Visit to Australia by Latvian Foreign Minister

This week I welcome Latvian Minister of Foreign Affairs His Excellency Edgars Rinkēvičs to Australia.

Australia and Latvia enjoy warm relations based on strong people-to-people links and the pursuit of common interests.

Our countries are firm supporters of multilateralism, human rights, gender equality and free trade.

Minister Rinkēvičs and I will discuss our shared interest in supporting Ukraine and holding Russia to account for its unilateral, illegal and immoral aggression against the Ukrainian people.

We will also discuss the urgent challenge of climate change and the how an Australia-EU free trade agreement can accelerate our clean energy transition.

Minister Rinkēvičs will open Latvia’s first embassy in Canberra. Australia welcomes Latvia’s growing footprint in the Indo-Pacific.

Teachers and students deserve better than technocratic tinkering

The Greens say a proposal by the Australian Institute for Teaching and School Leadership to parachute inexperienced staff into classrooms and give pay rises to a mere handful of teachers is an insult to hard-working educators across the country and will do very little to address teacher shortages.

“It’s also incredibly insulting to the thousands of hard-working teachers across the country who are forever being told to do more with less, while their real wages continue to shrink.

“Over the past ten years, government funding for private schools in Australia has increased at nearly five times the rate of public school funding. By the end of the decade, private schools will be overfunded relative to the Schooling Resources Standard benchmark, while public schools won’t even hit 91%. 

“It’s really quite simple: If we want to attract more teachers to public schools and provide a world-class education for our kids we need to properly fund all public schools and pay all public school teachers more.

“And we could pay for that simply by canning the stage 3 tax cuts that will rob the public coffers of $224 billion and deposit $9,000 a year into the pockets of the super rich.

“Ahead of next week’s Education Ministers Meeting I urge federal, state and territory education ministers to reject proposals that merely fiddle at the margins and commit to genuine investment in teachers and schools.”

RBA is prescribing the wrong medicine

Greens Treasury spokesperson, Senator Nick McKim, has responded to today’s decision by the RBA to increase interest rates.

“The RBA is smashing workers, renters and recent homebuyers to try to bring down inflation that is being driven by supply shocks and corporate profiteering.

“We are hearing plenty from the government and the RBA about supply pressures.

“What we aren’t hearing from the government or the RBA is about the role of corporate profiteering.

“Profit’s share of national income was already at a record high and workers’ share of national income was already at a record low.

“Now big companies are using the cover of inflation to gouge prices and further drive up inflation.

“This is why raising interest rates is the wrong medicine.

“To tackle the cost of living crisis, we need government action to make big corporations pay their fair share of tax. 

“We need corporate super profits taxes to help rein in corporate profiteering and to help fund cost of living relief, such as by putting dental and mental into Medicare, building 1 million new affordable homes, and providing free childcare.”

WESA Report – Greens call for water buybacks

Responding to the release of the Second Water for the Environment Special Account (WESA) Report, Greens Spokesperson for the Environment and Water, Senator Sarah Hanson-Young said:

“This Report bells the cat – the Liberal-National Party have spent a decade ripping off both the taxpayer and the environment, failing to deliver water to the River and instead funnelling billions of dollars into bogus projects. 

“Billions of dollars have been wasted on efficiency measures that would never, and as the Report states, will never, deliver the 450GL water needed and promised to save the River.

“This is a massive breach of faith to South Australians. The Plan was actively undermined for the last nine years by the last government who never intended on delivering the full Plan.

“The time for draining the River and the public purse is over. We need urgent action to return flows to the environment and keep the River alive. Anything short of the 450GL is unacceptable. 

“My message to Minister Plibersek is: go and buy the water.  

“Water buybacks must be reinstated immediately. Putting up the white flag is surrendering to big corporate irrigators. The Minister has tools in her toolkit to start returning large amounts of water to the system right now with voluntary buybacks. 

“The only way to end the ‘water wars’ is to return the water to the River that it needs for the whole system to stay alive.”

ACCC reveals east coast energy crisis will last for at least 12 months

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission’s (ACCC’s) July 2022 interim report on its gas inquiry confirms the east coast energy crisis is likely to last beyond the winter of 2023.

A forecast 70 per cent increase in gas demand for electricity generation (forecast to increase by 52 petajoules (PJ) to 126 PJ in 2023) and sustained, high international gas prices means that both electricity and gas prices on the east coast of Australia are likely to remain elevated for at least the next 12 months.

While no one is blaming the Albanese Labor Government for a surge in international gas prices, it is the Government’s responsibility to come up with a plan to address this crisis.

The best the resources minister Madeleine King could muster today was a discussion paper and a promise to set in motion the process of triggering the Australian Domestic Gas Security Mechanism (ADGSM).

Shadow Minister for Climate Change and Energy Ted O’Brien MP said the energy minister Chris Bowen is in hiding and doesn’t support bringing on new gas supply because it will jeopardise his chances of a deal with the Greens on his climate legislation.

“This report shows the energy crisis is here to stay and this Labor government is unwilling or unable to make the tough decisions needed to decisively address it,” Ted O’Brien said.

“That’s why the Prime Minister has abandoned Labor’s election promise to cut household power bills by $275 by 2025.

“The best long-term fix to disconnect domestic gas prices from high global prices is more supply.”

“The report also forecasts a reduction in demand from Australian manufacturers. This could be the beginning of a jobs crisis in the manufacturing sector.”

Shadow Minister for Resources and Northern Australia Senator Susan McDonald said the Coalition had a plan in government to unlock new supply to keep prices low and the lights on.

“The Coalition’s Strategic Basin Plans and National Gas Infrastructure Plan were backed by more than $300 million of funding,” Senator McDonald said.

“The resources minister Madeleine King’s hands are tied behind her back. She knows the answer is more supply but she’s not supported by her Cabinet colleagues. The Labor Government must put aside their politics and support projects like the Beetaloo Strategic Basin Plan introduced by the Coalition.

“Short-sighted bans on developing unconventional onshore gas are coming home to roost. The Labor Government should be doing everything in its power to encourage rather than undermine new gas development.

“Yet Labor appears hell bent on halting development and reducing supply to pander to the Greens by undermining investment vehicles like the Northern Australia Infrastructure Facility (NAIF) from supporting new gas supply projects.

In opposition, the now energy minister Chris Bowen labelled the Coalition’s plan to unlock new gas supply “BS” and “a fraud”.

Asked today whether she supported a ban on new coal and gas projects in the federal environmental approvals process, the resources minister Madeleine King could only say “I’m not going to state a view.”

While the Albanese Labor Government dithers, businesses are going to the wall and households are choosing between heating and eating.

Inaction on budget will leave Australians paying more

The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) has today raised interest rates for the fourth consecutive month in a row.

Australians with a $610,000 mortgage are now paying over $500 more per month on their repayments since May.

The Government still does not have a plan to deal with this.

Nothing outlined in the Treasurer’s economic statement last week will help Australians with these rising cost of living pressures. The Treasurer continues to sound more like a commentator than a Treasurer. Australians need a real plan, not just hollow words.

All the Government has done so far is walk away from promises abandoning its commitment to cut power bills by $275 and real wage increases.

Australians are already paying the price for Labor’s lack of a plan.

If the Treasurer fails to act, it will mean more pressure on inflation, more pressure on interest rates and higher cost of living for Australian families and small businesses.

In the absence of a plan from the Albanese Government to deal with rising inflation and interest rates, Australians will get a plan from the Reserve Bank.

That plan will be to raise interest rates even further and Australians with a mortgage will pay the price.

Newcastle reaffirms sustainable development goals on 25th anniversary milestone

The 25th anniversary of an historic declaration signed in Newcastle to pursue sustainable development was marked before representatives from Hunter businesses, not-for-profit, local and state government today.

The Newcastle Declaration was endorsed at the Pathways to Sustainability International Conference hosted by City of Newcastle in June 1997, and signed by former Newcastle Lord Mayor Greg Heys, as well as representatives from the International Union of Local Authorities, International Council for Local Environmental Initiatives (ICLEI,) Australian Local Government Association.

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The Declaration made its way around the world, being presented to the United Nations at the 1997: Rio +5 Conference in New York.

The acknowledgement of its 25-year milestone came during today’s meeting of the Hunter Region Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) Collaboration Group, which works together on ways to achieve the United Nations’ goals across the region.

Newcastle Lord Mayor Nuatali Nelmes said City of Newcastle remained committed to the objectives laid out in the original Newcastle Declaration.

“It is important to recognise this significant milestone and the actions of our former leaders who were forward thinking for their time in responding to the challenge of establishing sustainable management practices with the Newcastle Declaration,” Cr Nelmes said.

“As a result, City of Newcastle is now a leader in this space and over the past 25 years has successfully achieved economic, social, cultural and ecological goals by integrating sustainability into the design and implementation of our policies, programs and projects.

“City of Newcastle was the first local government in NSW to switch to 100 per cent renewable electricity supply, with our 5-megawatt solar farm and a power purchase agreement with the Sapphire Wind Farm.

“By meeting together with local businesses, government representatives, and not-for-profit organisations that are also committed to sustainable development initiatives, we will collaborate on ways we can bring the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals to life in Greater Newcastle for an environmentally sustainable future.”

Lincoln Hawkins reflected on the Pathways to Sustainability International Conference in 1997 as the Conference Chair and acknowledged the collective work of all those involved in the Newcastle Declaration.

“The Pathways Conference was held during a crossroads in the 1990s – a very significant time in Newcastle with the 1997 Bicentenary,” Mr Hawkins said.

“The Newcastle Declaration was agreed on behalf of towns and cities around the world, who took a major step toward embracing the global challenge of sustainability at a local level.

“The challenges and opportunities faced then are clearly no less important today. Their legacy continues to play a critical leadership role in showing us how to successfully transition to sustainability.”

CN is a proud long-standing member of ICLEI and is committed to the requirements of the Global Covenant of Mayors for Climate & Energy, has taken the Cities Race to Zero Pledge, and recently endorsed The Malmo Commitment.

Number one tax on teachers’ time solved

In an Australian-first initiative, NSW teachers will have access to a full suite of high-quality, sequenced curriculum resources to assist with lesson planning – the number one concern reported by teachers in a national study.

Premier Dominic Perrottet said the new resources will have a revolutionary impact on teacher workload.

“Teachers have told us how much they love their profession but the number one tax on their time is finding or producing high quality teaching resources,” Mr Perrottet said. 

“We want to ease that workload by providing online access to universally available learning curriculum materials they can draw from to free up lesson planning time each week.

“This will be further supported by more than 200 new administration and support staff in schools from Term 4, to allow our teachers to focus on what they love – teaching.”

Minister for Education and Early Learning Sarah Mitchell said the new resources will transform education in NSW.

“This is a game-changer for teachers in NSW,” Ms Mitchell said.

“Teachers have told us that finding or making high quality resources that align with the curriculum is the number one tax on their time.

“We’ve listened closely to our teaching staff, developing online, high-quality, centralised, universally available learning materials they can draw on.”

Ms Mitchell also said the new universally-available resources will lift student outcomes across the board.

“This is not about taking the creativity out of teaching – that’s what our teachers do best. It’s about providing teachers with a basic recipe for student success, while allowing them to contextualise how they use the ingredients to get the best outcomes for their students,” Ms Mitchell said.

Feedback from more than 4,000 submissions to a review of teacher workload identified the need for universal curriculum resources.

These findings are supported by a recent national study by the Grattan Institute. Its research found that centralised resources could save teachers an average of three hours per week – with 86 per cent of teachers across Australia reporting they ‘always’ or ‘frequently’ do not have enough time for high-quality lesson planning.

A competitive tender process is currently underway for qualified organisations to partner with the NSW Department of Education in developing the new quality-assured online curriculum content, which will begin rolling out from Term 4 2022.

The NSW Department of Education’s Quality Time mid-year update found that despite COVID-related disruptions, the NSW Government has exceeded its target to reduce the time principals and school based non-teaching staff spend on low-value administrative tasks by 20 per cent, and is on track to meet this target for teachers by the end of 2022.

The Quality Time mid-year update can be found at: https://education.nsw.gov.au/teaching-and-learning/quality-time/quality-time-program

Firm action to fight homelessness

The NSW Government’s record $1.2 billion to tackle homelessness and provide safe accommodation to those in need by supporting proven initiatives ensures a continued commitment to break the cycle of disadvantage.

Minister for Families and Communities and Minister for Disability Services Natasha Maclaren-Jones said assertive outreach, early intervention and stable accommodation are key to combatting homelessness.

“As we mark Homelessness Week, we shine a light on the NSW Government’s commitment to provide supports and services across our state to reduce the number of people sleeping rough or at risk of homelessness,” Mrs Maclaren-Jones said. 

“Early intervention is at the heart of our dedication to achieve the Premier’s Priority to halve street homelessness by 2025. 

“The Together Home program is one of many exceptional programs across our state reducing rough sleeping.
“Together Home not only provides a stable place to live, but also ensures there are wrap-around supports to help people rebuild their lives and reduce a return to rough sleeping.”

Since Together Home commenced in 2020, the NSW Government has invested $177.8 million, including a $37 million injection in the 2022-23 NSW Budget, with more than 990 people supported under the program.

In 2022-23 $394.8 million is being invested to continue a range of specialist homelessness services across NSW, referral services such as Link2home, enhancements for youth refuges and after hours domestic and family violence services and NSW Homelessness Strategy initiatives.

There has been also been an increase in outreach street patrols to engage with more people sleeping rough and offer support through wrap-around services and temporary accommodation.

Through the NSW Homelessness Strategy, the NSW Government has invested over $20 million to support people to maintain their social housing tenancies and prevent a return to homelessness. 

Anybody who is homeless or at risk of homelessness can contact Link2home on 1800 152 152. Support is available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.

$6 million rebuild for Western Sydney fire station

A multi-million dollar investment will revamp the 88-year-old Wentworthville Fire Station and expand its response to fires and other emergencies in Western Sydney.
 
Minister for Emergency Services and Resilience and Minister for Flood Recovery Steph Cooke said the $6 million investment would replace the existing facility built in 1934.
 
“The current building at the intersection of Garfield and Pritchard Streets will be demolished to make way for its state-of-the-art replacement featuring an additional engine bay, separate amenities for male and female firefighters and larger administration and training spaces,” Ms Cooke said.
 
Member for Seven Hills Mark Taylor said the NSW Government is investing in infrastructure and services to match the significant growth and development across Western Sydney.
 
“This redevelopment project will ensure our firefighters have the best possible facilities to tackle their growing workload, with tens of thousands of residents in Wentworthville and surrounding suburbs,” Mr Taylor said.
 
Fire and Rescue NSW (FRNSW) Commissioner Paul Baxter said the station responds to around 1,250 incidents each year from Wentworthville and the neighbouring suburbs of Greystanes, Pendle Hill and Westmead.
 
“Many of the areas it services have recently been identified as having a heightened fire risk because of its socio-economic make-up, higher-density living arrangements and large industrial presence. A bigger and better fire station will ultimately make these communities safer,” Commissioner Baxter said.
 
FRNSW will undertake planning and detailed design work in 2022-23, ahead of the demolition and construction work beginning next financial year.
 
The redevelopment of Wentworthville Fire Station forms part of a $862 million 2022-23 NSW Budget investment in FRNSW which includes new and upgraded fire stations, construction of female amenities at fire stations, health and safety improvements for firefighters and 16 new bush fire water tankers.