March 2019
Wednesday, 06 March 2019 16:47

Roadworks like a Keystone Cops episode

The roadwork between Stratford and Sale has been described in State Parliament as something you would expect to see on an episode of the Keystone Cops and the government responses likened to an excerpt from “Yes Minister”.
 
“Let me walk you through this roadworks disaster that has been enforced on us after no-one asked for it,” Gippsland East Nationals MP, Tim Bull told Parliament.
 
“First of all the new road surfacing failed with large patches of broken seal. Then when repaired, the repairs promptly failed.
 
“Large stretches have no lines or very faded old lines, for example near the Maffra turn off, and drivers cannot tell if they are in the traffic lane or not.
 
“I have received several complaints on this issue alone.
 
“The original ripple strips, now made invisible by bitumen spray, have been left in place and are now in the new traffic lane, so motorists are alarmed to be constantly driving over them when their vehicle is where it is supposed to be.
 
“And on top of all this the surface is uneven, with one truck driver telling me it was like being on the Batman Ride at Movie World.
 
“In the past week alone I have had several more complaints and I know my colleague, the Member for Gippsland South, Danny O’Brien, has been pulling out what little hair he has left.
 
Mr Bull said that in relation to the road work failures and the failure of the repairs, the excuse my office has been given is “adverse weather conditions”.
 
“Apart from having no rain, our temperatures have not been unusual for any spring or summer, so it is time to stop with poor excuses and fix this total mess with some real action.
 
“I ask the Minister to immediately commit to resurfacing this stretch of road, removing the old ripple strips and re-painting the lines.”
 
Wednesday, March 6, 2019
 
Caption: Gippsland East Nationals MP, Tim Bull, has likened the haphazard and slapdash roadbuilding project between Sale and Stratford to an episode of the Keystone Cops.
 
Published in Media
Wednesday, 06 March 2019 12:17

Labor must act on forest trespass offenders

The Andrews Labor Government must enforce trespass laws and remove unlawful protesters who invade forestry coupes, according to Gippsland East Nationals MP, Tim Bull.
 
As fires burned out of control and threatened lives and properties in recent days, reports have emerged of forest contractors who were asked to help, but couldn’t get their equipment to fire zones due to unlawful protests.
 
Contractor Brad Meyer has spoken out after he was contacted by VicForests to help fight fires but could not move six machines, including two vital bulldozers and a harvester, due to protest activity in a coupe which began weeks earlier.
 
In Question Time this week Premier Daniel Andrews claimed he was unaware of the situation - despite coverage by numerous media outlets and viral social media posts.
 
“Strict laws and penalties exist to deal with trespassers in forestry coupes, so why isn’t Daniel Andrews using them?” Mr Bull queried.
 
“The situation at the weekend, where a contractor’s equipment was reportedly locked up by protestors and unable to be used in a severe emergency, is completely unacceptable.
 
“On our farms and now in our forests, Daniel Andrews is quietly endorsing unlawful trespassers instead of taking a strong stand and protecting legitimate jobs and law-abiding businesses.
 
“The Premier is crippling our forest industries, starving mills of timber resources, putting harvest and haulage contractors at risk of bankruptcy, and threatening the jobs of tens of thousands of people who work across Victoria’s timber supply chain.”
 
Gippsland South MP, Danny O’Brien added “if the Premier was serious about supporting our forest industries, he would be enforcing trespass laws and ensuring lawful workers and businesses can get on with their jobs.”
 
Under laws introduced by the Liberal Nationals Government in 2013, it is an offence in Victoria to be within 150 metres of operational timber harvesting coupes and on-the-spot fines can be issued to trespassers who violate forest public safety zones. It is also an offence to interfere with timber harvesting activity.
 
Wednesday, March 6, 2019
 
Published in Media
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