Recyclables: a buyer’s guide | ACCC acts on regional air routes | ‘Design for waste avoidance’ | ALGA News 20 November 2020

Virgin Australia and Alliance Airlines have received authorisation from the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission to work together on 41 regional routes. The cooperative arrangement will allow the two operators to share information, and to agree on service capacity, schedules and potentially revenue sharing on the routes on which they operate, including for new routes+

Leading scientists and engineers have warned that National Waste Policy Action Plan goals will be “difficult to achieve without focusing on avoidance”. A new report from the Australian Academy of Technology and Engineering, Towards a Waste-Free Future, has found that while the plan prioritises avoidance in principle, its “measures are heavily weighted towards waste collection+

Round 5A of the Mobile Black Spot Program is now open as the Federal Government looks to improve coverage along major transport corridors and in disaster-prone areas. Announcing the round on Wednesday, Federal Minister for Regional Health, Regional Communications and Local Government Mark Coulton said: “We want to support new ways of delivering mobile services+

Disaster assistance has been made available to eight NSW coastal and inland local government areas impacted by storms on 20 October. The severe thunderstorms and associated high winds and flash flooding caused widespread damage across the Armidale, Bega Valley, Central Coast, Eurobodalla, Mid Coast, Shoalhaven, Snowy Valleys and Tamworth councils, including to local roads, businesses+

A West Australian council that unleased its community’s entrepreneurial spirit to tackle unemployment has won Australia’s top award for local government. The City of Mandurah initiated a series of programs for budding entrepreneurs about six years ago to help create jobs and build local skills in a region marked by rising unemployment. These programs –+

Average voter turnout at last month’s Victoria’s local council elections was a record 81.4 per cent, the Victorian Electoral Commission said last week. Electoral Commissioner Warwick Gately congratulated Victorians on their record turnout for the election – which was conducted entirely by mail ballot because of Covid-19. Campaigning was restricted during the lockdown with no+

Dangerous fire weather days will become more numerous in future, and fire seasons for southern and eastern Australia will last longer. The CSIRO and the Bureau of Meteorology are also predicting a continued decrease in cool season rainfall across many regions of southern and eastern Australia, shorter but more intense heavy rainfall events, and fewer+

Plans to introduce a road user charge for electric vehicles in South Australia have been criticised as likely to slow the take-up of EV technology nationally. State Treasurer Rob Lucas said the Government’s proposed charge would include a fixed component and a variable charge based on distance travelled, and would raise about $1 million per+

Councils across Queensland have been involved in various campaigns and initiatives aimed at promoting awareness and prevention of domestic abuse.  In the City of Gold Coast, there have been campaigns via internal and external marketing platforms.  Residents have been provided with safety information cards and given the “Purple book” containing information about abuse and where+

The Commonwealth Health Department has widened its public consultations to inform a whole-of-government approach to suicide prevention. It follows “Interim Advice” provided to Prime Minister Scott Morrison in August by the National Suicide Prevention Adviser, Christine Morgan. The advice, released this week, comprises 13 “in-principle” recommendations to improve the whole-of-government coordination and delivery of suicide+