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Daily Mail
15 hours ago
- Business
- Daily Mail
NSW Labor government commits $202million to help improve the lives of Aboriginal Australians and close the gap
The 2025/26 NSW Budget, to be handed down on Tuesday, will allocate $202million to Closing the Gap initiatives to help improve the lives of Aboriginal Australians. This investment will be delivered partnership with Aboriginal organisations and communities, to achieve more targeted and tangible outcomes for Aboriginal people across health, education, employment, criminal justice, and economic development. The funding includes $20million for Aboriginal-led, culturally safe programs that support Aboriginal adults and children leaving custody, aiming to reduce reoffending. It also includes $13.4 million for the NSW Aboriginal Legal Service and the Department of Communities and Justice to reduce the over-representation of Aboriginal children in the criminal justice system through Aboriginal-led solutions. An additional $17.9 million will support Aboriginal organisations, such as Local Aboriginal Land Councils, to acquire and activate land - such as through rezoning - to unlock economic opportunities. Minister for Aboriginal Affairs and Treaty David Harris said the Labor Government has maintained a strong focus on delivering real outcomes for Aboriginal people. 'Delivering on Closing the Gap and creating a more equitable state, where everyone has the opportunity to thrive, is not only the right thing to do; it builds a better NSW by strengthening our society, economy, culture and communities.' The budget will also allocate nearly $80 million to position NSW as the best place to innovate, attract investors, and scale businesses. NSW Treasurer Daniel Mookhey says his third budget declares the state is 'open for business' to help expand its $900 billion economy. 'There is a global race for capital ... and we want NSW at the front of that race.' The state has a world-leading workforce and offered businesses stability and connection to global industries, Mr Mookhey told reporters on Monday. 'What we want to add now is the confidence for businesses to get on and make the big calls to sign off on the $1 billion-plus investments that drive growth,' he said. Housing affordability would remain a major issue but supporting business confidence was a major factor to boost jobs and wages and address unaffordability, Mr Mookhey said. 'We're pretty determined to get the balance right,' he told AAP in the lead-up to the budget. 'There's a lot of opportunity and a lot of ambition in NSW, and the changes we're making are designed to hold on to what we love.' The government will duplicate efforts to speed up planning, with an Investment Delivery Authority to receive almost $18 million. Similar to the Housing Delivery Authority which started in December, the four-person panel will override councils and accelerate planning approvals for businesses amid complaints making major investments in NSW is too complex and time-consuming. Other funding announced on Monday includes $38.5 million for Australia's largest technology and innovation hub, Tech Central, and $20 million for emerging technology commercialisation to help boost growth in the housing and energy sectors. In 2024, NSW accounted for 65 per cent of Australia's venture capital investment, and hosts five out of eight 'unicorn' companies - privately-held start-ups valued at over $1 billion. Major projects to be considered by the new panel may include hotels, data centres, renewable energy projects and commercial developments. Too many major projects from the private sector were getting bogged down in red tape, Premier Chris Minns said. 'It's costing us high-paid, high-skilled jobs in our modern economy, and something has to change,' he told reporters on Monday from data centre operator NextDC's facility in Sydney's north. NextDC chief executive Craig Scroogie said the announcement would help the company move on its $15 billion investment pipeline. 'The planning system was never designed to move at the speed that technology is moving, let alone the speed that artificial intelligence is changing the way we live and work every day,' he told reporters. 'This is a global opportunity for Australia to be a leader in artificial intelligence and large-scale infrastructure, and it needs modern planning systems to be deployed.' NSW LABOR GOVERNMENT BUDGET PLEDGES TRANSPORT: * $452 million to increase bus services, including $56 million to buy 50 new 'bendy' buses and $150 million for more regular school bus services in outer Sydney and regional areas * Road upgrades and new signage around Western Sydney Airport precinct totalling $80 million EDUCATION: * $9 billion across four years for public school infrastructure, largely focused on growing suburban communities, including three new public primary schools with attached public preschools in west and southwest Sydney * $3.4 billion towards TAFE and upskilling, including $40 million to enable 23,000 construction students to complete their apprenticeships for free HEALTH: * Another $700 million towards construction of the $2 billion Bankstown Hospital and relocation of Bankstown TAFE * A statewide pathology hub to be established at Westmead, with the $492 million investment to include an upgrade to a high-security lab researching dangerous pathogens such as Ebola and measles * $23 million to cut down the overdue surgery list by 3500 * $83 million to bolster maternity care ABORIGINAL AFFAIRS: * $202 million for Closing the Gap projects, including $23 million towards community-led suicide prevention programs LAW AND ORDER: * $125.8 million for cybersecurity upgrades to NSW Police, including $50 million to upgrade outdated hardware * Victims' Support Service funding boosted by $227 million across five years to help victims of violent crime access counselling * Upgrade of Downing Centre to create 15 new physical and virtual courtrooms and $48.3 million to the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions for more solicitors HOUSING: * $145 million across four years for the state's Building Commission to hire more prosecutors, investigators and inspectors to weed out dodgy residential builds * $30.4 million crisis intervention package for homelessness services * Extension of build-to-rent tax concessions beyond slated 2039 end date INNOVATION AND BUSINESS: * $80 million in innovation funding, including $38.5 million to boost technology hub TechCentral * A four-person Investment Delivery Authority to fast-track planning approvals for billion-dollar projects ENVIRONMENT AND PUBLIC SPACES: * $110 million to maintain public spaces, including the repair of heritage-listed Pyrmont Bridge and maintenance of fire trails * Construction of the Newcastle Logistics Precinct, housing wind turbines and electrical transformers used in renewable energy projects, for $115.5 million * Commonwealth Veteran Card holders will receive free vehicle entry to all NSW National Parks CULTURE: * Establishment of a $100 million fund to find a suitable location for a second major film studio in Sydney * $280 million to support the screen and digital games sector, including rebates for NSW-based visual effects and digital games productions
SBS Australia
16-06-2025
- Politics
- SBS Australia
Queensland considering making public drunkenness a crime
Less than a year after laws decriminalising public drunkenness came into effect, the Queensland Government is considering making it a crime again - despite an outcry from First Nations, legal and human rights advocates. In September last year Queensland became the last state to decriminalise being drunk in public , more than 30 years after the move was recommended by the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody. On Wednesday Liberal National Party Police Minister Dan Purdie, a former officer, said the Government was looking at introducing laws making public drunkenness and public urination offences again, saying their removal had "hamstrung police". But First Nations and human rights advocates say it's yet another move in the wrong direction for the Queensland Government, which has introduced a raft of 'tough on crime' measures since David Crisafulli's LNP swept to power in October last year. Greg Shadbolt, principal legal officer of the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Legal service for Queensland, told NITV that there was "absolutely no basis in logic" to reintroduce laws criminalising public drunkenness. "If someone's intoxicated and does something untoward like turns up and kicks a rubbish bin, they can still be arrested, so it simply doesn't stand up to any form of scrutiny," he said. "There's no reason why being intoxicated without actually doing anything untoward of itself should be an offence." The National Network of Incarcerated and Formerly Incarcerated Women and Girls, said the proposal was a deeply irresponsible move and an attack on Aboriginal lives. Spokesperson Tabitha Lean, a Gunditjmara woman, said the National Network rejects the idea that the only way to respond to public drunkenness and public urination is through police and punishment. "Public health issues require public health responses, not criminal charges," she said. "This latest move shows once again that the lives and safety of Aboriginal people are expendable in the LNP's political playbook." Public drunkenness laws have long been used as a tool of racialised policing and criminalisation, disproportionately targeting Aboriginal people and Torres Strait Islander people, Debbie Kilroy said, pointing out that was the reason the royal commission recommended scrapping them. NSW decriminalised public intoxication in 1979. A state parliamentary report looking at decriminalising offences affecting vulnerable people found a strong correlation between intoxication and higher risk a person will die in custody. "This is not about safety, it's about punishment, surveillance, and scapegoating," Ms Kilroy said. "We cannot forget the death of Yorta Yorta woman Aunty Tanya Day, who died in custody in 2017 after being arrested under public drunkenness laws, while asleep on a train (in Victoria). "Her death was entirely preventable – she should have been cared for, not criminalised. "Her family, like many others, have been tireless in their fight to abolish public drunkenness laws and demand dignity and care instead of police violence." Victoria decriminalised public drunkenness in November 2023, thanks to advocacy by Tanya Day's family and other members of the Aboriginal community. Queensland Human Rights Commissioner Scott McDougall told Guardian Australia that a move to re-introduce the laws would "represent another blow in a continuing assault on the rights of First Nations people in Queensland'. 'Police do not lack the powers to respond in the interests of community safety," he said. "The solution to these behaviours is a much greater investment in health and prevention. 'To reintroduce a public drunkenness offence would signal that the Queensland government has no interest in Closing the Gap or reducing deaths in custody.' On Tuesday LNP Townsville MP Adam Baillie told Parliament that public intoxication wasn't a new problem. "Under Labor public drunkenness and public urination laws were revoked, paving the way for the antisocial behaviour that has been plaguing our great city for years," he said. "It is only getting worse." Ms Kilroy called on the Queensland Government to implement the royal commission recommendations, including keeping public drunkenness decriminalised. "This is not just a policy decision, it is part of a broader 'law and order' blitz by the LNP, who continue to rely on carceral responses and fearmongering in the absence of any meaningful vision for the state," she said. "Rather than investing in housing, health care, or community-led responses to harm, the LNP are doubling down on the same racist, harmful strategies that have already cost too many lives."
The Advertiser
02-06-2025
- Business
- The Advertiser
Jails funded as DV services stretched to breaking point
Support services will get longer funding timelines to help more than a million domestic violence survivors as spending on jails and courts increases. More than half a billion dollars will go towards dealing with domestic violence to undo years of "neglect", with plans to better support victim-survivors and keep alleged abusers behind bars. Non-government support services will get more certainty around funding with five-year contracts promised, the NSW government said on Monday. Domestic Violence NSW chief executive Delia Donovan said that would improve service sustainability while other reforms were important building blocks. "But they don't address the reality that existing services are stretched to breaking point - operating on outdated funding models that don't come close to covering today's costs," she said. "Too often, domestic and family violence workers are tied to short-term contracts through pilots, and this creates a lot of uncertainty." Premier Chris Minns said his government was providing more funding than any predecessor but the budget was also stretched. "It may not be enough for advocates and they may be demanding more but we believe we're pushing the outer edges of what's possible at the moment," he told reporters. About half of the money is earmarked for a $227 million injection into the state's victims' support service across five years to help victim-survivors access counselling and financial assistance. Almost $50 million will be spent on making it easier for them to give evidence, with remote courtrooms alleviating the risk of attending the same court complex as their abuser. The funds will also provide counselling, legal aid and financial advice at a hub expected to open in late 2027. An estimated one-in-four women and one-in-eight men in Australia have experienced violence by an intimate partner or family member since the age of 15. Recent bail changes for alleged domestic violence offenders have coincided with more inmates on remand, pushing the state's prison population to near record highs. More than $100 million will go towards corrective services to help cope with the increase. Another change ensures bail decisions will be made by magistrates, following the high-profile April 2024 murder of Molly Ticehurst in Forbes, allegedly by her former boyfriend Daniel Billings, who was granted bail by a registrar about two weeks earlier. Ten virtual courtrooms are planned to support remote bail hearings and five new physical ones will be built in Sydney's city centre. NSW Law Society president Jennifer Ball also welcomed an almost $50 million boost to fund more public prosecutors. "But we will be examining the NSW budget ... to determine whether sufficient funding will also be allocated to Legal Aid NSW and Aboriginal Legal Service to meet the significant extra demand new prosecutors will have on the criminal justice system," she said. The budget announcements will lay the foundation for longer-term reforms, Domestic Violence Prevention Minister Jodie Harrison said. "This is work that previous governments have neglected for many years," she said. The state budget will be handed down on June 24. 1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732) Lifeline 13 11 14 Men's Referral Service 1300 766 491 Support services will get longer funding timelines to help more than a million domestic violence survivors as spending on jails and courts increases. More than half a billion dollars will go towards dealing with domestic violence to undo years of "neglect", with plans to better support victim-survivors and keep alleged abusers behind bars. Non-government support services will get more certainty around funding with five-year contracts promised, the NSW government said on Monday. Domestic Violence NSW chief executive Delia Donovan said that would improve service sustainability while other reforms were important building blocks. "But they don't address the reality that existing services are stretched to breaking point - operating on outdated funding models that don't come close to covering today's costs," she said. "Too often, domestic and family violence workers are tied to short-term contracts through pilots, and this creates a lot of uncertainty." Premier Chris Minns said his government was providing more funding than any predecessor but the budget was also stretched. "It may not be enough for advocates and they may be demanding more but we believe we're pushing the outer edges of what's possible at the moment," he told reporters. About half of the money is earmarked for a $227 million injection into the state's victims' support service across five years to help victim-survivors access counselling and financial assistance. Almost $50 million will be spent on making it easier for them to give evidence, with remote courtrooms alleviating the risk of attending the same court complex as their abuser. The funds will also provide counselling, legal aid and financial advice at a hub expected to open in late 2027. An estimated one-in-four women and one-in-eight men in Australia have experienced violence by an intimate partner or family member since the age of 15. Recent bail changes for alleged domestic violence offenders have coincided with more inmates on remand, pushing the state's prison population to near record highs. More than $100 million will go towards corrective services to help cope with the increase. Another change ensures bail decisions will be made by magistrates, following the high-profile April 2024 murder of Molly Ticehurst in Forbes, allegedly by her former boyfriend Daniel Billings, who was granted bail by a registrar about two weeks earlier. Ten virtual courtrooms are planned to support remote bail hearings and five new physical ones will be built in Sydney's city centre. NSW Law Society president Jennifer Ball also welcomed an almost $50 million boost to fund more public prosecutors. "But we will be examining the NSW budget ... to determine whether sufficient funding will also be allocated to Legal Aid NSW and Aboriginal Legal Service to meet the significant extra demand new prosecutors will have on the criminal justice system," she said. The budget announcements will lay the foundation for longer-term reforms, Domestic Violence Prevention Minister Jodie Harrison said. "This is work that previous governments have neglected for many years," she said. The state budget will be handed down on June 24. 1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732) Lifeline 13 11 14 Men's Referral Service 1300 766 491 Support services will get longer funding timelines to help more than a million domestic violence survivors as spending on jails and courts increases. More than half a billion dollars will go towards dealing with domestic violence to undo years of "neglect", with plans to better support victim-survivors and keep alleged abusers behind bars. Non-government support services will get more certainty around funding with five-year contracts promised, the NSW government said on Monday. Domestic Violence NSW chief executive Delia Donovan said that would improve service sustainability while other reforms were important building blocks. "But they don't address the reality that existing services are stretched to breaking point - operating on outdated funding models that don't come close to covering today's costs," she said. "Too often, domestic and family violence workers are tied to short-term contracts through pilots, and this creates a lot of uncertainty." Premier Chris Minns said his government was providing more funding than any predecessor but the budget was also stretched. "It may not be enough for advocates and they may be demanding more but we believe we're pushing the outer edges of what's possible at the moment," he told reporters. About half of the money is earmarked for a $227 million injection into the state's victims' support service across five years to help victim-survivors access counselling and financial assistance. Almost $50 million will be spent on making it easier for them to give evidence, with remote courtrooms alleviating the risk of attending the same court complex as their abuser. The funds will also provide counselling, legal aid and financial advice at a hub expected to open in late 2027. An estimated one-in-four women and one-in-eight men in Australia have experienced violence by an intimate partner or family member since the age of 15. Recent bail changes for alleged domestic violence offenders have coincided with more inmates on remand, pushing the state's prison population to near record highs. More than $100 million will go towards corrective services to help cope with the increase. Another change ensures bail decisions will be made by magistrates, following the high-profile April 2024 murder of Molly Ticehurst in Forbes, allegedly by her former boyfriend Daniel Billings, who was granted bail by a registrar about two weeks earlier. Ten virtual courtrooms are planned to support remote bail hearings and five new physical ones will be built in Sydney's city centre. NSW Law Society president Jennifer Ball also welcomed an almost $50 million boost to fund more public prosecutors. "But we will be examining the NSW budget ... to determine whether sufficient funding will also be allocated to Legal Aid NSW and Aboriginal Legal Service to meet the significant extra demand new prosecutors will have on the criminal justice system," she said. The budget announcements will lay the foundation for longer-term reforms, Domestic Violence Prevention Minister Jodie Harrison said. "This is work that previous governments have neglected for many years," she said. The state budget will be handed down on June 24. 1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732) Lifeline 13 11 14 Men's Referral Service 1300 766 491 Support services will get longer funding timelines to help more than a million domestic violence survivors as spending on jails and courts increases. More than half a billion dollars will go towards dealing with domestic violence to undo years of "neglect", with plans to better support victim-survivors and keep alleged abusers behind bars. Non-government support services will get more certainty around funding with five-year contracts promised, the NSW government said on Monday. Domestic Violence NSW chief executive Delia Donovan said that would improve service sustainability while other reforms were important building blocks. "But they don't address the reality that existing services are stretched to breaking point - operating on outdated funding models that don't come close to covering today's costs," she said. "Too often, domestic and family violence workers are tied to short-term contracts through pilots, and this creates a lot of uncertainty." Premier Chris Minns said his government was providing more funding than any predecessor but the budget was also stretched. "It may not be enough for advocates and they may be demanding more but we believe we're pushing the outer edges of what's possible at the moment," he told reporters. About half of the money is earmarked for a $227 million injection into the state's victims' support service across five years to help victim-survivors access counselling and financial assistance. Almost $50 million will be spent on making it easier for them to give evidence, with remote courtrooms alleviating the risk of attending the same court complex as their abuser. The funds will also provide counselling, legal aid and financial advice at a hub expected to open in late 2027. An estimated one-in-four women and one-in-eight men in Australia have experienced violence by an intimate partner or family member since the age of 15. Recent bail changes for alleged domestic violence offenders have coincided with more inmates on remand, pushing the state's prison population to near record highs. More than $100 million will go towards corrective services to help cope with the increase. Another change ensures bail decisions will be made by magistrates, following the high-profile April 2024 murder of Molly Ticehurst in Forbes, allegedly by her former boyfriend Daniel Billings, who was granted bail by a registrar about two weeks earlier. Ten virtual courtrooms are planned to support remote bail hearings and five new physical ones will be built in Sydney's city centre. NSW Law Society president Jennifer Ball also welcomed an almost $50 million boost to fund more public prosecutors. "But we will be examining the NSW budget ... to determine whether sufficient funding will also be allocated to Legal Aid NSW and Aboriginal Legal Service to meet the significant extra demand new prosecutors will have on the criminal justice system," she said. The budget announcements will lay the foundation for longer-term reforms, Domestic Violence Prevention Minister Jodie Harrison said. "This is work that previous governments have neglected for many years," she said. The state budget will be handed down on June 24. 1800 RESPECT (1800 737 732) Lifeline 13 11 14 Men's Referral Service 1300 766 491
Perth Now
30-04-2025
- Perth Now
'Low act': rural artist admits defrauding dead friend
The day rural artist Mirree Bayliss's close friend died, she used his debit card to withdraw $180 from the bank. Her friend, Robert Randall, died in Orange hospital, in central western NSW, on August 17, 2024, which is when a small but "despicable" spending spree began. When the hospital told her of Mr Randall's death, she didn't inform his family, but instead used his card to make purchases and withdraw money totalling more than $5000 over two months. She withdrew large sums from an ATM at her local shopping centre, as well as making trips to McDonald's and supermarkets. One week after police issued a public appeal for information about Mr Randall's whereabouts on October 2, Bayliss withdrew $1000. Bayliss, 47, faced Orange Local Court on Wednesday, where she pleaded guilty to three counts of dishonestly obtaining financial advantage by deception. Prosecutors withdrew six further charges, to which she had previously pleaded not guilty. Aboriginal Legal Service solicitor Laura Horton said Bayliss called the ambulance for Mr Randall when he became unwell at her house and the hospital informed her of his death. "This caused a significant toll on her, she just lost someone she'd known and been in a relationship with for 10 years," Ms Horton told the court. Police prosecutor Carl Smith said the court could hold doubts about Bayliss's claim she was in a relationship with the 65-year-old. Court documents described Mr Randall as a "recluse", who lived with his mother until her death in 2017 and was mostly estranged from his family. "Unfortunately Mr Randall is not here today to tell us his side of the relationship," Sergeant Smith said. Magistrate Gary Wilson imposed a three-year conditional release order and did not record a conviction. While the financial offending was on the low end of the scale, Bayliss took advantage of someone close to her, Mr Wilson said. "There's no doubt, Ms Bayliss, that this ... was an extremely low act," he said. "To take advantage of your partner, who was a long-time friend, in the manner in which you did is just despicable." On her website, Bayliss describes herself as a contemporary Indigenous painter who hopes to build a sense of belonging through art. Her Instagram page, which is followed by nearly 38,000 people, describes her as an entrepreneur, an award-winning artist and author. Outside court, Mr Randall's brother - who asked not to be named - also raised doubts about the relationship with Ms Bayliss. "We spoke to him at the beginning of (August 2024) ... it was the best we'd ever heard Robert," the brother said. Bayliss left the court with a supporter and declined to comment on the case. 13YARN 13 92 76 Lifeline 13 11 14
The Guardian
06-02-2025
- The Guardian
Two men accused of attempting to set fire to Sydney synagogue denied bail
The two men accused of attempting to light a Newtown synagogue on fire have been refused bail. Adam Moule, 33, and Leon Sofilas, 37, who are co-accused, appeared via video in Downing Centre local court on Thursday when their individual solicitors made applications for them to be released on bail. The pair are alleged to have spray-painted 10 swastikas on a synagogue in Newtown on 11 January. They also allegedly sprayed an 'unknown liquid' on 'sticks and branches bundled together' and lit a fire that quickly burnt out, the court heard. Both have been charged with destroying property using fire. Magistrate Greg Grogin denied the pair's application for bail, saying there was an unacceptable risk they would commit a further offence. 'It is said that this offence was a hate-motivated crime,' the magistrate said. The attack was 'random' in nature but 'planned insofar as there was liquid there and taken to the location', Grogin told the court. 'The random nature of this offence is of great concern to the court.' Sofilas's lawyer, Steve Mav, said his client denied the allegations. He had since been moved to protective custody. 'If my client remains in custody we're talking about him potentially being there for one to two years in a very unsafe environment,' Mav told the court. Sign up for Guardian Australia's breaking news email Mav told the court Sofilas was Tasered 11 times during his arrest. The magistrate noted that was not mentioned by police in their outline of the facts. Earlier in the proceedings, the court also heard an application for Sofilas's co-accused, Moule. Jenni Bridges, a lawyer from the Aboriginal Legal Service who was acting on behalf of Moule, argued he should be released on bail due to his mental health challenges. 'He is an Indigenous man with significant mental health issues,' she told the court. The court heard that Moule had not been given the medication he takes to treat his anxiety, depression and PTSD since being in custody. The magistrate ruled he should be given his medication. 'He has not been able to speak to his mother or his family,' his lawyer said, adding his mother found out he was in custody via the media. Sign up to Breaking News Australia Get the most important news as it breaks after newsletter promotion 'He was in custody at the time [his father died] and could not attend the funeral or participate in sorry business.' The court also heard that Moule lives in social housing and, under the rules, if he is absent from that home for more than six months, he will lose it. 'If he is not granted bail he will lose housing and once again become homeless,' she said. The police prosecutor, Peter Boctor, opposed bail, arguing there was an unacceptable risk to the community and the objective seriousness of the crime. In responding to Sofilas's application, Boctor said there was a risk he would interfere with witnesses and fail to appear at future court dates. Moule and Sofilas were due in court again on 3 April.
