State News

PREMIER Ted Baillieu has announced his controversial chief of staff will be moving on. Michael Kapel, who met with Sir Ken Jones at the height of the Simon Overland tensions, will become the government’s Commissioner for the Americas. “Throughout the past five years Mr Kapel, a..

MEMBER for Bendigo East and Shadow Regional and Rural Development Minister Jacinta Allan has urged the State Government to take Heinz products off their menus. More than 140 workers were made jobless when Heinz’s Gigarre factory, which makes tomato sauce, closed down earlier this month..

ENVIRONMENT and Climate Change Minister Ryan Smith has announced a $15.4 million funding package which will help rebuild and repair public infrastructure in flood-affected communities across Victoria. Mr Smith said the funding would be shared by around 28 local communities to re-build shared..

VICTORIANS continue to favour old-fashioned classics for their newborns with Mia and Jack the most popular names for 2011. Acting Attorney-General Andrew McIntosh announced the most populargirls’ names during the past year were Mia, Ruby, Olivia, Chloe and Charlotte. The boys&rsqu..

Victorian hunters can look forward to a bumper season next year after the Victorian Coalition Government today announced a full duck and quail season. Visiting Big Reedy Lagoon State Game Reserve near Yarrawonga today, Agriculture and Food Security Minister Peter Walsh said game bird po..

Victorians will be asked to leave their fast balls on the cricket pitch this summer in a TAC social media campaign launched at the MCG today by Premier Ted Baillieu. The TAC Slow Ball Challenge is fronted by Melbourne’s two Twenty20 Big Bash teams, the Melbourne Stars and Melbour..

Victorians with an interest in shaping their state’s responsible gambling policy have been invited by Gaming Minister Michael O’Brien to apply for a position on the Responsible Gambling Ministerial Advisory Council (RGMAC). RGMAC provides advice to the Minister for Gaming on resp..

DEPUTY Premier and Minister for Bushfire Response Peter Ryan has unveiled a new series of hard-hitting bushfire advertisements funded by the State Government in a bid to save lives this summer. Mr Ryan said less than three years since the tragic 2009 Victorian bushfires which claimed 173 liv..

Taxi passengers outside metropolitan Melbourne will soon be greeted by a photo of their driver when they jump into a cab, with in-cab photo identification set to be rolled out across the state. Announcing the rollout, Public Transport Minister Terry Mulder said in-cab photo ID was a ‘b..

THE first intake of Protective Services Officers this week began their training at the Victoria Police Academy as part of the State Government’s plan to reduce crime, violence and anti-social behaviour in and around train stations. The 21-strong team aged between and 19 and 57 are the ..

Victorian Diamond to head expert panel into sports injury prevention Australian Diamonds Commonwealth Games captain and Vixens co-captain, Sharelle McMahon, will chair a new taskforce to investigate the issue of sports injury prevention, the Minister for Sport and Recreation Hugh Delahunt..

Water from the north-south pipeline will only be used to boost Melbourne’s supply during times of critical human need, Water Minister Peter Walsh said today. Mr Walsh said the Victorian Coalition Government would only transfer water down the pipeline if Melbourne’s wate..

Premier Ted Baillieu and Deputy Premier and Minister for Police and Emergency Services Peter Ryan today announced the appointment of Ken Lay as the new Chief Commissioner of Victoria Police. “The Victorian Coalition Government through an independent selection panel conducted a broad sear..

Minister for Local Government Jeanette Powell and Minister for Women’s Affairs Mary Wooldridge today called for more women to consider nominating themselves for council elections in 2012. Officially opening the first Think Women for Local Government 2012 forum in Eur..

MEMBER for Bendigo East Jacinta Allan has tackled Community Services Minister Mary Wooldridge in parliament over last week’s release of a scathing Ombudsman’s report into the Bendigo DHS office. Acting Ombudsman John Taylor’s report found Bendigo Department of Human Se..

A NEW State Government smart phone app has snubbed two of Bendigo's largest tourist events. The app, called VicEvents, was launched this week by Technology Minister Gordon Rich-Phillips and Nationals Member for Bendigo Damian Drum. The app is aimed at allowing "community groups and businesse..

ONE Bendigo lawyer knows how to sue for damages on behalf of injured workers for a very simple reason: he made the law. Former Bendigo West MP Bob Cameron, now back in private practice, made the laws when he was Workcover and TAC Minister in the Bracks Government. “Workers with s..

A BENDIGO family who cannot find respite for their severely autistic teenager have welcomed a State Government plan to fund new services. In October 2009, the Bendigo Weekly published an emotional letter from Carolyn and Mick O’Sullivan. The O’Sullivan family had just been t..

VICTORIAN Treasurer Kim Wells has announced a second stage of public consultation for the design of the new property based Fire Services Levy. The State Government is implementing the Victorian Bushfires Royal Commission recommendation that the state replace the Fire Services Levy with a pr..

Deputy Premier and Emergency Services Minister Peter Ryan has released the new community fire refuges policy, delivering on a key recommendation of the Bushfires Royal Commission. Mr Ryan said the Community Fire Refuges Policy provided the framework for identifying, establishing, managing an..