Latest news with #Liberal-held
Sydney Morning Herald
14 hours ago
- Politics
- Sydney Morning Herald
These parents say their crumbling state school isn't being fixed because of who they vote for
A group of Melbourne parents say their bayside state primary school is crumbling into disrepair and being neglected by the Victorian government because it sits in an affluent Liberal-held electorate. The long-running maintenance issues at the 150-year-old Brighton Primary School came to a head this year when the floors in four classrooms and a student bathroom had to be ripped out after being eaten by termites. The school's 500-plus students are learning in 50-year-old demountable classrooms just metres away from a busy train line, collapsing brick walls are creating no-go zones and the campus has been refused grant funding to replace its 30-year-old playground for three years running. The school council says parents believe the school is being overlooked by the state Labor government because it is in an affluent suburb and a Liberal political stronghold. The party's local state MP described the situation as 'reprehensible'. The Victorian Schools Building Authority (VSBA) said it responded promptly to maintenance issues at Brighton Primary and that it was supporting the school to ensure student and staff safety. But school council president Aaron Stead said maintenance has been underfunded for decades, despite it being one of just four government schools in metropolitan Melbourne to offer specialist teaching to deaf children. 'Where the school has really struggled for the last few decades in getting any funding from the government is capital infrastructure,' Stead said. 'We've got 14 demountables or portables that are up to 50 years old, they're in various states of disrepair, they're under-sized for current learning standards, the number of students you can get into them is not what's recommended by the state government.'
The Age
14 hours ago
- Politics
- The Age
These parents say their crumbling state school isn't being fixed because of who they vote for
A group of Melbourne parents say their bayside state primary school is crumbling into disrepair and being neglected by the Victorian government because it sits in an affluent Liberal-held electorate. The long-running maintenance issues at the 150-year-old Brighton Primary School came to a head this year when the floors in four classrooms and a student bathroom had to be ripped out after being eaten by termites. The school's 500-plus students are learning in 50-year-old demountable classrooms just metres away from a busy train line, collapsing brick walls are creating no-go zones and the campus has been refused grant funding to replace its 30-year-old playground for three years running. The school council says parents believe the school is being overlooked by the state Labor government because it is in an affluent suburb and a Liberal political stronghold. The party's local state MP described the situation as 'reprehensible'. The Victorian Schools Building Authority (VSBA) said it responded promptly to maintenance issues at Brighton Primary and that it was supporting the school to ensure student and staff safety. But school council president Aaron Stead said maintenance has been underfunded for decades, despite it being one of just four government schools in metropolitan Melbourne to offer specialist teaching to deaf children. 'Where the school has really struggled for the last few decades in getting any funding from the government is capital infrastructure,' Stead said. 'We've got 14 demountables or portables that are up to 50 years old, they're in various states of disrepair, they're under-sized for current learning standards, the number of students you can get into them is not what's recommended by the state government.'
Sky News AU
06-06-2025
- Politics
- Sky News AU
Labor defends Western Sydney Airport after shadow transport minister accuses them of targeting Liberal electorates with jet noise
Transport minister Catherine King has hit back at the Opposition after Labor was accused of concentrating jet noise over Liberal-held electorates. Ms King announced a ministerial directive for Airservices Australia to make 'Reciprocal Runway Operations' (RRO) the default at night at WSIA. RRO requires aircraft to take off and land facing the same direction—towards the southwest—but using opposite ends of the single runway. Ms King claimed the directive was to 'achieve the overall lowest possible impact on surrounding communities'. Shadow transport minister Bridget McKenzie claimed to Sky News on Thursday Labor was "attempting to concentrate nighttime aircraft noise over Liberal held electorates of Lindsay and Hume". But Ms King hit back on Friday, arguing Senator McKenzie "should be ashamed" for turning the new airport into a political dispute. "Senator McKenzie should be ashamed of herself for attempting to politicise Western Sydney International's flight paths, which are a highly technical and complex process that has taken years to get right," Ms King told "Let's not forget, it was the Coalition Government who selected the orientation of the runway and airspace design in the first place– the two most significant determinants of flight path design. "We've been working hard to fix their mess, including undertaking the most comprehensive community consultation program for any airspace development in Australian history, and we've found alternatives that could be safely implemented within the bounds of what we inherited, the biggest beneficiary of which is in fact Wallacia – which you'll find is not in a Labor electorate. "Perhaps Senator McKenzie should suggest what changes the Coalition would make and how they will impact communities across Western Sydney." Labor holds 11 of the 14 seats in the broader Western Sydney region, and Ms McKenzie said the Minister's directive would disproportionately impact the few Liberal seats in the area. 'Part of Labor's noise mitigation strategy is a risky ministerial direction to have planes fly head-on towards each other for take-offs and landings at night," she said. 'The government waited until after the election before finalising flight paths and attempted to hide the announcements behind the completion of runway construction.' Ms King's direction to Air Services Australia was to make reciprocal runway operations the "default operating mode" between 11pm and 5.30am. Western Sydney International Airport is expected to begin operations in 2026.
Sky News AU
05-06-2025
- General
- Sky News AU
Shadow transport minister Bridget McKenzie accuses Labor of targeting Liberal seats with Western Sydney jet noise
Shadow transport minister Bridget McKenzie has claimed the Albanese government's night-time runway directive is a politically calculated manoeuvre to burden Liberal electorates with aircraft noise from Western Sydney International Airport. Shadow transport minister Bridget McKenzie has accused the Albanese government of concentrating jet noise over Liberal-held electorates as part of what she labelled a 'short-term political fix' to protect marginal Labor seats near the new Western Sydney International Airport. Transport Minister Catherine King has announced a ministerial directive for Airservices Australia to make 'Reciprocal Runway Operations' (RRO) the default at night at WSIA. RRO requires aircraft to take off and land facing the same direction—towards the southwest—but using opposite ends of the single runway. Ms King claimed the directive was to 'achieve the overall lowest possible impact on surrounding communities'. Labor holds 11 of the 14 seats in the broader Western Sydney region, and Ms McKenzie said the Minister's directive would disproportionately impact the few Liberal seats in the area. 'Labor is attempting to concentrate nighttime aircraft noise over Liberal held electorates of Lindsay and Hume,' Ms McKenzie told Sky News on Thursday. 'Part of Labor's noise mitigation strategy is a risky ministerial direction to have planes fly head-on towards each other for take-offs and landings at night. 'The government waited until after the election before finalising flight paths and attempted to hide the announcements behind the completion of runway construction.' The shadow transport minister has also raised further concerns over air safety and staff shortages. 'Under the Albanese Labor government there are already chronic shortages of Airservices Australia air traffic controllers,' she said. 'How can the government give confidence to pilots, crews and passengers that there will be enough air traffic controllers on shift at all times to keep planes from crashing head-on into each other over Western Sydney at night under Catherine King's new direction?' Ms King's direction to Air Services Australia was to make reciprocal runway operations the "default operating mode" between 11pm and 5.30am. Aviation expert and former commercial pilot Captain Byron Bailey has, in response, warned that the RRO plan may be both unworkable and potentially unsafe at a major 24/7 airport. 'Runway 23 will be the preferred runway due to the predominant wind direction,' Captain Bailey told Sky News. 'Nowhere in the world is (RRO) done like this. The resulting traffic confliction and holding would be ridiculous—possibly difficult for ATC to manage.' Captain Bailey warned that if pilots are forced to land or take off downwind due to the RRO restrictions, many may simply refuse. 'Take-offs for heavy B777/A380 would necessitate an into-wind take-off. A downwind take-off by 300-tonne-plus aircraft imposes an additional hazard which pilots will refuse.' However, aviation consultant Tony Stanton, CEO of Strategic Air, offered a different view, defending the RRO policy when applied in low-traffic overnight conditions. 'The minister's statement rightly includes an important consideration—'when safe to do so',' Mr Stanton said. 'Given the Reciprocal Runway Operations mode is to be prioritised between 11pm and 5.30am, traffic density would typically be favourable… I expect the RRO mode to be used routinely and on most nights of the year.' Western Sydney International Airport is expected to begin operations in 2026.
Time of India
02-06-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Liberals unleash $3.86B in re-election cheques across Canada; Strategic spend or voter sway?
Liberal Members of Parliament (MPs) announced a staggering $3.86 billion in funding commitments across 411 projects nationwide in the week leading up to Canada's 45th general election on March 23, 2025. This pre-election spending surge, detailed in a Global News analysis, saw 38 Liberal MPs distributing cheques in 37 communities, from Yellowknife to St. John's. Notably, on March 22, the day before the election call, 26 MPs announced $1.8 billion for 116 projects. Major beneficiaries included Quebec's transit initiatives, with the Quebec City Tramway and Montreal's Blue Line extension receiving top-ups of $332.3 million and $650 million, respectively. In the week before the 2021 election, Liberals committed $3.03 billion to 495 projects. Similarly, ahead of the 2015 election, the Conservative government announced $2.7 billion across 430 projects. Over the 44th Parliament's four-year span, Liberal MPs announced 22,290 projects totaling over $110 billion. Of these, 9,834 projects worth $35.8 billion were in Liberal-held ridings, while Conservative ridings received $23.5 billion for 7,038 projects. NDP and Bloc Québécois ridings saw $7.27 billion and $10.7 billion, respectively. Live Events In Ontario, MP Terry Sheehan, facing a challenging re-election in the newly formed Sault Ste. Marie–Algoma riding, proactively announced funding in areas outside his previous jurisdiction. Sheehan visited communities like Wawa and Elliott Lake, announcing cheques totaling over $4.5 million. His efforts culminated in a narrow victory by 1,728 votes. In Alberta, MP George Chahal announced $8.3 million for 13 projects just before the campaign but lost his seat in Calgary McKnight. Similarly, despite $242.42 million invested in 267 projects in her Quebec riding, former minister Diane Lebouthillier was unseated by a Bloc Québécois challenger. While such pre-election spending is a recurring strategy, its effectiveness in securing electoral victories remains mixed.
