1. This week 10 years ago, NSW Minister for Transport, Gladys Berejiklian announced rail staff would attend radio school to work on eliminating incomprehensible announcements to passengers on trains and at stations.
Ms Berejiklian said many staff did a good job but for others she wanted to make sure they were providing clear, easy-to-understand, accurate information.
“Customers have made it clear that quality train and station announcements will make a real difference to their journey,” Ms Berejiklian said.
“They want to know what stops are coming up next, when the next train is coming, and they want clear advice when there are disruptions or delays.”
2. Victorian Premier, Ted Baillieu unveiled a new model to fund Victoria’s fire services, abolishing the insurance-based fire services levy and moving to a property-based levy.
Mr Baillieu said the reform would save households and businesses across the State more than $100 million a year.
“These changes will ensure everyone contributes a fair share to the fire services, not just those who adequately insure their properties,” Mr Baillieu said.
“The reform also introduces a $20 million concession scheme for pensioners and veterans.”
3. In Queensland, new legislation gave police officers greater protection, with Minister for Police, Jack Dempsey announcing increased penalties for evading police or seriously assaulting an officer and the introduction of a 25-year non-parole jail period for the murder of a police officer.
Mr Dempsey said between 2007 and 2011, almost 13,000 assaults on police were reported.
“Policing is a challenging occupation and officers face a wide range of risks every day, in the course of protecting the community,” Mr Dempsey said.
“While an assault on anyone is a terrible thing, an assault on an officer is a disgraceful act.”
4. Cairns and the Gold Coast were announced as locations for the Queensland Department of Justice and Attorney-General’s youth boot camp trial.
Attorney-General and Minister for Justice, Jarrod Bleijie said the two-year trial would give 80 young people an opportunity for rehabilitation to deter them from choosing a life of crime.
“We will be trialling a sentenced youth boot camp in Cairns and an early intervention youth boot camp on the Gold Coast,” Mr Bleijie said.
“The selection of these trial locations and models was based on a consultation process which attracted valuable input from community groups.”
5. A report from South Australia’s Centre for Automotive Safety Research into the deadly mistakes made by young drivers supported a proposal for passenger and night-time driving restrictions.
The report showed young drivers were more likely to crash in a rural area, on an undivided road and on roads with a higher speed limit, and that at the time of a crash young drivers were more likely to have passengers in the vehicle.
Minister for Road Safety, Jennifer Rankine said the State Government had received more than 1,000 submissions in relation to proposed changes to the Graduated Licensing Scheme, including passenger and night-driving restrictions for P1 drivers, raising the minimum age for a P1 licence and extending the total minimum time on a provisional licence.
6. And a decade ago in Western Australia, the Department of Environment and Conservation (DEC) issued a warning about illegal sandalwood harvesting following the seizure of up to $600,000 worth of the wood destined for the black market.
Senior DEC investigator, Rick Dawson said illegal harvesting was on the rise due to the increasing value of sandalwood, which grew across the State’s rangelands.
He said the harvesting practices employed by illegal operators damaged natural bushland and were wasteful and unsustainable.
“They also threaten to undermine legitimate operators,” Mr Dawson said.
