The Gillard Labor Government today released for the first time maps outlining the path for the new network to stretch across Australia under the National Broadband Network (NBN).

The maps:

• Show that every house, school and business in Australia will have access to high-speed broadband under the NBN
• Confirm optical fibre will be extended to 93 per cent of homes and businesses in more than 1000 cities and towns by the end of the roll-out
• Show how communities will be served by next generation wireless and satellite technologies under the NBN.

Ms Saffin said local cities and towns set to be connected to the optical fibre network include Alstonville, Ballina, Casino, Evans Head, Grafton, Iluka, Kyogle, Lismore, Woodburn, Wooloweyah, Woombah and Yamba.

“The NBN will offer speeds of 100 megabits per second – 100 times faster than many people experience today,” she said.

“And NBN Co will also deliver next generation wireless and satellite services with speeds of 12 megabits per second to local centres including Coutts Crossing, Lawrence, Urbenville and Woodenbong. This would provide average data rates more than 20 times higher than most users experience today.

“Today’s release of the maps follows the news earlier this month that Coffs Harbour would be one of the next roll-out sites for the NBN and the nerve centre for the roll-out to the North Coast corridor.”

Details of the NBN mapping is available at: http://www.alp.org.au/agenda/nbn/

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Brandan Parkes, 15, was last seen about 11pm last Monday (19 July) by family members. He was subsequently reported missing to police from Richmond Local Area Command.

Investigating officers made an appeal for public assistance to locate Brandan on Friday (23 July).

They have this morning been advised that Brandan attended his school in the company of his parents.

Police thank the public and media for their assistance in this matter.

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Brandan Parkes, 15, was last seen about 11pm on Monday by family members. Since that time he has not contacted his family or attended school.

Police are concerned for Brandan’s welfare as it is out of character for him to be away from home and not make contact with family, although he is believed to be in the company of another teenage boy.

Brandan is described as being of Caucasian appearance with a fair complexion, about 152cm tall with a slim build, short brown hair and blue eyes.

Anyone who knows Brandan’s whereabouts is urged to phone Ballina Police Station on 6681 8699 or Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.

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Ms Saffin said the Government has changed the classification of rural and remote areas and now Lismore, Alstonville, Ballina, Wardell and Wollongbar have been included in the list of areas that can offer incentives to attract and keep GPs.

“I lobbied for these local centres to be included, and worked with local doctor Andrew Binns to push for these changes which have now been delivered,” she said.

“This means that the all of the Page electorate is now eligible to offer incentives to attract and keep GPs.

“The changed classification was long overdue as the previous government based the incentive system on population figures from 1991.

“The Australian Government is investing is a total of $134.4 million to encourage doctors to relocate and stay in rural areas as part of the Rural Health Workforce Strategy.”

Significant changes include:

• The incentives apply to fully-trained GPs, where previously it was only registrars
• Relocation grants of $15,000 to $30,000 for city doctors to move to our area
• Retention grants that increase for every year the doctor stays in the area
• HECS reimbursement scheme
• Incentives to attract overseas-trained doctors.

Under the Rural Health Workforce Strategy, the incentives are scaled to provide the greatest rewards to those doctors willing to work in the most remote locations.

An important part of the Rural Health Workforce Strategy is the locum program of incentives and training packages to support city doctors doing locums for doctors in country areas, so country doctors can have adequate rest and professional development.

Ms Saffin said these incentives benefit all residents of Page by encouraging more doctors to move here, as well as keeping local GPs in the area.

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“The Ballina Bypass is budgeted to cost $640m altogether and to be completed by 2012. $471m has already been spent and a further $115m will be spent this year. It’s a joint State/Federal project,” he said.

“Pre-construction for the Tintenbar to Ewingsdale upgrade will continue with an allocation of $85m in this budget. The Alstonville Bypass gets a further $24m from the Federal budget to complete construction by the end of this year.

“It was disappointing once again not to see any funds for an upgrade of Ballina Hospitals surgery unit or the proposed new Byron Shire Central Hospital (land for this hospital at Ewingsdale has already been purchased).” 

Ballina TAFE receives a further $597,000 to complete the upgrade by 2011.

“I’m pleased to see the Community Building Partnership program reinstated for another year. This means the Ballina Electorate will receive $400,000 for smaller community projects of a wide-ranging nature,” Mr Page said.

“Byron Bay Ambulance Station also received $1.35m to complete construction by next year. Lismore Regional Cancer Centre (a regional facility) has been allocated $3.25m with completion due in 2012,” he said. 

In summary the allocations for the Ballina Electorate are:

• $115m for continuation of construction of the Ballina Bypass
• $85m for planning and pre-construction of the Tintenbar to Ewingsdale section of the Pacific Highway
• $1.35m for the Byron Bay Ambulance Station
• $24m (Federally funded) for ongoing construction of the Alstonville Bypass
• $597,000 to complete the upgrade of Ballina TAFE
• $400,000 Community Building Partnership

“This means there will be close to $227m spent in the Ballina Electorate this year, excluding the Federal BER projects,” Mr Page said.

“While I welcome the funding that has been allocated to the Ballina Electorate, much of it is coming from the Federal Budget. The NSW State Government continues to let us down on health infrastructure in particular. Once again the Byron Shire Central Hospital and the upgrade to Ballina Hospital surgery unit were overlooked.”

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The threat of closure was first made in NSW Labor Government’s 2008 mini budget.

“In the follow-up to that devastating announcement I lodged a petition containing over 1000 signatures supporting the retention of the important research centre,” Mr Page said.

Mr Page sought reassurance from the Minister for Primary Industries in Parliament last week that the Centre for Tropical Horticulture will not be closed.

“Tropical horticulture is the largest agricultural industry on the North Coast contributing hundreds of millions of dollars each year to our economy. The local industry deserves some assurance that the vital research facility will not be lost,” he said.

The research station is currently conducting vital research in areas such as canopy management, plant physiology, soil science and entomology.

“There are 24 people whose employment will be under a cloud if the Minister goes ahead with this short-sighted decision,” he said.

“The research conducted at Alstonville is vital for the ongoing support and growth of the North Coast horticultural industry.” 

The industry includes macadamias, coffee, avocados, blueberries, bananas, passionfruit, low-chill stone fruit and custard apples

Mr Page said that the Government will try to justify the decision by saying the centre will be relocated to Wollongbar.  However, years of research will be lost with the research crops that are currently growing at the Alstonville station.

“My fear is that this cash-strapped NSW Labor Government can see the huge financial gains that could be made by selling off this prime piece of real estate on the Alstonville Plateau,” he said.

“I call on the Minister for Primary Industries to confirm that the Alstonville Centre for Tropical Horticulture will remain open.”

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It will be music from the sublime to the ridiculous, from Henry VIII to Bach, Purcell, Mozart and Elgar, and a musical setting of the nonsense words of Edward Lear’s Owl and the Pussy Cat.

Acapelicans, based in Ballina, and Spiritsong, based in Bangalow, are mixed voice choirs under the musical direction of local musician, Warren Whitney.

Both choirs sing a range of secular and sacred items covering 400 years of music and perform throughout the Northern Rivers.
Among other works, they have performed Bach’s Peasant Cantata and Sir Charles Wood’s St Mark’s Passion.

Spiritsong’s rendition of Saint Saëns Ave Verum was recorded and played on 4MBSFM, a Brisbane classical music station.

La Fontanella recorder ensemble plays classical and modern items using the whole range of recorders, from the tiny to what look like organ pipes with holes in and need keys to reach the notes!

During its heyday, the recorder was traditionally associated with birds, shepherds, miraculous events, funerals, marriages and amorous scenes.

It was revived in the 20th century, partly in the pursuit of historically accurate performances of early music – the sound is remarkably clear and sweet.

A sound that will enhanced by the acoustics of both churches with their magnificent high-pitched roofs, timber work and stone walls, their small size making the music even more intimate.

• Sunday, 20 JUNE, 2010, 1.30PM St Bartholomew’s Church, Alstonville
• Sunday, 27 JUNE, 2010, 1.30PM, St  Martin’s Church, Mullumbimby.
• Tickets: $10 at the door
• Enquiries 0429 185 361

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About 10pm, police from Richmond Local Area Command executed a search warrant at a restaurant in Ballina, arresting a 21-year-old man at the scene.

Police allegedly found a significant amount of pills, believed to be ecstasy, in his possession, as well as an amount of cash.

The Alstonville man was taken to Ballina Police Station where he was charged with possess prohibited drug, supply prohibited drug and deal with property suspected of being proceeds of crime.

He was refused bail to appear at Lismore Local Court this morning.

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The 29-year-old man, who was working as an alternative health practitioner based at Alstonville, was arrested by detectives from Richmond Local Area Command yesterday (Thursday 25 March).

Detectives have been investigating alleged sexual assaults that occurred between 2005 and 2010.

The man was taken to Ballina Police Station and subsequently charged with aggravated sexual assault and two counts of aggravated indecent assault.

He was granted conditional bail and is expected to appear in Ballina Local Court on 15 April 2010.

Inquiries are continuing and Ballina Detectives are appealing for anyone who has information that might assist their investigations to contact them via Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.

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Theresa Mason has embarked on her PhD research project – an oral history of the Northern Rivers – and already has many a fascinating tale to tell, thanks to locals sharing their stories for her earlier Honours project.

Her interest in the region’s history began when she was editing and writing for The Village Journal, a local newspaper based in Rosebank, serving the rural areas between Dunoon, Federal and Bexhill.

“I came across all of these older people who had fascinating stories to tell,” she said. “Many of the stories around people’s experiences during the Great Depression and in times of war were particularly interesting.

“People who lived on the land told me how it became essential for them to learn how to make their own fuel, and all sorts of mixes were developed and tested in backyard sheds. Many people also self-converted cars, buses, trucks and farm machinery to run on coal gas. While there were some tragedies from explosions, many of the designs were innovative and worked quite well.”

Theresa said that a lot of people had great ‘flood stories’ to tell.

“One woman told me how, during the big 1945 flood, her father hailed the cream boat that went from Coraki to Lismore, thinking it could drop them on the other side of the river because their house was flooding,” Theresa said.

“Instead, they were taken all the way to town where the boat was tied up to a hoop pine on the riverbank. Their family spent the night on board eating chunks of bread and cream, and early next morning, the waters had receded and they walked around town.

”The woman said the paper-mâché dress shop models in their beautiful gowns had collapsed onto the floors of the dress shops in the most grotesque attitudes, still with silly smiles on their faces.”

Theresa would like to gather as many oral histories as she can and is seeking 50 people aged 65 and over, living in the Tweed, Byron, Ballina, Lismore, Richmond Valley and Kyogle Shire areas, who would like to participate in her research.

She can be contacted on 6688 2387 or by email at theresa.mason@scu.edu.au.

PICTURE: Theresa Mason, who is doing an oral history of the Northern Rivers area for her PhD.

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