This isn't just about workers; it's about connectivity, livability and the future of regional Australia. Qantas needs to stop retreating into the big cities and start looking after the nation that gave it its wings.
I moved on Monday that the Albanese government be held to account for failing to meet a legislated deadline to table its response to a key regional telecommunications report. This is yet another example of Labor's lack of focus on regional Austr
My concern is not just that this decision is about prioritising larger, centralised organisations over smaller, local ones, but also that Labor fails to see the needs of people in the regions—and, in my case, the north-west of Victoria.
I notice the motion doesn't quote the line parroted by the Minister for Climate Change and Energy that renewables are the cheapest form of energy. No, now it's the bubblegum phrase 'the better future Australians voted for'.
For more than three years now the Prime Minister has repeated the mantra 'nobody held back, nobody left behind'. But Wendy has been utterly left behind by the combination of state and federal Labor governments in regional Victoria.
Farmers face fines of up to $12,000 if they refuse access to Transmission Company Victoria, an arm of the Victorian government, to build the VNI West transmission line.
They laughed at the suffering of those in regional Australia. I want to note that was incredibly disappointing.
Many councils, especially those in the regions, often pick up the bill when failed markets and centralisation mean essential services like aged care, child care and health care are failing.
Under Labor, income taxes are up over 25 per cent. As this engorged government feasts on your income, using it to spend on largesse that exacerbates the cost-of-living crisis, Labor tosses Australians a daily morsel of their tax back.