The federal government’s expansion of the Boosting Apprenticeships Commencement scheme could be a recipe for exploiting young workers in Victoria, a union says. The $2.7 billion investment will provide wage subsidies worth 50 per cent of salaries for new apprentices, in the government’s attempt to curb youth unemployment due to the pandemic. Young Workers Centre acting director Mairead Lesman said the union had seen a 300 per cent increase in clients in the past 18 months b

The famous Hawthorn Hotel , known to locals as “The Hawka”, has finally reopened its doors after a painful nine-month hiatus. Students were devastated last year when the previous owners took to Facebook to announce the pub’s closure because of the Covid-19 lockdowns. “We have made the difficult decision to bid farewell to the Hawthorn Hotel as we hand the venue back to the landlord this month,” they said. Australia Venue Co, owners of more than 160 venues across Australia, ha

A ride-on lawnmower race was the kick-starter for a fundraising campaign aimed to install a World Peace Bell in the Victorian border town of Albury-Wodonga. The first race of its kind in Wodonga last month was a huge success, raising more than $1000 for the Rotary World Peace Bell project. Expected to be completed by late 2021, the Japanese Peace Bell was an initiative aimed at promoting peace in the home, streets, schools and local community. Wodonga West Rotarian Clive Fau

Decriminalising the personal use and possession of cannabis could relieve Victoria’s overcrowded justice system and steer users away from trying “harder” drugs, speakers at a cannabis use inquiry said. Victoria Legal Aid executive director for criminal law Dan Nicholson spoke at a public hearing for Victoria’s Inquiry into Cannabis Use , the first such inquiry in Australia. Mr Nicholson told the inquiry that the ability to buy cannabis in a regulated way would remove some of

Limited campus and local public transport options pose a major hurdle for students from Melbourne’s Western suburbs who want to study at university. Melton Cr Bob Turner said there was a necessity and demand for more university options in the area. “In the west, there is a predominance of young teenagers who really need this sort of education,” he said. Cr Turner said the long travel times meant students weren’t as motivated to pursue further study options. Anyone from Melton

The Victorian Government is being urged to legalise the use of ecstasy to treat post-traumatic stress disorder in returned soldiers. Concerns have been raised over the mental health care of Australian Defence Force veterans that has led to an high rates of suicide . Reason Party leader Fiona Patten raised the issue in state parliament last month, and said this week the matter needed to be addressed immediately.  Thirty-five clinical psychiatrists in Australia are now seeking

Children in Victoria's child protection system are falling between the cracks, prompting calls for an independent review into Why, Nadia...

Richmond community members say they are sick of seeing the Richmond medically supervised injecting room (MSIR) hammered in the media and are asking people to have some compassion. Victoria Street Drug Solutions founder Judy Ryan said she started the community group in 2016 to show support for the MSIR. “Despite the popular narrative seen in the media, we are a community that supports the Richmond injecting room,” Ms Ryan said. “People do not choose to have a heroin addiction

Hobson Bay City Council should do more to warn about the dangers dogs face with toxic fish at Altona beach, locals say. Dog owner and local resident Nicolas Downe said he acted immediately after his “playful” labrador Zeus swallowed a pufferfish a few weeks ago at the dog beach, also known as PA Burns Reserve. “I could actually see him chomping on [the fish],” he said. When I got him to spit it out, the fish looked like it had been partially eaten. This is when I knew there w

A Victorian woman has petitioned the Australian Department of Health for better treatment in hospitals for women who have miscarried or lost their baby through stillbirth. Since the beginning of May, the change.org petition has received more than 400 signatures, with many people sharing traumatic hospital experiences and calling for action. Sherrie Fujto said she started the petition after a miscarriage when, while waiting for surgery, she was placed in the same waiting roo

A petition against the closure of the East Ivanhoe Bowling Club was received by Banyule City Council last month, as part of ongoing unrest about the council’s plan for local sporting clubs. Now with more than 600 signatures from local residents, the change.org petition organised by club president Matthew Perkins highlights concern among sections of the community about the Ivanhoe Sports Precinct Plan. The plan aims to fix up ageing local sporting facilities and find homes fo

Thousands of Victorians have signed a petition pleading for the state government to invest more in maternity care. Melbourne Greens MP Ellen Sandell said hundreds of women had reached out to her with stories of poor maternity care. She is now calling for the State Government to invest more into fixing the system. “Women are being failed by an underfunded system at its breaking point,” Ms Sandell said. The hospitals and midwives are doing their absolute best, but there simply