"My strongest criticism in all of this is directed at the MLA....they’re still in denial on their culpability" Federal Member for Page

Janelle Saffin’s statement on the end of suspension of live cattle trade

Today I sought further detail on the announcement by Agriculture Minister Joe Ludwig lifting the suspension of live cattle exports to Indonesia.

The Minister has declared that no live cattle will depart for Indonesia until the government is assured of humane treatment throughout the supply chain.

I welcome this and I’d like to be able to say that the Minister’s announcement satisfies the three part motion put to Caucus last month.
At this stage I do not have enough information to give that unqualified support.

Last month Caucus endorsed a motion that called for:
*the immediate cessation of live cattle exports to Indonesia until all slaughter houses receiving Australian cattle to comply with international OIE standards, encouraging the use of stunning and ongoing independent monitoring.
*an independent review of the live animal export trade
*MLA to use their contingency funds to support the producers affected by the suspension, and for the Minister to use his statutory power if the MLA did not act of its own volition.

The Minister has said that his announcement addresses the Caucus motion.
I still need to see more detail of how it addresses the part of the motion that called for encouragement of stunning.

I have asked the minister how he would comply with that part of the motion.
The Minister in his ministerial statement said “obviously the use of stunning equipment improves the welfare outcomes for animals and the Government has made it clear it will encourage stunning wherever possible”.

I want to see a stronger commitment from the Government for encouraging stunning.
The Caucus motion clearly called for encouraging the use of stunning, and that has to be an ongoing process.
The Australian community expects no less.

My strongest criticism in all of this is directed at the MLA.
I’ve made many comments on the MLA and they‘re still missing in action in taking responsibility for this mess.
They use the levies from farmers and public money and they’re still in denial on their culpability - denying their responsibility for the fact that Australian animals were not being killed humanely.

I repeat my call which I’ve made many times for a complete inquiry into their whole structure.

I also deplore the duplicitous actions of the Federal National Party in this matter. Their attitude is say to the community how terrible it is that animals are being killed like that, but in Canberra they talk very differently. And we must remember they set up the structure of the MLA and industry self-regulation.

7 July 2011 media release from the Office of Janelle Saffin MP, Member for Page

Buckingham speaks out in defence of NSW North Coast communities. Where is Cansdell?

Looking towards upper reaches of the Nymboida River

The Greens Jeremy Buckingham MLC speaks out for the Clarence Valley, Coffs Harbour and Belligen local government areas, as well as the Clarence River catchment in this foreshadowed motion NSW Parliament Legislative Council.

Legislative Council Notice Paper No. 24

147. Mr Buckingham to move

1. That this House notes that:

(a) Anchor Resources Ltd have conducted scoping studies that indicate a resource of 17,500 tons of antimony have been found at both Wild Cattle Creek, near Nymboida and the Blicks River to the northwest of Dorrigo on the mid north coast of New South Wales,

(b) Anchor Resources Ltd has recently been subject to a majority takeover by the Chinese minerals company China Shandong Jinshunda Ltd which now owns over 90 per cent of the company,

(c) antimony is a mineral resource used for a range of “high-tech” products such as polymers, fire retardants and electronics,

(d) antimony and many of its compounds are toxic and the World Health Organisation has stated that oral consumption can result in "a strong irritating effect on the gastrointestinal mucosa and trigger sustained vomiting ... abdominal cramps, diarrhoea and cardiac toxicity",

(e) the majority of the municipal water supply for more than 100,000 residents in Coffs Harbour is provided by Shannon Creek Dam which is fed by pipes directly from the Nymboida River,

(f) this project is located within the headwaters of the Nymboida River, which is the highest rainfall catchment in New South Wales,

(g) the high rainfall of the catchment, which sometimes exceeds three metres, means that there is a significant risk that antimony mined in the area could be released and contaminate the water,

(h) a previous antimony ore processing plant at Urunga Lagoon has been described in the Bellingen Council 2009-10 State of the Environment Report as seriously contaminated and unable to be rehabilitated, and

(i) a 2002 report by the University of New England has shown that antimony from the Hillgrove and Bakers Creek mines which are located in the catchment of the Macleay River to the east of Armidale, have seriously contaminated over twenty kilometres of the headwaters of this river system and this has proved impossible to remediate.

2. That this House recognises that:

(a) the government has a responsibility to protect the community from current and future health risks associated with extractive industries, and

(b) proponent driven applications to determine the exploitation of our mineral resources are not in the best interests of the wider New South Wales community.

3. That this House calls on the Government to:

(a) prohibit mining activities within the critical catchments which supply water to our communities because of the unacceptable risks this poses to human and ecosystem health, the quality of our water supply and our state's agricultural capacity, and

(b) engage more extensively with the community in all assessments for extractive industries and take appropriate and precautionary actions, especially in regards to health risks.

(Notice given 23 June 2011—expires Notice Paper No. 43)

No names, no pack drill

 

All personal submissions published on the Australian Parliament Joint Standing Committee on Migration’s Inquiry into Multiculturalism in Australia web page are only identified by the initials of their authors.
I don’t know who this circumstance reflects on more – the Committee or the political climate in this country.

Equal gender numbers make up new senators entering the Australian Parliament in July 2011

Senators-elect (terms of service commencing 1 July 2011)

Di Natale, Richard
VIC AG
Public health specialist, drug and alcohol clinician and general practitioner
Drug and Alcohol Clinician, Geelong, 2008–2010Worked on HIV prevention for injecting drug users in India with the Nossal Institute for Global Health, 2005–2007
Public Health, Department of Human Services, 2001–2004
Medical practitioner, Aboriginal Health Service (NT), 1999–2000
Fellow, Australasian Faculty of Public Health MedicineMaster of Public Health, Master of Health Sciences

Edwards, Sean
SA LP
Born and educated in Clare, South Australia, as part of the 5th generation of Clare Edwards’, his career pursuits in business meant he has been involved in both rural and city communities in the varied fields of property development, agriculture, viticulture, winemaking and global trade. Married with four children.

Fawcett, David
SA LP
Director, Fawcett Consulting
Member of the House of Representatives for Wakefield (SA), 2004–2007
Army officer, 1982–2004Commanding Officer, RAAF Aircraft Research and Development Unit, Edinburgh, SA

Gallacher, Alex
SA ALP
Secretary/Treasurer, SA–NT branch, Transport Workers’ Union of Australia (TWU), 1996–Federal President, TWU, 2007–2010
Vice President, TWU, 2005–2007
Organiser, TWU SA–NT branch, 1992–1996Federal Industrial Relations Officer, TWU, 1988–1992
Director, Motor Accident Commission (SA), 2005–2010Commissioner, National Road Transport Commission, 2003–2004 Member and acting Chair, Road Safety Advisory Council (SA)

Madigan, John
VIC DLP
Blacksmith, Hepburn Springs, Vic
Apprenticeship, Victorian Railways Newport workshop
Former employee of Victorian Railways for 10 years

McKenzie, Bridget
VIC NATS
Lecturer, Faculty of Education, Gippsland Campus, Monash University, until 2010Junior vice-president, The Nationals (Vic), 2006–2009
Former secondary school teacher
Bachelor of Applied Science (Human Movement)Bachelor of Education

Rhiannon, Lee
NSW AG
Member of the NSW Legislative Council, 1999–2010
Founder and director, AID/WATCH, an NGO that monitors Australia’s overseas aid program, 1993–1998
Founder and convenor, Coalition for Gun Control, 1988–1992
Former freelance journalistCampaigner on a range of issues including promoting workers’ rights, public education, environmental protection and political donation reformQualified zoologist and botanist

Singh, Lisa
TAS ALP
CEO, Asbestos Free Tasmania Foundation
Member of the Tasmanian House of Assembly, 2006–2010Minister Assisting the Premier on Climate Change, 2009–2010
Minister for Corrections and Consumer Protection, 2008–2010
Minister for Workplace Relations, 2008–2010
Parliamentary Secretary to the Premier Assisting with Education, 2008

Thistlethwaite, Matthew
NSW ALP
General Secretary, NSW Labor, 2008–2010
Deputy Assistant Secretary, Unions NSW, 2004–2008
Industrial Officer, The Australian Workers’ Union, 1995–2004
Director, State Transit Authority of NSW, 2005–2008
President, Maroubra Surf Lifesaving Club, 2004–2008
Member, Racing Industry Advisory Council, 2002–2008
President, NSW Young Labor, 1997–1998Bachelor of Economics (UNSW)Diploma of Law

Urquhart, Anne
TAS ALP
President, Unions Tasmania, 2007–Vice President, Australian Labor Party (Tas), 2004–Secretary, Australian Manufacturing Workers’ Union (Tasmanian Division), 2004–2010President, AMWU (Tas), 1998–2004
Organiser, Food Preservers’ Union, 1990–1998

Waters, Larissa
QLD AG
Community environmental lawyer, Environmental Defenders Office (Qld) Inc., 2002–Graduate lawyer, Freehills national law firm, 2001–2002
Researcher, Land and Resources Tribunal (Qld), 2000–2001Volunteer Queensland editor, National Environmental Law Review, 2005–2008
Volunteer board member, Queensland Environmental Law Association, 2004–2007LLB (Hons)/BSc, Griffith UniversityGrad Dip (Leg Prac), College of Law, NSW

Wright, Penny
SA AG
Solicitor, tribunal member and mediator
Deputy President, Guardianship Board (SA), 1996–2010
Family Dispute Resolution Practitioner, Relationships Australia, 2007–2010
Member, Social Security Appeals Tribunal, 2006–2007
Conciliator & Investigating Solicitor, Legal Practitioners Conduct Board, 2003–2006
Member, Residential Tenancies Tribunal, 1993–2003
Former campaigner for human rights, aid and environmental organisations

AG—Australian Greens, ALP—Australian Labor Party, DLP—Democratic Labor Party, LP—Liberal Party of Australia, NATS—The Nationals

'Cause a light-hearted view of the world never goes amiss.....

Footpath sign in the main street of Maclean "The Scottish Town" on the NSW North Coast...........everything else is just old newspaper wrapping this quick and easy meal.

Thanks to Clarencegirl for the pic.

There's more to lose than a few dollars if antimony mining is again allowed in the Clarence River catchment

…………wealth is about more than money.
Quality of life and the environment feature pretty high on my agenda. And we need to be mindful of what happens after we sell off the farm. In the case of the proposed antimony and gold mines in the Wild Cattle Creek and Tyringham areas - the mining company would be Chinese, the approving authority the Bellingen Shire Council and most of the workers (and there is unlikely to be too many of them) would probably be based in Coffs.
But who cops the risk if a tailings dam fails and mercury or other heavy metals spew into the tributaries of the Nymboida River?
The Clarence Valley, of course.
And it appears unlikely to receive any of the benefits.
Mining has helped Australia ride out an international financial storm, but we need to be careful that we look at more than dollar signs when considering projects. There's more to lose than a few dollars.

[David Bancroft, Editor, The Daily Examiner 2 July 2011]