Pill testing gets the green light Image by  Myriams-Fotos  from  Pixabay   The Palaszczuk Government will allow pill testing services for the first time as part of its commitment to reduce risks and harms associated with illicit drug use. Pill testing services to be allowed in Queensland for first time Services can contribute to reducing risks and harms associated with illicit drug use The government is working to finalise details of how services will operate in Queensland Pill testing services, at either fixed or mobile sites, will chemically test illicit drugs to check for the presence of potentially dangerous substances and chemical compounds, with the aim of changing the behaviour of users and reducing the risk of harm from drug use. The government is developing protocols around the operation of testing, off the back of successful trials conducted at festivals and a fixed site in Canberra.

Senator Jacinta Nampjinpa Price Senator Jacinta Nampjinpa Price:  I move that, in the opinion of the Senate, the following is a matter of urgency: The failure of the Prime Minister to address with sufficient urgency the serious alcohol-related crime across Northern Territory communities, including child sexual abuse, family violence, assault, property damage and theft, and calls on the Prime Minister to live up to his pre-election promise that he won't 'pose for photos and then disappear when there's a job to be done'. My motion today is to highlight the ineffective actions of our Prime Minister. My community—my hometown of Alice Springs—has been experiencing a crisis, not just of late but for some months now. My home town has been suffering. The rates of crime have skyrocketed through the roof. The community members in my home town find it difficult to sleep at night with the threat of home invasions. They can't even walk down their street to go shopping on a daily...

Foreign nationals with sufficient policing experience will be eligible to apply to the Queensland Police Service (QPS) under a new labour agreement between the State and Federal Governments.  The QPS has approval for 500 new international recruits to join the service each year, for five years. Up to 500 new Queensland police will be recruited from overseas each year for five years, as part of a new international recruitment campaign. The offer applies to current experienced serving foreign police officers only, with all accepted international recruits to have comparable international policing experience before applying to the QPS. The successful recruits must undergo training once enrolled, in order to ensure they meet the standards of the QPS before commencing on their first year as a sworn officer. The agreement, the broadest of its kind among Australia’s policing jurisdictions, allows the QPS to recruit international police officers without the requirement to be an Australian ci...

  Italy Windfarm The so-called Superbonus 110 program for climate-friendly renovations has been threatening public finances, officials say The Italian government has scrapped a climate-friendly tax credit program, claiming it had cost more than €110 billion ($117 billion) and led to widespread fraud. According to Finance Minister Giancarlo Giorgetti, the “reckless policy” was a threat to public finances. “We have decided to stop the effects of a wicked policy that has benefited a few citizens but has placed a burden on each of us from the cradle onwards of €2,000 ($2,132) per head,” Giorgetti told reporters on Thursday. The so-called Superbonus 110 initiative, which was one of several programs aimed at reducing the environmental impact of properties, entitled homeowners to a tax credit of up to 110% on the cost of upgrading their home. Introduced after the Covid-19 lockdowns ended, the program has led to a surge in home renovations, boosting Italy’s economic activity...

Gabba Olympic 50,000-seat stadium The Palaszczuk Government has unveiled its plans for a major revitalisation of Woolloongabba and The Gabba Stadium including an active travel corridor to South Bank and the CBD.  The rebuilt Gabba stadium will anchor a major urban renewal project, delivering thousands of new homes, including social and affordable housing The revitalisation of Woolloongabba will include an active travel corridor to South Bank and the CBD The Gabba Stadium will be fully demolished and rebuilt to support long-term professional sport and entertainment needs and is confirmed as the home of the Brisbane 2032 Olympic and Paralympic Game The new 50,000-seat stadium is estimated to cost $2.7 billion The Gabba Stadium will be fully demolished and rebuilt and will anchor major urban renewal including delivering more housing including social and affordable housing. The current Woolloongabba Priority Development Area will be expanded to encompass more of Woolloongabba and the S...

Gold Coast Hinterland Image by  dougkpga  from  Pixabay   Two of Queensland’s most popular national parks have expanded thanks to a partnership worth more than $600,000 between the Department of Environment and Science (DES) and the Foundation of National Parks and Wildlife (FNPW). More than 185 hectares of undisturbed forest habitat has been added to the Gondwana Rainforests of Australia World Heritage-listed Lamington and Main Range National Parks. Queensland’s Protected Area Strategy 2020-2030  supports the expansion of our national parks and other protected areas. $600,000 deal adds 185 hectares of pristine habitat to much-loved national parks More than 14 million hectares in Queensland now protected Quotes attributable to Environment Minister Meaghan Scanlon: “I’d like to thank our new partners at FNPW for contributing $340,000 towards expanding these extraordinary national parks, which hold a special place in the hearts so many Queenslanders,” Minister Sca...

  Wars are world-shaping. Beyond their immediate human and physical tolls, wars alter the fates of societies and states; of clans, cultures and leaders. They establish new lines of access to resources and influence, determining who has what – and who doesn’t. They set precedents for how future wars are justified and, in the case of attempted conquest, wars can ultimately redraw the map of world politics. One year after its unprovoked invasion on February 24, 2022, Russia’s war against Ukraine encompasses all these dangers. With Ukraine waging an existential battle for its very survival, and Russia seemingly happy to settle for destroying Ukraine if it fails to conquer it, neither side has any incentive to stop fighting. Absent the complete collapse of either the Ukrainian or Russian armed forces, the grim reality is that the war will likely drag on throughout 2023 – and potentially beyond it. 2023 will be crucial But what happens in Ukraine during 2023 will be cruci...

  Joe Biden Surprise Visit, Meets President Zelensky As the world prepares to mark the one-year anniversary of Russia’s brutal invasion of Ukraine, I am in Kyiv today to meet with President Zelenskyy and reaffirm our unwavering and unflagging commitment to Ukraine’s democracy, sovereignty, and territorial integrity. When Putin launched his invasion nearly one year ago, he thought Ukraine was weak and the West was divided. He thought he could outlast us. But he was dead wrong. Today, in Kyiv, I am meeting with President Zelenskyy and his team for an extended discussion on our support for Ukraine. I will announce another delivery of critical equipment, including artillery ammunition, anti-armour systems, and air surveillance radars to help protect the Ukrainian people from aerial bombardments. And I will share that later this week, we will announce additional sanctions against elites and companies that are trying to evade or backfill Russia’s war machine. Over the last year, the Unit...

  Senator Jacinta Nampijinpa Price Senator Jacinta Price : The Northern Territory Safe Measures Bill 2023, which has been introduced into the Senate, is a bill that aims to keep all people in the Northern Territory safe in relation to the consumption of alcohol and exposure to alcohol related harm and violence. My bill was drafted in response to calls from vulnerable community members across the Northern Territory and a letter that was dated 9 June, representing nine separate Aboriginal organisations, seeking urgent support from the federal Minister for Indigenous Australians after failed attempts at communicating these concerns with the Northern Territory Fyles government. The Northern Territory government's response to community cries was followed by neglect and inaction, all justified by accusations that alcohol restrictions were nothing more than race based policies. It was only when the Prime Minister was shamed by a Sydney based radio program that he was prompted to make a fl...