Get your new Active Kids voucher now

Families are being reminded to download their new Active Kids voucher and save $100 per child on sport and recreation activities.

Minister for Sport Alister Henskens said a new Active Kids voucher became available on 1 January and would help ease pressure on family budgets.

“It might be the middle of summer, but winter sport registration is heating up and now is the perfect time for families to turn their attention to their new Active Kids voucher,” Mr Henskens said.

“The NSW Liberal and Nationals Government’s Active Kids program has turbocharged sporting participation across NSW, with more than 4.85 million vouchers redeemed, saving families $481 million.

“It’s the largest grassroots sport funding initiative in the nation and is driving enormous increases in participation across all sports.”

The NSW Government recently extended the Active Kids voucher program to include school holiday sports and recreation activities.

The expansion of the program has contributed to a 40 per cent increase in voucher creation compared to the same period last year.

“NSW Labor wanted to cancel one Active Kids voucher per child at the last election, and Chris Minns endorsed this policy as a member of the Shadow Cabinet,” Mr Henskens said.

“It’s clear that NSW families have embraced the Liberal and Nationals Government’s Active Kids program and its expansion to include school holiday programs has been a hit.”

Families can access their child’s Active Kids voucher via the Service NSW app or website, attending a Service NSW Centre or by calling Service NSW on 13 77 88.

For further information on the Active Kids Program, visit www.sport.nsw.gov.au/active-kids.

Flood evacuation upgrade for Richmond

Flood evacuation routes near Richmond will be upgraded as part of a $1 billion Liberal and Nationals Government investment through WestInvest, targeting Western Sydney roads.

Premier Dominic Perrottet said $15 million has been allocated to upgrade the intersection of The Driftway and Londonderry Road to deliver a new roundabout and an extra lane.

“After unprecedented rain and consecutive flooding events across Western Sydney, it is more important than ever that we provide the infrastructure needed to protect communities and ensure they have safe evacuation routes,” Mr Perrottet said.

“This important upgrade will boost capacity on this important evacuation route and support the new Richmond Bridge, which has been designed with increased flood resilience.”

Minister for Metropolitan Roads Natalie Ward said early works will begin shortly, ahead of major construction next year.

“We want to give the community the assurance that if the last two flood events were to occur again, they would not be cut off from the services they need,” Mrs Ward said.

“As well as improving flood resilience, the two projects will ensure double traffic capacity across the Hawkesbury River and reduce travel times.”

Other road projects already announced include:

· $200 million for safety improvements on Elizabeth Drive at critical sections between Devonshire Rd and Western Road, Kemps Creek;

· $100 million to construct the Pitt Town bypass which has been identified as a crucial project following recent flooding events in the Hawkesbury-Nepean valley;

· $100 million to enable the upgrade of a 3.4 kilometre section of Garfield Road East between Piccadilly Street, Riverstone and Windsor Road, Box Hill.

For more information, go to https://nswroads.work/NewRichmondBridge.

$253m tutoring boost for NSW students

Thousands of students across NSW will benefit from more catch up classes this coming school year thanks to a $253 million funding boost from the NSW Liberal and Nationals Government.

Premier Dominic Perrottet said the pioneering small group tutoring initiative, started following COVID lockdowns to support school students who fell behind, is being extended to supercharge student learning as education moves beyond the pandemic.

“Making sure every student has the best possible start in life is a priority for the NSW Liberal and Nationals Government, and small group tutoring has been an important part of student growth these last two years,” said Mr Perrottet.

“This program has been overwhelmingly positive. It’s a no-brainer to boost the funding for this coming school year, so thousands more students continue to benefit.”

A recent evaluation of the Intensive Learning Support Program (ILSP) looked at the impact of the initiative on student learning and engagement from the teachers’ perspective. It showed student confidence and engagement improved by 80 per cent, and students’ motivation and attitude towards school had improved by 77 per cent and 69 per cent respectively. 

Minister for Education and Early Learning Sarah Mitchell said the NSW Liberal and Nationals Government was seeing benefits for students and early career teachers. 

“We are seeing students’ confidence and classroom engagement improve thanks to the support they’re receiving. At the same time, hundreds of pre-service teachers are gaining invaluable hands-on experience that will only strengthen their teaching over the long term,” Ms Mitchell said. 

“It’s fantastic that students across all school sectors in NSW will continue to benefit from this scheme, thanks to the long-term economic plan of the NSW Liberal and Nationals Government.”

A wider evaluation of the program, including academic outcomes of students involved, will be completed by mid-2023 and will inform the approach to embedding small group tuition as part of the school system beyond 2023.

The NSW Liberal and Nationals Government invested more than $700 million in catch up classes for students in 2021 and 2022. Schools have already been provided $80 million in tutoring funding for the start of 2023, which will now be supplemented by a further $173 million.

Labor’s shake-up will lead to more broken families

Labor’s proposal to remove the equal shared parental responsibility provision from family law will lead to more broken families and unjust outcomes for both children and parents.

One Nation leader Senator Pauline Hanson said Labor had form in supporting an unbalanced family law and child support system.

“Labor has tried to remove this provision before, when Graham Perrett introduced family law amendments in 2020,” Senator Hanson said. “It ignores the truth that both parents are equally responsible for bringing a child into the world, and therefore share equal responsibility for raising that child no matter what.

“Labor may have examined the recommendations of the family law inquiry I recommended the Coalition establish, but it doesn’t appear to have looked at the evidence presented in submissions and hearings by parents who’ve been through the system like I have.

“That evidence was quite clear – the system is weighted heavily against fathers. Lawyers take advantage of this, creating a highly adversarial system which can be weaponised by vexatious or vindictive partners.

“Under this system, step-fathers have more parental rights than actual fathers and children are treated as footballs. It’s in no-one’s interest – especially the child’s.”

Senator Hanson said that while she welcomed Labor’s support for expanding and extending the Lighthouse Project, she was disappointed sensible changes to the child support system were not being considered.

“The system needs to be made much fairer,” she said. “My recommendations would have done that: assessing net rather than gross incomes; ensuring parents weren’t left with annual incomes below $27,000; assessing salaries on a 38 hour week; basing child support on the number of children at the time of separation and not on additional children to other partners; assessing residential costs individually; including Family Tax Benefit in assessing incomes but excluding lump sums such as Workcover, TPI or superannuation payments; and having payments paid to a separate child support account.

“I will continue to advocate these measures to fix Australia’s broken child support system, and continue to advocate for a fairer family law system.”

REVIVE: AUSTRALIA’S NEW NATIONAL CULTURAL POLICY

A new chapter in Australia’s cultural story has begun.

The Albanese Labor Government’s new National Cultural Policy – Revive – has been released today and will set the course for Australia’s arts, entertainment and cultural sector for the next five years.

Revive will empower our talented artists and arts organisations to thrive and grow – unlocking new opportunities, reaching new audiences and telling stories in compelling new ways.

It will bring drive, direction and vision back to the $17 billion industry – which employs an estimated 400,000 Australians – after a lost decade of federal policy drift and funding neglect.

Backed by $286 million in dedicated funding over four years, Revive’s centrepiece is the establishment of Creative Australia.

Creative Australia will be the Government’s new principal arts investment and advisory body.

The governing body of Creative Australia will continue to be known as the Australia Council.

Creative Australia will expand on and modernise the Australia Council’s work with additional funding of $200 million over four years – restoring the money cut by the former Liberal and National Government.

Funding decisions will be made on the basis of artistic merit and at arm’s length from Government.

Within Creative Australia four new bodies will be established:

  • A new First Nations-led body that will give First Nations people autonomy over decisions and investments
  • Music Australia, a dedicated new body to support and invest in the Australian contemporary music industry
  • Writers Australia, to support writers and illustrators to create new works
  • A new Centre for Arts and Entertainment Workplaces to ensure creative workers are paid fairly and have safe workplaces free from harassment and discrimination

Revive is built on five pillars but puts First Nations first – recognising and respecting the crucial place of these stories at the heart of our arts and culture.

That’s why in addition to the Creative Australia First Nations body, Revive commits the Government to:

  • Introducing legislation to protect First Nations knowledge and cultural expressions, including the harm caused by fake art
  • Developing a First Nations creative workforce strategy
  • Funding the establishment of a National Aboriginal Art Gallery in Alice Springs and an Aboriginal Cultural Centre in Perth
  • Providing $11 million to establish a First Nations Languages Policy Partnership between First Nations representatives and Australian governments

Revive also commits the Government to regulating Australian content on streaming platforms; improving lending rights and incomes for Australian writers; increased funding for regional art; and dozens of other measures.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said:

“After a decade of neglect and funding cuts, today we start a new chapter in Australia’s art and culture sector.

“Our new cultural policy Revive will provide the support Australian artists need to thrive and grow.

“I am excited by the potential it will unleash, and to see our extraordinary and diverse Australian stories continue to be told with originality, wit, creativity and flair.

“It builds on the proud legacies of earlier Labor governments that recognised the importance of art and culture to Australia’s identity, social unity and economic prosperity.”

Minister for the Arts Tony Burke said:

“Under Revive, there will be a place for every story and a story for every place. It is a comprehensive roadmap for Australia’s arts and culture that touches all areas of government, from cultural diplomacy in foreign affairs to health and education.

“Our artists are creators and workers. This sector is essential for our culture and for our economy. As the sector recovers from years of neglect followed by the tough pandemic period, Revive will set the arts sector on a new trajectory with fresh momentum.”

To read the National Cultural Policy in full, visit: A new National Cultural Policy

Visit to France, Belgium and the United Kingdom

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Defence, the Hon Richard Marles MP, and Minister for Foreign Affairs, Senator the Hon Penny Wong, will travel to France and the United Kingdom.

The second Australia-France Foreign and Defence Ministerial Consultations (2+2) will take place on 30 January in Paris and the Australia-United Kingdom Ministerial Consultations (AUKMIN) will be held from 1 to 2 February in London and Portsmouth.

In France, discussions with Minister for Europe and Foreign Affairs Catherine Colonna and Minister of the Armed Forces Sébastien Lecornu will develop and align French and Australian responses to the increasingly challenging strategic environment in the Indo-Pacific and in Europe. Ministers will progress work towards a bilateral roadmap to strengthen collaboration across defence and security, resilience and climate action, and education and culture.

The meeting with UK Foreign Secretary James Cleverly and Defence Secretary Ben Wallace will focus on modernising the bilateral relationship, elevating cooperation to tackle climate change, building economic resilience and contributing to global peace and security.

Senator Wong will also meet with EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell in Brussels. Australia’s partnerships with Europe and the UK work to foster a world that is peaceful, stable and prosperous, and in which sovereignty is respected.

Following these meetings in France and the United Kingdom, the Deputy Prime Minister will travel to the United States to meet with his counterpart, Secretary of Defense, Lloyd J. Austin III.

Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Defence, the Hon Richard Marles MP said:

“In an increasingly challenging strategic environment, our longstanding defence relationships with France and the United Kingdom are essential to promoting stability, protecting the rules-based order and avoiding further conflict.

“I look forward to working with my French and UK counterparts to continue supporting Ukraine and ensure an inclusive, secure and prosperous Indo-Pacific.

“The visit to the United Kingdom also provides an important opportunity to discuss AUKUS.”

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

“The Australian Government is committed to an enduring and productive bilateral relationship with France.

“Deepening practical cooperation with France in the Indo-Pacific, reflecting the priorities of our partners, is critical to our vision of regional stability.

“Close coordination with the EU is essential as we stand together to face challenges in Europe and in our region.

“We are modernising our longstanding relationship with the United Kingdom to face a changing world.”

NSW becomes nation’s hiking hub with multi-day walks

A network of 13 magnificent Great Walks is being established in NSW national parks as part of a plan to transform our State into a bushwalking mecca, ready to rival other multi-day walks in Australia and beyond.

Launching the NSW Great Walks Strategy, Minister for Environment James Griffin said NSW is the best State in Australia to explore nature on foot.

“These 13 NSW Great Walks cover more than 630 kilometres, from our sun kissed shorelines, highest summits, and rainforests millions of years in the making.

“Our magnificent multi-day walks shouldn’t just be for the more hardcore hikers, which is why we’re offering many styles of walk and accommodation so visitors from far and wide can enjoy the diverse landscapes in our nearly 900 national parks and reserves.

“Hiking in nature is one of the most popular outdoor activities in the world, and our Great Walks will help bring more visitors to our rural and regional areas where they boost local economies.

“NSW national parks already contribute about $18 billion and 74,000 jobs to the State’s economy every year, and three quarters of the economic benefits of national parks are delivered in rural and regional areas.”

Visiting national parks is one of the top three things visitors do when travelling to a rural or regional destination, and more than 90 per cent of people in NSW are interested in walking in national parks.

NSW national parks welcomed more than 60 million visitors annually prior to the pandemic, and visitation levels are growing.

The NSW Great Walks Strategy will help deliver durable walking tracks, protect environmentally sensitive areas, withstand severe weather, and provide infrastructure to meet future population growth.

The NSW Liberal and National Government is currently delivering the largest investment in national parks history, with $450 million dollars for more than 200 visitor infrastructure projects across the state over four years.

Since 2019, the NSW Government has secured more than 600,000 hectares for addition to the national park estate to protect threatened habitats, wildlife and cultural heritage in perpetuity.

For more information and to read the Great Walks Strategy, visit https://www.environment.nsw.gov.au/topics/parks-reserves-and-protected-areas/park-management/nsw-great-walks

Doubling down on domestic violence perpetrators

A re-elected NSW Liberal and Nationals Government will take a tougher stance on domestic violence by reviewing all sentences for domestic violence related offences and by making sweeping changes to the handling of cases within the judicial system.
 
Under this proposal, the Government will commission a full-scale review of all domestic violence related sentences. It will also undertake a feasibility study to establish a dedicated Domestic and Family Violence Court, fund a specialist Domestic and Family Violence List across three local courts and fund a surge of an additional five magistrates to ensure cases are heard earlier. 
 
Premier Dominic Perrottet said the Government was taking a zero-tolerance stance to domestic violence by holding perpetrators to the highest account.
 
“We are cracking down on this abhorrent behaviour and sending a clear message to perpetrators that domestic violence will not be tolerated in our state,” Mr Perrottet said.
 
“This is about putting the safety of our people first, ensuring victim-survivors can get justice and that perpetrators are held to the highest account.
 
“As well as reviewing sentences, we are also taking the first steps towards establishing a standalone court for domestic violence cases and will be fast tracking domestic violence cases to ensure no one falls through the cracks of our legal system.”
 
Attorney General Mark Speakman said the NSW Government would fund a temporary surge of five additional Local Court magistrates to help clear the case backlog.
 
“This funding will temporarily raise the Local Court bench to a record 154 magistrates to address the backlog of defended matters left following major interruptions caused by the COVID-19 pandemic,” Mr Speakman said.
 
“With around 37 per cent of pending Local Court criminal hearings domestic violence related, this will significantly improve time to justice for some of the State’s most vulnerable people.”
 
Minister for Women’s Safety and the Prevention of Domestic and Sexual Violence Natalie Ward said these reforms complement existing measures, including new and upgraded safe rooms and remote witness rooms in metropolitan and regional courts delivered by the NSW Government.
 
“Victim-survivors of domestic violence should not fall away from the journey of seeking justice because the process is too hard, drawn-out and complex,” Mrs Ward said.
 
“We know COVID-19 created a significant backlog in domestic violence cases being heard by the Local Court, with some victims waiting nine months or longer to have their case heard.
 
“This is why we will put additional resources into fast tracking domestic violence cases so victim-survivors are not lost in the legal system.
 
“The NSW Liberal and National Government will also explore the establishment of a specialist domestic violence court to simplify the judicial process and ensure that we do everything possible to limit the heavy emotional toll these cases can take on victims.”
 
This builds on the NSW Liberal and National Government’s investment of more than $2 billion in 2022-23 to increase access to justice and further strengthen courts and frontline services.
 
This review will commence as soon as possible if the NSW Liberal and Nationals are re-elected, with the Sentencing Council to be instructed to conduct the review.

Australia condemns terrorist attack in Jerusalem

Australia unequivocally condemns the horrific terrorist attack that claimed the lives of at least seven worshippers in Jerusalem on Friday evening.

Terrorism and violence against civilians can never be justified.

That such a cowardly and callous attack occurred on a day where we remember the atrocities of the Holocaust is utterly reprehensible.

Our thoughts are with the victims’ families, friends, and the Jewish community.

We are deeply concerned with escalating violence in Israel and the Palestinian Territories.

We call on all sides to exercise restraint, and to refrain from actions that harm civilians. 

Israelis and Palestinians deserve to live in peace and security.

NSW drivers can now opt to offset their vehicle emissions

NSW drivers can now voluntarily choose to offset their vehicle’s carbon emissions each year when they register their car.

Treasurer and Minister for Energy Matt Kean said many Australians were looking for practical ways to take action on climate change and the new scheme would give people more opportunities to reduce their carbon footprint.

“NSW is the first state to offer this option, with all money going directly into Australian carbon offset projects. No international credits will be purchased,” Mr Kean said.

Contributions from the scheme will be used to purchase Australian Carbon Credit Units that fund activities which reduce or offset CO2 emissions in Australia, helping NSW reach its targets of 70 per cent emissions reduction by 2035 and net zero by 2050.

“The option is voluntary, and participants can choose to offset any amount between $5 and $200 when they register their vehicle online.

“The average car generates about 2.4 tonnes of CO2 emissions each year, which can be fully offset by purchasing $80 of carbon offsets at the point of registration. 

“The transport sector is responsible for about 22 per cent of all NSW emissions, with almost 50 per cent coming from passenger vehicles. More and more NSW drivers are opting for electric vehicles (EVs) each year, however this scheme gives those drivers who haven’t made the switch yet the option to offset their emissions instead,” Mr Kean said.

The scheme is one part of the NSW Government’s comprehensive zero emissions transport strategy, which includes:

· $209 million for EV charging infrastructure

· No stamp duty on EVs under $78,000

· $3,000 rebates for EVs under $68,750

· Transitioning the State’s entire 8,000 plus bus fleet to zero emissions

· Allowing EVs to drive in transit lanes

Corporate Carbon Advisory (CCA) Pty Ltd has been appointed as the offset provider partner. Projects directly supported under this scheme will include regeneration projects across NSW such as the Longdowns Forest Regeneration project in Bourke and Brewarrina Shires.

All projects are fully trackable through their registration under the Clean Energy Regulator’s Emissions Reduction Fund (ERF) project register. All carbon credits purchased under this scheme will be immediately retired to ensure their offset benefits are realised at once.

More information on the scheme is located here and at Service NSW .