“We believe in the future of Northern Australia. This means we need to take further action to boost the resilience for Australians to live and work in Northern Australia,” Mr Morrison said.
“Homeowners and businesses have been faced with crippling insurance costs, and in some cases, can’t get insurance at all. It’s not OK, and we’re going to change that. The average strata premium was $6800 in North Queensland, twice the Australian average of $3300.
“Our plan will give more Australians in cyclone-prone areas access to affordable insurance.”
The report, handed down in January 2021, revealed Northern Australians were being slugged with premiums twice the national average.
Set nurse to resident ratios are not the answer to the country's aged care crisis and could cause major problems in regions like Mackay, Dawson MP George Christensen says. The MP's comments came in response to protesters who rallied outside his electorate office on Monday to demand at least one registered nurse be present at all times at all private aged care facilities.
A Royal Commission report this week revealed elderly Australians are starving, dying in pain and suffering assaults in neglectful nursing homes. In a distressing 2733-page report in eight volumes, Royal Commissioners Tony Pagone QC and Lynelle Briggs concluded "substandard care and abuse pervades the Australian aged care system''.
A Department of Transport and Main Roads spokesman provided an update, saying funding had been allocated to both Hamilton Plains and Shute Harbour Rd. He said $37 million had been allocated under the Roads of Strategic Important package, with $29.6 million contributed by the Federal Government and $7.4 million from the State Government. The spokesman explained the funds had been earmarked for a flood mitigation project at Hamilton Plains and an upgrade to a section of Shute Harbour Rd, near Cannonvale. "The Hamilton Plains project is due to start detailed design in mid-2021," the spokesman said. The project is set to be delivered in the 2022-23 to 2023-24 financial years.
The bleak outlook was laid out in the Institute of Public Affairs'
Net Zero Jobs document. The IPA is a conservative think-tank based in Melbourne. The document uses data from the National Greenhouse Gas Inventory by Economic Sector report, along with industry employment data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics, to estimate how many jobs would be put at risk from a net zero emissions target. It claimed that up to 653,600 jobs would be directly in the firing line from a net zero emissions target. But Labor spokesman for Northern Australia Murray Watt has rubbished the claims as a "blatant scare campaign from a fringe group".
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Subscriber only Mackay sugarcane farmers are hoping negotiations can unlock more than 500 million extra global consumers for their exports. Trade, Tourism and Investment Minister Dan Tehan met with some of the who's who of sugar at a shed talk on Tuesday to discuss the government's ambitious plans. Canegrowers Queensland chairman Paul Schembri meeting with Dawson MP George Christensen and Trade, Tourism and Investment Minister Dan Tehan at a shed talk on Tuesday. In the background are Canegrowers Mackay deputy chairman Anthony (Tony) Ross and Erakala sugarcane farmer Andre Camilleri. Picture: Heidi Petith "We are in the midst of two pretty important free trade agreement negotiations at the moment - one with the United Kingdom and one with the European Union," Mr Tehan said.
A new trial promises to help more workers get faster access to qualifications for employment in Australia’s mining industry.
The Federal Government says the trial will explore how qualifications can be simplified through a less prescriptive approach and how better advice can be provided to training providers.
The Minerals Council of Australia and partners across the mining industry will deliver the Mining Skills Organisation Pilot with support from the government.
Dawson MP George Christensen said the initiative was about better meeting the current and future training needs of both workers and businesses in the mining sector.
“Technology is changing traditional occupations and demanding new skills,” Mr Christensen said.
Dawson MP George Christensen has returned fire after Federal Labor leader Anthony Albaneseâs sensational claim about his relationship with the Prime Minister.
In a major foreign policy speech to the Perth USAsia Centre on Wednesday morning, Mr Albanese claimed Scott Morrison is âafraidâ of Mr Christensen and fellow MP Craig Kelly.
âRecently, unlike most world leaders, Scott Morrison refused to disavow President Trumpâs incitement of the storming of the Capitol,â Mr Albanese said.
âHe remains afraid of the far-right extremist fringe dwellers who make up the bedrock of his personal support â and who he cultivates through the avatars of Trumpists and conspiracy theorists like Craig Kelly and George Christensen.
Dawson MP George Christensen and Mackay MP Julieanne Gilbert have revealed to the
Daily Mercury their wishlist of major projects on the agenda for 2021.
George Christensen:
- Action from government on North Queensland insurance crisis "What I'm looking for in the (federal) budget, which will be delivered in May, is a commitment to establish a reinsurance pool that will help defray the cost of cyclone insurance in North Queensland," Mr Christensen said. "I think that's achievable, but it's just going to mean a lot of work and lobbying to get that."
- Funding for Urannah Dam Mr Christensen noted this project had received support from both the state and federal governments.