Media Release

Greens MP for Newtown Jenny Leong today announced a win for inner city cyclists and bike commuters, with confirmation of 50 secure bike spaces to be installed at Redfern Station.

This announcement is part of a NSW Government active transport initiative, which will install secure bike sheds at more than 40 train stations and transport interchanges around Sydney and surrounding regions.

Ms Leong said, "This is a fantastic initiative for people who ride to Redfern station every day, giving them free, secure bike storage.

“It’s recognition that bike riders are entitled to facilities like this as they are actively promoting healthy and sustainable commuter options and easing congestion on the roads.

Media Release

As Aboriginal and social justice campaigners gather in Sydney's CBD today, very positive news has been delivered that the Aboriginal Custody Notification Service will be funded until June 2019. The funding grant was due to expire at the end of this year but the Federal Government has committed to completely fund the service.   

The Custody Notification Service was a recommendation from the Royal Commission into Aboriginal Deaths in Custody and since its implementation there has not been a single Aboriginal death in a police cell or paddy wagon in NSW.

This is an important win for the Indigenous Social Justice Association, Aboriginal Legal Service and other social justice campaigners who have been demanding that this important service is retained.

Media Release

The release of the WestConnex New M5 EIS today brings no holiday cheer to residents of Sydney’s inner west and inner south west suburbs.

The NSW Government has released the New M5 Environmental Impact Statement just before everyone breaks for the year but it’s no gift to the residents, councils or organisations that will be forced to digest this massive document – made up of 149 individual multi-page attachments - during the holiday period.  Submissions are due at the end of January, just as many families will be returning from summer holidays.

NSW Greens spokesperson on WestConnex and Member for Newtown Jenny Leong  is calling on Premier Baird, The Roads Minister and the Planning Minister to immediately review this decision.

Greens spokesperson for WestConnex Jenny Leong has called on Premier Mike Baird to immediately clarify the authorship of the WestConnex Updated Strategic Business Case, to allay serious concerns that the lack of attribution is so that the author can avoid liability or public scrutiny if the content is found to be flawed.

“Before we have even begun a detailed assessment of the 320 page, heavily redacted, WestConnex Updated Strategic Business Case, it’s clear that there is a glaring omission: there is NO author.”

“Unlike the 2013 WestConnex Business Case Executive Summary, which was attributed to the Sydney Motorway Project Office, this latest Business Case is not attributed to any individual, organisation or department.

“Given the only identifiable marker on the document is a generic logo - “NSW Making it Happen” – it falls to the Premier to clarify who in the NSW Government is responsible.

Yesterday around one hundred residents directly affected by the $16.8 billion WestConnex tollway came to Parliament House for debate on a ‘Stop WestConnex’ petition – which demanded the release of the business case. Today the NSW Baird Government released that much delayed business case.

More than 10,000 residents from across Sydney and NSW signed the ‘Stop WestConnex’ petition, which called on Premier Mike Baird to halt work on WestConnex until the full business case has been released and a parliamentary inquiry has been conducted.

Greens MP for Newtown Jenny Leong, who sponsored the petition, led the debate, congratulating the community for their tireless campaign.

Ms Leong said: “The fact that the business case has finally been released today is the result of continued pressure from community members, local businesses and local councils who have come together to raise concerns about this polluting tollway.

Media Release - 11 November 2015

Marrickville Greens Councillors called on Inner West mayors to respect the resolutions of their Councils and continue to stand up against forced amalgamations, after the Councils adopted near identical resolutions that claim to resist amalgamations and to submit merger options under protest - with a view to them only being implemented if the Baird Government forces the issue. 

Greens Councillor Sylvie Ellsmore said, "It's clear that the vast majority of residents in the Inner West want their Council to stand alone and not merge and that's the position that Marrickville Council took last night.”

The Greens voted against submitting a ‘Plan B’ merger for a Marrickville-Ashfield-Leichhardt Council, as the Greens believe that Councils should not be merged without a vote of affected residents.

The Greens have called on the NSW and Federal Arts Ministers to sit down with John Polson and Tropfest organisers to see what they can do to make sure the world’s largest short film festival is able to run this year.

Media Release - 6 November 2015

The Australian Christian Lobby (ACL) is promoting a campaign against the Safe Schools Coalition program around Australia. Greens NSW Sexuality and Gender Diversity Spokesperson Jenny Leong says that the program is an essential service that provides support for vulnerable students and their families.

She says: “We are disappointed but not surprised to see yet another scare campaign by the ACL targeting an important service for the LGBTIQ community.”

“The Greens are proud supporters of the Safe Schools Program, and feel that ensuring our young people feel safe and included at school is key to their wellbeing.

With the help of the CDP and the Shooters’ Party the Government’s Strata Schemes Development Bill has passed the NSW Upper House.

This means that a provision allowing the collective sale of a strata scheme with the support of just 75% of owners will now come into force.

The Greens raised concerns and proposed amendments in both the Lower and Upper Houses, but our calls for protection of home-ownership rights were ignored.