Has to be the worst ad placement yet

 

Taking a trip down memory lane @robboma3 posted this June 2008 UK article on Twitter ……

 

The '100 Dams' Proposal: So who do I believe - Abbott or Hogan?

 

Australian Federal Opposition Leader Tony Abbott remains determined to dam Australia. An aim he has expressed at various times over a period of years.

 

This policy has been one of the subjects in a speaker’s notes brief distributed to Coalition MPs in July 2012  and, now surfaces again as a conveniently leaked Coalition Dams and Water Management Task Group draft ‘consultation’ paper which has been two years in the making.

 

The leak as reported may be short on detail, however it is obvious that at least one wannabe water raider which has been eyeing off Clarence River Catchment fresh water has had some input concerning the recommendations found in this paper and the Clarence and Mann rivers are listed amongst the '100 dams'.

 

While APN Media Group reports:

 

* The News Limited report indicated most of the proposed dams had been flagged for northern Australia and would be used for irrigation in a bid to double the nation's food production.

But a number of projects are mooted for northern New South Wales, with water to be piped north to the Logan River in Queensland….

Reports revealed the paper - compiled after years of consultation by the conservative parties' Dams Taskforce - included five new dams in northern New South Wales…

* Byrrill Creek Dam is back on the agenda

* a draft discussion paper identifying Byrrill Creek and the Oxley River as potential dam sites.

A significant amount of work was done on the Byrrill Creek dam plan, but it was rejected by Tweed Shire Council in 2011.
"Now, more and more, we're getting people from that area saying we want to expand our water facilities," he [Barnaby Joyce] said.

 

That damming and diverting one or more of the NSW northern rivers is still on the Liberal and National Party agenda is beyond doubt, as in one form or another it surfaces at almost every state or federal inquiry into water security.

 

Yet the Nationals candidate for the seat of Page in the 2013 federal election, Kevin Hogan, tells us that none of the northern rivers are being considered by Abbott & Co for diversion to south east Queensland or the Murray Darling Basin.

 

However, rather curiously Hogan only rules out the creation of major dams – he makes no commitment to no new dams.

 

Which begs the question as to what Abbott and his Shadow Minister for Regional Development, Local Government and Water Barnaby Joyce may have been privately promising those water hungry mining companies operating (or intending to operate) on the NSW North Coast when discussing infrastructure partnerships:

 

"Now some of these dams will require public funding and at the last election I had half a billion dollars put away in my portfolio as seed capital to this purpose.

Some of them will require private funding and ... myself and (my) chief of staff, Matt Canavan designed the infrastructure partnership scheme which is a mechanism to attract funds from private investment to invest in this nation building infrastructure.

Some of them don't need anything because in such areas as the mining industry they require water to get coal mines up and they'll build them."

After two years of 'investigation' and no community consultation Clarence River Catchment freshwater systems are once more on the table for futher dam construction.

If such a dam was not being considered as Mr. Hogan asserts, why was it included in the list of potential dam sites at all?

Looking back at a taste of things to come - Australian Federal Election Campaign 2013

 

A comic take on basic Australian journalistic interview techniques when faced with The Liberal Rampant. Ignore the outrageous answers and plough on with the prepared questions regardless.

Replace "Rudd" with "Gillard" and "Costello" with "Pyne" and this interview could pass almost unnoticed into this year's federal election campaign.
 

 

U.S. We The People Petition Against Antarctic Whaling - sign now

 

This petition needs over 80,000 signatures before 28 February 2013 if it is to be accepted by the U.S. Obama Administration.

we petition the obama administration to:

Take strong action to stop the Japanese from killing whales in the Southern Ocean Antarctic Whale Sanctuary.
 

The President must take swift and decisive action against Japan's illegal whaling.

Under the Pelly Amendment and the Packwood-Magnuson Amendment, the President has the power to apply economic sanctions against Japan for its continued whale slaughter in the Antarctic Whale Sanctuary. The United States asserts that it resolutely opposes whale hunting by Japan, but does little to actually bring a halt to the practice.

The U.S. State Dept. has declared: “We remain resolute in our opposition to commercial whaling, including so-called ‘scientific’ whaling, in particular in the Southern Ocean Whale Sanctuary established by the International Whaling Commission. In this context we wish to emphasize that lethal techniques are not required in modern whale conservation and management.”
 

Created: Jan 28, 2013
 

Add your name here.



Regional media in trouble on the NSW North Coast?

Independent News and Media (INM) has an estimated 29.5% investment in APN News & Media Limited which owns many of the local newspapers operating on the NSW North Coast from Coffs Harbour up to the NSW-QLD border, including The Daily Examiner and The Northern Star.

 

It is no secret that Independent News and Media (which has its own financial woes) is unhappy with the continuing lacklustre performance of APN and its latest trading update.

 

So unhappy is this major shareholder that it was calling for the sacking of APN’s current CEO Brett Chenoweth.

 

If this move is successful it would make him the second chief executive officer to go in the past two years.

 

INM’s revolt appears to be the reason for the APN trading halt announced on 15 February 2013.

 

All this would be of nothing more than passing interest to Northern Rivers residents, if it were not for the persistent speculation that APN regional media assets may be broken up and some sold-off.

UPDATE:

THE Daily Examiner and Coastal Views have restructured to ensure both publications remain the voice of our region for the long-term future.

While we'll be closing our office in Yamba on February 28, our coverage of the Lower Clarence will remain unchanged as we move towards a more mobile workforce in keeping with industry changes worldwide.

We have also re-engineered our sales structure to match our clients' needs, both large and small. In doing so, some local positions have been impacted.

Our new structure will provide higher levels of customer service and reader value than ever before and we look forward to the next chapter of our papers' evolution in this digital age.

The Daily Examiner has been an integral part of the Clarence Valley since 1859 and will continue to be so for many, many years to come. [The Daily Examiner 22 February 2013]

Key dates for the 14 September 2013 Federal Election. Are you on the Electoral Roll yet?

 

If you haven't applied to be on the Australian Electoral Roll yet, perhaps this week would be a good time to get your paperwork in or enrol online.

 

The Australian Electoral Commission website gives full instructions.

 

It is compulsory to enrol if you:

• are an Australian citizen, or eligible British subject,
• aged 18 years and over*, and
• have lived at your address for at least one month.

Key dates for the 2013 federal election

Updated: 30 January 2013

 

Today the Prime Minister announced Saturday 14 September 2013 as polling day for the 2013 federal election. The Prime Minister has further announced that later this year, the Prime Minister will advise the Governor-General to dissolve the House of Representatives with writs to be issued on Monday 12 August for an election for the House and half of the Senate, to be held on Saturday 14 September.

The Commonwealth Electoral Act 1918 sets various milestones in an election timetable. The Prime Minister's announcement of two key dates in the election timetable, being the date of the issue of writ and the date of polling day, creates a minimum timeframe election period which allows other dates to be determined.

On the basis of the writ being issued by the Governor-General, as indicated by the Prime Minister, on 12 August, and the election date being 14 September, the 2013 election timetable will be:

Issue of writ	Monday, 12 August 2013
Close of rolls	8pm, Monday, 19 August 2013
Close of candidate nominations	12 midday, Thursday, 22 August 2013
Declaration of candidate nominations	12 midday, Friday, 23 August 2013
Polling day	Saturday, 14 September 2013

Media contact

Phil Diak | Director Media
AEC, Canberra
02 6271 4415
0413 452 539

 

Federal Labor MP Janelle Saffin locks in economic strategy & jobs expo for Clarence Valley

Janelle locks in economic strategy & jobs expo for Clarence Valley

PAGE MP Janelle Saffin has locked in Federal funding for the first stage of an economic development strategy for the Clarence Valley, and an Australian Government Jobs and Skills Expo in Grafton on April 16.

Ms Saffin thanked Federal Minister for Employment Participation Kate Ellis for signing off on both jobs initiatives, which she has been working on since the downsizing of Grafton Gaol to a remand centre last year.

“The Clarence Valley has taken several hits with the loss of private and NSW Government public sector jobs, so my approach is to strengthen the viability of our traditional industries, one by one, to expand our industry base and jobs,” she said. 

“The marine industry is an important one in the Valley, and it makes sense to kick start our economic development strategy with a project that will boost its workforce by upskilling up to 10 local casual workers with experience in manufacturing and fabrication.

“Local Employment Coordinator Terry Watson has been working with Clarence Valley Council’s Deputy General Manager Des Schroder, whose council will deliver the project. NSW Trade and Investment’s Craig Jenkins is actively involved in the project in bringing in other State agencies.

“The Australian Government will contribute $20,000 to support training in ship construction and refurbishment with NSW State Training Services providing the actual training. The project will run until May, but my aim would be to build on this across other major industries over the next few years.

“Participants in the Marine Precinct Workforce Development Project will have the chance to get certification, including working in confined spaces, scaffolding, forklift licenses, sand blasting, welding, fitting and turning, and workplace health and safety.

“Tailoring people’s skills to what industry needs is what this project is about and this makes it easier to keep your job, advance in your workplace and get other jobs.”

Ms Saffin welcomed Minister Ellis’s announcement that an Australian Government Jobs and Skills Expo would be held at Grafton Basketball Stadium on Tuesday, April 16, because it will bring hundreds of local job and skills training opportunities to the Valley.

“I encourage all job seekers, employers and training and education organisations in the Clarence Valley to get involved in the Grafton Jobs and Skills Expo because this is a great opportunity to help people build skills and find work or get back into work,” she said.

“There will be a large jobs board filled with vacancies for all ages and skills levels, and a skills board where registered training organisations will promote courses available in the area.

“Since 2009, the Australian Government has delivered 69 Jobs and Skills Expos to areas of high unemployment and welfare dependency. As a result, more than 24,700 job seekers have been connected with employment and training.

“Keeping jobs and creating jobs is what the community expects us to work on. That’s what I’ve been doing, locking in both the economic strategy and the jobs expo.

“I want to ensure that people in Page have the opportunity to share in the benefits of work, and I do everything I can to help those who need it, get it.”

Exhibiting at the Grafton Jobs and Skills Expo is free and potential exhibitors should call 13 11 58 or visit the website at www.humanservices.gov.au/expos

Employers can also contact Local Employment Coordinator Terry Watson on 0412 320 077 or at terry.watson@deewr.gov.au to follow up on available assistance or for more information about the Clarence Valley Marine Precinct Workforce Development Project.

Friday, February 15, 2013.