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New Kingston Council announced!
Results for the 2024 Kingston Council elections have been announced with 3 councillors re-elected and 8 new faces joining the 11-member Council. The Victorian Electoral Commission, which conducted the elections, officially declared the results today. The successful candidates are: Banksia Ward – Chris Howe Bunjil Ward – Tony Athanasopoulos Caruana Ward – Caroline White Chicquita Ward – Jane Agirtan…
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Lest we forget!
On the 11th hour on the 11th day of the 11th month, a minute’s silence is observed and dedicated to those soldiers who died fighting to protect the nation. At 11am on 11 November 1918, the guns on the Western Front fell silent after more than four years of continuous warfare. The Germans called for an armistice…
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Student Debt in Australia: The Hidden Crisis
Fun fact: I was 38 years young when I FINALLY paid off my student debt – 11 long years after graduation. As a holder of Advanced Diploma in Accounting I’ve entered second year of Bachelor of Business at RMIT – this resulted in a substantial cost saving compared to those who have completed a full…
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Labor Government’s Housing Crisis: Victorians pay the price
Last week the Allan Labor Government made a series of announcements in an attempt to paper over their housing crisis after a decade of Labor governments. As they continue to strip away the rights of local communities to have a say in planning decisions in an apartment-centric focus on inner suburbs, services in middle and…
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Here’s why Allan’s high-rise plan won’t get off the ground
We’re a long way from new apartments being the solution for the housing supply problem. Two major hurdles stand in the way: the market and the economics. The apartment market is now almost entirely skewed towards premium apartments, with entry level units all but evaporating from sales. That’s why we’ve gone from building 25,000 apartments a…
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Labor’s SEC fails to deliver for Victorians
In 2023, the government committed an initial $1 billion to the SEC to help deliver 4.5 gigawatts of power through renewable energy projects, in which the Victorian government would take a majority stake. Energy experts argued that “wouldn’t buy much” in a transition from fossil fuels expected to cost around $320 billion nationally. SEC Victoria Pty Ltd has two…
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Understanding Kingston’s Council Dysfunction: A Community’s Struggle
Independence, transparency and integrity – serving our community’s best interest Meet fresh, competent and independent Kingston team: Top: Wandzia French, Brendan Lenarcic, Georgia Erevnidis, Louise BlackBottom : Jane Agirtan, Sarah O’Donnell, Caroline White We can all agree that Kingston desperately needs change. In an ideal word, councilors work together to make decisions in the best…
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Labor’s New Tax Plan: A Threat to Homeownership in Victoria
Under the Andrews-Allan Labor Government, Victoria already has the highest property taxes in the nation, with 44 per cent of a new house and land package in greenfield development areas in Melbourne made up of government taxes, fees and charges according to the Urban Development Institute of Australia. Despite this, reports this week revealed Labor…
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The Voice. One year on.
Why Australians voted to be equal. A year ago on Monday, 60% of Australians voted for all Australians to be equal. We did so in the face of a Yes campaign that had the overwhelming support of the media, big business, religious organisations, civil society, and elite opinion. Not to mention Yes had four times…
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We will Bring Beach Bins Back!
Siri, define ” peak Council” Siri: Moving 216 bins off the beach so that residents and visitors drown in dog poo, plastic bags, pizza boxes and cans. I’m not entirely sure which public servant ( were they working remotely in their underpants?) thought it would be a good idea to deal with overflowing bins… by…
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JANE AGIRTAN INDEPENDENT 