Podcasts about saparli

Dr Susan Close (pictured left with Marion mayor Kris Hanna) announced on Thursday a stormwater recycling pipeline extension project which will be credited towards saving water for the Murray-Darling Basin. We discuss whether desalination could be worked into that sort of water accounting in future, and recent grants for conservation across the state including to preserve aquifer and groundwater environments - and farm water supply - in the south east of South Australia.

The member for Frome was pleased to hear for barley growers in the state's mid-north in her electorate the positive signs that China is reviewing its sanctions on Australia's barley growers, as we discuss the state of local roads and regional health needs in the Liberal MP's shadow portfolio areas.

The local MP and shadow police minister discusses police resourcing needs in Ceduna and Port Lincoln after recent criminal activity, water security for the Eyre Peninsula and the northern parts of the state and how the lack of child care in the western South Australian electorate impacts local communities.

South Australia's primary industries minister speaks with Flow listeners about the re-opening of Goolwa's pipi (cockle) fishery as e.coli concerns diminish, recipients of carbon farming grants including Mallee Sustainable Farming and a new grant round to promote agricultural technology and innovation, focused on sustainability and resilience.

The shadow minister for road safety Vincent Tarzia says he's written to the police minister Joe Szakacs to address a very concerning rise in South Australia's road toll to listen to experts and develop solutions to reduce road trauma and deaths on the state's roads.

The shadow minister for health in South Australia and member for Schubert, Ashton Hurn, speaks with Flow listeners about the ramping of ambulances in metropolitan Adelaide, what the Code White situation in metropolitan hospitals means for regional SA listeners, and why the state government launched an audit of pillow availability in hospitals.

Driver distraction and the use of mobile phones in cars are some of the key concerns highlighted by South Australia's police minister after a shocking start to the 2023 calendar year on SA's roads, particularly with a significant spike in regional casualties with many country people dying not far from where they live.

Australian Monarchist League spokesperson Alessandro Rosini joins us from Melbourne to talk about the possibility of a public holiday for some Australians in recognition of the coronation of His Majesty King Charles III in May, after the Western Australian premier indicated some interest in doing so. We discuss a number of other precedents from the late Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II's coronation in 1953 that haven't been followed for this event, even though Australia's system of government remains a constitutional monarchy.

There are moves by some energy retailers through the Australian Energy Regulator (or equivalent authority) to allow south eastern Australian rooftop photovoltaic panel owners to be charged for generating energy at peak times. We discuss this and a claim by a University of South Australia academic on Tuesday 21 March 2023 that there may need to be a levy to address the cost of recycling an estimated 80 million panels, or approximately 100,000 tonnes, of panels going into landfill at the end of their effective lives.

The Murray-Darling Basin Plan isn't a contest between the interests of irrigators and the environment, river ecologist and UNSW professor Richard Kingsford tells FlowFM listeners in southern NSW and across regional Victoria and South Australia, as we discuss river health after recent flooding, forecasts of drier conditions to return, carp infestation, cold water pollution, NSW's water sharing performance and buybacks.

On Wednesday morning 15 March 2023 the Australian Energy Regulator released its draft Default Market Offer determination with significant price increases for South Australian, New South Wales and south eastern Queensland energy customers. We discuss the impact of the draft, if it comes to fruition from 1 July, with South Australia's shadow minister for energy and net zero, the SA Liberals' Stephen Patterson.

The federal member for Barker including Truro in the northern Barossa Valley (pictured left with state Liberal MP for Schubert, including Truro, Ashton Hurn) says he's disappointed to learn there is no plan for the Sturt Highway bypass at Truro to be built at first instance as a dual carriageway to handle freight. Apologies for the poor line connection in this interview, we are working to resolve this at the Flow studios.

The South Australian MP covering the southern Eyre Peninsula and Port Lincoln, Sam Telfer, speaks with Flow listeners the day after water minister Susan Close told FlowFM the government would situate a desalination plant for water security for the region at Billy Lights Point adjacent to the city centre, not at Sleaford West, the site chosen by an independent site selection committee chaired by the now retired member for Flinders, Peter Treloar.

David Beatty, group manager of productivity and animal wellbeing at Meat and Livestock Australia talks about a new project in South Australia's northern arid lands aiming to reduce wild dog activity by 80 per cent.

We discuss with the South Australian environment and water minister why the government intends to proceed with a desalination plant in Boston Bay despite an independent site selection committee commissioned by the former Marshall Liberal government preferring Sleaford Bay on the southern Eyre Peninsula. We cover SARDI's research on the environmental impacts in Boston Bay, how a future desalination solution at Whyalla could interface with the Eyre Peninsula's water security needs, and what prospects there are in future for more desalination for instance for West Coast communities.

Could a Viterra and Aurizon proposal to re-open Eyre Peninsula railway lines take the strain off local roads after some bumper winter crop harvests? We discuss with the CEO of Grain Producers SA how such a proposal might be viable, what role they envisage government might need to play, and how other commodities - such as mineral resources - may need to be part of the mix to make it viable.

The Western Australian government recently announced it would require mandatory mental health checks for firearms owners. We speak with the president of the Shooters Union of Australia, Graham Park, about this departure from the National Firearms Agreement, Western Australia's tendency to go it alone, and where policing activity should focus when it comes to gun crime.

A coalition of concerned groups are protesting outside the Federal Court hearings in Adelaide launched by the Barngarla people, native title holders over Kimba and surrounds. Their concern is that a survey relied upon by the federal government to approve proceeding with the Napandee nuclear waste storage facility did not include the views of native title holders who are resident outside the area, who overwhelmingly oppose the facility going ahead. Uncle Harry Dare tells Flow listeners the Woomera facility is leaking, and says the waste should continue to be stockpiled at Lucas Heights, near Sydney, saying federal government claims the site would soon fill up should be questioned.

The Greens' spokesperson for the environment, water and communications joins us on FlowFM to discuss the health of the Murray-Darling Basin and reactions to talk of buybacks as the Plan reaches fruition in 2024. We also discuss NSW's performance under the Plan and an 11th hour proposal by the state's Nationals agriculture minister to release carp herpes on the dawn of a stateelection. On communications, the South Australian senator talks about the scale of the Murdoch media and other corporate media heavyweights and what that spells for media diversity, and expressed concern about the corporatisation of Australia Post.

We catch up with the Primary Industries minister in South Australia for regional FlowFM listeners about the calls from the state opposition for transparency on the cost and views on sheep (and goat) traceability, the extension of the PIRSA trial removal of fruit trees in Waikerie to combat fruit fly - and Minister Clare Scriven responds to what farmers are saying about when they should be forced to stop harvesting in hot weather in the name of fire prevention.

We discuss reinvigorating the Gawler Christmas tradition and potentially the Barossa Tourist Train as Concordia is earmarked for the next round of urban expansion for the Malinauskas Labor government. The Labor MP for Light discusses in studio with FlowFM the provisions to stop urban sprawl between Gawler and Roseworthy, and how the electorate's boundaries and community has changed over his 17 years representing the electorate.

For FlowFM listeners on the west coast and Eyre Peninsula of South Australia we discuss the local government election fiasco that will likely see 45 disqualified councillors get a 13th hour chance to get back into office, including Streaky Bay's mayor and deputy mayor. We also discuss with the shadow minister for population growth getting the settings right to capitalise on a strong move away from capital cities into the regions, including Port Pirie, as indicated this week by the Regional Australia Institute's Regional Movers Index.

South Australian Mallee based MP for Hammond and shadow minister for emergency services responds to the formation of a working group chaired by former Liberal leader Rob Kerin on determining when farmers can be forced to stop harvesting on fire hazard days, after an 11th hour intervention via Grain Producers SA saw the existing code maintained for another year during the bumper 2022/23 harvest.

The member for Frome Penny Pratt (pictured centre) speaks with us about upcoming events in the Clare and Gilbert Valleys and we discuss with the shadow minister for regional health services the recent SA government announcements particularly improving facilities at the Clare Hospital.

We speak with veterinarian and leader of the Liberal Party in the Legislative Council, Nicola Centofanti within her portfolio areas of agriculture, water, the River Murray and regional South Australia about a new duck hunting inquiry proposed by her opposite number, environment minister Susan Close. We also cover the Minister's comments on the impact of buybacks in the South Australian Murray under the Murray Darling Basin Plan, South Australia's incredible $17.3 billion farmgate earnings in the last reporting year, what return on that might come back to regional SA and tracking progress on a desalination plant for the Eyre Peninsula.

... and we discuss transparency on ministerial travel through a private member's bill South Australia's first One Nation MLC is moving today. Sarah Game MLC gives her initial reaction to a state government push for an inquiry into duck hunting in South Australia, the most permissive state in the nation for the practice and with Victoria the only two states that permit duck hunting at all. We also discuss the State Opposition's decision this week to join One Nation in opposing the Premier's push for a Voice to Parliament for indigenous South Australians as the detail emerged on what is being proposed.

This week in South Australia the David Speirs led SA Liberal opposition declared it would oppose the Malinauskas Labor government's bill to legislate a voice to parliament for indigenous South Australians. We talk with the shadow attorney general Josh Teague about why that is the case, and how the state constitution will be changed if the bill passes with the support of the South Australian Greens in the Legislative Council.

A Bill to provide more time for mayors and councillors that failed to provide disclosure returns has passed the House of Assembly and is due for debate in the Legislative Council in late February 2023. The local government minister Geoff Brock is adamant the candidates received plenty of notice of their donation disclosure obligations but says the extension of time proposed by the Bill is not a precedent for other disclosure failures by elected representatives. Some 45 mayors or councillors presently are declared invalid winners from November's local government elections until - or if - the Bill passes, but will again be invalid if they fail the 13th hour bid to clear up what donations, if any, they received during the election campaign.

There's plenty more B-words in this chat with the Barker MP in south eastern Australia as we discuss some hot topics in the electorate from Mt Gambier and the Limestone Coast to the Riverland, Barossa and Mallee including regional bank branch closures and Kingston SE's BankSA temporary reprieve. We unpack the approach of the SA and federal Labor water ministers Close and Plibersek on the Murray Darling Basin Plan and buying water from irrigators contrasted with Victorian Labor minister Harriet Shing and NSW Labor shadow minister, possibly soon the minister, Rose Jackson. One thing Tony Pasin isn't buying is the communications minister Michelle Rowland's explanation to FlowFM listeners why a recent 'targeted' mobile black spot funding round overwhelming favoured Labor electorates. We also reflect on recent commentary from treasurer Jim Chalmers about superannuation and whether Labor was up front with the electorate before the May election, like Bill Shorten was in 2019, on its plans for retiree savings.

We speak with the federal shadow minister for health and ageing on the labour and housing shortages in regional Australia and the potential impact on the health workforce in aged care, particularly nursing. We review the Royal Commission on Aged Care recommendations that may not have contemplated a labour shortage and discuss the South Australian senator's visit to the Yorke Peninsula. The Riverland resident and former irrigator also hits out at claims from the South Australian Labor water minister that voluntary buybacks had not negatively impacted river communities.

The South Australian water minister wants to take a united front to the Murray Darling Basin Ministers' meeting on Friday and crticised the South Australian Liberal Opposition for not backing voluntary buybacks as a means to return water to the River Murray environment. We listen to comments earlier on Tuesday morning from Riverland resident and former irrigator, now Liberal senator Anne Ruston, on the impact buybacks had, discuss progress on securing desalination for the Eyre Peninsula, and a new joint federal-state voucher program to help flood affected SA Murray residents remove waste from their premises.

The South Australian tourism minister joins FlowFM from the Yorke Peninsula after the third Malinauskas Government regional community cabinet meeting in 6 months since Labor returned to office at the March election. Zoe Bettison talks about the region's great tourism assets, the resilience in the sector's domestic demand, challenges growing the international tourism numbers post-pandemic, selling SA to target international markets and encouraging South Australians to pursue careers in tourism.

Primary Industries, Forest Industries and Regional Development minister Clare Scriven joins FlowFM from Wallaroo, Yorke Peninsula where the third Community Cabinet meeting in regional SA in less than a year is occurring to talk about a new regional housing initiative. With regional labour in short supply, South East SA based Minister Scriven describes how the housing initiative is targeted at first at essential workers like health, police and other emergency services staff but a new Office for Regional Housing will be established within Renewal SA to work with the local government sector on bringing more land to market for housing. We also discuss the resumption of community cabinets in the regions that ceased under the Marshall Liberal government and the value of ministers and departmental heads hearing first-hand from locals and their representatives on the issues that matter to them.Those wanting to reach out from regional SA to engage with the new office for regional housing within Renewal SA can do so at http://officeregionalhousing.sa.gov.au

The Regional Australia Institute this week highlighted the Yorke and Clare Valley combined region as a job vacancy hotspot rising 33 per cent on the latest monthly data and as the Malinauskas Labor Government's cabinet visits Wallaroo to listen to the local community, we spoke with the local MP Fraser Ellis about local labour and housing demands and a disturbing incident this week at the Wallaroo hospital

The MP for Flinders covering the Eyre Peninsula says the ball is now in SA Water's court on selecting a desalination plant for water security to relieve a time-limited Uley Basin, after the Marshall Liberal government appointed site selection committee wrapped up its work. We discuss the recent interview on FlowFM by the local government minister Geoff Brock and clear up the history of what the Local Government Association and sector handed over to the Electoral Commission of SA to do in what the shadow minister Sam Telfer describes as a shambles of a process that has seen 43 councillors and 3 mayors disqualified due to disclosure failures.

Some voices in the Ceduna community have expressed concern that anti-social behaviour has been on the rise and one of those is the former mayor, Alan Suter who outlines his concerns particularly for women and children from indigenous communities.

South Australian local government minister Geoff Brock navigates the history and current situation where 3 mayors and 43 other councillors' November elections have been vacated and, while supplementary elections are currently underway for unfilled positions at November's polls, some ratepayers will have to vote for a 3rd time potentially to fill freshly vacated positions due to a disclosure compliance failure.A statement from premier Peter Malinauskas on the issue is available here.

The South Australian shadow minister for water and regional South Australia speaks with FlowFM about the recent Malinauskas Labor government announcement of three periurban sites including Concordia (near Gawler north of Adelaide) where tens of thousands of prospective housing opportunities will be created through local government planning changes. The Opposition say the three locations' proximity to Adelaide highlights a city-centric focus for the government and is calling on planning reform to enable regional councils to also make land available for housing. Regional South Australia is burdened with an inability to fill jobs due in part to a lack of appropriate housing. As shadow minister for water, Mrs Centofanti also tackles the very slow progress on getting a water security solution for the Eyre Peninsula through desalination as the federal government recently confirmed with FlowFM there are no current funding requests from the SA government before any federal agency to help with the cost of a desal plant.

The South Australian mining minister Tom Koutsantonis outlines the amenity, groundwater and safety grounds for why he used his power as minister to block Terramin's gold mine proposal in the Adelaide Hills wine region close to three significant wineries Bird In Hand, Petaluma and Art Wine. We discuss the reactions by the local independent MPs Dan Cregan and federal MP Rebekah Sharkie and that of the Liberal opposition and SA Chamber of Mines and Energy to the decision. The minister rejects the possibility this decision sets a precedent for mining-farming conflicts elsewhere in the state, saying each decision is made on its merits.

The independent MP for Stuart and minister in the Malinauskas Labor Government was the former local government minister prior to 2018 and retraces the history of Coober Pedy's administration challenges, questions the efforts of the SA Liberals in government and the Local Government Association's assistance to Coober Pedy and defends the government's efforts on the water supply challenges since it was elected in March 2022.

The man appointed by the then Marshall Liberal government to administer Coober Pedy during the suspension of the council's elected representatives has responded to criticisms of his now concluded tenure as administrator by the returned local government minister Geoff Brock (full statement from Minister Brock in this story here: https://www.flownews24.com.au/post/brock-attacks-jackson-s-coober-pedy-record), Mr Jackson has expanded his call made on Flow recently regarding the town's essential services, saying both power and water utilities should be taken over by the state utilities and Coober Pedy council rates increased to cover its costs. Mr Jackson assures listeners the amount they would save under SA Water's statewide pricing policy would offset the potential $1,000 increase per annum to their council rates. However Minister Brock told Flow in his statement the situation is not as simple as Mr Jackson has put forward.

The shadow minister for local government in South Australia, Sam Telfer, responds to the written attack minister Geoff Brock launched on the now former Coober Pedy administrator and the Liberals' handling of the town's water supply (read the full Ministerial comments here: https://www.flownews24.com.au/post/brock-attacks-jackson-s-coober-pedy-record). As the member for Flinders including the Eyre Peninsula, Mr Telfer also responds to the latest advice to FlowFM from SA Water regarding the progress of selecting a site and then building a desalination plant to address water security for the lower Eyre Peninsula

On his first day of his own planned breakaway from administering the Coober Pedy Council, Tim Jackson talks about what's great about living in the town, his recent concerns about anti-social behaviour by visitors to the town - and calls for SA Water to buy the estimated $12 million dollars worth of council water assets to wipe out the in-trouble council's $10 million in debt. The Council has been under administration for four years and was blocked from electing a new council by state parliamentarians just prior to November's local government elections due to continuing governance concerns.

One Nation's first MLC elected to the South Australian parliament, Sarah Game, says she's the only opposing the Malinauskas Labor government's Voice to Parliament bill for indigenous South Australians. She says the bill is thin on detail and could give the right to representatives elected solely by indigenous people to speak on any issue in the State Parliament.

The Liberal Party's MP for the state's largest federal seat, Grey, talks with Flow listeners about a recent federal government funding announcement for William Creek residents near Oodnadatta with the Royal Flying Doctor Service, the state of regional roads and addresses concerns voiced by others from Coober Pedy to Ceduna about alcohol-fuelled anti-social behaviour as federal parliamentary sittings resume this coming Monday.

The member for Flinders in South Australia's west already had a lot on his radar as a local MP including growing antisocial behaviour concerns in Ceduna, but with new shadow responsibilities for policing Sam Telfer talks with FlowFM about alcohol-fuelled antisocial behaviour concerns in Coober Pedy, the encouraging SA population growth data reported recently by the Australian Bureau of Statistics, and why he's pushing for an additional Doppler radar in the Eyre Peninsula 'black spot' so local farmers and emergency services can better prepare for and respond to adverse weather conditions.

The South Australian Liberal Party's shadow cabinet is visiting the South East based in Mount Gambier this week and we caught up with the shadow minister for regional health services, ageing, preventative health and wellbeing about her new portfolio roles, mental health and suicide prevention. We discuss the potential hidden mental health struggle under the recent record grain harvest, the New Year change to the Patient Assisted Transport Scheme rebate and what regional South Australians are telling her their health policy concerns are.Lifeline: 13 11 14 – 24 hours a day, 7 days a week (and SMS service 0477 13 11 14) Beyond Blue: 1300 22 4636 - www.beyondblue.org.au

'Completely bogus' is the way the South Australian health minister Chris Picton describes claims made on FlowFM this morning by the shadow minister, the Liberals' Ashton Hurn, about ramping figures from last February compared with now. Ms Hurn told Flow listeners that over almost 12 months the wait times to get into emergency departments in Adelaide had almost doubled. Minister Picton points to the cancellation of elective surgery at that time 12 months ago as a cause for the increased ramping numbers quoted by his shadow but not disputed by the Minister.

The South Australian Liberal shadow minister for health and member for Schubert Ashton Hurn joins us to talk about the ramping situation she says is worse now than it was when the former Marshall government left office. Yet the ambulance union is conspicuous by its silence. The MP for the regional electorate for Schubert including the Barossa Valley also talks about her latest regional trips including to Mount Gambier today, and what regional people are telling the opposition about their health needs.

The shadow education minister explains why his government didn't ban mobile phones in high schools outright during the Marshall Liberal government's term in office (2018-2022) and attacks the Malinauskas Labor government's measures leading up to the start of the South Australian school year on Monday 30 January 2023. The former education minister says his government didn't promise or impose a ban, so he is 'embarrassed' for the now government that it pledged a ban but has not, in the Opposition's view, imposed one.