1 April 2017 – NSW Parliament Wrap Up
The Coalition celebrated its second anniversary in government this week, following its landmark election on 28 March 2015. Since that election, the NSW Government has:
Opened and upgraded 14 hospitals
Achieved record housing approvals and completions
Designed, planned and commenced construction of 16 major infrastructure projects, and more than 200 smaller hospital, school, road and water schemes
Created 300,300 new jobs and reduced the state’s unemployment rate to 5.2 per cent (the highest and lowest numbers in Australia respectively)
Built 1100 new classrooms, upgraded 24 schools, and commenced or begun planning for the construction of 15 new schools.
As well as marking the official mid-point in the Government’s term, this was also the fourth parliamentary sitting week of the year. Parliament sits again next week, before adjourning until the start of May.
Here's how the week panned out...
Local government amalgamation update
The week got off to a rocky start for the Government, with the Court of Appeal rejecting a proposed merger between Ku-ring-gai and Hornsby councils. The decision was made on the basis that Ku-ring-gai was denied procedural fairness after it was refused access to a report outlining the financial benefits of amalgamation. By Wednesday, Woollahra Council, which has appealed its proposed merger with Waverley and Randwick to the High Court, had submitted an affidavit citing the Ku-ring-gai decision in an effort to prompt a similar outcome. Premier Gladys Berejiklian responded to the decision by stating, “[It] doesn’t change our plans at all…we’re really determined to see this through because we believe it’s in the best interests of the public.”
The Opposition chose to use question time on Tuesday to interrogate the Government about amendments to the Commonwealth Racial Discrimination Act. The Premier had to answer three separate questions from Labor Leader Luke Foley on the topic, despite it not actually being a state issue. One would think that council amalgamations would have been a more relevant and issue for the Opposition to prosecute, but who are we to judge...
New ferry services
On Tuesday, the Premier and Minister for Transport Andrew Constance approved two new ferry routes between Sydney’s CBD, Eastern Suburbs, Inner West and North Shore. From October, a new F4 Cross Harbour route will operate between Pyrmont, Barangaroo, Balmain East, McMahons Point, Milsons Point, Circular Quay, Rose Bay and Watsons Bay. A new F7 Eastern Suburbs route will also commence between Double Bay, Darling Point, Garden Island and Circular Quay. The F4 service will have to wait for the completion of the Barangaroo Ferry Hub, one of the final touches to that precinct’s redevelopment.
NSW adoption laws
The Premier and Minister for Family & Community Services Pru Goward introduced major adoption reforms on Wednesday in an effort to reduce the number of children in foster care and increase adopting rates. Under the reforms, foster families adopting a child into their care will receive weekly allowances between $488 and $738, depending on the age and needs of the child and the family’s existing means. The reforms will also introduce funding for better support services for families adopting children who have suffered abuse or neglect. In total, the Government will spend $90 million over four years on its ‘Adoption Transformation’ package.
NSW emergency services assist QLD neighbours
On Wednesday, the Premier and Minister for Emergency Services Troy Grant deployed a raft of ‘Rapid Damage Assessment teams’ to assist with the aftermath of Tropical Cyclone Debbie. NSW Fire & Rescue sent 42 personnel to Townsville, joined by a further eight from the NSW Rural Fire Service and State Emergency Service, to assess the structural integrity of homes and infrastructure. A further four SES workers will fly north to help with clean-up efforts on Saturday.
NSW Transport live service updates and customer satisfaction results
While not strictly related to the week in Parliament, Transport for NSW made two announcements of Wednesday that might be of interest to commuters. Firstly, TfNSW’s website will now offer real-time data to keep commuters up-to-date about when their bus, train or ferry will (or won’t) arrive. Secondly, a survey of more than 17,000 commuters last November revealed the following overall customer satisfaction data for NSW public transport services:
The spectre of former Labor MP Ian Macdonald loomed large over question time on Thursday, following his conviction for misconduct in public office. The Supreme Court found that Mr Macdonald abused his position as Minister for Primary Industries and Minister for Mineral Resources when he granted a mining licence to a company run by former CFMEU boss John Maitland without a competitive tender.
Mick Fuller APM appointed NSW Police Commissioner
Following a Cabinet meeting earlier in the day, the Premier and Minister for Police Troy Grant announced that Mick Fuller will become the state’s new Police Commissioner. The Government has been deciding who should replace former Commissioner Andrew Scipione since February. Mr Fuller has served in the NSW Police force for 29 years, spending the past seven in leadership roles, such as Assistant Commissioner. He will now lead more than 16,000 police officers throughout the state.
Green slip reforms pass parliament
Three weeks ago, PremierState detailed the scope of the Government’s green slip reforms. On Thursday, those reforms finally passed through Parliament, meaning they will come into effect from December. We particularly enjoyed the image Minister for Finance, Services & Property Victor Dominello chose to include in his media release making the announcement (see left). Thumbs up for reform!
New pool for Parramatta
As is often the case in sitting weeks, Friday was noticeably quieter on the news front. However, in the morning, the Premier did partner up with Minister for Western Sydney Stuart Ayres and Member for Parramatta Geoff Lee to announce $30 million funding for a new Aquatic Centre to be built on the old Parramatta Golf Course site.