals to turn a blind eye to the brutality in Gaza and exercise their right to engage in peaceful protest.

“Solidarity with striking students tomorrow and Friday, and with everyone engaged in resistance to Israel’s war on the people of Gaza.”

Victorian Greens education spokesperson, Aiv Puglielli MLC said:

“Every day young people are watching this humanitarian catastrophe unfold on their phones.

“They are seeing horrific violence committed against Palestinians by the state of Israel as the death toll in Gaza rises above 13,000.

“They are also seeing their governments refuse to act, and ignore the millions of people around the world calling for peace.

“I’ve spent recent Sundays marching alongside tens of thousands of people in Melbourne, in what have become the largest peace demonstrations in Australia since the Iraq war.

“The Greens back every student planning to strike tomorrow and use their voices to call for an immediate ceasefire.”

New partnership to support sexual and reproductive health and rights in the Pacific

The Albanese Government is supporting the Pacific to advance sexual and reproductive health and rights, with a $37 million investment in the second phase of a program being implemented by the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA).

The Transformative Agenda for Women, Youth and Adolescents program will work with nine Pacific governments over the next five years to strengthen quality sexual and reproductive health services.

Australia supports the universal realisation of sexual and reproductive health and rights. This enables everyone, especially women and girls, to make informed decisions about their health and to participate and benefit from social and economic development.

This funding complements other Australian Government investments in sexual and reproductive health and rights in the Pacific, including $5.7 million to the International Planned Parenthood Federation and $15.3 million to UNFPA Supplies. Australia is also providing $38 million in core funding for UNFPA globally.

Our support is delivering results, including improved midwifery through training for Pacific midwives, providing young people with the information they need to stay safe and enabling more people with disabilities to access services.

Minister for Foreign Affairs, Senator the Hon Penny Wong said:

“Australia is committed to empowering all people, particularly women and girls, to realise and understand what their rights are when it comes to sexual and reproductive health.

“Investments in sexual and reproductive health and rights are key to improving health, strengthening gender equality and accelerating inclusive development.”

QMinister for International Development and the Pacific, the Hon Pat Conroy MP said:

“Access to sexual and reproductive health services, information and education means people can make informed decisions about their lives, protect their health and reach their full potential.

“These investments are part of our five-year $620 million Partnerships for a Healthy Region initiative, which is supporting partner countries to build resilient and equitable health systems.”

Inaugural Maitri Fellowships program

In New Delhi, I announced the inaugural Maitri Fellowships program to support the two-way exchange of Australian and Indian researchers.

These foreign and trade policy placements in Australia and India will build academic capacity and deepen understanding of contemporary perspectives in each country.

Research will focus on economic trends and issues of geostrategic interest to Australia and India.

Eligible Australian institutions are invited to nominate experts for placement. The program has three streams:

  • long-term fellowships (1-2 years) for Indian senior researchers to come to Australia
  • short-term fellowships (up to 6 months) for Indian early to mid-career researchers to come to Australia
  • short-term fellowships (up to 6 months) for Australian early to mid-career researchers to go to India.

The Maitri Fellowships program is administered by the Centre for Australia-India Relations. Further details can be found at australiaindiacentre.org.au.

Foreign Minister, Senator the Hon Senator Penny Wong said:

“The Maitri Fellowships program is an investment by the Australian Government in a broader and deeper understanding of the Australia-India relationship, our shared interests and shared challenges.

“As the partnership between our two countries grows, the importance of this understanding is ever more important”

Centre for Australia-India Relations CEO Tim Thomas said:

“The Centre for Australia-India Relations is committed to fostering mutual understanding of Australia and India through informed public commentary and debate.”

Bringing Bollywood Down Under

A slice of Bollywood in Brisbane or a splash of Melbourne in Mumbai is now on the cards for filmmakers thanks to a new agreement between Australia and India.

Australia’s film industry will benefit from an exciting new partnership with India – following the ratification of the Australia-India Audio-visual Co-production Agreement.

The treaty-level agreement will strengthen collaboration and creative exchange between Australia and India, allowing more films and television series to showcase the best of both cultures, landscapes and people.

The agreement will strengthen the existing ties between the Australian and Indian film industries, assist Australian producers reach new audiences, and Australian audiences to connect with new stories.

The agreement – announced by Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in March – will also open up new avenues for industry investment and help distribution for Australian producers in one of the world’s largest and growing markets.

Projects in both countries will be able to access government funding including grants, loans and tax offsets under the agreement.

Since the inception of the co-production program in Australia almost 40 years ago, formal arrangements have been signed with 14 countries, leading to the creation of 214 official co-production titles with total budgets of more than $2 billion.

For more information about the International Co-production Program visit Screen Australia.

Minister for Foreign Affairs, Senator the Hon Penny Wong said:

“I’m very excited to see yet another great outcome for the Australian film industry, and the Australia-India relationship.”

“Our two countries enjoy deep and enduring cultural ties. We’re proud to have a large and growing Indian community here in Australia and this agreement will only see our links strengthen further and bringing our people even closer together.”

Minister for the Arts, Tony Burke MP said:

“India is a global film powerhouse and this agreement is great news for the Australian screen industry.”

“As a long-time Bollywood fan, I can’t wait to see how this plays out and know this will be a gamechanger for both Australian and Indian filmmakers.”

Safer crossing on the cards as City of Newcastle invests in popular coastal precinct

Accessing one of Newcastle’s busiest coastal precincts will become safer and easier for pedestrians and cyclists under City of Newcastle’s plans to upgrade the Bar Beach crossing.

The community are being invited to have their say on the staged proposal, which would see a raised pedestrian and bicycle crossing installed between Empire Park and the Cooks Hill Surf Club.

This would replace the existing marked crossing and refuge island on Memorial Drive. The installation of landscaped kerb extensions and a new narrow median would also be used to create a safer and more streamlined solution for all road users in this area.

A new shared pathway between Bar Beach Avenue and the Memorial Drive crossing is proposed for the second stage of the project, creating a new off-road link for cyclists between Bathers Way and Parkway Avenue, including an upgraded facility for crossing Bar Beach Avenue.

Lord Mayor Nuatali Nelmes said the project would deliver improved outcomes for the community in one of the city’s most popular coastal destinations.

“City of Newcastle is committed to ensuring community members are able to safely and easily navigate our footpaths, cycleways and road networks,” Cr Nelmes said.

“The precinct surrounding Bar Beach is heavily utilised by pedestrians and cyclists accessing Empire Park, the Cooks Hill Surf Club, Bathers Way and the beach itself.

“We look forward to working with the community on our plans for these important pedestrian and cyclist upgrades to improve safety and accessibility in this area.”

The project is the latest investment to be made by City of Newcastle in the surrounding precinct, with a range of works underway to enhance accessibility and recreational opportunities in the area including upgrades the to the floodlighting and cricket practice nets at Empire Park.

City of Newcastle is continuing to remediate storm damage and improve accessibility at Bar Beach to ensure safe access for all beach users.

This includes the recent completion of a temporary beach access ramp, the replacement of temporary water-filled barriers with upgraded balustrade fencing, and enhanced beach access for surf club vehicles.

Rehabilitation works to the promenade area are currently in design, which will include the construction of a new permanent accessibility ramp, new stairs, upgrades to seawalls and the installation of new handrails. The reinstatement of four beach access points between Bar Beach and Merewether Beach are also planned.

Community members can log on to www.newcastle.nsw.gov.au/yoursay by 18 December to provide feedback on the concept designs for the Bar Beach pedestrian and cyclist improvements.