Vaccine hesitancy and testing hesitancy in Victoria’s Indigenous communities’ risks pushing people further into disadvantage under the Andrews Labor Government’s plan to offer more freedoms to people who are fully-vaccinated. Geographic data (SA4) from the Australian Government has revealed serious gaps in Victoria’s vaccine rollout in Indigenous communities, with the Hume region recording 48.43 per…
DetailsAn extended seasonal worker deal with Tasmania will finally deliver workers into Victoria, but it will do little fill the yawning shortage of pickers across the state. Agriculture Minister Mary-Anne Thomas confirmed today 200 additional workers are finally set to arrive after quarantining through the Apple Isle, but it comes too little too late for…
DetailsThe Nationals leader and Member for Murray Plains has demanded Transport Minister Ben Carroll immediately intervene; on behalf of the Lake Boga community; to enable their silo art project to go ahead. Mr Walsh used Parliament this week to deliver a stinging attack on V/Line’s refusal to reach a compromise with the community group and…
DetailsDear Editor, Victorians are looking for an iron-clad guarantee we’re on the road to reopen, rebuild and recover. Mixed messages and the Premier’s condescending lack of trust in Victorians has left us without hope that Labor’s roadmap will deliver us the freedoms it promises. As double-dose vaccination rates reach 60 per cent in regional Victoria,…
DetailsIndustry has warned there’ll be “no food on the shelves” if the Andrews Labor Government fails to act to fix workforce shortages that risk bringing Victoria’s food supply chain to a grinding halt. Reports today detail the pressure on local meat processors, supermarkets and food distribution centres as they struggle to keep up with demand…
DetailsIndustry has warned there’ll be “no food on the shelves” if the Andrews Labor Government fails to act to fix workforce shortages that risk bringing Victoria’s food supply chain to a grinding halt. Reports today detail the pressure on local meat processors, supermarkets and food distribution centres as they struggle to keep up with demand…
DetailsThe Nationals leader and Member for Murray Plains, Peter Walsh, wants the border bubble shelved. Mr Walsh said residents of the communities along the NSW border want to see all the cross-border restrictions removed. They want, he said, to return to being one community again and not live in fear that draconian rules from the…
DetailsThe Premier’s latest decree to mandate a first dose vaccination for all Authorised Workers, including farmers, by October 15, “in order to continue working onsite” is desperate and illogical. Victorian farmers are the latest victims of the Andrews Labor Government shifting the goalposts and its total failure to comprehend, let alone manage, the ongoing mess…
DetailsThe time has come to guarantee a positive way forward for regional Victorian communities that have been crippled by 18 months of uncertainty and lockdown. Vaccination rates in regional Victoria already far exceed those in Melbourne, with 55.64 per cent of the community now fully vaccinated – compared to 47.2 per cent in metropolitan Melbourne.…
DetailsNew official data on the performance of Victoria’s major projects has slammed poorly managed upgrades to north-west Victoria’s freight rail network that are now five years overdue. According to the Victorian Auditor-General’s Office (VAGO), the Murray Basin Rail Project, which originally planned to deliver transformational upgrades to freight lines including Mildura, Sea Lake and Manangatang,…
DetailsThe Nationals leader and Member for Murray Plains, Peter Walsh, is calling for the immediate delivery of a $10 million fund to get community sport back on its feet. Mr Walsh said after “seemingly endless” yo-yo lockdowns, grassroots sporting clubs across regional Victoria have suffered 18 months of cancellations, ripping the soul out of much-loved…
DetailsMildura and Victoria’s border communities the length of the Murray River will be the losers of this year’s Grand Final, as low patron caps continue to squeeze the life out of the region’s hospitality sector. Venues in Mildura will be allowed a total of just 30 patrons for Saturday night’s Grand Final decider, while…
DetailsThe Nationals leader and Member for Murray Plains, Peter Walsh, says the grand final loser has already been decided – border communities the length of the Murray. Mr Walsh said when the game starts; the three Moama clubs will be able to cater for a combined maximum of 1250 patrons. In Echuca, he said, the…
DetailsLamb, pork and other Christmas meats will be in short supply if the Andrews Labor Government doesn’t immediately work with industry to deliver a pathway back to full workforce capacity. The Premier slapped metro processors with a 20 per cent reduction in workforce capacity last month, which is expected to weigh heaviest through peak periods…
DetailsDear Editor, A move to use limited lockdowns, by LGA, gives some long overdue relief and certainty to regional Victorian families, businesses and communities. Although it doesn’t make it any easier for those of us who still find ourselves in lockdown today, there was some relief last week when the Andrews Labor Government finally moved…
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