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Greens pressure has so far forced the government to spend an additional $2b on housing and has put renters rights on the national agenda, but Labor’s announcements today largely enshrine the status quo, leaving millions of renters exposed to unlimited rent increases.

Changes announced today are not a significant shift, as rental increases are already limited to once per year in every state and territory except the Northern Territory and Western Australia, with Western Australia announcing a change to limiting rental increases to every twelve months earlier this year. Today’s changes refuse to adopt even the ACT’s model of limiting the amount of rent increases, meaning Labor has endorsed a policy of unlimited rent rises.

80 housing organisations including tenant unions, housing providers and domestic violence services have supported the Greens’ call for limits on rent increases as key to tackling the rental and homelessness crisis.

Greens Leader Adam Bandt MP said:

“From now on, every unfair rent increase is Labor’s fault.

“Labor has every seat bar one at National Cabinet, and it’s now clear Labor’s policy is for unlimited rent increases.

“Pressure from the Greens has put renters on the national agenda and secured $2b in new funding for public and affordable housing. However, Labor is not spending nearly enough to address the massive public housing shortfall, and with a $20b surplus up his sleeve, I call on the Prime Minister to deliver more at Labor’s national conference.

“80 organisations representing renters and people facing homelessness agree we need to limit rent increases. We need to keep the pressure on Federal Labor and every Premier around the country to make unlimited rent increases illegal.”

Greens housing and homelessness spokesperson Max Chandler-Mather MP said:

“Labor has just locked in yearly astronomical rent increases, and tried to handball the heavy lifting on fixing the housing crisis to the same property developers who created the crisis in the first place.

“This is a smoke and mirrors announcement designed to make it look like Labor has done something meaningful for renters, when in fact they have basically enshrined the status quo, leaving renters exposed to astronomical rent increases once a year.

“The Prime Minister couldn’t even get agreement to end no-cause evictions, and disgracefully low minimum standards including no clear timeline for when renters can demand even cold running water shows what this government really thinks of renters.

“Every rent rise from now on is on Labor and the Prime Minister. Labor had the opportunity  to cap rent increases and they have refused, which means from here on in every rent increase someone cops is because Labor hasn’t capped rents. 

“Unlimited rent increases once a year are still unlimited rent increases.

“Property investors will get $39 billion in tax concessions this year alone, while renters will have to pay an extra $4.9 billion in rent because Labor has decided to lock in unlimited yearly rent increases. 

“Labor can talk about supply all they want, but expensive private apartments won’t fix the housing crisis. What we desperately need is billions of dollars of investment in public housing every year. 

“It seems like the Prime Minister has announced $3 billion to build penthouse apartments no one can afford, when they should just be spending an extra $3 billion on public and affordable housing.

“The Greens will keep fighting to freeze and cap rent increases, and billions of dollars more for public housing.

Today marks one month since the Minns Labor Government announced the appointment of Rental Commissioner Trina Jones, but they have yet to provide any details on the appointment.

Shadow Minister for Fair Trading Tim James said it wasn’t surprising that the Commissioner has not been able to achieve anything for renters, since the Government seems to have forgotten to gazette or legislate the appointment.

“NSW residents still have no idea what her powers will be or the exact nature of the role,” Mr James said. “There’s no public accountabilities or targets and nothing concerning the role has been made public – it seems that the Minns Labor Government that has been breaking promises every month wants us to take this on trust.”

“We are calling on the Minns Labor Government to urgently articulate the Commissioner’s powers and functions.”

“Millions of renters across the state are desperate for this government to act to relieve the impact of the current rental crisis that is adding to the stress caused by Labor’s cost of living crisis.”

“The Government must ensure this appointment wasn’t just paying lip service and will deliver tangible and immediate outcomes for renters.”

“The Opposition wished the Commissioner well on her appointment and welcomed the added voice for renters, but it appears the Minns Labor Government was only interested in the announcement and not the hard work of solving this crisis – just like their backflip on secret bidding.”

“Submissions on the government’s consultation paper on NSW rental laws close this week. The government must urgently clarify the Commissioner’s role in relation to this consultation process and the input she will have on shaping the government’s future reforms to residential tenancy laws.”

Further charges have been laid over a fatal brush crash that occurred in the state’s Hunter region in June 2023.

Just after 11.30pm on Sunday 11 June 2023, emergency services were called to the roundabout on Wine Country Drive near the Hunter Expressway off ramp at Greta, after reports a coach had rolled.

The driver of the bus – a 58-year-old man – was charged with ten counts of dangerous driving occasioning death – drive manner dangerous, and negligent driving (occasioning death).

The Maitland man first appeared at Cessnock Local Court on Tuesday 13 June 2023 where he was granted conditional bail.

Today the man was charged with a further 52 offences at Newcastle Local Court (Wednesday 9 August 2023).

The additional charges are:

• 25 counts of cause bodily harm by misconduct, in charge of motor vehicle
• Nine counts of negligent driving (occasioning death)
• Nine counts of dangerous driving occ GBH- drive manner dangerous
• Nine counts of negligent driving (occasions grievous bodily harm)

The matter will next be before Newcastle Local Court on Wednesday 4 October 2023.

Investigations into the circumstances surrounding the crash are ongoing.

Robbery and Serious Crime Squad detectives have released CCTV footage as they continue to investigate an alleged armed robbery in the state’s Hunter region last year.

Shortly after 12.15am on Friday 30 September 2022, officers from Hunter Valley Police District were called to a licensed premises on Cessnock Road in Weston, about 10km east of Cessnock, after reports of an armed robbery.

Police were told two unknown males – both armed with machetes – entered the business and confronted patrons, before there was a physical altercation.

One of the patrons – a 48-year-old man – was struck with a machete, causing a laceration to his arm.

The males allegedly threatened staff and stole cash, before fleeing the scene on foot along Station Street.

The injured man was treated at the scene by NSW Ambulance paramedics, before being taken to John Hunter Hospital where he underwent surgery and his since been released.

Local police conducted initial inquiries, before the matter was referred to State Crime Command’s Robbery and Serious Crime Squad under Strike Force Rubus.

As investigations continue, strike force detectives have released CCTV footage of the incident and an image of a vehicle of interest.

The males are depicted wearing dark-coloured clothing with their faces covered. The vehicle was seen in the area following the incident, and is described as being a small, dark-coloured hatchback.

Investigations under Strike Force Rubus are continuing.

More than 1.7 million drivers will be eligible to have a demerit point scrubbed from their licence after Parliament on Wednesday endorsed the Minns Labor Government’s trial to encourage safer driving.

The Road Transport Amendment (Demerit Point Reduction Trial) Bill 2023 passed both houses and will come into effect 6 months earlier than originally flagged.

To qualify for a demerit point to be wiped, drivers who have not incurred any demerits since 17 January will need to continue that spotless behaviour until 17 January next year. It normally takes 3 years for a demerit point to be expunged from a driver’s record.

The trial which was announced as a policy during the state election, had originally been slated to start on July 1, but the Government is determined to allow drivers who do the right thing the chance to shed a demerit point sooner.

It is expected to take about 3 months to finalise offences, so eligible drivers will start seeing one demerit point removed from mid-April 2024.

Learner and provisional licence holders are not included in the trial given they are subject to strict conditions of the NSW Graduated Licensing Scheme.

NSW Premier Chris Minns said:

“This is good news for safe driving. We want to encourage drivers to do the right thing which is why we are adding this incentive into the licence system rather than only relying on deterrents and demerits to get the road safety message through.

“Reducing the road toll and rewarding safe driving across the state is the aim of this trial and I am pleased the parliament agreed, with bipartisan support.

“It’s time we put safety back at the centre of our road rules, not revenue raising.”

Minister for Roads John Graham said:

“The demerit trial is an important carrot for drivers to remain offence-free over a 12-month period and we will closely watch the results to see if there is a net safety benefit for motorists, pedestrians, and communities.

“Under the previous government, there were almost a million demerit points on record and the road toll still rising. We are trying something different to encourage drivers to do the right thing and improve safety on our roads. We can’t expect to keep doing the same thing and get different results.”

Aboriginal communities across NSW are being encouraged to celebrate and showcase and their unique languages this October during the first ever Aboriginal Languages Week.

Aboriginal Languages Week will take place annually to coincide with the passing of Aboriginal Languages legislation into law on 24 October 2017. Events and activities will be supported by a new grants program of $250,000 administered by the Aboriginal Languages Trust.

Minister for Aboriginal Affairs and Treaty David Harris said NSW is leading the way in recognising the importance of Aboriginal languages through legislation and providing significant funding for their revitalisation. 

“Aboriginal Communities work tirelessly to keep their Languages alive, and the NSW Government is proud to support them in their endeavours,” Minister Harris said.

“Today I visited the La Perouse Aboriginal Community who shared with me the history of their language reclamation. I was humbled to hear the children in the Gujaga Pre-School and La Perouse Public School learning and speaking Dharawal and how happy and excited they were.

“That joy will be continued with Gujaga Foundation recently securing a NSW Government grant to continue this teaching of the Dharawal language to the next generations.

“It is these stories of hope and commitment we want to celebrate with these Aboriginal Languages Week grants and I encourage community organisations to apply.”

Grants of up to $5000 are available for eligible groups to deliver languages events and activities between 22 October and 29 October 2023. The grants, administered by the Aboriginal Languages Trust are now open and close on 23 August 2023.

In addition to funding local community-based activities throughout the week, the trust will be hosting its own events, including a free-to-the public NSW Aboriginal Languages Week Festival on the Saturday 21 October in Sydney.

This new grant round comes close on the heels of an announcement by the minister and trust of $3.9 million in grants going to Aboriginal Community organisations and groups to support languages revitalisation in 2022-23.

The Gujaga Foundation Limited received a grant of $60,000 to continue to deliver training to upskill Aboriginal community members to be employed as Dharawal Language and Culture tutors and teach in schools and learning centres, like the Gujaga Pre-School, across the cultural boundary area.

More information on grants and activities for Aboriginal Languages Week can be found on the Aboriginal Languages Trustlaunch website.

The NSW Government is ramping up efforts to tackle rising feral pig populations across the state, providing an $8 million boost to help fund a new coordinated control program.

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The 1-year program will be delivered by the Department of Regional NSW through Local Land Services, implementing the latest technologies and control methods to reduce feral pig populations. The program will include:

• landscape scale aerial shooting and ground control activities 
• building landholder capacity and capability to control feral pigs through training and extension
• establishing a NSW State Feral Pig Coordinator to oversee the delivery of control activities and landholder support.

The 1-year program will bring the NSW Government spend on control of feral pig populations to $13 million in the 2023-24 financial year.

Consecutive favourable seasonal conditions with flooding and wet weather have created ideal conditions for pigs to breed and this has led to the growth and expansion of feral pig populations. 

Over the past 12 months, Local Land Services has culled more than 97,000 feral pigs after delivering its largest coordinated pest animal control campaign, across multiple land tenures, in its history.

Feral pigs can carry and transmit a range of both animal-related and zoonotic diseases, such as leptospirosis and Brucellosis. 

Under the Biosecurity Act 2015, all landholders have a responsibility to manage pest animals on their land.

Local Land Services plays a leading role in the coordination of wide-scale, cross-tenure pest animal control operations that help reduce pest animal populations and can support landholders to meet their general biosecurity duty. 

Premier Chris Minns said:

“When we were elected, we committed to addressing biosecurity threats as a priority and today, we are delivering on that commitment.

“The feral pig population has increased substantially over recent years, causing millions of dollars worth of damage in lost agricultural production and environmental degradation. 

“This funding boost will allow for the delivery of a sophisticated and coordinated control program to help reduce feral pig numbers across NSW. “

Minister for Agriculture Tara Moriarty said:

“The impact of pest animals, particularly feral pigs is enormous, whether it’s damaging native flora and fauna and attacking native species or destroying pasture, crops and fences.

“This new program will build off the incredible work undertaken by Local Land Services over the last year, with the findings from that body of work guiding this new control program. 

“On top of aerial shooting operations, this new program will also deliver practical training for landholders to help control feral pigs on their properties and provide subsided feral pig bait, to promote an integrated approach to control. 

“We all have a role to play in tackling the threat of biosecurity in this state, so the more landholders we have taking part in coordinated control programs, the more effective they are.”

Young people are being given the opportunity to learn new skills to help them transition back into the community thanks to a partnership between Youth Justice NSW and Training Services NSW, which is rolling out the ‘Try a Trade’ program.

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The first ‘Try a Trade’ day was held at Cobham Youth Justice Centre in late 2022 with 10 workshops held across a range of trades including carpentry, painting, mechanical, landscaping, bricklaying, welding, barbering, plumbing, warehousing, and barista.

Meanwhile a second session ran at the Riverina Youth Justice Centre on 29 June with 5 businesses, all in different trades, visiting the boys to teach them a range of skills including plumbing, carpentry, painting, traffic control and mechanics.

At the sessions, young people had the opportunity to try different trades and see what they enjoyed, as well as build real-life community connections and supportive links that will still be there once a young person leaves custody.

‘Try a Trade’ days will be run across all 6 Youth Justice Centres around the state throughout the remainder of 2023.

Youth Justice NSW runs a number of skills and trades programs in Youth Justice Centres with several young people continuing their education and training upon release.

Minister for Youth Justice, Jihad Dib said:

“Whether it is gaining carpentry or painting skills and one day owning a construction business, or becoming a barista and managing a café, we are giving young people a chance to reach their full potential through the ‘Try a Trade’ program.

“We don’t want to see anyone, no matter their age, spend time in a justice centre but where they do we want them to have the skills they need to start over upon their release.

“The program, while still early, is already yielding success with a young person who left Cobham Youth Justice Centre recently taking up a plumbing apprenticeship with a local plumbing company involved in the program.

“This is the type of inspiring story that shows the impact of ‘Try a Trade.”

Minister for Skills, TAFE and Tertiary Education Tim Crakanthorp said:

“When someone leaves a justice centre we want to give them the best possible chance to seize opportunities and thrive.

“No matter their background, everyone deserves the chance to learn a skill and contribute to their community.”

Australia will provide 30 additional Bushmaster Protected Mobility Vehicles to Ukraine, demonstrating our ongoing commitment to their defence against Russia’s aggression.

The contribution expands on Australia’s previous commitment of 90 protected mobility vehicles, taking Australia’s provision of Bushmasters to Ukraine to 120. This takes Australia’s total military assistance provided to over $710 million and Australia’s overall assistance to Ukraine to approximately $890 million.

This announcement follows the recent gifting of 70 assorted highly capable military vehicles, a supply of critical 105mm ammunition and a $10 million contribution to the Ukraine Humanitarian Fund announced by Australia in late June.

This also builds on the Government’s commitment earlier this week to deploy a Royal Australian Air Force E-7A Wedgetail aircraft to Germany for approximately six months from October to help protect a gateway of international humanitarian and military assistance to Ukraine. This deployment includes up to 100 crew and support personnel.

The aircraft will provide early warning in the event of any threats outside of Ukraine against the gateway for humanitarian and military assistance.

Along with our international partners, Australia continues to look for practical ways to assist the Ukraine Government and people and help bring about a rapid conclusion to the immoral and unprovoked invasion by Russia.

Prime Minister, the Hon. Anthony Albanese MP said:

“I am pleased to have met President Zelenskyy again today and to inform him of Australia’s decision to gift 30 additional Bushmasters to Ukraine.

“Australia remains steadfast in its commitment to support Ukraine.

“We are proud to provide additional Bushmaster vehicles to assist the brave men and women fighting for their home and their nation’s sovereignty.

“Russia unilaterally launched this illegal and immoral invasion and should withdraw its troops and end the conflict immediately.”

Deputy Prime Minister, the Hon. Richard Marles MP said:

“From the start of this invasion, Australia has stood by Ukraine in the face of Russia’s aggression, which is a gross violation of international law.

“The gifting of further military support is a tangible sign of our nation’s ongoing commitment to Ukraine and the rules-based international order.

“We call on Russia to end to this appalling war so peace can be restored as quickly as possible.”

Foreign Minister Penny Wong said:

“Australian Bushmasters have been used extensively by the Ukrainian Armed Forces and our additional contribution of 30 vehicles will bolster Ukraine’s capabilities.

“We are providing sustainable and meaningful support to Ukraine, including through our humanitarian assistance and through our diplomacy.

“Russia’s attack on Ukraine is an attack on us all. It is an assertion that a larger country is entitled to subjugate a smaller neighbour.

“We again call on Russia to cease its illegal, immoral war on Ukraine.”

Our diplomats are the driver of Australia’s engagement with the world. Today I announce new appointments that strengthen Australia’s diplomatic capability and its prosecution of our national interests around the globe.

I am pleased that these highly qualified individuals have been appointed to lead Australia’s posts in the Maldives, Malta, Mexico, Qatar, and Tuvalu, and to the roles of Ambassador for Arms Control and Counter-Proliferation, and the Ambassador and Permanent Representative to the United Nations in New York:

• Mr David Jessup as Australia’s first resident High Commissioner to the Republic of Maldives.
• Mr Matt Skelly as Australia’s next High Commissioner to Malta. Mr Skelly will also be accredited to Tunisia.
• Ms Rachel Moseley as Australia’s next Ambassador to Mexico. Ms Moseley will also be accredited to Costa Rica, Cuba, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, Panama and the Dominican Republic.
• Mr Shane Flanagan as Australia’s next Ambassador to Qatar.
• Mr Brenton Garlick as Australia’s next High Commissioner to Tuvalu.
• Ms Vanessa Wood as Australia’s next Ambassador for Arms Control and Counter-Proliferation.
• Mr James Larsen as Australia’s next Ambassador and Permanent Representative to the United Nations in New York.

The appointment of Australia’s first resident High Commissioner in Malé, Maldives demonstrates Australia’s increased engagement in the Indian Ocean, including through the Indian Ocean Rim Association.

I thank the outgoing Ambassadors and High Commissioners for their contributions to advancing Australia’s interests.