Police and Security Guards Take Control of New Taxi Rank to Make Streets Safer in Newtown
Published in Inner West Courier, 9 April 2017
POLICE and security guards have started patrolling a new taxi rank in Newtown in a bid to curb assault rates and reduce traffic chaos from late-night revellers hailing cabs along King St.
Three security guards have been employed to oversee the safety of patrons and taxi drivers at the cab rank (outside the Commonwealth Bank) near Whateley Lane.
Read moreCampaign Against Westconnex Tollway Steps Up
Published in Green Left Weekly, 8 April 2017
Opponents of the $16.8bn WestConnex tollway project held a lively protest outside NSW Parliament on April 6 built around two demands: Not another cent for WestConnex; and No new tolls.
Read moreUniversity of Sydney Plans $300 Per Week Rooms For Students Lodging at Camperdown Campus
Published in Inner West Courier, April 8 2017
CASH-strapped students would struggle to meet “affordable rents” charged by the University of Sydney in the latest proposal to build hundreds of new student lodgings at the Camperdown-Darlington campus.
Read morePremier Gladys Berejiklian Says Sydney Houses are $50,000 Cheaper Because of Government Policies
Published in Sydney Morning Herald, April 7 2017
Premier Gladys Berejiklian has been challenged to produce evidence that the government's policies have significantly reduced house prices, after claiming in Parliament that the average Sydney house is $50,000 lower than it would be thanks to state government policies.
Read moreWill USYD's Transport Dreams Be Derailed Again?
Published in Honi Soit, 6 April 2017
Noticed the crowds getting bigger at the City Road bus stops? Finding it harder than ever to overtake others on the Redfern Run? The University has noticed too, but whether or not these concerns will result in any real change is another question.
Read moreMardi Gras 2017
Published in the South Sydney Herald, March 2017
It has been great to see Sydney covered in rainbows for another wonderful Mardi Gras season.
Community participation in Mardi Gras grows stronger and prouder every year. I had the opportunity to chat with lots of people at Fair Day, which was held in Camperdown Memorial Park as a one off while Victoria Park is undergoing improvements. This time of year is certainly a celebration – but also an opportunity to remember the struggles of the past and highlight the issues of equality that still need to be achieved.
Read moreCan our new Premier improve the score?
Published in the South Sydney Herald, February 2017
Can our new Premier improve the score?
NSW has a new Premier. We’re relieved to see the back of Casino (or is it Chainsaw?) Mike, but will our new Premier be better?
Premier Berejiklian has already indicated how her Government will respond on a number of key issues. On others, we’re still in the dark. Over the coming months we will see whether the Premier is genuinely willing to listen to community concerns and take action to repair some of the disastrous decisions made under former Premier Baird.
Read morePublic Housing For Private Profit?
Published in the South Sydney Herald, November 2016
For more than 100 years, government funded public housing has been available to low income earners in NSW.
Government owned estates provided working class people, the elderly, new immigrants, young families, and working people in low-income, essential services the opportunity to live in our cities and regional centres, and participate in their local communities.
In recent decades we have seen a shift. Successive governments have under invested in maintaining safe, secure, affordable housing for low-income earners. Many public housing tenants suffer long standing issues around maintenance and safety.
Read moreNewtown MP Joins Campaign To Improve the Maligned 370 Route
Published in Central Sydney, 2 November 2016
The campaign to bring the “worst bus in Australia” into line has amped up, with a state MP launching her own bid.
Last month, Central Sydney exposed the 370 route — which runs between Leichhardt and Coogee via Glebe and Newtown — as one of the worst in the state.
Read moreHounded By Police
Published in the Central Sydney Magazine, 5 October 2016
By Heather McNab
Revealed: Drug dogs sniff out troubling trend for Redfern
RESIDENTS in Redfern are more likely to be targeted by drug sniffer dogs than neighbouring suburbs after revelations the area is among the highest for searches that come up empty-handed.
Figures released under a Greens’ Freedom of Information request show that in the last two years, police performed 1313 searches in the area – far more than the Newtown, Surry Hills or Kings Cross police commands.
Read more