Yesterday Australians voted in the Voice referendum and the Victorian Liberals and Nationals acknowledge and respect the result. With the referendum now over, we must all rally to advance the wider cause of reconciliation and unite to close those gaps in life outcomes which, to this day, deny so many First Nations people the…
DetailsThe parliamentary inquiry into last year’s flood event has uncovered significant shortcomings in Victoria’s Emergency Management warning system under the Labor Government. Evidence provided to the hearings this week highlighted how poorly informed and exposed regional communities were during emergency flood events. The Environment and Planning Committee, which grilled key figures in the…
DetailsDear Editor, So much for a traditional honeymoon period for new Premier Jacinta Allan. Truth is, the honeymoon never started. Only two weeks into her term, she is grappling with the ongoing nightmare that is the Commonwealth Games debacle. Allan refused to front an inquiry into the Games cancellation, even though she…
DetailsThe Nationals leader and Member for Murray Plains, Peter Walsh, is appealing for Health Minister Mary-Ann Thomas to support his demand Canberra urgently intervene in the “frightening shortage” of diabetic drug Ozempic. Mr Walsh says this next generation option for type 2 diabetics – requiring just one injection a week – is now out…
DetailsThe track record of our new Premier Jacinta Allan shows Victorians should brace themselves for more of the same. I am deeply concerned it will be business as usual. More money wasted. More debt. More mismanagement. More secrecy. More poor governance. Victorians talk about Daniel Andrews handing Jacinta Allan a poisoned chalice. The…
DetailsShadow Minister for Regional Development, Peter Walsh, has declared he is finally lost for words at the number of ways Premier Daniel Andrews can “rip off regional Victoria”. Mr Walsh said the tax on short-stay accommodation such as Airbnb or Stayz is the broke Andrews Labor government’s latest desperate cash grab. Almost half…
DetailsThe Nationals leader and Member for Murray Plains, Peter Walsh, says the spring firewood season is open but once again people across his electorate have been left with nothing. Except, Mr Walsh points out, round trips of 100km or more, much more, because the nearest collection sites for Echuca, for example, are around Bendigo.…
DetailsThe Liberals and Nationals strongly condemn the circulation of a fake letter, purporting to be written by a member of the First Peoples’ Assembly of Victoria. In recent days, some land owners in the state’s north-west have received the letter, which contains damaging mistruths on land re-acquisition. Anyone seeking clarification is encouraged to…
DetailsThe Andrews Government is lacking support and looking increasingly lonely in its premature call to ban gas in new homes. Labor in Victoria, quite simply, is the odd one out on gas. Some New South Wales councils have ushered in bans in new developments – but without any support from the NSW Labor Government,…
DetailsThe Yoorook Report Into Victoria’s Child Protection and Criminal Justice Systems released today highlights the sad fact that Victoria is the worst performing state when it comes to closing the gap in Aboriginal affairs. It articulates some atrocities from long ago, but more concerningly it demonstrates that across the past 25 years, the system…
DetailsDear editor, Hard-working families continue to be hit hard by rising energy prices as life gets harder under Labor. A new Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO) report confirms Victoria’s energy system is the worst in the nation, suffering serious deterioration in the past six months. Alarmingly, AEMO has warned Victorians can expect blackouts, based on…
DetailsThe Nationals leader and Member for Murray Plains, Peter Walsh, says sweeping gambling reforms announced by Premier Daniel Andrews are certain to cost jobs, see community sponsorship dry up and may force some clubs to close. In a campaign Mr Walsh says is so flawed and so far out of synch with the real…
DetailsThe Andrews Government continues to pile on the cost-of-living pain as annual council rates skyrocket. Victorians need an urgent solution as rate payers and hardworking families are being unfairly asked to foot the bill for Local Government funding inequities. The Andrews Government needs to provide Local Government with more funding to maintain service delivery and…
DetailsLeader of The Nationals and Member for Murray Plains, Peter Walsh, says Daniel Andrews and his Messer of Roads Melissa Horne can no longer pretend they are doing “even a half-decent job” of protecting Victorians on regional roads. Mr Walsh says with the state’s highest road toll in seven years, and with more than…
DetailsDear Editor, Regional Victorians have been hit with another rude wake-up call in recent weeks as soaring annual rates notices land in letter boxes. Victorians need an urgent solution as rate payers and hardworking families are being unfairly asked to foot the bill for Local Government funding inequities. The Nationals have played a leading role…
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