World No Tobacco Day

BY JESSICA ROUSE

The Cancer Council are using today's World No Tobacco Day to shed light on the massive influence of socioeconomic factors in the Hunter on the prevalence of smoking.

Around 16 per cent of people in the Hunter smoke and it's been found the incidence of smoking is at its highest in lower socioeconomic areas and trending downward in higher socioeconomic areas.

It's no secret smoking can lead to potentially deadly cancers with 80 per cent of lung cancer cases directly related to smoking, but Regional Manager of the Cancer Council Shayne Connell says the socioeconomic factors are becoming just as much of an influence.

"If you look at different socioeconomic groups those rates vary dramatically - so from a higher socioeconomic area, smoking rates are as low as 4 to 5 per cent and in some other groups like unemployed, people suffering a mental illness, those rates can be upwards of 40 and 50 per cent."

Possible reasons for such a big divide are thought to include that those living in the higher socioeconomic areas may be more responsive to public health campaigns and more likely to use effective resources for quitting smoking and have a better environment in which to be encouraged to quit.

These initiatives don't always appear have the same effect on those in lower socioeconomic areas.

The latest research released by the Cancer Council show results collected over a long period of time between 1985 and 2009 giving a significant snapshot of the frequency of cancer and who is most at risk.

"We looked at lung cancer incidences in women and what we found is that it was fairly steady and there's always a 20 or 30 year lag obviously between generational smoking and lung cancer but from about 1995 onwards there's fairly big disparity between people in a higher socioeconomic groups who had lower cancer rates than those in lower socioeconomic areas," said Shayne Connell.

"With today being World No Tobacco Day, we're really highlighting this again and looking to different research to highlight some of the differences in how lung cancers affect the community."

Newcastle and the Central Coast Hotspots for Heart Failure

BY MARISSA ALEXIOU

A national report by the Australian Catholic University has revealed the Newcastle and Central Coast as one of Australia's top 10 areas for heart failure.

According to the report, more than one in 30 people across the region suffer from the condition.

An increase in retirees living in the Newcastle and Central Coast contributes to the high numbers in the area.

The report has followed a new heart medication, Entresto, recently added to the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme.

Heart failure specialist Dr Angela Worthington said the treatment combines a standard heart failure therapy with a new therapy in the same medication. The treatments together provide a more "powerful effect" for heart failure patients.

One of Worthington's patients, Brian Walker has seen a huge difference since using the medication.

Worthington said there are a number of factors contributing to heart failure, including Australia's ageing population.

"Age is one of the strongest risk factors for developing heart failure."

Other risk factors include obesity, high alcohol consumption, lack of exercise, diabetes and a high salt diet.

Worthington encourages people to ensure they have a regular GP who can monitor risk factors for heart failure.

"If risk factors can be addressed early, we can avoid people developing the more severe forms of heart failure" says Worthington.

Source: http://www.fiercepharma.com/

Tourle Street Bridge works

BY IAN CROUCH and JESSICA ROUSE

Motorists heading over the Tourle Street Bridge from Kooragang Island will be met with changed traffic conditions while work on the bridge duplication continues.

There are diversions in place with traffic heading along Cormorant Road from Egret Street being diverted onto a newly built section of road to allow work to be carried out on the existing road.

From Monday if you're travelling along Tourle Street you'll be diverted onto a new section of road as well.

The $103 million bridge and road duplication is due for completion by late 2018.

Steer clear of the Hunter's beaches today

BY IAN CROUCH

We're being urged to steer clear of Hunter beaches today with dangerous surf conditions expected.

The weather bureau says 4m seas are expected by lunchtime, making conditions treacherous for swimmers, rock fishermen and boat owners.

Beachgoers are being urged to check conditions before venturing into the water.

The power of the sun

BY JESSICA ROUSE

Lake Macquarie City Council is reaping the rewards of solar panels, using the power of the sun to reduce their carbon emissions and save thousands of dollars.

The council has installed a further 241 solar panels at its Works Depot adding to the panels already installed across major council buildings capable of generating 550kW.

Solar panels have been installed at council's administration building which generates 176kW of power, and also at the Speers Point Swim Centre, the art gallery, Charlestown and Belmont Libraries, the Rural Fire Service Headquarters and other buildings throughout the local government area.

So far the panels have reduced council's carbon emission by a massive 856 tonnes - the equivalent of taking 200 cars off the road - and saved $156,000 annually.

"We estimate that those installations are reducing our electricity bills by around about $156,000 dollars every year so that translates directly into savings on the cost of council services for ratepayers," said Manager of Sustainability Alice Howe.

Council isn't stopping there, they aim to make the city a solar powerhouse in the Lower Hunter, and already have 14 per cent of homes having solar panels installed on rooftops throughout the city.

Demountables on the rise in Charlestown

BY JESSICA ROUSE

Charlestown MP Jodie Harrison is calling on the Berejiklian Government to address the increasing number of demountables in her electorate.

The number of demountable classrooms has risen to 48 according to figures obtained by the state opposition under the Freedom of Information laws.

Jodie Harrison says the growing population of Charlestown isn't stopping anytime soon, and the government need to recognise this and work towards installing more permanent learning spaces.

"We know that there are more houses in the area, we know that there are people moving into the area and we also know that the government should be providing classrooms for our kid's education and they need to be permanent classrooms because we know that this is going to be an ongoing population increase."

The demountables are taking up, and taking away, valuable playground space from schools, with Warners Bay High School at the top of the list with the most demountables in Charlestown.

The MP says the reliance on these demountable classrooms needs to stop, and it needs to stop now.

"I would certainly hope the Minister for Education and the Premier have been looking at population growth in the area and making sure they're providing infrastructure to deal with that population increase. Our kids deserve a quality education and quality spaces."

Orica's Kooragang Island facility cops fine

BY JESSICA ROUSE

It's thought a discharge of algae inside a pipe at Kooragang Island is what landed Orica Australia a $15,000 fine from the NSW Environment Protection Authority (EPA).

The incident was reported to the EPA on 9th March this year, just one day after it occurred.

The EPA said it's likely sediments were also dislodged resulting in concentrations of suspended solids, zinc and arsenic in the effluent becoming higher than the levels permitted by Orica's environment protection license.  

It's not the first time Orica has been fined by the EPA, there was another incident in October 2013 where they were fined $1,500 for exceeding their effluent concentration limits - also attributed to algae build-up.

They were also most recently cautioned in December 2016.

Newcastle Permanent Donates Big

BY RACHEL STORER

The Newcastle Permanent is donating over $820,000 in grants.

The Newcastle Permanent Charitable Foundation will donate more than $820,000 to community projects across regional NSW to support disadvantaged residents.

The grants will be spread from Ballina in the north, down to Gosford and out to Dubbo to 13 charities that will help provide vital programs to those who need it most.

Foundation Chairman, Phil Neat is particularly excited about the $186,000 donation to the John Hunter Hospital neonatal intensive care unit.

"It's to install 43 webcams in the baby rooms so that parents and relatives who live in remote areas can communicate with the baby during a prolonged stay in the hospital," he said.

The money will support community organisations to complete initiatives that may fall outside of government funding or corporate sponsorship such as Wigs and Kids and Wheelchair Sports NSW.

The tragic turn of events at a group home continue

BY JESSICA ROUSE

The Public Service Association say their warning to the government to not move residents out of the Stockton Centre went unnoticed and now residents, carers and workers are paying the price.

It's been a tragic turn of events with two tragic deaths and two other resident hospitalisations from the same centre after moving into the new group home in Stockton, and now a fifth former resident has been hospitalised.

Hunter Public Service Association organiser Paul James can't believe the situation continues to happen at the group home where residents should be getting the best possible care.

"What's occurred is because of the rush people have lost out and possibly there have been gaps created. We know Sydney orchestrated the move for the clients and possibly some of those clients shouldn't have been moved out in the first place."

Now the concern is that the government won't fix the problem, and Paul James certainly believes even if they do something it won't be anytime soon.

"I don't honestly think that they care about the clients but they see this as a process and my understanding is when the NDIS initially arrived they saw this as a golden goose in terms of making and saving money."

Image abc.net.au

Adani loan bad for Hunter economy

BY JARROD MELMETH

The Turnbull government is coming under fire for "declaring war on Hunter coal miners" if they proceed with a $1 billion loan to the Adani Carmichael coal mine in Queensland.

Adani has applied for the loan through the $5 billion Northern Australian Infrastructure Fund, which grants concessional loans for the private sector to build infrastructure at the top of Australia.

The mine would become one of the biggest in the world with the potential to produce between 25 and 60 million tonnes per year depending on the plan from which the mine is operated from.

Shadow Assistant Minister for Climate Change and Infrastructure Pat Conroy said the research shows the negative impact the loan would have to the Hunter region.

"It is just straight logic. If demand for a product is falling if you increase supply, by definition the price will fall and that is my main point which has been corroborated by the CEO of Newcastle Port and by the Australian Institute and I have not had anyone dispute that.

"While the coal is a bit lower quality than Newcastle coal in terms of its calorific value and the value of it when you are trying to use it to produce electricity, it still will suppress the coal prices globally.

"When you add on top of that the fact that the Federal government is considering giving a loan to this company, it is bad news for Hunter coal miners and that is why we should be saying to the Government that we should not be giving a leg up to the competition," Mr Conroy said.

Pat Conroy.

Baby, it's cold outside!

BY IAN CROUCH and JESSICA ROUSE

If you thought it was a little colder than usual when you jumped out of bed this morning, you're not wrong!

The Hunter experienced its coldest morning since last winter with the mercury dropping to -2.2 degrees at Cessnock at about 5:45am, while Cooranbong dipped to just below freezing.

Elsewhere Nobby's had a balmy 7.5 degrees and it hit 4.2 degrees at Williamtown.

The weather bureau says there's even a possibility of a dusting of snow on the Barrington Tops later today.

Vacant child worker positions in the Hunter a cause for concern

BY TYLER FARDELL and JESSICA ROUSE

There's a call for the Minister for Family and Community Services to fill a large number of vacant child case worker positions in the Hunter.

Recent figures show a 60 per cent increase in the number of vacant caseworker positions, and 68 per cent of children reported to Family and Community Services were not receiving a face to face assessment.

Wallsend MP Sonia Hornery is leading the charge, saying too many vulnerable children are being ignored after $180 million was cut and 110 full-time positions were taken away in 2014.

"I understand that in the Hunter there are about 20 vacancies, which is about 8 per cent of the workforce, so 20 vacancies in the Hunter is a huge amount and it's basically fundamentally about cost cutting so we desperately need all of those case worker positions to be filled," said Sonia Hornery.

Family and Community Services has responded to claims the Hunter is struggling with a lack of caseworkers.

In a statement the service said:

More children than ever before who are at risk of significant harm (ROSH) receive a face-to-face assessment from a FACS caseworker. Caseworkers now see one in three children at ROSH compared to one in five children just six years ago. In some districts, FACS staff are managing to see one in two children. 

Caseworker recruitment is on-going with a focus on educating the community and prospective caseworkers about the role and the important work caseworkers do in the community.

Affordable housing back in the spotlight

BY JESSICA ROUSE

NSW Opposition Leader Luke Foley announced over the weekend a future Labor government would mandate 25% of properties built on government-owned land be set aside for affordable housing, and it's a plan being welcomed by the St Vincent De Paul Society.

The society says the Hunter was well represented in a petition calling for more privately owned land to be made available for affordable housing. They had been calling for 15% of private development land be earmarked for affordable housing, which had the support of around 16,000 people.

"We actually promoted that we would like a commitment from state government for 15 per cent of housing developments to include affordable housing and for the opposition to announce that they are pursuing that promotion with 25 per cent, that's an excellent result," said Denise Lucus, the Society's Executive Officer for Maitland Newcastle.

Everyday in Newcastle the St Vincent De Paul Society helps thousands of people through a range of societal challenges including housing, support for people living with a mental illness, budget counselling and youth programs, migrant and refugee assistance and Denise Lucus says they frequently come across families on the "verge of losing rental properties because they just can't keep up with an unexpected bill arriving so we are often dealing with people on the verge of losing their tenancy".

However, on the flip side, Parliamentary Secretary for the Hunter Scot MacDonald is pouring cold water on Labor's policy commitment.

He says in April the government offered land and $3 million towards affordable housing units on the former heavy rail corridor in Newcastle, yet council is refusing to rezone the land.

"And immediately we had a council playing politics with it, we had the local Labor member Tim Crakanthorp come out and rubbish the idea so look you know my issue is who is actually in charge of housing politics? Is it Luke Foley or is it the people on the ground such as Tim Crakanthorp and the council? So there seems to be no hope of that policy being delivered," said Scot MacDonald.

Scot MacDonald added what Labor say they do, and what they actually do are two completely different things.

As with all things, the St Vincent De Paul Society say it is encouraging the Opposition has come up with the 25%, but "of course we need to wait now and see what NSW government will announce in the budget".

A report has found we'd rather renovate than move.

BY JESSICA ROUSE

Rather than move to a bigger house, Hunter residents are choosing to renovate their existing properties according to the latest Housing Industry Association (HIA) report.

The latest report found the region recorded the second largest volume of renovation approvals, totalling more than $63 million dollars, of any area across NSW during 2015/2016.

"Things like interest rates, growth in prices of dwellings in the area, consumer confidence - are they going to be able to get a job in the next coming years to pay off the loan that they may have taken out and of course how easily they can get finances," said HIA Executive Director Craig Jennion.

The appetite for renovations is spurred on by the substantial rise in house prices with residents more willing to renovate and less willing to pack up and move to new home.

Craig Jennion says it's not only looking good for the Hunter in the short term but the long term as well.

"We're expecting here in the Hunter to see continued growth particularly in the renovation market and around that 10 per cent mark which will be fantastic for the local industry and in our new dwelling areas we're still expecting to continue to see considerable growth in the short term until we start to see what happens with interest rates."

Protest ends peacefully

BY JESSICA ROUSE

Police say their presence at coal stockpiles in Newcastle early this morning was warranted after Greenpeace and other protestors chose the huge stockpile to send a message to the Commonwealth Bank.

Protestors took aim at the bank, unfurling a banner which read "COMM BANKS COAL KILLS" after discovering the bank loaned $310 million to the port in 2014.

It's everyone's democratic right to protest, and police agree, but only while it stays within the rules of the law which wasn't the case in Newcastle this morning.

"Certainly lawful protests and peaceful protest is a democratic right and we certainly support that - it only becomes an issue when there is unlawful conduct such as going to someone else's place, or you know attacking vehicles or any other sort of criminal conduct," said Chief Inspector Trevor Shields.

Chief Inspector Trevor Shields says the arrests police made were warranted since they had trespassed on land.

Flu Tracking

BY: ALEXANDRIA MURRAY

Hunter New England health has started a Flu Tracking service to identify where highly contagious influenza activity is impacting the community.


With weekly data from FluTracking.net, researchers are being provided with a better understanding of the influenza vaccines and where areas of flu are breaking the worst.


Since the 400 participants in 2006, there has been tremendous growth to now more than 30,000 people
completing surveys for the Flu Tracking data by registering at flutracking.net.

Hunter spokesperson, Dr Craig Dalton says "the online surveys are an indicator of where flu is hitting the hardest."

"It only takes ten seconds for an individual to complete a survey, they then get a link to an activity map and it essentially helps us track the severity and timing of flu right around the country."

"It helps us to understand how severe the flu is and whether it's worse than last year."

"We're also getting more and more people telling us whether they have had a flu test or not and if that was positive -  the data will help determine whether the flu vaccine is working."

Image Credit: ABC Newcastle 

Worker skills, or lack there of, deterring employers

BY JESSICA ROUSE

The NSW Business Chamber's inaugural Workforce Skills Survey has found employers in the Hunter are reporting high levels of skill shortages holding them back from employing new workers.

The survey measures business attitudes on employment, education and training issues and provides a comprehensive baseline for tracking future sentiment.

There appears to be an increasing inconsistency between what employers expect from their workers and the training they're getting through the education system.

"Businesses have indicated that the main reasons for reluctance sometimes relates to the cost, but also time factors of having key personnel in their organisations available to train the people and also some of the time it takes for some of the training programs and apprenticeships to be completed," said Hunter Business Chamber CEO Bob Hawes.

Businesses in the Hunter are also urging the government to take a serious look into how employees are trained, as there's an increasing lack of skills in new workers and a huge administrative burden on businesses to pick up the slack.

"There's a real need to look at how the pilot programs work, what apprenticeship models are around and whether they are effective and also being able to engage not only just with the young people looking at  the pathways but also the employers, parents and carers, the advisors and the educational institutions so that they can better understand the system of how it works and so we can get it working in practice," said Bob Hawes.

Bob Hawes says the latest Hunter Research Foundation report on the Hunter's economy shows businesses are looking for new ways to better their business, rather than employ new workers.

"It (businesses in the Hunter) had a big increase in its uptake of innovation and that in itself might express that people are now looking at other ways to push their business forward other than employing people which aren't necessarily a good thing in one respect but it is good in another in that hopefully the uptake in innovation will create alternative opportunities."

Lack of specialists giving Hunter families the run around

BY DANIELLE RIES and JESSICA ROUSE

Swansea MP Yasmin Catley is calling on the Berejiklian government to provide more ear, nose and throat (ENT) specialists for families in the Hunter.

It comes after a Belmont family was forced to pay $4,000 to see an ENT specialist due to a lack of appointments available to the public in the region.

"It is just staggering to think that we are not providing services to our children in our region. At the same time, we've got a government that is constantly gloating about the rivers of gold they have received through privatising everything that's not nailed down. Yet we cannot provide health services to children in our area," said Yasmin Catley.

The Member for Swansea has written to the Minister for Health, calling on him to urgently expand services across the Hunter and to clarify exactly how many children are currently waiting for ENT services throughout the Hunter New England health district. 

"This government has got its priorities all wrong. It needs to start to make sure that it is looking after the people of NSW. It is appealing to think that here we have a child who has a result of not being able to get into a specialist service for in excess of a year and almost become profoundly deaf and therefore experienced terrible developmental delays."

Search continues for men who robbed a man at Tingira Heights

BY JESSICA ROUSE

Police are still searching for two men who held up and robbed a man in the street at Tingira Heights.

A 21-year-old man was walking along Violet Town Road at about 5:30am yesterday when he was approached by the pair who threatened him with a gun.

The two men managed to get away in a small bronze or maroon coloured sedan with a mobile phone, key cards and some personal property.

The victim wasn't injured during the incident and no shots were fired.

Anyone with information is urged to come forward or contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000

Unit fire at Waratah overnight

BY IAN CROUCH and JESSICA ROUSE

A fire has caused extensive damage to a unit at Waratah overnight after a man accidentally knocked over a candle.

Firefighters were called to Turton Road just after 8pm to find the apartment well alight.

It took about an hour to extinguish and mop up the blaze which crews managed to contain to one room of the unit - causing damage to about of 30 per cent of the unit.

The male occupant wasn't injured.

Turton Road was closed to traffic for more than an hour and residents in the unit block were evacuated as firefighters tackled the blaze.

Push for the Charlestown to the Dudley Coast Cycle-way

BY DANIELLE RIES

Cycling advocacy group Cycle Safe Network are pushing for a path to be built between Charlestown and the Dudley Coast.

The group is working with the Lake Macquarie Council to build the five-kilometre path so cyclists and pedestrians can avoid busy roads and intersections such as Dudley Road.

The path could be included in the Newcastle cycle plan as the path would occupy an old rail corridor in Dudley as well as bisecting the Fernleigh Track.

An active member of the group Deborah Moore says the pathway will link the community to certain places safely.

"Charlestown to Coast is linking key destinations. It's close to schools so kids making their way to school on bikes or through walking on a designated path.

"It offers an opportunity to go through a safe corridor for commuters or for recreational pedestrians or cyclists".

She also explains the new path can open up multiple opportunities to get to places and is a better option for residents to use.

"There's also a great connection to the Fernleigh track. If you can get onto the Charlestown to Coast track, then you've got a short distance to the Fernleigh track where you can either head down to Belmont or you can make your way into Newcastle City".

"We are working really well with the Lake Macquarie city council, they are very supportive of the concept and what we're pushing for.

"We feel the cycleway network proposed for the Charlestown to Dudley link is a much safer one, it is closer to all the schools. So it is potentially a much better corridor".

Cyclists on the Fernleigh track.
Credit- Newcastle Cycleways Movement

Plea for Type O blood donations

BY ARIANA GATTI and JESSICA ROUSE

Red Cross Australia has put out an urgent plea for Hunter residents to donate Type O blood due to supplies being at a critical low with donors too sick with the winter flu to donate.

Cold and flu viruses have forced around 1,000 donors across Australia to cancel their donation appointments after falling ill.

"Generally speaking winter is our toughest time of the year purely because of the amount of flu's and colds that are around you cant donate blood until after you've made a full recovery, so our regular blood donors, once they get the flu, they can't come into donate so we need to find new people over winter," said community relations officer for the Newcastle blood donor centre Brian Bruce.

The call is out for Type O blood as they're in the most scarce supply. Type O is the most common blood type and is used universally for people who come into hospital and need transfusions after accidents or injury until they're stabilised and their blood type is found.

Brian Bruce says it's a rare occasion that they put the call out for Type O blood, but supplies are more critical than ever.

"We're encouraging people with o-type blood to come in the next two weeks and donate because after that we should be okay. Its not very often we have a critical call out for o-type blood donors but at the moment the supplies are really low."

Latest snapshot of the Hunter economy

BY JESSICA ROUSE

The Hunter Reseach Foundation has released its latest snapshot of the Hunter economy for the first quarter of 2017. It's been a positive first quarter with businesses being more innovative, house price growth continuing, and consumers saving more.

The latest research found that businesses are being more innovative. Around 46 per cent of the region's businesses have introduced new or improved products or services in the first quarter of this year which is the highest proportion since the foundation started collecting data in 2009.

"There was a sizeable jump in firms introducing new and improved products or services within their own industry or Australia although not so much in new to the world offerings. When we look at our data we can see that Hunter businesses who were innovating are also more likely to be profitable exporting overseas but also more likely to be employing more workers," said lead economist Dr Anthea Bill.

Retail figures were lower than expected with Hunter consumers spending less and saving more. In terms of personal finances, households' expectations are set to remain steady for the next 12 months. According to the research, low wages are mostly to blame for the reduction in spending. 

"Wage growth is at historically low levels so even though we've seen an improvement in the world economy, nationally we're not seeing much of a shift in consumption patterns and its sort of an ongoing weakness in the economy, so I think we need to see some improvement in wages to see an improvement in household spending patterns," said Dr Anthea Bill.

On the employment side of the economy, the research found there had been a 1 per cent fall in employment in the first quarter of this year, reversing the rise from the last quarter of 2016. Unemployment also rose to 5.5 per cent in March bringing it back in line with the state average. 

Truck Roll Over Denman

BY IAN CROUCH

A truck carrying livestock has rolled over at Denman, bringing down high voltage power lines.

The B-Double loaded with 120 head of cattle tipped over on Denman Road at the intersection of Jerrys Plains Road (Golden Highway) just before 4.00am.

Denman Road is closed in both directions and traffic is being diverted along Edderton Road.

The truck driver and the cattle escaped unharmed.

Emergency services, the RMS and Ausgrid crews are at the scene .

BREAKING! Central Hunter Police Hold Fears For Missing Woman

BY IAN CROUCH

Police hold concerns for a woman who's gone missing from the Maitland area.

44-year-old Tathra Lloyd was released from a mental health facility at about 2.40pm on Monday  and failed to return home to Dungog and hasn't made contact with her family.

Police say Tathra uses the alias Mitzy Puntapinta and is a regular user of public transport, in particular trains.

She's described as being of Caucasian appearance, about 168 centimetres tall with a large build and reddish-brown wavy shoulder length. She was last seen wearing black tights and a pink floral top.

Anyone with information is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.

Missing Woman Tathra Lloyd

CBD bike plan revealed

BY GARY-JON LYSAGHT

The state government has unveiled another transport option for commuters in the Newcastle CBD.

It has unveiled a new cycle pathway that will run alongside the soon-to-be-installed light rail on Hunter Street, while also visiting key sights in the inner-city.

The state government's plan for Newcastle's CBD cycle way.

Places like the University of Newcastle's NeW Space, as well as Queen's Wharf, and the historic East End will also be part of the cycle path.

Parliamentary Secretary for the Hunter Scot MacDonald says bike usage in the city is currently at around 2 per cent, with the goal being to lift it at least 10 per cent.

"We want to attract more people to take up cycling by making it a viable travel option, for either and end-to-end journey or to connect with public transport hubs," Mr MacDonald said.

Those consulted raised the need for the light rail to be compatible with bikes, which Mr MacDonald said is a plan that has been adopted.

Cyclists will be able to take their bikes onto the light rail, and then continue to use them after getting off.

Newcastle cycling advocate Bernard Hocking is largely supportive of the plan but has criticised the government for not committing funding to it.

"The opening lines of the strategy recognise the importance of cycling, but then defer responsibility for delivery to the local government," Mr Hocking said.

"You'd think if the state government is spending half a billion dollars on two-and-a-half kilometres of light rail, they could put a tiny percentage of that towards safe cycling infrastructure."

Cycle paths are in the domain of local governments, but Mr MacDonald said the consultation process showed residents wanted a collaboration approach between the two levels of government.

"I think that has happened; it's been a good outcome'" Mr MacDonald said.

Australia's BIGGEST Morning Tea

BY JESSICA ROUSE

Not that you ever need an excuse to enjoy a lovely cup of tea and a slice of spongecake, but today is the best excuse - Australia's Biggest Morning Tea raising vital funds for the Cancer Council.

Today thousands of people from across the Hunter hosted morning teas to raise money for cancer research and support programs throughout the region.

Now in its 24th year, Australia's Biggest Morning Tea is the Cancer Council's leading fundraising event and is the most successful of its kind in Australia. Throughout NSW, the organisation hopes to recruit 11, 100 morning tea hosts, including 1,100 in the Hunter alone, and raise nearly $5 million.

"It's one of the largest fundraisers for us at the Cancer Council in the Hunter and it's probably one of the easiest because people can get together, have a bit of cake and a tea or coffee and put a couple of dollars in the jar because very dollar raised goes to support people with cancer," said Hunter Manager Shayne Connell.

Cancer figures throughout Australia are staggering, one Australian is diagnosed with cancer approximately every five minutes - the length of an average tea break.

Before the age of 85, 1 in 2 Australians will be diagnosed with cancer and it's estimated that over 130,000 people will be diagnosed this year, an unbelievable 350 people per day.

Shayne Connell says all of the money is injected into cancer support services and research to help bring these numbers down.

"Things like transport to treatment here locally, financial assistance for patients, patient and carer accommodation as well as of course a whole range of research, 127 researchers, every dollar counts. Cancer Council is of course not government funded we are a completely independent charity so we completely rely on fundraisers like today."

Pokies pulling in the big bucks in the Hunter

BY JESSICA ROUSE

The NSW Greens have unveiled just how much communities in the Hunter are being ripped off when it comes to the money being made from poker machines by hotels and clubs.

It's been revealed a staggering $1.1 billion has been put through poker machines at Hunter pubs and clubs during the last three months of last year and only small portion of the gambling income goes back to the community.

They've purchased the data, which wasn't publicly available, and revealed throughout the state in the last quarter of last year the data also found:
- poker machines took nearly $2 billion from the NSW community
- each club-based poker machine removed an average $19,638fromthe community, each hotel-based poker machine removed $28,358
- the average turnover from machines in hotels and clubs is $217,936
-there are an average of 62 poker machines per club in NSW and average 15 machines per hotel.

NSW Greens MP Justin Field says buying the data has brought to light a serious problem in the Hunter.

"And what was seen in Newcastle just in the last three months of last year, $438 million went through poker machines in the Newcastle local government area. That's a loss to the community of $43 million. They're huge figures - we've got a pokies problem in NSW and in the Hunter."

The Greens say the problems with how the industry operates, its transparency and how the money is taxed, needs to be fixed in order to put an end to the societal breakdowns and the huge impact on Hunter families.

"It would be appropriate for more tax to be paid so that tax can be put into services to support those people suffering addiction. At the moment the grants that are provided by some of the pubs and clubs for community projects actually offset their tax liabilities as well so there is a range of problems," said Justin Field.

He also said with such huge figures only a fraction of a per cent of the profits go back into the community through grants "and you can think about how many additional school teachers and  nurses and new infrastructure could be built with that level of money."

Housing Industry Association hits back at developer ban

BY JESSICA ROUSE

The Housing Industry Association (HIA) in the Hunter is hitting back after the state opposition called for a ban on real estate agents and developers from running in local council elections.

The legislation would aim to avoid another electoral donations scandal like that in the Hunter in 2011, and the opposition maintains allowing real estate agents and developers to make decisions about property and planning matters creates a major conflict of interest.

HIA Executive Director Craig Jennion disagrees, and believes it is really short sighted to say people in these professions shouldn't be involved just because of the occupation they work in.

"From the simple matters like what is a small or medium business and often they also handle very complex strategic plans and projects, they're involved with intricate financial matters, they have to market projects to the general public - these are skill sets and experiences which are highly desirable to local government," said Craig Jennion.

Measures like checks and balances are already in place to avoid any conflict of interest influencing decisions on council, and HIA believe that should be enough.

"The view that individual councillors have the capacity to influence a council vote on matters that will benefit them commercially is completely ignoring many of the checks and balances that are being developed in our system planning proposals where conflicts of interest exist have to be declared," said Craig Jennion. 

Driver escapes serious injury after bizarre crash

BY IAN CROUCH and JESSICA ROUSE

Police say its lucky no one was injured after a spectacular crash at Birmingham Gardens early this morning.

The driver of a car lost control on Sandgate Road near Moore Street just after 2:30am, slamming into three parked cars and a trailer carrying a boat.

The force of the crash caused the boat to topple off the trailer and onto a driveway.

The driver escaped serious injury.

Fish and chip shop fire

BY IAN CROUCH and JESSICA ROUSE

Quick work by firefighters overnight has stopped what could've been a disastrous fire at a Cardiff Shopping Centre.

Firefighters from six stations were called to a fish and chips shop, Paul's On Harrison, just before 11pm to find a large amount of smoke billowing from the premises.

They found a fire in an overheated oil fryer and managed to contain it before it took hold.

The smoke did however cause extensive damage to the shop.

Road to improvement for Frame Drive, Abermain

BY LAUREN FREEMANTLE

It has today been confirmed that Cessnock City Council will receive $4.45 million in funding as part of the state government's 'Fixing Country Roads' program. 

Cessnock councillors today attended state parliament to talk with Minister for Roads, Maritime and Freight, Melinda Pavey, where the Minister confirmed the $4.45 million figure. 

Parliamentary Secretary for the Hunter, Scot MacDonald, has welcomed the news, saying the funding will be used to upgrade Frame Drive at Abermain into an 11-metre carriageway stretching from the intersection of Gingers Lane to Orange Street. 

The work, part of a larger plan eventually connecting Cessnock directly to the Hunter Expressway,

will complement the new concrete bridge which replaced the former single-lane timber construction on Frame Drive. 

It is understood that Cessnock Council has been lobbying for the improvements for two years. 

"You can probably say [residents have been waiting for these improvements] since the Hunter Expressway was completed a few years ago," Scot MacDonald says, "people have been using the Expressway to get to and from work and school, it's been very busy...

"I've first had representation from Cessnock City Council about two years ago, but they have put together a good plan and a good design; they've been working with RMS...So I'm very pleased they've been able to find the money under 'Fixing Country Roads.'" 

So far, the state government has awarded $90 million worth of funding towards 138 road projects across regional NSW under the scheme. 

Scot MacDonald believes the upgrade to Frame Drive will begin almost immediately. 

Parliamentary Secretary, Scot MacDonald. 

Cessnock East Public School Students Create Hunter Valley Tourism Guide

BY SARAH JAMES

Cessnock East Public School students, in conjunction with local community partners, have developed a special tourism guide for the Hunter Valley.

The 35-page book titled 'Are we there yet? A trip around the Hunter' aims to help families make the most of the range of activities on offer in the Hunter Valley.

Hunter Valley Visitor Centre Coordinator, Melissa George, said the students received an information session from the Centre's staff, and then researched the attractions which are now in the guide.

It is hoped the guide will encourage people from the region to connect with the region's local culture.

Service NSW Centre Personal Data Privatisation

BY LAUREN KEMPE

The state government has announced new regulation allowing Service NSW Centres to be privatised in the Wallsend electorate.

Employees are currently bound by the Privacy and Personal Information Act 1998, but seven private companies have now been granted access to personal data.

Wallsend MP, Sonia Hornery believes the privatisation and recent 25% cut to operating hours in the Service NSW Centres are a concern amongst local employees and the wider community.

"[Wallsend] is concerned that [the NSW government] is privatising a facility that's working very well, and personal information is being given to private companies. This information should be kept sensitive, private and within government hands," said Sonia Hornery.

Ms Hornery believes the government's outsourcing could also threaten the job security of numerous Service NSW employees.

"The motivation of the government is to outsource parts of Service NSW. Private organisations have different operational methods to the government alternative in terms of pulling staff. There would be job cuts to people with local knowledge within New South Wales within local offices."

The data includes Births, Deaths and Marriages, Driver Licence information, Vehicle ownership and registration details.

Image Credit: http://www.zdnet.com/article/service-nsw-takes-infringement-payments-mobile/

Pair arrested after break-ins at Wallsend

BY JESSICA ROUSE

Two people face court today after being charged with break, enter and steal in Lake Macquarie this morning.

At about 1am, the 43-year-old man and a 25-year-old woman were seen driving down Royalty Street in West Wallsend with their car headlights off.

They broke into three new homes and took items from the properties which they were seen putting in their car.

Police stopped the maroon Toyota Corolla and searched it, also finding house breaking tools and a knife in their possession.

They were taken to Toronto Police Station and charged with aggravated break and enter, goods in custody, possess house breaking implements and custody of a knife.

They were refused bail.

Centenary of the death of Maitland's Les Darcy

BY JARROD MELMETH and JESSICA ROUSE

Maitland will come together today to celebrate the centenary of the death of legendary boxer Les Darcy.

There will be a number of events today throughout the city where "Maitland's favourite son" lived and worked, and fell in love with sport of boxing which started his incredible career.

Les Darcy was one of the best middleweight fighters in the world and his career record finished at 50 fights with 46 wins before his tragic death at the age of 22 from blood poisoning.

Maitland Mayor Peter Blackmore says 100 years ago the people of Maitland all saw the boxer as someone to look up to and aspired to be him.

"People as I say were looking for somebody that they could support, they could follow, they could cheer on and I come back to the fact that just look at the 22 year olds nowadays. Could they have done what Les Darcy did in that time? 100 plus years ago? It was a sad loss, Maitland's favourite son, Les Darcy."

A service will be held at East Maitland Park at 12.30 today, while a plaque paying tribute to Les Darcy will be unveiled at the site where he used to work as a blacksmith.

"We have two schools that are sending about 60 children each to come along, and think of the impact that will have on those children that in sixty years time they can say I was there for the centenary of the death of Les Darcy, Maitland's favourite son. And it promises to be a spectacle," said Mayor Peter Blackmore.

Image maitland.nsw.gov.au

Another man arrested over violent East Maitland home invasion

BY JESSICA ROUSE

A second man has been arrested over a violent home invasion in East Maitland on Monday night.

Central Hunter Police arrested a 17-year-old boy at Seaham yesterday - he's since been granted bail and will face the Children's Court next month.

The boy is allegedly one of three people who forced their way into a home in Curtain Street earlier this week, punching and kicking a 20-year-old man to the ground.

19-year-old Jordan Hillier who was arrested by police on Molly Morgan Drive shortly after the home invasion, fronted Maitland Local Court yesterday.

He was granted strict conditional bail and the matter was adjourned to Newcastle Local Court on May 31.

Hunter suburbs at risk of rising sea levels

BY JARROD MELMETH and JESSICA ROUSE

Newcastle has been featured as a high risk zone on a new map by Coastal Risk Australia, showing sea level rise patterns over the next 100 years.

The new map incorporates research from the US National Oceanic Atmospheric Administration and shows if the sea level rises by just 2.7 metres by 2100 many of the Hunter's coastal towns will be under water including much of Carrington.

The worst case scenario for 2100 in previous maps now looks to be three times worse.

The interactive map also shows that along with Carrington, Wickham, Koorangang, Fletcher, Shortland and Hexham are among the worst effected by rising sea levels.

Greens MP Justin Field says, the new data must be taken seriously by the NSW Government.

"We've got a budget coming out next month from the Berejiklian government and we need more money put towards climate mitigation. We need a phase out strategy for coal and I know that is sometimes a difficult conversation to have in the Hunter community and unless we want to see the communities under water in the next fifty to one hundred years. We need to take that seriously."

The rising sea levels are set to completely change the landscape of coastal communities, and in places like Carrington there's billions of dollars of public and private infrastructure at risk.

Not only that, MP Justin Field says the housing market will also be affected as the weather patterns change.

"This is already happening, we saw last year major storm events impact the coastline and saw houses washed into the ocean. I know that property prices are still high along the coastline but I think insurance companies are starting to look at this data and ask whether or not these properties are insurable and when you see those questions asked you'll see those prices start to fall," said Justin Field.

Debate finally ends on King Edward Park function centre

BY IAN CROUCH

A function centre is no longer a possibility for vacant land at King Edward Park.

Councillors last night voted unanimously to change the planning process that ensures a function centre is no longer permissible on the site.

The park will instead remain a public recreation area.

Plans for a function centre were rejected in the Land and Environment Court two years ago because the site is intended for public recreation.

An aboriginal land claim is still in place, however the Awabakal Aboriginal Land Council says it hasn't made any plans to do anything with the site.

Image friendsofkingedwardpark.org.au

There could be an end to the sniffles!

BY JESSICA ROUSE

The common cold has long eluded scientists, but researchers from Newcastle have teamed up with Melbourne researchers in a bid to use a molecule which could block the virus responsible for giving us the sniffles.

Based at the Hunter Medical Research Institute (HMRI), the groundbreaking research has been given a $6.3 million funding boost for trials which will use a molecule called 'TLR agonist' to stimulate the body's innate immune system and protect it against rhinovirus, better known as common cold infections.

The molecule goes directly into the respiratory tract and aims to block viral infections at their source whereas traditional cold remedies only dampen the symptoms. The rhinovirus has also been found to trigger common respiratory diseases such as asthma where symptoms can be severe and life-threatening.

Dr Nathan Bartlett.

Head of the viral immunology group at the University of Newcastle based at the HMRI Dr Nathan Bartlett, says the flu gets a lot of attention in the public but the rhinovirus is also causing lots of problems including costing society money due to a loss in productivity and is even more troublesome for people already suffering from respiratory problems.

"We've been working on the site where the virus replicates and that's the airway epithelium, or the cells lining the airways, so this is where the virus replicates and really its the event that triggers a cascade of inflammation that makes these chronic airway diseases worse and that's what we call the exacerbation or an asthma attack for example," said Dr Bartlett.

Dr Bartlett's reputation has impressed researchers throughout the country after spending 13 years in London where he perfected a way of producing the rhinovirus in a laboratory. He was then contacted by a Melbourne microbiologist who asked him to join his project developing the TLR agonist molecule.

The TLR agonist molecule isn't a new discovery, Dr Bartlett says it's really just taken time to identify the right molecule into a format that can target viruses such as the rhinovirus directly at the site of airway infection.

"We're in a really exiting phase here and I think the data we've got to date looks extremely promising. I've been working in this field going on 20 years now and certainly the most promising anti-viral I've had the opportunity to be working with so we're very optimistic and I think it's an excellent molecule," said Dr Bartlett.

He says he's confident the TLR agonist molecule will provide protection against all of the known subtypes of the common cold as well as other respiratory infections such as influenza and that if all goes according to plan, clinical trials could start as early as next year.

"We could really have a target candidate molecule identified before the end of the year hopefully, and then be looking to getting this into man clinical trials in 2018 and then hopefully have it approved and ready a small number of years after that - it's hard to predict exactly."

Historical sexual abuse charges

BY JESSICA ROUSE

An 82-year-old Hamilton man has been arrested after investigations into alleged historical sexual assaults of three children between 1976 and 1992.

Following inquiries the man was taken to Newcastle Police Station yesterday and charged with several charges including seven counts of assault female and commit act of indecency aged under 16 years, attempt buggery, buggery, three counts of sexual assault - assault and commit act of indecency, and four counts of assault with act of indecency.

He has been given conditional bail and faces court in mid June.

Violent home invasion at East Maitland

BY JESSICA ROUSE

A 19-year-old man is facing court today after a terrifying home invasion in East Maitland overnight.

Just after 9pm, three males forced their way into a Curtin Street home and assaulted a 20-year-old male resident punching him to the ground while a fourth man waited outside.

A 20-year-old woman was at home at the time as well, when the man was kicked on the ground and left with minor injuries.

The four males then fled the scene in a silver vehicle.

It wasn't long before police found the vehicle in the carpark of a licensed premises in East Maitland, and a short time later, they arrested a 19-year-old man on Molly Morgan Drive.

He was charged with aggravated break and enter and commit a serious indictable offence as well as resist an officer in the execution of duty.

Police are still on the hunt for the other three men.

Hunter schools receive funding for before and after school care

BY JARROD MELMETH

Three schools across the Hunter have received a share of almost $90,000 in an effort to expand and create more places in before and after school care.

The funding comes from the New South Wales Government Before and After School Care Fund, a $20 million initiative.

Holy Cross Primary School Glendale received 429,750 for a service expansion creating 58 places; St Josephs School Merewether received $30,000 for a service expansion creating 130 places; Abermain Public School received $30,000 for a new service creating 50 places.

Parliamentary Secretary for the Hunter Scot MacDonald said the funding is great news for busy families, who need the extra flexibility that before and after school care provides.

"It is about expanding oportunities for before and after school care around our schools.

"Our parents are very busy people. This just gives them the opportunity and extra places to leave their children either before or after school to fit in with their schedules.

"I think it is very important and this is one program I strongly support," Mr MacDonald said.

Scot MacDonald.

Staff shortages a real issue in healthcare

BY MICHAEL COOK and JESSICA ROUSE

A recent incident involving a local mother and her premature baby has highlighted the severe staff shortage issues in the state-wide Newborn and paediatric Emergency Transport Service.

The NSW Health funded Service operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week, however, the vital work they do may be hindered if it is not fully staffed at all times.

Wallsend MP Sonia Hornery is urging the government to fix the serious issue and is this week asking the government what actions they are planning to take to address the severe staff shortages.

"I'm hoping that the health minister listens and responds investigates staffing levels and improves staffing levels to make sure that we can adequately maintain the staff so that there are no shortages in the services anymore," said Sonia Hornery.

The Transport Service provides emergency treatment and stabilisation and inter-hospital transport for very sick children up to the age of 16 which is absolutely pivotal for many families.

"Some poeple may not be aware of what they do. I certainly wasnt until I got into theis job but if you have a sick child ora sick young person, you may well require this service so we need the staff to be able to operate it. Staffing shortages in healthcare just don't work," said Sonia Hornery. 

Crackdown on bikie gangs in the Hunter continues

BY IAN CROUCH and JESSICA ROUSE

The crackdown on bikie gangs in the Hunter has continued with police carrying out raids in Lake Macquarie.

Officers from the Gangs Squad and Strike Force Raptor and Hunter police carried out investigations under Strike Force Batterson in relation to violent acts believed to be related to a dispute between rival gangs.

In all, 15 properties were searched here and in Sydney including four home units in Lake Macquarie.

Police have since seized a number of drugs, ammunition, drugs and cash and several members of the Finks and Nomads bikie gangs have been arrested.

Lots of construction could mean lots of disruption

BY JESSICA ROUSE

The next six months will prove pivotal in Newcastle's infrastructure works with construction not only starting on the race track for the Newcastle 500 on Wharf Road, but work on Bathers Way is still ongoing.

The main focus of construction on Wharf Road from today is work on what will be the pits. For the next six months the major works will be disruptive to residents, but after this year it will take only a few weeks to set up the event instead of months of preparation for the track this year.

Major construction work is still underway on the Shortland Esplanade as part of the Bathers Way project in a bid to revitalise the section of coastline, and will see more pedestrian access, the installation of new street lighting, reconstruction fo the retaining wall on the corner of Watt and Church Street, and two-way traffic returned to the section between Watt and Ocean Streets.

Lord Mayor of Newcastle Nuatali Nelmes says the works will be completed by November just when thousands of visitors descend on the city for the race.

"It is a big undertaking in the next six months and there will be disruptions and at the same time we're also still delivering really important components of the Bathers Way that actually doesn't have anything to do with Supercars but it's the time that we're delivering."

With two major projects underway at the same time, there is sure to be some form of disruption, and council say residents have all been given a significant amount of notification and also detailed maps of the changes in and around their streets for both supercars work and council's work in the city.

"Supercars are starting their works projects six months out and it's a pretty tight time frame to deliver not only the work they need to do for Supercars, but we've been quite opportunistic and making sure we're delivering a lot of renewal projects and upgrades to other services and infrastructure in the city at the same time so it is a big undertaking into the next six months and there will be disruptions," said Nuatali Nelmes. 

"Every other year, once this work is done there, will be much shorter few weeks of bump in and bump out for the event. So the disruption, and I've said this since we announced that we were bringing supercars to Newcastle, the majority of the disruption will be this year."