Construction is underway on the 13 home project in Swan Hill, one of a dozen developments in the Mallee and Wimmera through the Regional Worker Accommodation Fund.

Collectively, more than 240 bedrooms are being delivered in these regions for professionals in industries such as healthcare, education, childcare and law enforcement.

In Swan Hill, two and three-bedroom homes will help Montessori Beginnings childcare secure staff for its business.

New accommodation will help new jobs and provide much-needed childcare spots for local families.

In Irymple, a five-home project for Montessori Beginnings is underway, helping support local childcare workers and meet growing community demand.

Another 10 house development was completed in the town during December that is already occupied by professionals in law enforcement and healthcare.

The Regional Worker Accommodation Fund is unlocking around $370 million in housing investment for thousands of regional workers.

In the Mallee and Wimmera this also includes projects in Robinvale, Kerang, the Buloke Shire, Ararat, Nhill, Beaufort, Hopetoun, Murtoa, Minyip and Apsley.

Another 30 projects are currently supported by the fund across other Victorian regions.

Children and Young People with Disability Australia (CYDA) welcomed the extension to the NDIS Bill Inquiry while calling on the government to genuinely scrutinise its impacts on disabled children and young people. 

A Senate motion passed deferred the Bill’s final report deadline by eight weeks to 14 August 2026, forcing a slowdown of the government’s widely criticised reform timeline.

CYDA CEO Skye Kakoschke-Moore said the delay was a testament to the power of disabled people, families, and advocates who refused to let unprecedented changes be rushed through parliament.

“Above all else, what this development shows is that our collective advocacy cannot be ignored,” Ms Kakoschke-Moore said.

“The government must now take the time to properly scrutinise how this law will impact the nearly half a million people with disability under 25 who rely on the NDIS every day.”

The extension coincides with a major policy concession by the government on several key issues raised by CYDA.

This includes its agreement to a strict prohibition on the use of restrictive practices as a legal requirement for NDIS eligibility and for any mandated alternative treatments to be fully funded through the public health system, Medicare or the PBS.

Earlier this month, Ms Kakoschke-Moore spoke about the need to prevent the use of restrictive practice, like forced medication, on children and young people with disability when she appeared at the Senate Inquiry’s public hearing.

Other improvements have also been secured, including stronger protections around support determinations and limits on the Minister’s ability to make sweeping changes to people’s plans.

“Every amendment secured so far represents harm that has been prevented. That matters, but preventing some harm is not the same as creating good policy,” Ms Kakoschke-Moore said.

“The battle is far from over. While we welcome these improvements, there are still many aspects of the Bill that remain deeply concerning.”

CYDA was one of the more than 4000 individuals and organisations that made a submission to the Senate Inquiry despite being given just two weeks to respond.

Its submission highlighted four key areas of concern in the Bill, including:

• The requirement for a person to undertake “all appropriate treatment” without consideration of their location or financial means
• The reliance on parental responsibility and already stretched informal supports as alternatives to properly funded supports
• The reduction in funding for social and community participation
• The centralisation of power with the Disability Minister of the day

Today’s eight-week extension must be used to further address these important issues.

CYDA looks forward to closely examining the Inquiry’s Interim report when it is handed down later today.

Dementia Australia’s award-winning podcast Hold the Moment has returned for a third season, continuing to share powerful, real-life stories of people living with dementia and those who care for them.

Across 10 episodes, the new season explores some of the more complex and often unspoken aspects of life after a diagnosis, including managing finances, intimacy and planning for the future.

Hold the Moment co-host, Jim Rogers, who lives with young onset dementia, said season three is essential listening for anyone impacted by dementia.

“There are so many conversations around dementia people don’t like to have or avoid altogether,” Jim said.

“Season three is all about saying ‘let’s have these conversations, let’s get into the hard stuff’, whether that be transiting to aged care, money, intimacy or even planning for end-of-life care.

“I am proud that, alongside my co-host Dementia Australia Ambassador and journalist Hamish Macdonald, we are shinning a light on topics that are often too easily ignored.”

The award-winning podcast has attracted more than 260,000 listens and received recognition in Australia and internationally. Most recently, it was awarded both a Silver and Bronze Tower at the prestigious New York Festivals Radio Awards in May 2026.

Alongside the main episodes in season three, Ask us Anything bonus episodes give listeners the opportunity to hear answers to questions on topics ranging from consent and relationships to navigating care and daily routines.

The season features a diverse range of voices, including people living with dementia, carers, researchers and community leaders.

Among them are Betsy Kuo whose husband, Peter, was diagnosed with young onset Alzheimer’s disease at age 63 and for three and a half years, Betsy was by his side as his carer and advocate.

In episode nine Betsy speaks about the importance of palliative care towards the end of Peter’s life.

“When Peter moved into palliative care everything changed,” Ms Kuo said.

“The constant noise and uncertainty of hospital gave way to something I hadn’t expected – stillness. Palliative care felt like a safe space. I remember how peaceful it was and how precious it felt that we (me and our two girls) could just be with Peter without distraction. And that my fear went away, making more room for love.

“It was important to me to use the podcast as a way of letting others know about this, especially for a topic often avoided like end-of-life and palliative care.”

Dementia Australia CEO Professor Tanya Buchanan said Hold the Moment is an important avenue for people to learn about dementia and to not feel as alone.

“Dementia is the leading cause of death in Australia, yet many of the most important conversations about living with dementia can feel the hardest to have,” Professor Buchanan said.

“This season of Hold the Moment brings those conversations into the open, sharing honest and personal experiences that help people feel better informed, supported and less isolated.

Hold the Moment is produced by Deadset Studios and is available on podcast platforms, the Dementia Australia website and Dementia Australia’s YouTube channel.

New episodes are released weekly.

Minister Dimopoulos today visited APT Asia Pacific’s facility, which has received a $10 million upgrade.

The expansion strengthens APT’s Dandenong South headquarters and manufacturing base with an extra 50 skilled workers.

It will now deliver more than 1000 hard court surfaces each year, supporting professional and community sports.

The expansion includes a new processing plant that will significantly increase the company’s manufacturing capability.

The investment also includes new technical equipment to keep workers safe while improving production.

APT manufactures everything from raw materials to finished surfaces under one roof, supplying clients across Australia and overseas.

Customers include local community sports organisations and global sporting bodies such as the:

• International Olympic Committee
• Australian Football League
• International Tennis Federation
• International Hockey Federation
• Australian Rugby League, and
• FIFA,
• World Athletics,
• Cricket Australia.

Victoria’s manufacturing sector is a cornerstone of the state’s economy and the largest in the country.

The state government is introducing stronger reforms to crack down on taxi and rideshare drivers who refuse short trips, turn away assistance animals, rip people off and make passengers feel unsafe.

From 1 July:

• The ‘two strikes you’re out’ rule will expand to include misusing the meter, refusing a receipt and turning away passengers with assistance animals.
• Audio recording will become mandatory in taxis – video recording is already mandatory.
• The name and shame register will expand to include more information about disciplinary action taken against drivers and providers.

From 1 August:

• There will be a new offence for drivers who refuse a fare, including short trips – this offence will also be added to the ‘two strikes you’re out’ rule.
• Booking service providers will be required to notify the regulator of incidents of overcharging, service refusal, and assault – including sexual assault – to ensure proper action is taken.

These reforms will protect Victorians and make sure drivers and booking service providers who do the wrong thing are held to account.

Expanding the name and shame register will deter misconduct and ensure drivers cannot move to another booking service provider after they have been disqualified from one.

The register will show when a driver’s accreditation has been cancelled because of a criminal offence or court order, or when it has been suspended following serious allegations of sexual assault.

The changes build on major industry reforms introduced earlier this year.

Our ‘two strikes and you’re out’ rule will mean drivers who are prosecuted for a range of offences twice within 10 years can lose their accreditation.

We also introduced mandatory QR codes to make reporting complaints easier.

Tougher penalties were also placed on drivers who fail to use the meter properly.

More farmers will have access to tools that will help grow more feed, improve productivity and manage costs.

Minister Michaela Settle today attended the Best Wool/BestLamb and BetterBeef Conferences in Ballarat to announce a new $6 million partnership between Agriculture Victoria and Meat & Livestock Australia (MLA).

Sheep and beef farmers can participate in the program through local workshops, producer networks and on farm trials, helping them use farm data to make informed decisions.

Farmers will have better access to trusted advisors who understand local conditions, can offer clear, practical guidance and help reach farmers who may not currently participate in industry programs.

Farmers will also test new practices through on farm trials and access leading research and global innovation in ways they can apply directly to their businesses.

The new program will help farmers better use existing data such as livestock weight, reproduction results and pasture information with tools like electronic identification to make better decisions and improve productivity.

More on-farm data means more opportunities to improve efficiency, manage costs and plan for the future.

Beef and sheep meat are among Victoria’s most valuable agricultural commodities, worth $2.9 billion and $2.0 billion respectively, while wool contributes around $874 million.

Victoria’s food and fibre exports have reached a record $22.1 billion, reinforcing the state’s position as Australia’s leading agricultural exporter.

The state government has backed Victorian farmers with more than $146.5 million as part of its Drought Support Package.

Victoria has secured a 10 million litre diesel reserve for the agricultural sector, giving farmers confidence that fuel will be available when they need it most.

For more information, visit agriculture.vic.gov.au/support-and-resources/networks/bestwoolbestlamb.

Australians spend more on video games than they do on films, TV, music and books, and a growing number of them want their gaming dollars to have a positive social impact.

The Experimental Games Lab at Griffith Film School (GFS) has partnered with the Royal Flying Doctor Service (RFDS) (Queensland Section) on a ‘games for good’ initiative.

Associate Professor Justin Carter, games designer and Deputy Director at GFS, said GameLab: Project Uplift was about using game design, interactive storytelling and livestream culture to build understanding, participation and support for an essential service for regional and remote communities.

“Games can help people step into a story and see what it takes to deliver care across distance,” Associate Professor Carter said.

“For the RFDS (Queensland Section), that might mean prototyping experiences where players coordinate an emergency retrieval, manage limited resources, or follow a patient journey from the first call for help through to care.”

General Manager, Fundraising, in the Queensland Section of RFDS, Erin McCabe, said the partnership with Griffith was an opportunity to combine social impact with real health impact, using interactive experiences to raise vital funds and connect more Australians with the lifesaving work the service delivered in rural and remote communities.

“Gaming creates a powerful sense of collective impact, bringing people together to take part in something bigger than themselves and younger Australians are already showing us they want to back causes that make a real difference,” Ms McCabe said.

A 48-hour Game Jam will give Griffith Film School students the opportunity to respond to an RFDS Queensland brief, develop ideas in teams, and build early game prototypes that explore awareness, storytelling, fundraising and community engagement.

“The Game Jam is the starting point,” Associate Professor Carter said.

“It gives students a chance to work quickly and creatively on a brief with genuine social purpose, while exploring how games can help people connect with the work of RFDS Queensland.”

Streamer and host at the Game Jam, Josh Taylor, also known as The Giant Kyote, said the gaming community offered charitable organisations a great opportunity to raise awareness.

“I’m all about spreading positivity with my followers and the chance to do good while gaming is really exciting,” he said.

Associate Professor Carter said the project could also create future opportunities for students to contribute through Griffith’s Work-Integrated Learning programs, prototype development, livestream support and audience testing.

“Our ambition is to build this into a longer-term games-for-good collaboration, where students, researchers, streamers and RFDS Queensland continue developing new ways to engage communities and support the Flying Doctor’s mission,” he said.

—————————————————————————————————————————–

The 48-hour Game Jam will take place Wed 25 to Fri 27 June at GFS South Bank, with Games Lab students designing and building video games from scratch. 

The state government is stepping in to fast-track four Precinct Structure Plans (PSP) in Geelong’s north and west.

It will unlock more than 23,000 new homes for more than 66,000 Victorians.

The Batesford North, McCanns Lane/Merrawarp Road, Batesford South, and Heales Road East PSPs have been sitting on the City of Greater Geelong’s desk.

Council was due to start submitting PSPs for approval from 2023. It has not submitted a single one.

That’s why the Government is stepping in to unlock them nearly a decade ahead of council’s schedule.

It is also developing Contributions Plans to ensure these new communities are backed by the roads, transport links, parks, open space and community facilities they need.

Greater Geelong is expected to need an additional 128,600 homes by 2051.

Fast-tracking these precincts will deliver new homes for young families sooner.

The government is also working faster and smarter to build homes – including two 3D printed social homes in Geelong.

The printer cuts delivery time of a new home to just three months, or six months for the two homes.

Once complete, there will be two three-bedroom homes on the site for local families.

This project is a first of its kind for social housing in Victoria.

Clem Sturmfels, land management extension officer

With patchy rainfall across the state and the forecast of a drier spring, now is an ideal time to start monitoring dam water levels.

Over recent years stock water has become a scarce commodity across many parts of the state, significantly impacting carrying capacity over drier months.

Taking stock of dam water levels and pasture growth over the next few months will greatly assist farmers in calculating potential carrying capacity.

With the low water levels, it’s an ideal time to set up a permanent water level marker in larger storages.

A simple pole can be made using a length of PVC pipe slipped over a long, heavy-duty galvanised steel post.

Marking the pipe with 10 cm wide strips of red paint, with strips spaced 10 cm apart, makes monitoring easy.

Making a reading simply involves counting the number of strips from the top of the pole to the water level.

Taking a date-stamped photograph is a simple and easy way to record and store your results.

It’s important to remember the rate of water level rise will slow as the dam approaches full supply level. This is the result of larger volumes being required to fill the upper levels of a dam.

In a typical 3 m deep farm dam, 60% of its volume is contained in the top one metre.

Knowing the depth and dimensions of water in a dam allows farmers to quickly calculate its volume using our Farm Water Calculator, a simple tool available on our website – Farm water calculator

Dam run-off in Victoria usually commences in late winter and ends in late spring, although thunderstorms can fill a dam at any time of the year.

However, relying on run-off after this period is risky.

For more information about drought support available visit agriculture.vic.gov.au/drought or call 136 186.

More farmers will have access to tools that will help grow more feed, improve productivity and manage costs.

Minister Settle has attended the Best Wool/BestLamb and BetterBeef Conferences in Ballarat to announce a new $6 million partnership between Agriculture Victoria and Meat & Livestock Australia (MLA).

Sheep and beef farmers can participate in the program through local workshops, producer networks and on farm trials, helping them use farm data to make informed decisions.

Farmers will have better access to trusted advisors who understand local conditions, can offer clear, practical guidance and help reach farmers who may not currently participate in industry programs.

Farmers will also test new practices through on farm trials and access leading research and global innovation in ways they can apply directly to their businesses.

The new program will help farmers better use existing data such as livestock weight, reproduction results and pasture information with tools like electronic identification to make better decisions and improve productivity.

More on-farm data means more opportunities to improve efficiency, manage costs and plan for the future.

Beef and sheep meat are among Victoria’s most valuable agricultural commodities, worth $2.9 billion and $2.0 billion respectively, while wool contributes around $874 million.

Victoria’s food and fibre exports have reached a record $22.1 billion, reinforcing the state’s position as Australia’s leading agricultural exporter.

Labor has backed Victorian farmers with more than $146.5 million as part of our Drought Support Package.

Victoria has secured a 10 million litre diesel reserve for the agricultural sector, giving farmers confidence that fuel will be available when they need it most.

For more information, visit agriculture.vic.gov.au/support-and-resources/networks/bestwoolbestlamb

Sport brings Victorians together.

It unites communities and should never divide them.

That’s why the state government is backing local sporting clubs to keep racism out of community sport.

Minister Ros Spence has launched the Racism Doesn’t Belong In Our Game campaign to support young athletes and volunteers.

The campaign is designed to increase awareness of racism in community sport and its impact.

It will also focus on making sure more people know where to report racism.

A key feature of the campaign is seven stories from Victorians involved in community sport.

It includes AFL club president Nabil Yassine, Hume Cricket Club’s Avtar Singh and former professional basketballer Sharin Milner, sharing why safety in community sport matters.

The campaign will be delivered by the Centre for Multicultural Youth and CMSport, in partnership with the Victorian Aboriginal Community Services Association Ltd and leading sporting bodies including:

• AFL Victoria
• Basketball Victoria
• Cricket Victoria
• Football Victoria
• Netball Victoria
• NRL Victoria
• Tennis Victoria.

The campaign will be delivered in Melbourne and regional Victoria with educational and digital tools for sporting clubs.

More information including resources and campaign materials can be found at sport.vic.gov.au/anti-racism

63 kinders across the state will share in $12.3 million to improve their centres.

Building Blocks Improvement grants help kinders upgrade, refurbish and renovate.

This includes learning spaces, outdoor play areas and staff spaces and amenities.

Recipients include:

• Keon Park Kinder who will renovate their building, upgrade bathrooms and build private meeting rooms
• Virginia Park Child Care Centre will redesign their yard into an outdoor learning space
• St Paul’s Lutheran Kindergarten will connect outdoor and indoor spaces, and build an accessible bathroom
• Young Street Kindergarten will modernise and build another kindergarten room
• Mount Evelyn Christian School Kindergarten will deliver flexible spaces for meetings and small-group work

More than 570,000 children have benefited from Free Kinder since 2023.

For more information visit schoolbuildings.vic.gov.au/building-blocks-grants-improvement.

Minister for Children Lizzie Blandthorn said great kinders needed great spaces.

“These grants mean more children can learn, explore and play in modern facilities built for them.”

Victoria’s visitor economy is booming, generating record spending and supporting thousands of jobs across the state.

Visitor spending has increased by 6.5 per cent, hitting a new record of $48.6 billion.

More than 2.9 million international visitors spent a new high of $10.5 billion in the year ending March 2026, an increase of 16.7 per cent.

This includes $774 million in regional Victoria, boosting our wineries and iconic regional towns.

Every dollar spent by visitors helps create jobs for Victorians and keeps our economy growing.

Spending from Victoria’s major international tourism markets is at a record high with:

• Spending from Chinese visitors exceeding $3.6 billion, up 23.5 per cent.
• Spending from United Kingdom visitors up 37 per cent to $575 million.
• Spending from United States visitors up 33.8 per cent to $430 million.

Melbourne remains Australia’s top destination for interstate visitors, drawn by our world-class major events.

The Boxing Day Ashes Test, Australian Open and F1 Grand Prix drew tens of thousands of fans who stayed longer to explore Victoria.

The upcoming NFL Melbourne Game will be no different.

The results were released by the Tourism Research Australia’s Domestic Tourism Statistics and International Visitor Survey.

The Victorian Energy Jobs Plan will deliver 68,000 energy jobs with 37 per cent in regional Victoria.

This far exceeds the regional population share of 25 per cent and puts regional Victoria at the heart of this jobs boom.

These jobs will be critical as Victoria works towards 95 per cent renewable energy generation by 2035.

More than $18 billion in wages will be delivered to regional communities for workers with university, tertiary or high-school level qualifications from 2026 to 2040, including:

• $1.94 billion in Ballarat
• $1.23 billion in Bendigo
• $2.44 billion in Geelong
• $2.29 billion in the south west
• $2.47 billion in the north west
• $4.62 billion in Gippsland
• $2.05 billion in Hume
• $1.05 billion in Shepparton

Electricians, plumbers, construction workers, labourers, engineers, mechanics, ICT managers, admin workers and customer services will be the most in demand jobs.

TAFE will be critical to this plan. That’s why we’ve guaranteed Free TAFE and launched the Women in Energy Strategy to increase women’s participation in the energy workforce.

To access the Plan and Strategy visit, energy.vic.gov.au/renewable-energy/our-energy-workforce.