TOWNSVILLE Enterprise chairman Kevin Gill said his organisation believed everything possible must be done to keep the doors of Queensland Nickel open.
"With much uncertainty around the future of Queensland Nickel (QNI) now is the time all levels of government must come together to keep the doors of QNI open and to save hundreds of jobs," Mr Gill said.
"Under no circumstances can the doors of QNI be allowed to close without every option being explored. No stone must be left unturned.
"Unemployment is a serious issue. We all know that the economy is vulnerable," he said.
"All levels of governments must stand shoulder to shoulder and do whatever is needed to find a solution to save the 550 jobs in jeopardy and the livelihoods of families.
"QNI contributes $1.3 billion into the local economy annually – once its gone, that’s it."
He said Townsville Enterprise had spoken with the State Government to urge it to explore all options to keep QNI afloat.
"The Government must lead this process – it has levers that it can pull if necessary," Mr Gill said.
NW DATA released today by the National Centre for Vocational Education and Research (NCVER) shows that steps to lower employment costs, stimulate economic growth and improve training quality are needed to address falling apprenticeship and traineeship numbers.
The NCVER report shows that nationally there were 295,300 apprentices and trainees in-training as at September 2015, a decrease of almost 14 percent from September 2014. Disturbingly, this represents a fall of around 40 percent from 2012 levels, when cuts to employer incentives were made by the federal government.
The drop off in the number of Victorian apprentices and trainees is even greater. There were 69,100 apprentices and trainees in-training in Victoria as at September 2015, a drop of 44 percent from 2012 levels.
“The alarming fall in national and Victorian apprentice and trainee numbers is damaging Victoria’s current workforce capacity and undermining our ability to develop a strong future workforce,” said Victorian Chamber Chief Executive Mark Stone.
“It can take a number of years for a young person to commence and successfully complete an apprenticeship, find work and become fully productive in their employment. This means addressing barriers to hiring apprentices and trainees must be a priority for governments at all levels.”
A recent Victorian Chamber survey found that business will be more inclined to hire apprentices and trainees if the cost of employing an apprentice or trainee is reduced, demand for business products and services is stimulated and confidence in the training system is improved.
“With youth unemployment a persistent problem, policy makers, business and education providers must work together to ensure young Victorians have the best chance of gaining a foothold in the workforce,” said Mr Stone.
“Failure to do so risks creating a lost generation of workers and damaging the ability of business to compete and innovate.”
The Victorian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, established in 1851, is the most influential business organisation in Victoria, informing and servicing more than 15,000 members, customers and clients around the state.
PUBLIC and commercial broadcasters, peak industry bodies and arts groups will address the House of Representatives Standing Committee on Communications and the Arts next week in Sydney for its inquiry into broadcasting, online content and live production to rural and regional Australia.
Committee Chairman the Hon Bronwyn Bishop MP said the Committee is keen to hear about the services currently being provided to rural and regional Australia by broadcasters, as well as the experiences of key arts groups in promoting and delivering the arts in non-metropolitan settings.
Mrs Bishop said that the evidence received from a variety of groups and individuals emphasises that access to the arts, news and other services, and local content, contributes significantly to the vibrancy of Australia’s rural and regional communities.
“The Committee is pleased with the response it has received to the inquiry, with many informative submissions from a variety of places throughout Australia and we look forward to hearing from as many stakeholders and interested parties as possible during the conduct of the inquiry,” she said.
Public hearing details
Date: Monday, 7 March 2016 Time: 9.00am to 5.00pm
Hearing program: 9.00am Australian Broadcasting Corporation 10.00am Free TV Australia 10.30am Commercial Radio Australia 11.15am Special Broadcasting Service Corporation 12.15pm Lunch break 1.15pm Prime Media, WIN Network and Southern Cross Austereo 2.15pm Seven West Media 3.10pm APN News and Media 3.40pm Community Broadcasting Association of Australia 4.10pm Optus 4.40pm Aurora Community Television 5.00pm Finish
Date: Tuesday, 8 March 2016 Time: 9.00am to 1.30pm
Hearing program: 9.00am Opera Australia 9.45am Australian Major Performing Arts Group 10.30am Sydney Dance Company 11.00am Break 11.15am ABC Regional 11.45am Australia Council for the Arts 12.30pm The Australian Ballet 1.00pm Screen Producers Australia 1.30pm Finish
Location for both days: Commonwealth Parliamentary Offices, Level 21, Meeting Room 2, 1 Bligh Street, Sydney. Live webcast (audio only)
For further background information, including programs for the hearing and copies of submissions, visit the Committee website www.aph.gov.au/communications or contact the secretariat: (02) 6277 4386 or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
THE Parliamentary Trade and Investment Growth Committee will resume public hearings in Canberra on Thursday, 3 March 2016 as part of its Inquiry into Australia’s Future in Research and Innovation.
The Committee is investigating how the research and innovation sector can better assist in overcoming Australia’s geographic, economic, and labour challenges, with a focus on commercialisation including, how technology imports and exports could be further facilitated.
The hearing will focus on strengthening links between innovative ideas and the commercialisation of innovation with the appearance of the Chief Scientist, the Innovation Australia Board, and the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation (CSIRO).
Advice to the Government on matters relating to science, technology and innovation is provided by the Chief Scientist and will be complemented by the soon-to-be-created Innovation and Science Australia which will be chaired by the chair of the Innovation Australia Board.
Support for public sector spin-off and start-up companies will be provided by the new $200 million Innovation Fund created under the National Innovation and Science Agenda and administered by the CSIRO.
The Chair of the Committee, Mr Ken O’Dowd MP said, “It is important to create a framework in Australia that fosters innovation, encourages and facilitates the proving of innovative ideas, and enables successful commercialisation. The Committee has previously met with the Chief Scientist of Israel to discuss the very successful Israeli innovation/commercialisation framework and is interested to hear how Australia will approach the same issues.”
“Innovation and Science Australia when established will be undertaking a review of the R&D Tax Incentive. Setting appropriate research and development tax incentives as well as providing support through CSIRO’s Innovation Fund for early stage commercialisation will be pivotal to establishing successful Australian start-up companies and diversifying the Australian economy,” Mr O’Dowd said.
Date: Thursday 3 March 2016, 9.00 am – 10.30 am Location: Committee Room 1R6, Parliament House, Canberra. The Committee will hold additional hearings in Canberra, Sydney and Melbourne in March.
For background information: Contact the committee secretariat: Phone: (02) 6277 2233 Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. Website www.aph.gov.au/ResearchandInnovation
The hearing will be held at the Commonwealth Parliament Offices, Level 21, 1 Bligh St Sydney.
Due to the security arrangements in place at these offices, members of the media and public interested in attending this hearing should register their interest with the secretariat before midday on Friday 4 March on (02) 6277 2352 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
Further details on the hearing will be made available closer to the date.
Hearing details Date: Monday, 7 March 2016 Time: 8:30 am–4:00 pm Venue: Meeting Room 1, Commonwealth Parliament Offices, Level 21, 1 Bligh St Sydney
Further background information on the inquiry, including the full terms of reference and how to prepare a submission, can be obtained from the Committee’s website at www.aph.gov.au/itc or from the Secretariat on (02) 6277 2352 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..
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