Mr NORTHE (Morwell) — Well, the V/Line saga continues in Gippsland with further disruptions to services, the overcrowding of carriages and the proposal of terminating services at Pakenham again raising its head. Despite the rhetoric of this government, nothing appears to have changed. Gippsland commuters well remember the massive disruption to services earlier in the year, and…
Mr NORTHE — I also want to acknowledge the passing of a local legend in Emmanuel ‘Manny’ Manthos, who came to Australia from Greece in 1953 and worked in various jobs before finally settling in the Latrobe Valley in the mid-1960s. Manny had a number of business ventures, with Manny’s Market being synonymous across many communities to…
Mr NORTHE (Morwell) — The unemployment rate for the Latrobe region continues to be an ongoing concern for our community. The small area labour market figures released last week paint a very disturbing picture. For example, the figures for the Latrobe city area show that in December 2014 the unemployment rate was 7.3 per cent, yet under the…
Mr NORTHE (Morwell) — The saga continues for Country Fire Authority (CFA) volunteers across Victoria and in the Morwell electorate. Many local CFA volunteers took time on Sunday to protest on the steps of Parliament against the Premier’s attempt to railroad Victoria’s 60 000 CFA volunteers. As has been said many times, there is no disagreement on the…
Mr NORTHE (Morwell) — I rise today to highlight concerns conveyed to me by local students and staff following the closure of a number of local registered training organisations (RTOs). The closure of these RTOs without prior warning has left a sour taste in the mouths of those impacted. What has also left a sour taste is…
Mr NORTHE (Morwell) — I rise today in regard to the Premier’s meddling in enterprise bargaining agreement (EBA) negotiations with the United Firefighters Union. Everyone agrees that career firefighters deserve fair pay and conditions — and this has never been disputed — but there are genuine concerns raised by Country Fire Authority (CFA) volunteers on aspects of the said…
Mr NORTHE (Morwell) — I rise today to call upon the Labor government to provide funding in the upcoming budget for a number of projects and organisations in the Morwell electorate. For example, the Gippsland Carers Association (GCA) provides important support and advocacy services across our region, but it faces significant challenges if state government support is…
Mr NORTHE (Morwell) — I am pleased that the Minister for Emergency Services is in the house because on 1 April last year the launch of Country Fire Authority (CFA) district 27 was made by the Labor government with much fanfare. CFA district 27 was an initiative of the coalition, which sought to bring together fire brigades within the…
Mr NORTHE (Morwell) — I rise today to highlight ongoing concerns and issues being experienced by local commuters given the current V/Line crisis confronting our community. Things are bad enough at the moment, but the lack of accurate information being provided by the Andrews government to commuters is simply not good enough. For example, last…
Mr NORTHE (Morwell) — I rise to congratulate Traralgon resident Greg Samson for receiving a Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) in the recent Australia Day awards. Greg was recognised for his service to youth through scouting and to the community and joins his wife, Lorrel, as a deserving OAM. Morwell paramedic Neil Akers…