Latest news with #Liberal-National
Sky News AU
2 hours ago
- Politics
- Sky News AU
Coalition enters 48th Parliament with lowest ever seat tally in its history
Day one of the 48th Parliament has commenced and Labor has the equal most ever seats at 94 in the lower house. The Coalition has its lowest ever tally as a Liberal-National entity at 43 seats.
The Age
12-07-2025
- Business
- The Age
Plans for school in booming suburb ditched, despite $20 million already spent
The state government has ditched plans to build a second public school in a booming western Sydney suburb, despite already having spent $20 million on the project. The former Coalition government announced plans to build a second public school in Westmead in 2018. But visions for the school regularly shifted at the hands of School Infrastructure NSW, and was referred to as a 'problem site' at a recent Independent Commission Against Corruption inquiry. After questions from the Herald about an additional $953,000 for 'Westmead school projects' in this year's budget, the state government this week confirmed it had abandoned trying to find a location for the school. Instead, it will spend that money upgrading and expanding existing primary schools at Westmead and nearby Rydalmere, Rydalmere East and Ermington West. The government is also investigating sites for new high schools in Westmead and Rydalmere, said Acting Education Minister Courtney Houssos. 'The Minns Labor government is drawing a line under two grossly flawed proposals put forward by the former Liberal-National government that they announced without adequate planning or due diligence, with potentially disastrous results,' she said in a statement, describing the plans as 'nothing more than a media announcement' with 'no plan to ever deliver'. Loading 'We know that there will be future population growth in these areas, and we are committed to building new schools to meet the long-term needs of local families with site selection work well under way.' Numbers from this year's budget show an estimated $20,485,000 has been spent on the project since its inception, a figure which includes some land acquisition.
Sydney Morning Herald
12-07-2025
- Business
- Sydney Morning Herald
Plans for school in booming suburb ditched, despite $20 million already spent
The state government has ditched plans to build a second public school in a booming western Sydney suburb, despite already having spent $20 million on the project. The former Coalition government announced plans to build a second public school in Westmead in 2018. But visions for the school regularly shifted at the hands of School Infrastructure NSW, and was referred to as a 'problem site' at a recent Independent Commission Against Corruption inquiry. After questions from the Herald about an additional $953,000 for 'Westmead school projects' in this year's budget, the state government this week confirmed it had abandoned trying to find a location for the school. Instead, it will spend that money upgrading and expanding existing primary schools at Westmead and nearby Rydalmere, Rydalmere East and Ermington West. The government is also investigating sites for new high schools in Westmead and Rydalmere, said Acting Education Minister Courtney Houssos. 'The Minns Labor government is drawing a line under two grossly flawed proposals put forward by the former Liberal-National government that they announced without adequate planning or due diligence, with potentially disastrous results,' she said in a statement, describing the plans as 'nothing more than a media announcement' with 'no plan to ever deliver'. Loading 'We know that there will be future population growth in these areas, and we are committed to building new schools to meet the long-term needs of local families with site selection work well under way.' Numbers from this year's budget show an estimated $20,485,000 has been spent on the project since its inception, a figure which includes some land acquisition.
The Age
04-07-2025
- Politics
- The Age
How the AG's constant appeals could change sentencing trends
The appeal of a sentence handed to a husband and wife convicted of raping a child is the latest protest from Queensland's top law officer as the government pushes its tough on crime agenda through the justice system. Attorney-General Deb Frecklington revealed on Friday she had asked the Director of Public Prosecutions to appeal the sentence handed to Christopher Luke Hili and Lee Kathleen Hili, who were jailed earlier this year for raping a 15-year-old girl at the couple's house following a party. The pair were sentenced in Brisbane's Supreme Court in April following a five-day trial. Lee was slapped with a prison sentence of six years while Christopher was handed seven years through the added offence of supplying cannabis to a child. 'This was sickening offending against a young and vulnerable victim and I do not believe the sentences meet community expectations,' Frecklington said. 'My thoughts are with the victim and her family.' Loading The rebuke is at least the fifth request for a sentence to be appealed by Frecklington since the Liberal-National government was elected last year on a promise to crack down on crime. The state government has already set higher punishment requirements for mandatory sentences of youth offenders through its 'adult crime, adult time' suite of laws. And criminal lawyer and former Queensland Law Society president Bill Potts said regular appealing of sentences is another avenue for the state government to flex its tough on crime narrative.
Sydney Morning Herald
04-07-2025
- Politics
- Sydney Morning Herald
How the AG's constant appeals could change sentencing trends
The appeal of a sentence handed to a husband and wife convicted of raping a child is the latest protest from Queensland's top law officer as the government pushes its tough on crime agenda through the justice system. Attorney-General Deb Frecklington revealed on Friday she had asked the Director of Public Prosecutions to appeal the sentence handed to Christopher Luke Hili and Lee Kathleen Hili, who were jailed earlier this year for raping a 15-year-old girl at the couple's house following a party. The pair were sentenced in Brisbane's Supreme Court in April following a five-day trial. Lee was slapped with a prison sentence of six years while Christopher was handed seven years through the added offence of supplying cannabis to a child. 'This was sickening offending against a young and vulnerable victim and I do not believe the sentences meet community expectations,' Frecklington said. 'My thoughts are with the victim and her family.' Loading The rebuke is at least the fifth request for a sentence to be appealed by Frecklington since the Liberal-National government was elected last year on a promise to crack down on crime. The state government has already set higher punishment requirements for mandatory sentences of youth offenders through its 'adult crime, adult time' suite of laws. And criminal lawyer and former Queensland Law Society president Bill Potts said regular appealing of sentences is another avenue for the state government to flex its tough on crime narrative.
