Report into agriculture education handed down

The Nationals Senator for Victoria Bridget McKenzie yesterday spoke in the Senate to the release of the report into Higher Education and Skills Training to Support Agriculture and Agribusiness in Australia. The inquiry into the future of Australia’s agriculture sector was held over seven months by the Education, Employment and Workplace Relations References Committee, of…

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2012 Volunteer Grants program now open

Grants of up to $5000 to purchase equipment, subsidise petrol costs or provide training courses for volunteers are now available to community groups and organisations across Bendigo and central Victoria.   The Nationals Senator for Victoria Bridget McKenzie has encouraged local community and sporting clubs, and non-profit organisations to make the most of the opportunity…

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Coalition visits regional volunteers

The Nationals Senator for Victoria, Bridget McKenzie has hosted Senator Mitch Fifield, Shadow Minister for Disabilities, Carers and the Voluntary Sector in central Victoria. The Senators visited the not-for-profit volunteer organisation Our Place in Eaglehawk. Senator McKenzie said regional Victorians were passionate volunteers, and the people of Greater Bendigo were no exception. “From local sporting…

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Coalition listens to Castlemaine carers

The Nationals Senator for Victoria Bridget McKenzie has hosted Senator Mitch Fifield, Shadow Minister for Disabilities, Carers and the Voluntary Sector in Castlemaine, giving him an insight into the challenges faced by regional Victorian carers. Senator McKenzie said people in regional areas who care for the members of their family with a disability do it…

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Senate Committee hears health system failing regional Victorians

The Senate Community Affairs Committee has heard this week that the Labor Government’s healthcare ranking system was failing regional Victorians. In Albury for a parliamentary inquiry into rural health services, industry leaders told the committee including The Nationals Senator for Victoria Bridget McKenzie, the Australian Standard Geographical Classification – Remoteness Areas (ASGC-RA) system was flawed.…

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Health inquiry travels to Albury

    Senator Bridget McKenzie discusses the issues yesterday with CSU’s Professor Andrew Vann and Professor John Dwyer. Picture: KYLIE ESLER RURAL Australia could not continue relying on foreign doctors to fill a void, the vice-chancellor of Charles Sturt University, Andrew Vann, told a Senate committee in Albury yesterday. Professor Vann said rural and remote…

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Senator confirms tax win for cider producers

The Nationals Senator for Victoria Bridget McKenzie has confirmed the Government has no plan to increase the tax rate on traditional cider.   The Economics Senate Committee last night revealed calls to tax cider at the same rate as pre-mixed drinks and spirits had been ignored. “This is brilliant news for central Victoria’s Harcourt district, which is…

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Revised MDBP fails northern Victoria

Major agricultural industries across northern Victoria could be pushed over the edge, under the Gillard Government’s revised, yet virtually unchanged Murray Darling Basin Plan.   The Nationals Senator for Victoria Bridget McKenzie said small dairying communities and Sunraysia’s horticultural sector would be extremely vulnerable to the final Basin Plan.   “These industries are the lifeblood…

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MDBA fails fundamental Q&A

The Murray Darling Basin Authority has failed to answer fundamental questions surrounding Victoria’s future food and social economic security.   The Nationals Senator for Victoria Bridget McKenzie directly asked a Senate estimates hearing if the MDBA had taken enough water out of Victoria, and was given an indeterminate no.   “This answer is in stark…

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