Key steps reached on Northern Australia program

LEICHHARDT MP Warren Entsch has welcomed the reaching of key milestones during this Parliamentary sitting which will enable the White Paper process for the Development of Northern Australia to launch soundly in the New Year. The membership of the Joint Select Committee on Northern Australia (JSCNA) was approved by the Senate on December 4th and…

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Projects approved with safeguards to protect the reef

FEDERAL Member for Leichhardt Warren Entsch has welcomed news that the Government’s approval of dredging activities at Abbot Point will be subject to the highest environmental standards to protect the Great Barrier Reef. After rigorous assessment, the Government has completed the approvals process for four Queensland projects under National Environmental Law, approving: ·         The capital…

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It’s on! Parish Hall renovation underway

IT’S been an eventful week for the Parish Hall Restoration Project with the much-anticipated start of Stage 1 renovation coupled with a major donation from a local business. After a mammoth community fundraising effort over the last 16 months, works have now commenced to take out the asbestos and remove the roof of the historic…

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Additional funding to manage crown-of-thorns starfish

THE Government is allocating an extra $1.1 million in funding to further protect the Great Barrier Reef from the destructive crown-of-thorns starfish.The crown-of-thorns starfish (COTS) can destroy coral faster than it can regenerate and is one of the most significant threats to the reef.  In recent decades COTS were responsible for 42% of coral loss.Although…

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Entsch again fights for local fishers

LEICHHARDT MP Warren Entsch has highlighted the hypocrisy surrounding fisheries management in the Coral Sea and tuna ‘overfishing’ in the Federal Parliament today. Mr Entsch said he had been following with interest the media coverage of the Western and Central Pacific Fisheries Commission meeting that is currently being held in Cairns. “For a long time…

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Long-awaited Sea Walls funding locked in

THE repeated flooding of Torres Strait Island communities will soon be a thing of the past with Federal MP Warren Entsch today announcing that the Federal Government has locked in the $5 million needed to kick-start the Sea Walls rehabilitation project. The $5 million grant was originally announced through the Regional Development Australia Fund (RDAF)…

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Time to prepare for wireless switch

FEDERAL MP Warren Entsch is urging wireless microphone users in communities around Leichhardt to prepare for changes that will affect how they can use the devices. The changes are part of the Federal Government’s work to clear specific radiofrequency spectrum (known as the ‘digital dividend’) so that it can be used to provide 4G mobile…

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Bright future for young indigenous leaders

YEAR 12 students from all around Leichhardt converged on Canberra today to celebrate their graduation through the Indigenous Youth Leadership Program. Federal Member for Leichhardt Warren Entsch said a total of 16 students from the electorate graduated the programme, from communities as diverse as Badu, Bamaga, Coen, Cairns, Mossman and Pormpuraaw. Fourteen students were able…

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Leichhardt poised to honour Anzac Centenary

THE Anzac Centenary Local Grants Program is well underway in Leichhardt with three Round 1 applications submitted to the Department of Veterans’ Affairs. Federal Member for Leichhardt Warren Entsch said he was very impressed with the range and standard of applications received from organisations around the electorate. “From a new Anzac Archway at Cooktown, to…

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Qld Govt decision Wild Rivers on Steroids

THE State Government’s move to enhance protection for the Steve Irwin Wildlife Reserve – jeopardising the $1.2 billion Pisolite Hills bauxite mine at the same time – has been described as “an appalling decision” by Federal Member for Leichhardt Warren Entsch. “This is an absolute disgrace and sends a very bad message regarding development in…

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