Les gets his wheels in time for Christmas

AN overwhelmed Les Borthwick received his much-needed mobility scooter in Cairns today, after the community generously responded to an appeal launched by Federal MP Warren Entsch. Les, 76, went into Cairns Base Hospital a year ago for a knee replacement but complications have forced him to undergo seven operations.  During the most recent operation, a…

Reckless cuts jeopardise Far Northern health services

$6.5 MILLION will be cut from Cairns Base Hospital’s 2011-12/2012-13 budget as part of the Gillard Government’s attempt to achieve a surplus by ripping $1.6 billion from hospitals around the country. And much-needed rural services in Cape York and the Torres Strait/Northern Peninsula will also suffer, each hospital losing $900,000 worth of funding over the…

Village leaders hold key to TB solution

“THROWING more money at this is not going to fix the problem.” That was the response of Leichhardt MP Warren Entsch to the news yesterday that Foreign Affairs Minister Bob Carr had announced another $20 million for tuberculosis treatment in PNG. Mr Entsch has today again questioned why the government is not working hand in…

Leichhardt seeking Green Army projects

AS the summer break kicks off, school leavers, job seekers and GAP year students are urged to put their thinking caps on and come up with some ‘green’ projects for the coming year. Federal MP Warren Entsch has today launched the Coalition’s ‘Green Army’ environmental plan in Leichhardt, which will see thousands of young people…

Common sense triumphs in Daintree power decision

FEDERAL MP for Leichhardt Warren Entsch has welcomed the State Government’s decision to rescind controversial Daintree Power legislation that has left residents ‘off the grid’ for 12 years. The issue is one that Mr Entsch has long advocated for and he has today called on the Federal Government to also step up and ease the…

High standard set in Christmas Card competition

FEDERAL MP Warren Entsch has hailed his 2012 Christmas Card Competition a huge success, after receiving almost 400 entries from students all over the electorate of Leichhardt. “I was blown away by the number of entries – thank you so much to all the young people who made the effort to create and send in…

Report identifies way forward for LGBTI health

THE health of sex- and gender-diverse Australians came under the spotlight last night when a ground-breaking report was launched at Parliament House. Titled Diversity in Health: Improving the health and well-being of transgender, intersex and other sex and gender diverse Australians, the report is a blueprint for law reforms that are seen as a critical move…

Strata risk assessment a positive move

FEDERAL MP Warren Entsch has welcomed the Insurance Council of Australia’s decision to embark on a research project aimed at helping better understand and assess the risk for strata properties. “It’s a major step forward in that the ICA is now acknowledging there is a problem, after being in a state of denial for the…

Entsch stands up for Coral Sea users

LOCAL MP Warren Entsch has again argued the case for multiple-use zones in the Coral Sea, supporting a bill that would require strict criteria to be met before a new marine reserve can be created. The amendment to the Environmental Protection and Biodiversity Conservation (EPBC) Act, known as the ‘Making Marine Parks Accountable’ Bill, was…