A matter of two competing petitions to restore the NORCO milk contract with NSW Health. One an official e-petition guaranteed to be brought to the notice of the NSW Parliament, the other a political vanity petition the parliament may never consider. NSW residents can choose which they might sign

There is an e-petition currently before the NSW Parliament, Reinstate Norco as the Dairy Supplier for NSW North Coast Hospitals, created by Harper Dalton-Earls on 23 August 2024. 

Harper Dalton-Earls is the Labor candidate for Lismore City Council at the 14 September 2024 NSW local government elections.

This e-petition will be closed to signatures on 15 November 2024.

Labor MLA for Lismore Janelle Saffin has been an active supporter of the push to restore the NORCO milk contract and of this e-petition. 

Ms. Saffin also publicly called out the NSW Nationals MLAs Gurmesh Singh (Coffs Harbour), Richie Williamson (Clarence) and Michael Kemp (Oxley).

In an effort to draw oxygen from the e-petition to parliament on 26 August the NSW Nationals  announced their own petition accessed via their own website:

North Coast Nationals MPs have joined forces to launch a community petition calling on the Minns Labor Government to restore Norco Milk to health facilities across the Northern NSW and Mid North Coast Local Health Districts.

The petition was launched by Member for Clarence, Richie Williamson, Member for Coffs Harbour and Deputy Leader, Gurmesh Singh, and Member for Oxley, Michael Kemp at Andrew Wilson’s Lismore dairy farm.

The petition emphasises the significant impact on local farmers and communities and urges the Minns Labor Government to reverse its decision to remove Norco Milk from North Coast health facilities....

BACKGROUND

ECHO, 27 August 2024:

Lismore MP Janelle Saffin has come out swinging at conservative National Party representatives who have chosen not to support restoring local milk producer NORCOs contract to supply North Coast hospitals and health services.

The contract that NORCO held to supply local hospitals with milk was once again cancelled and HealthShare NSW awarded its state-wide milk supply contract to international supplier Dairy Farmers.

Ms Saffin said she is disappointed that three NSW Nationals MPs are not lending their support to a single e-petition to Parliament to restore NORCO’s contract.

‘Constituents have contacted me wondering why my fellow MPs Gurmesh Singh (Coffs Harbour), Richie Williamson (Clarence) and Michael Kemp (Oxley) are not backing in the e-petition launched last Friday,’ she said.

Kevin Hogan.

While Federal Member for Page Kevin Hogan released a statement blaming the NSW Labor government for the decision it was the National Party who first made the decision in to end the contract.

‘When the Nationals were in government and the same thing happened, we all backed in the then local member Thomas George and the Health Services Union ran a big campaign, fully supported by the community and after some time, people power changed the decision of the then bureaucracy,’ explained Ms Saffin.

‘It is people power we need this time as well to support our local NORCO employees and dairy farmer suppliers who are part and parcel of the NORCO dairy co-operative. We need 20,000 signatures to get this issue debated on the floor of Parliament and that is powerful. To have two separate petitions in circulation is already leading to confusion in the community and effectively weakens our chances of getting the required number of signatures.’

NORCO is Australia’s largest and oldest dairy co-operative and supports 190 local farms, buying their milk and creating premium products that are celebrated as ‘Australia’s best tasting milk’ at Dairy Australia’s, Grand Dairy Awards in 2023.

‘We’re talking about Australia’s last 100 per cent farmer owned dairy cooperative that provides an economic lifeline to hundreds of families in a region that has experienced the double whammy of floods and the cost-of-living crisis,’ said HSU (Health Services) secretary Gerard Hayes.

‘This is not the time to cut off a trusted local company with deep roots – We’ve even heard reports of patients refusing to drink the hospital milk unless it’s NORCO, which shows you how deeply the community feels about this!’

Ms Saffin as reiterated that, ‘It was the bureaucracy that made this recent decision to award the tender to a different supplier, but I, on behalf of the community, expect the Minister for Health and Regional Health (Ryan Park) to work out a way to fix it.’

‘That means NORCO getting its contract back as it was to deliver its products into the North Coast Hospitals and Health Services.’

Sign the petition here.

Yamba community pushes for Treelands Drive Community Centre to be expanded to include a library, carpark and commercial grade kitchen

IMAGE: Supplied

Col Shephard (left), Vice Chair of Yamba CAN: Community Action Network handed the Treelands Drive Community Centre petition to Clarence Valley Mayor Ian Tiley (right) on Tuesday, 14 February 2023.

In just 7 days 385 hardcopy signatures (28 pages) and 106 online signatures were collected totalling a petition print out of 491 signatures.

The petition reads:

“Action requested:

We, the undersigned, request the Mayor and Councillors of Clarence Valley ensure:

1. The expansion of the existing TDCC [Treelands Drive Community Centre] to at least include a library, commercial kitchen, and carpark.

2. Council undertakes community consultation for Option B inviting residents to group gatherings and exhibitions.

3. Residents’ suggestions for the expansion are fully considered in consultation with residents.”

The mayor was informed that Yamba CAN recognised that Clarence Valley Council Petition Policy states that:

Petitions to Council are not specifically covered by legislation. However, the Local Government Act 1993 encourages effective participation of local communities in the affairs of local government. Council deals with petitions in keeping with this principle.

I am sure every resident or ratepayer who has signed the petition to date is hoping that it will be seriously considered by Council in the Chamber.

Yamba CAN is still collecting as many signatures as possible up to 27 February, the day prior to the Ordinary Monthly Council Meeting and, hoping as many people as possible can attend this council meeting on Tuesday 28 February 2023 commencing 2pm in Maclean Council Chambers in order to observe councillors' deliberations.

To sign the petition online go to:

https://www.change.org YambaTreelandsDriveCommunityCentre

If you as a Yamba resident wanting a large, fully accessible modern library situated within town's second principal shopping precinct — with adequate parking and an existing sheltered bus stop outside for those without cars — now is the time to speak up.

Especially if you are one of the 37.7 per cent of local residents who are aged 65 years and older (including the est. 1,837 who are 70 years of age to over 85 years), or are among the est. 70.6 per cent who have a significant chronic health problem (many of whom have mobility issues) or who are a parent (and chauffer) to one of the est. 1,079 children who are potential users of local library facilities. [ABS Census 2021, Yamba (NSW) All Persons, Quick Stats, retrieved 20 February 2023]

Do you know that in the NSW Parliament, the upper house ventilation system has been upgraded to ensure 8 exchanges of fresh air every hour on the advice of health experts. Our school kids get told to open a window. Want to change that? Then take a moment to sign this official e-Petition to Parliament

"An excellent COVID-19 safety plan has been developed for parliament that includes rapid antigen testing, mask-wearing, social distancing and upgraded ventilation systems. A strictly limited number of members would be permitted in the chamber and there will be remote online participation of members. As the opposition Whip in the Upper House, I have spent time examining the plan in great detail, and it is among the strictest set of work practices in our state’s workplaces." [Mark Buttigeig MLC, in The Sydney Morning Herald, 14 September 2021]

When it comes to a complete suite of COVID-19 pandemic health response measures across the entire population, first the Berejiklian and now the Perrottet, NSW governments have rarely been proactive unless pushed.

If the world we live in had attained true equality and equity our children would be having their schools fitted out with high quality ventilation systems, but they are not.

This e-petition set out below has yet to reach the 10,000 signature target which would mean it will be considered by the NSW Parliament.

The SARS-CoV-2 Delta Variant Outbreak & COVID-19 infection spread generally are far from over.

Please sign for the sake of kindergarten, primary & high school students across the state.

This petition is not the complete answer but it is a good start. Bringing community concerns right into the Legislative Assembly, where history through Hansard makes every single one of the current 93 members accountable. Make people power count!

NSW Parliament e-Petition with close date 21 October 2021:

Signing ePetition 

To sign the ePetition, confirm you are a resident of New South Wales and enter your title, first name and last name. Once you click ‘submit’ you will have signed the ePetition and will be re-directed to the Legislative Assembly’s ‘ePetitions open for signature’ page 

Covid-19 safety measures in schools: ventilation & air filtration 

To the Speaker and Members of the Legislative Assembly, 

 We call upon the NSW government to take immediate action to ensure adequate ventilation is installed and maintained in Primary Schools. The current measures undertaken by the Department of Education to ensure windows and doors are able to be opened is not sufficient.

 

Covid-19 is an airborne disease. Ventilation, along with vaccination and vital covid-safe steps, are essential to keep children safe. Children under 12 years of age are not currently eligible for vaccination, so adequate ventilation in Primary Schools is a priority. 

 OzSAGE, a network of public health experts, believes ventilation in classrooms is a key requirement for the safe lifting of restrictions in NSW. Their stance is supported by both the CDC in the USA and the ECDC across Europe. 

 In the NSW Parliament, the upper house ventilation system has been upgraded to ensure eight exchanges of fresh air every hour on the advice of health experts. Our children should be afforded the same protection as our elected officials. 

 We are asking for a state-wide ventilation plan to include: 

• Carbon dioxide monitors to be installed in classrooms 

• Air purification devices (including HEPA filters) to be distributed 

 • Funding for shade sails to increase outdoor learning spaces and make it easier for classes to be conducted outdoors 

 With Kindy and Stage 1 children returning to classrooms on the 25th October 2021, we implore you to take urgent action to ensure our children’s health and safety.

To sign online go to:

https://www.parliament.nsw.gov.au/la/Pages/ePetition-details.aspx?q=rpEwNg2UB9+LpW1NhPZzdA==

BACKGROUND

"COVIDSAFE Plan to support the sittings of the Legislative Council (LC)" at:

https://www.parliament.nsw.gov.au/tp/files/80383/COVIDSAFE%20Plan%20to%20support%20the%20sittings%20of%20the%20Legislative%20Council%20-%20%20%209%20September%202021.pdf

A mega petition is about to be considered by the Australian House of Representatives

 

The only direct means by which an individual or group can ask Australian parliaments to take action is by means of a written petition.

Australians have always had a right to petition parliament.

One of the most famous petitions would have to be the close to 30,000 signature petition presented to the Parliament of Victoria in September 1891 which asked that “Women should Vote on Equal terms with Men”. This petition played a part in Federation which in 1901 gave women the national right to vote and stand for parliament.

Another petition which isn’t always remembered is the February 2014 Pharmacy Guild of Australia’s petition asking federal parliament “to take whatever action is needed to ensure that community pharmacy receives the funding support it needs to stay in business, serve patients, employ staff and remain open after hours”, which had 1,210,471 signatures.

In 2016 the Australian Parliament introduced the e-petition alternative to paper petitions.

Until recently these e-petitions have contained signature numbers ranging from single figure to 4 figure totals.

However the following e-petition appears to have struck a national chord and its signatures are in the hundreds of thousands……..

Petition EN1938 - Royal Commission to ensure a strong, diverse Australian news media

Petition Reason

Our democracy depends on diverse sources of reliable, accurate and independent news. But media ownership is becoming more concentrated alongside new business models that encourage deliberately polarising and politically manipulated news. We are especially concerned that Australia’s print media is overwhelmingly controlled by News Corporation, founded by Fox News billionaire Rupert Murdoch, with around two-thirds of daily newspaper readership. This power is routinely used to attack opponents in business and politics by blending editorial opinion with news reporting. Australians who hold contrary views have felt intimidated into silence. These facts chill free speech and undermine public debate. Powerful monopolies are also emerging online, including Facebook and Google. We are deeply concerned by: mass-sackings of news journalists; digital platforms impacting on media diversity and viability; Nine Entertainment's takeover of the Melbourne Age and Sydney Morning Herald; News Corp’s acquisition (and then closure) of more than 200 smaller newspapers, undermining regional and local news; attempts to replace AAP Newswire with News Corp’s alternative; and relentless attacks on the ABC’s independence and funding. Professional journalists further have legitimate concerns around unjust searches, potential prosecution, whistle-blower protection, official secrecy and dispute resolution that should be comprehensively addressed. Only a Royal Commission would have the powers and independence to investigate threats to media diversity, and recommend policies to ensure optimal diversity across all platforms to help guarantee our nation’s democratic future.

Petition Request

We therefore ask the House to support the establishment of such a Royal Commission to ensure the strength and diversity of Australian news media.

Number of signatures: 501876 [as at 11:59pm AEDT, 4 November 2020]

Closing date for signatures: 04 November 2020 (11.59pm AEST)

The petition will now be presented to the House of Representatives where MPs already cowed by media monopolies may or may not decide to refer it to a Morrison Government minister who, in his or her turn, will in all likelihood take up to 90 days to boot it into political oblivion - in a show of support for News Ltd/NewsCorp and the Murdoch family who have been political donors to the Liberal Party since at least 1998.