Scrap the RDA, says Entsch

FEDERAL MP Warren Entsch has called for the immediate closure of Regional Development Australia, describing it as a “farce” that has provided no benefits whatsoever for the electorate of Leichhardt. “The only funding that Regional Development Australia is generating for Far North Queensland is in the salaries of the bureaucracy,” Mr Entsch said today.  “In…

Focus back on TB after motion passes Parliament

THE campaign for action to deal with endemic tuberculosis in PNG’s Western Province has had a major win today, with a Private Member’s Motion put up by Leichhardt MP Warren Entsch passing unopposed through the Parliament. “This is an absolutely incredible result,” Mr Entsch said today.  “After two years of fighting to get this government…

Adjournment – Mental Health

Mr ENTSCH (Leichhardt-Chief Opposition Whip) (19:39): I rise tonight to speak on an issue that is very close to my heart. The mental health of our young people is something that cannot be neglected and we need to be proactive in the very early stages. That being the case, I would like to highlight the…

Petition: Stand up for Tibet

FEDERAL MP Warren Entsch has long counted himself a ‘friend of Tibet’ and was thrilled to meet the Dalai Lama in Canada last year during a parliamentary delegation. Mr Entsch is urging Far North Queenslanders who are concerned about deteriorating human rights conditions in Tibet to sign a petition urging the Australian Government to; ·…

National Disability Insurance Scheme Bill 2012

Mr ENTSCH (Leichhardt-Chief Opposition Whip) (12:14): In rising to speak on the National Disability Insurance Scheme Bill 2012, I am by no means the first, and I certainly won’t be the last, to stand in this chamber and say that the current system of support for people with a disability is definitely broken. We have…

Appropriation Bill 2012-2013

Mr ENTSCH (Leichhardt-Chief Opposition Whip) (18:53): I rise this evening to talk about some serious health issues that have arisen in my electorate and the failure of this government to provide sufficient funding for programs to address them. As anyone who has experienced a serious illness knows, poor health can impact on many areas of…

MP takes local disability stories to Canberra

HEART-RENDING cases of Far Northerners affected by disability were heard in Parliament today when Leichhardt MP Warren Entsch spoke on the National Disability Insurance Scheme Bill 2012. “The current system of support for people with a disability is definitely broken,” Mr Entsch told the House. “We need a new system of support, a system that…

Burke still not listening on World Heritage: Entsch

FEDERAL Environment Minister Tony Burke is a “dreamer” if he believes a World Heritage proposal for Cape York can proceed before this year’s election, says Leichhardt MP Warren Entsch.  Mr Entsch has backed his state government counterpart, Cook MP David Kempton, who today slammed Mr Burke’s assertion that the World Heritage consultation process was “progressing…

PM’s rhetoric no solution to alcohol challenges: Entsch

LIBERAL MP and Chief Opposition Whip Warren Entsch has labelled the Prime Minister a “hypocrite” for criticising the State Government’s decision to review Alcohol Management Plans on Cape York. Speaking during today’s Closing the Gap Statement in Parliament, Ms Gillard said the winding back of AMPs would result in “rivers of grog starting to flow…

TB doesn’t discriminate, new case shows

THE march of tuberculosis in the Western Province of Papua New Guinea is continuing with a senior local leader now being diagnosed with a drug-resistant form of the disease. PNG contacts recently told Federal MP Warren Entsch that Mr Sisa Kimia, the Chairman of the Treaty Village Association from Daru Island, had been admitted to…