Hon Annastacia P alaszczuk P remier and Minister for the Olympic and Paralympic Games Tougher hate crime and serious vilification laws for Queensland New laws have been introduced to Parliament to increase penalties for offences that are motivated by hatred or serious contempt The reforms amend the Criminal Code to ban the display of hate symbols Criminals who commit crimes motivated by serious hate and prejudice against specified groups will face tougher penalties. New legislation has been introduced to ban the display of hate symbols, such as those representative of Nazi ideology, and increase penalties for offences that are motivated by hatred or serious contempt and the existing offence of serious vilification. The Criminal Code (Serious Vilification and Hate Crimes) and Other Legislation Amendment Bill 2023 gives effect to four key recommendations made by the Legal Affairs and Safety Committee in January 2022 to strengthen Queensland’s hate crime laws. A new ‘Prohibited symbols’
Posts
Southport Rental Apartments Photo Blow the Truth Tax concessions to drive investment into affordable housing Land tax will be cut in half for Build-to-Rent developments that include affordable housing Delivers action on a Queensland Housing Summit outcome The build-to-Rent sector is growing in Queensland and with these new concessions, a larger number of projects will include affordable housing The Palaszczuk Government will slash land tax by up to 50 per cent for Build-to-Rent developments that feature at least 10 per cent of rental homes as affordable housing, driving more investment to deliver new rental supply. The range of investment-attracting tax concessions for Build-to-Rent developments will include: A 50 per cent discount on land tax payable for up to 20 years A full exemption for the 2% foreign investor land tax surcharge for up to 20 years A full exemption from the Additional Foreign Acquirer Duty for the future transfer of a Build-to-Rent site. Queensland Treasur
“I look forward to being the first Australian leader to visit China since the onset of the global pandemic – continuing our long-held relationship with China on trade and culture, and further strengthening our deep ties.” The Andrews Labor Government is cementing Victoria’s strong and enduring relationship with China, with Premier Daniel Andrews set to be the first Australian leader to visit the country since the onset of the pandemic. As part of a four-day trip this week, the Premier will meet with senior officials from the Ministry of Education and Beijing Government to discuss our long-held trade and cultural ties, and the return of Chinese students to Victoria – continuing their studies at our world-class higher education institutions. In addition to Beijing, the Premier will travel to Jiangsu and Sichuan, meeting with key senior officials from Victoria’s sister states – deepening our strong relationships with these provinces, and exploring ways to further strengthen partnerships.
Hon Bob Katter MP Mr BOB KATTER MP (Member for Kennedy): I agree with my colleague on the necessity to restrain the exponential growth in CO2. I do not agree with my colleague on abolishing coal. If my honourable colleague seriously thinks this country can do without coal, well, let me point out that we have only three exports: iron ore, coal and gas. We gave the gas away, so we get nothing at all out of it. All these things are worth over a hundred billion dollars. The next things down the list are maybe gold, cattle and aluminium, worth about $15 billion—they were the last time I looked, anyway. So we've got the big three and nothing else. This House gave away one of them for nothing. It gave all the gas away for 6c a unit. We're now buying our own gas back for $49 a unit. I speak with authority because I was the Minister for Mines and Energy in what was then the biggest mining state in Australia—Queensland. Mr Speaker, if you take away c
Soldier, Humby and Tank in Iraq War March 2003, then President George W Bush approved the military attack, with major repercussions for US politics, and global perceptions of the country Twenty years ago, the world was shaken by one of the major geopolitical events of this century. On the morning of March 20, 2003, the US officially launched its illegal invasion of Iraq. The rationale was based on Iraqi President Saddam Hussein’s alleged ties with terrorists, and intelligence regarding the presence of weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. However, both claims turned out to be false and were later refuted. Russian political analysts believe that the real reasons behind the invasion of Iraq included a desire for control over oil fields, the naive hope of creating a ‘showcase of democracy’ in the Middle East, and a demonstration of the ‘fight against terrorism’ to US voters. None of these goals was achieved, but the grievous consequences of the endeavour are evident. The reasons behind
More social housing being delivered in Cairns Queensland Government will build 23 new social housing units at Earlville with $8.5 million in funding under QuickStarts Queensland Eight, one-bedroom detached houses in Parramatta Park have now been refurbished with $300,000 funding under QuickStarts Queensland Both projects delivered in partnership with a local community housing provider Seniors, especially older women, will be prioritised to move into eight beautifully-refurbished, heritage-listed social housing cottages at Parramatta Park in Cairns. The Palaszczuk Government partnered with the Access Community Housing Company (ACHC) to refurbish the cottages. ACHC received $300,000 funding under the QuickStarts Queensland program to help refurbish the cottages, which are currently vacant. A second project consisting of 16, one-bedroom and seven, two-bedroom units built to Gold or Platinum standard is also expected to start shortly in Earlville. Also delivered through a partnership with
Broadbeach Queensland Apartments Photo Blow the Truth Housing Queenslanders a priority for the government New housing model to predict supply and demand Queensland Government has engaged AHURI to develop the model $56 million to deliver positive housing outcomes for the Queensland community Funding for emergency and food relief services doubled The Queensland Government has engaged the expertise of the Australian Housing and Urban Research Institute (AHURI) to develop a robust model to predict future supply and demand for housing in Queensland. Work has already started on the modelling, which will incorporate historical and predictive analysis. The modelling will look at the housing system in Queensland as a whole, including social housing, emergency accommodation and the private housing market. It will be used to assist in promoting a healthy housing system overall. Not everyone who needs help to obtain or sustain housing will need social housing – in 2021-22, the State Government pro
Russian Su-27 fighter jet The US Department of Defense had previously accused pilots of reckless flying over the Black Sea. The Pentagon released a video on Thursday, which it said was shot from a US MQ-9 Reaper drone – during a close encounter with a Russian Su-27 fighter jet – before the American aircraft plunged into the Black Sea earlier this week. The 50-second clip provided to the media shows an interceptor plane approaching the drone from behind and apparently ejecting fuel as it climbs. The Pentagon claimed that Russian jets made several such maneuvers on Tuesday, including one in which the unmanned aircraft’s tail propeller supposedly got hit and damaged. The footage appears to show two of them, with the camera glitching both times. Source: rt.com
National Press Club Former Prime Minister Paul Keating has launched a swinging attack on the Labor government over the AUKUS submarine agreement, accusing Anthony Albanese of relying on “two seriously unwise ministers, Penny Wong and Richard Marles”. Keating lashed the deal for a tripartite build of nuclear-powered submarines as “the worst international decision by an Australian Labor government since the former Labor leader, Billy Hughes, sought to introduce conscription” in the first world war. “We have gone from a defend Australia to a forward defence policy,” Keating said, while insisting China posed no threat to Australia. He made his criticisms in a long speech and question-and-answer session at the National Press Club. In a direct challenge to Albanese, Keating said: I dare the prime minister to explicitly suggest or leave open the question that Australia might go to war over Taiwan – at the urgings of the United States or anyone else. Keating said the Chinese
Posts
