‘One size doesn’t fit all’: country MPs urge lockdown rethink By Tom Minear and Tamsin Rose Herald Sun (page 8) REGIONAL Victorian MPs are urging the state government to reconsider blanket stay-at-home restrictions on large parts of the state that have no coronavirus cases. From Thursday, country Victorians will only be allowed to leave home…
Virus-free towns swept up in lockdown By Richard Ferguson The Australian (page 4) 4 Aug 2020 It might only be a three-hour drive from Melbourne, but the town of Rutherglen, population 2109, is a world away from the coronavirus pandemonium. Indigo, where Rutherglen is located, is one of four Victorian local government areas not to…
Discussing Victoria’s Stage 3 restrictions and Melbourne’s tighter Stage 4 restrictions with Annelise Nielsen on SKY News Australia.
Wodonga-based Nationals Senate Leader Bridget McKenzie, says the hard border closure has made life more difficult for border residents. Senator McKenzie added checkpoints have done little to stop the spread of the virus in Sydney and Melbourne while the border bubble means people can’t visit family members or jobs they’ve held for years because they…
The ACCC Water Market Inquiry Interim report makes it clear, over 542 pages, the current water market in the Murray Darling Basin is not working for irrigated agriculture or our communities. The report justifies and vindicates what irrigators have been saying for many years. Concerns highlighted in the report are not new to those of…
Better water market information and transparency will go a long way to improve the plight of water users in the Southern Murray-Darling Basin after years of uncertainty and frustration. Nationals Senate Leader Bridget McKenzie, NSW Senator Perin Davey, and Member for Mallee Anne Webster MP, said water users across the basin need better information and…
A new study has identified investment opportunities in Victoria’s agricultural, manufacturing, freight and logistic sectors arising from the operation of the Inland Rail. The biggest winners will be food processing, transport logistics and manufacturing facilities – a welcome boost to the future of Victoria’s economy. Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Infrastructure, Transport and Regional…
The Nationals Senate team has praised the Australian Government’s common sense decision not to appeal the Federal Court’s decision in Brett Cattle Company Pty Ltd v Minister for Agriculture [2020] FCA 732. Attorney General Christian Porter tonight (July 22) confirmed the Australian Government would not appeal this decision. “The Nationals see the decision by Justice…
Regional Victorian communities demand an iron-clad assurance from the Victorian Premier that Melbourne and Mitchell Shire’s Restricted Area lockdown is being enforced. Nationals Senate Leader Bridget McKenzie said mayors from across northern Victorian border communities highlighted a range of issues the state border closure has caused for their communities. However, the most concerning matter facing…
The Liberal and Nationals Government will invest $2 billion to give hundreds of thousands of Australians access to new skills by retraining and upskilling them into sectors with job opportunities. The new JobTrainer skills package will also guarantee support for tens of thousands of apprentices in jobs across Australia, including country Victoria by subsidising their…