Category: Australian News

The Morrison-McCormack Government is standing by our farmers and our rural and regional communities affected by drought.
Today we announce further measures worth $57.4 million to ensure our farmers, their families and communities get the support they need as the drought continues.
The Coalition has made drought a national priority. We are investing over $6.3 billion in drought support.
This new suite of initiatives builds on our commitment to establish a $5 billion Future Drought Fund.
We will establish a new restocking and replanting concessional loan through the Regional Investment Corporation to make sure our farmers can bounce back when the rains come. Loans of up to $200,000 will be available with a two year interest free period and no interest accrual.
This will help farm businesses immediately rebuild and restore their business following successive years of financial hardship brought about by harsh drought conditions.
We will progress the recommendations of the Farm Household Allowance (FHA) Review with the agricultural sector, including making the FHA available to farmers for four in every ten years.
We will also make the $5 million farm asset threshold permanent so the FHA is even more accessible.
When our farmers are in drought, so are the small regional businesses that support them. If re-elected, we will deliver $7 million to establish a pilot rural financial counselling service to help small regional and rural businesses with financial planning, mentoring and coaching.
Around 45 specialist counsellors will be employed in rural communities around the country where drought is having a major impact on local small businesses.
We will also extend the Drought Communities Program to an additional 14 Councils that are facing severe drought. This brings our support to 110 Councils across NSW, Queensland, South Australia, Victoria and Tasmania.
The Coalition’s drought plan is backed by a strong record of delivery including:
 

• $266.9 million provided to over 11,200 farmers in Farm Household Allowance fortnightly support payments.
• $40 million in additional FHA lump sum payments to about 6,400 farmers since September 2018.
• $77 million investment in the Rural Financial Counselling Service – 4,000 farming business are being assisted.
• $30 million to support more than 10,000 households in drought areas delivered in cash and vouchers through charities.
• $131 million for the Drought Communities Program to deliver local infrastructure and drought relief projects.
• $5 million provided to the CWA to support their drought efforts.
• $29.4 million in mental health support.
• $15 million for 48 projects to tackle wild dogs, pest animals and weeds in drought.
• $50 million for on-farm water infrastructure.
• $2.7 million for localised weather guides.
• A $72 million special drought round of the National Water Infrastructure Fund.
• $36.9 million for the Great Artesian Basin to implement a range of immediate and long-term capping and piping measures.

 
Only the Coalition is standing by our farmers and their communities through the drought. Labor has no plan for drought, no plan for agriculture, and no plan for rural and regional Australia.
This funding is only possible because of the Coalition’s strong management of the Budget.

A Morrison-McCormack Government will deliver a $30 million package to strengthen rural Australia with initiatives to ensure agricultural shows remain a centrepiece of regional communities, help educate children about agriculture and food production, and encourage more people into agricultural careers.
Our plan for a stronger economy means we can deliver a $30.9 million package that includes:
 

• A $20 million Regional Agricultural Show Development Grants Program;
• $10 million to take city kids to farms so Australians children see how agricultural products get from paddock to plate;
• $720,000 to support Agricultural Shows Australia to promote the value of Australian agriculture, and;
• $220,000 to encourage more young people to study agriculture by improving future education initiatives.

 
Right across regional Australia agricultural shows are delivered by hardworking volunteers, but they are often faced with ageing infrastructure and expensive repair bills, impacting on the quality of the show and in some cases, meaning shows are unable to go ahead.
The $20 million Development Grants Program will help regional agricultural show societies upgrade and maintain existing infrastructure.
For kids, we know from a study completed by the Primary Industries Education Foundation Australia in 2011 that too many of our young Australians don’t understand where their food comes from. For example, 45 per cent of primary and secondary school students didn’t think bread, bananas or cheese came from farms.
We won’t allow our kids to be vulnerable to anti-farming campaigns from extremists hell-bent on shutting down agriculture. This new program will support primary and secondary school students to visit farms and other primary production worksites in the food and fibre supply chain.
We will also back around 80 city schools across the country to set up fully integrated and computerised “mini-farms” to teach students about the use of water, land and energy in food production.
To encourage more workers into agriculture the Coalition will deliver $220,000 to encourage more young people to study a field in agriculture by improving future education initiatives.
This funding will means Primary Industries Education Foundation Australia (PIEFA) can run a new national survey of school students and teachers on food and fibre production and careers available in the agricultural sector.
The Coalition will invest $720,000 into Agricultural Shows Australia (ASA) over the next four years to support country shows and agricultural events so this important organisation can continue promoting the value of Australian agriculture. It means the shows and programs run by ASA to be upgraded and remain relevant into the future.
That support includes $510,000 for the Young Farmers Challenge to educate the broader community on the role of farmers, engage youth in agriculture and promote farm safety, as well as $120,000 for the Young Judges and Paraders’ Program, which promotes junior judging, parading and farm skills and gives rural kids development opportunities.
We are also delivering $90,000 over three years to boost education around sustainable agri-food production for schools, shows and community events.
The Coalition will always stand up for farmers and our agricultural industries.

The Greens health reform package will reduce out of pocket costs and build a truly universal healthcare system – including Medicare funded dental care – that provides healthcare for everyone, regardless of bank balance, postcode or illness.
“Medicare was a visionary reform and point of pride for many Australian but years of neglect, populist politics and piecemeal reforms have resulted in driving up costs for patients and prevented investment in areas that matter,” said Leader of the Australian Greens Dr Richard Di Natale.
“You don’t have a truly universal health system when thousands of Australians delay or avoid seeing a doctor, dentist or specialist because they can’t afford it. It’s about time we returned to the principle of free, universal, healthcare.
“Instead we have thousands of Australians languishing on surgery waiting lists or skipping their medications because they can’t afford them. We are now heading down the path to an American two tiered health system.”
“The Greens plan to reduce out of pocket costs and bring dental care into Medicare will finally follow through on the promise of a truly universal health system designed to keep people well. It’s time our health care system provided the care you need when you need it, regardless of your bank balance.
“As a doctor I know that the growing gaps in care and barriers to access cannot be fixed with band- aid solutions that favour one particular patient group over another. Australia’s health system is sick and the only policy prescription is comprehensive reform that addresses the root causes.
“The Greens health reform package will reduce out of pocket costs for everyone, clear elective surgery waiting lists and bring dental into Medicare. We will invest in prevention, implement team- based healthcare for people with chronic conditions, fund capital works that reduce bed block and ramping and put an end to the hospital funding blame game once and for all.”

The Liberals have shown we can’t risk another term of them in Government, by approving a destructive uranium mine on the eve of an election being called, and trying to hide it.
“The Liberals are trashing the environment behind voters’ backs. They have tried to hide this destructive uranium mine decision from voters. They do not deserve another term of government,” Greens environment spokesperson Senator Sarah Hanson-Young said.
“Melissa Price as Environment Minister has been an environment wrecker. Days after she signed off on the Adani coal mine, she’s sold out our environment again to her mining mates in WA by approving a uranium mine.
“We need stronger environmental laws enforced by a national Environmental Protection Authority that back nature, our communities and traditional owners who have raised serious concerns and objections to mines such as this. The Western Australian EPA advised against it, yet is powerless to stop it.
“The environment can’t handle another three years of the Liberal Government looking after their mining mates rather than looking after the planet. The Liberals cannot be trusted to put our environment first.
“We need Greens in the Senate to stand up to governments who side with their mining industry mates. We will always fight for restoring and protecting nature over opening up another destructive uranium mine.”

Australian Greens Education Spokesperson and Senator for NSW, Dr Mehreen Faruqi, has launched the Greens’ ambitious plan to make childcare fee-free for most families, abolish the activity test and guarantee all three and four year olds access to 24 hours of early childhood education a week. The Greens will also provide an extra $200m in capital grants to community and government run centres in areas of highest need as well as supporting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander run centres. The plan has been costed at $20.4b over four years by the Parliamentary Budget Office and is the biggest investment in early childhood education to date. In addition, the Greens are also committed to developing a workforce strategy with the early learning sector and unions to achieve professional pay and better working conditions for workers.
Senator Faruqi said:
“We know the current system doesn’t work for most families with young children. Families are working hard, sometimes putting a whole income towards just paying for childcare. Under our plan, four out of five families will be able to access fee free childcare if and when they need it.
“The reality is that the lack of affordable child care affects women disproportionately. Often, women have to give up work and career opportunities because childcare is too expensive or not available.
“The two major parties treat childcare as a workforce participation measure, not the essential service it is. We know that affordable, quality and accessible child care benefits everyone.
“The activity test has negatively impacted access to childcare for families on lower incomes. By ditching the test completely, we will ensure people who need access to child care are able to do so without any barriers.
“Under the Greens plan for universal early education, all three and four year old children will be able to attend to pre-school for up to 24 hours a week.
“Our current system penalises primary carers, who are overwhelmingly women and is a source of significant financial stress.
“Australia’s current public funding of early childhood education and care is one of the lowest in the OECD. We can pay for universal childcare and early education by removing tax breaks that favour the highest income earners.
“I know firsthand the value of affordable childcare. When I came to Australia, I wouldn’t have been able to complete my higher education without access to affordable childcare. No one should be denied opportunities due to not being able to pay for child care.
“The Greens strongly support early childcare educators across the country and their rights to fair pay. It is well past time for the people who educate and care for children to have decent pay and conditions. We will institute a strategy for professional pay and conditions,” she concluded.

The Morrison Government will invest a further $60 million to lower the cost of doing business for small businesses and help ensure around 3,200 young Australians in rural and regional areas have the opportunity to secure an apprenticeship by expanding the successful Australian Apprentice Wage Subsidy Trial by doubling its size.
The trial wage subsidy program began earlier this year to support eligible new Australian apprentices located in regional areas facing skill shortages. The trial has enabled businesses in rural and regional areas to take on around 1,600 more apprentice plumbers, mechanics, electricians, painters and hairdressers than they would otherwise have been able to do. Within weeks of the trial commencing, applications from employers had already exceeded the available spaces.
A re-elected Morrison Government would double the program’s size, allowing more regional businesses to be able to afford to take on a new apprentice, giving those young Australians the opportunity to train for a rewarding career in the regions.
Under the subsidy, eligible employers are able to receive payments based on the apprentice’s relevant award wage rates. Subsidies are provided at 75 per cent of the apprentice’s award wage in the first year, followed with 50 per cent in the second year and 25 per cent in the third year. The wage subsidy complements other incentives currently available and support the engagement of eligible new full-time apprentices at the Certificate III and IV levels in occupations on the National Skills Needs List in regional and rural communities.
The program is already benefiting over 450 apprentices in NSW, over 330 in Victoria, over 400 in Queensland, over 100 in South Australia, Western Australia and Tasmania and around 50 apprentices in the Northern Territory.
Bill Shorten and Labor have opposed this support for regional communities at every opportunity. As such 3,200 Australians in rural and regional areas will miss out on an apprenticeship opportunity under Labor. Bill Shorten needs to come clean about whether he will rip up the wage subsidy and take away their jobs.
Labor’s opposition to more local apprentices show that they are seriously out of touch with rural and regional Australia.
Australians haven’t forgotten that Bill Shorten and Labor slashed employer incentives which led to the biggest single drop in new apprentices and trainees on record.
Today’s announcement builds on the $525 million Delivering Skills for Today and Tomorrow package that was announced in the Budget. That package will create up to 80,000 new apprenticeships in areas of skills shortages, support school-leavers and job-seekers by establishing 10 industry training hubs in areas with high youth employment and provide a comprehensive roadmap to strengthen the vocational education and training sector.
The Coalition understands that learning through a vocational education is just as valuable as a university degree. Continued investments in skills will help fulfil the Morrison Government’s pledge to create 1.25 million jobs over the next five years, including 250,000 new jobs for young Australians.

The Liberal National Government will provide $960,000 for intensive research into new 4D diagnostic technology to allow accurate assessment of lung function in patients of all ages including the very sick.
The Australian Lung Health Initiative headed by Professor Andreas Fouras is one of 10 highly promising research projects to be funded under Stage One of the bold Medical Research Future Fund (MRFF) Frontiers initiative.
The project aims to deliver an original technology that is rapid, easy to use and safe, with less than 10 per cent of the radiation used by X-rays.
Patients would not have to remain still or follow instructions, making it suitable for infants, children, older people and the very sick who are difficult to assess with current technology.
In Australia, 7.1 million people—almost one in three—live with a lung disease.
There are more than 30 types of lung conditions. Lung cancer, for example, is Australia’s biggest killer claiming more than 9,000 lives in 2017—more than breast, prostate and ovarian cancers combined.
The five-year project will build on Australian company 4Dx Limited’s patented XV Technology™, a four-dimensional lung function imaging analysis, and new lose-dose imaging science. Professor Fouras is founder, chairman, and chief executive of 4Dx.
The Australian Lung Health Initiative was formed to bring together world-leading Australian scientists, engineers, manufacturers and medical researchers to revolutionise lung screening and treatment.
As well as 4Dx, it includes medical technology company Micro-X, the University of Adelaide, Monash University, South Australian Health and Medical Research Institute, and Telethon Kids Institute,
Devices developed from the project could have a substantial health impact here and around the world, as well as huge commercial potential.
The funding is drawn from the Government’s ground breaking Frontier Health and Medical Research program, which is directing $570 million to Australia’s most innovative and transformational medical research.
Frontiers creates an opportunity for Australia’s best and brightest to form formidable multidisciplinary teams to transform ideas from concept to outcome. Frontier awardees needed to articulate how their idea was novel and would position Australia as a global leader.
Frontiers has a unique, two-stage structure developed in consultation with Research Australia.
In Stage One, 10 selected applicants will receive funding of up to $1 million each over one year to develop detailed planning for their cutting-edge research projects.
Each of the selected 10, like the Australian Lung Health Initiative, will be able to apply for Frontiers Stage Two with the opportunity to secure up to $50 million or more to realise their ground-breaking research plan.
Applications were assessed by an International Scientific Peer Review Panel to ensure those recommended for funding would deliver new to world ideas and opportunities.
This investment has the potential to transform healthcare and stimulate growth in the Australian medical technologies, biomedical and pharmaceutical sector, a vital part of the innovation economy.
The Coalition Government’s strong economic management ensures we continue to invest record amounts of funding into ground-breaking medical research, Medicare, mental health, life-saving medicines, and hospitals.

A new multidisciplinary hub for sports research, development and performance will be established in the heart of Melbourne’s sporting precinct, thanks to $15 million from the Coalition Government.
Victoria Sport will improve the physical and mental health as well as performance of athletes and build a stronger, evidence-based approach to sports injury prevention, treatment and rehabilitation. It will also boost participation in sport by helping eliminate barriers to equity and inclusion.
Importantly, Victoria Sport will cater for multiple sports and athletes at all levels – local, regional and national.
With lead partners in the Collingwood Football Club and Monash University and the backing of Tennis Australia, Victoria Sport will include an education and training facility, treatment clinics, performance research laboratories, facilities specifically for women’s sports, a sports museum and a visitor centre.
To be located in the heart of Melbourne and Olympic Park, leveraging the already existing world-class sports infrastructure there, Victoria Sport will offer:
 

• research, professional development and knowledge sharing programs to improve performance, rehabilitation, resilience and longevity in sport, with a focus on concussion, injury rehabilitation, women’s injury, nutrition, genomics, mental health and technology use;
• evidence-based programs to tackle anti-social behaviour in sport, promoting inclusion and enhancing participation, with a focus on women and minority groups; and
• leadership programs to upskill professional athletes, sports professionals, health professionals, community leaders and sports volunteers.

 
Victoria Sport will connect with Monash University satellite sites, higher education and research institutions, health services, health professionals, community sports organisations and performance coaches. Practical information will also be shared with sporting clubs, players and their families, delivering benefits throughout our community.
Investments such as this in Victoria Sport are the dividend of a strong economy and only made possible through sound budget management.

Australian Greens Education Spokesperson and Senator for NSW, Dr Mehreen Faruqi, has launched the Greens’ ambitious plan to make childcare fee-free for most families, abolish the activity test and guarantee all three and four year olds access to 24 hours of early childhood education a week. The Greens will also provide an extra $200m in capital grants to community and government run centres in areas of highest need as well as supporting Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander run centres. The plan has been costed at $20.4b over four years by the Parliamentary Budget Office and is the biggest investment in early childhood education to date. In addition, the Greens are also committed to developing a workforce strategy with the early learning sector and unions to achieve professional pay and better working conditions for workers.
Senator Faruqi said:
“We know the current system doesn’t work for most families with young children. Families are working hard, sometimes putting a whole income towards just paying for childcare. Under our plan, four out of five families will be able to access fee free childcare if and when they need it.
“The reality is that the lack of affordable child care affects women disproportionately. Often, women have to give up work and career opportunities because childcare is too expensive or not available.
“The two major parties treat childcare as a workforce participation measure, not the essential service it is. We know that affordable, quality and accessible child care benefits everyone.
“The activity test has negatively impacted access to childcare for families on lower incomes. By ditching the test completely, we will ensure people who need access to child care are able to do so without any barriers.
“Under the Greens plan for universal early education, all three and four year old children will be able to attend to pre-school for up to 24 hours a week.
“Our current system penalises primary carers, who are overwhelmingly women and is a source of significant financial stress.
“Australia’s current public funding of early childhood education and care is one of the lowest in the OECD. We can pay for universal childcare and early education by removing tax breaks that favour the highest income earners.
“I know firsthand the value of affordable childcare. When I came to Australia, I wouldn’t have been able to complete my higher education without access to affordable childcare. No one should be denied opportunities due to not being able to pay for child care.
“The Greens strongly support early childcare educators across the country and their rights to fair pay. It is well past time for the people who educate and care for children to have decent pay and conditions. We will institute a strategy for professional pay and conditions,” she concluded.