Everyone but Labor can see that slamming the door on prevention is a false economy. Right now, they don't have to numbers to get a Bill to abolish VicHealth through the upper house, but Jacinta Allan still defended the short-sighted plan. www.abc.net.au/news/2026-02...

I spoke to the ABC about my recent cancer diagnosis, my decision to step down as Greens MP for Brunswick at the next state election, and my fury at the state Labor Government for slamming the door on preventative health by abolishing VicHealth. (1/2) www.abc.net.au/news/2026-01...

Not surprised that Victorian teachers are considering industrial action. Vic teachers are the lowest paid in Aus & last year Jacinta Allan's Labor Gov cut $2.4 billion from public schools, most of which would have gone to boosting school staff & increasing teacher salaries. 1/4

AUKUS is financially irresponsible and ties our foreign policy to Trump's caprice. What further excuse does Albo need to cancel it? www.theguardian.com/australia-ne...

It’s naive to think the US attack on Venezuela is about anything other than dirty fossil fuel profits. Trump himself told reporters after the attack “We’re going to be taking out a tremendous amount of wealth out of the ground.” (½) www.nytimes.com/2026/01/03/u...

When Jacinta Allan’s Labor Gov. says Victoria has a gas shortfall what they mean is their buddies in fossil fuel companies want to continue to rake in profits from gas - at the expense of our climate & energy bills. (1/2) www.smh.com.au/environment/...

This comprehensive review of the state of integrity in Victoria under the current Labor government shows we're seriously lagging behind other states. Why should Victoria have a worse FOI system and a weaker anti-corruption investigator than other states? www.theage.com.au/politics/vic...

I got into politics because as a doctor I saw big tobacco, junk food, alcohol and gambling corps driving preventable illness for profit. Watching the Allan Labor Gov effectively close VicHealth is depressing and shows how little they value prevention. 1/2

"I know there are a lot of organisations... delighted to see VicHealth go – big tobacco companies, the alcohol industry, manufacturers of soft drinks, fast foods or sugary snacks – I just didn’t think I’d see a Labor Government choose to line up with them." www.croakey.org/nicola-roxon...

Great to hear schools will start providing laptops to students so parents don't have to buy their own devices. Not sure how public schools are going to pay for them, given Labor just cut $2.4billion in funding. I guess we'll be hearing about the funding soon @victorianlabor.bsky.social ?

The graffiti in Fitzroy glorifying Hamas' Oct 7 2023 attacks is unacceptable and unproductive. It has instilled fear in the Jewish community, and does not represent the broader Palestine solidarity movement, which stands for peace and an end to all violence.

@australianlabor.bsky.social Now will you sanction Israel?

Politicians shouldn't be able to control your vote. But in Victoria, their deals direct your upper house preferences, when voting above the line. Only in Victoria. Every other state and the Commonwealth has abolished group voting tickets which allow this. 1/2

If only Labor liked offshore wind as much as they like submarines...

The new CEO at the Children's Hospital has just cancelled an expert panel discussion on children and war. Why would hospital admin step in and cancel an educational event, run by experts, at a hospital where many work in refugee health, about the impact of war on children? 1/2

What if we change our minds in a couple of years and decide (hear me out) that methane gas exports for another 45 years is a dumb idea in a climate emergency? Would we have to pay them compensation if we cancelled it?

The fish rots from the head, and this rotten move from our federal government is likely to embolden state governments to further weaken their own transparency institutions. (1/4) www.abc.net.au/news/2025-09...

Let's hope Victorian Labor makes this happen. Public health must become a legitimate consideration in our planning laws, so we can stop fast food outlets proliferating in areas of disadvantage and in places where communities don't want them. www.theage.com.au/national/vic...

Of course it's important to make sure public school teachers are qualified. But the real problem in Victoria is qualified teachers leaving the profession because we aren't paying them enough. (1/2) www.theage.com.au/national/vic...

It was awful to hear of the death of a bike rider on Moreland Road earlier this week. My thoughts are with his family and loved ones. This is the second death in just three months on Moreland Road; I'll be looking for information in the coming weeks to see how this could have been prevented.

Weekend news reports described Victoria's planned shift from coal to renewables as "controversial". Burning brown coal in Victoria to at least 2035 should be controversial, given the worsening fires, floods, heatwaves, and even toxic algal blooms. 1/2

Amazing that scarce government funding is subsidising these schools that get nearly $150m in donations but public schools are still underfunded and we just can’t find the money to get them to the bare minimum. www.heraldsun.com.au/victoria-edu...

Today is the first day of hearings for the Parliamentary Inquiry into the demolition of Victoria's public housing towers. You can tune in live here www.parliament.vic.gov.au/watch?page=1...

After Woodside won the federal election, we don’t need further evidence of how far the gas industry has its claws into the ALP, but here’s more. Victorian government “sources” say they may water down the planned 2026 ban on the sale of gas appliances at a Cabinet meeting today. 1/6

A saga of a property developer, a crumbling historic site and a financial trap for apartment owners, in Brunswick. www.theage.com.au/politics/vic...

This is critical funding. Teachers are burning out, schools are under pressure, children don’t have access to the support they need - and this decision means that a child starting prep today won’t get full funding until Grade Six (1/2) www.theage.com.au/politics/vic...

Angry about @australianlabor.bsky.social extending Australia's largest gas project until 2070? Me too. It's tiresome, but we must help Labor see this in $. Labor might not understand nature, but they understand money. So we need to point to the costs of global heating, of fires and floods. 1/2

The best way to reduce power bills is to help people electrify their home - so why has Labor quietly cut a no-interest loan scheme for solar batteries? These cuts mean high income households can lower their power bills with solar & batteries, while lower income households are locked out. (⅓)

Sums it up. www.theguardian.com/commentisfre...

Some welcome clarity. www.theage.com.au/world/middle...

Victoria's upper house just approved an inquiry, moved by Greens MPs, into how to harmonise electric vehicles with the electricity grid, including: - reducing charging during periods of peak demand and increase it during the day, - how to help Victorians power their home from their car 1/3

The Victorian government says there's no money to educate our kids. They’ve quietly slashed $2.4 billion from public schools, but just wait. Next week’s budget will splash millions on the Grand Prix. They’re hoping you’ll forget by then. t.co/nkJUShOjjP

Medicines Australia on ABC RN backing big pharma company Eli Lilly's trumpian threat to pull clinical trial $ from Aust if we don't hasten PBS listing of drugs. Failed to mention PBS listing often delayed by PBS wanting a lower price and/or evidence justifying obscenely expensive new drugs.

Just watching Dutton prevaricating and downplaying climate change in the #leadersdebate and it feels like he's stumbling badly. The time for climate dithering has passed.

Waste to energy plants produce more CO2 than a gas-fired power station. They are polluting, not consistent with net zero, and government MPs don't want them in their electorates. So why is Victoria setting them up? www.theage.com.au/politics/vic...

Renters should have the right to solar and electric homes. reneweconomy.com.au/its-time-ren...

This means Labor has decided that if they lose Macnamara, they will increase the chance of it going to the Libs rather than to the Greens. After all they've said about Dutton and his nuclear reactors, they'd rather he won than Labor having to deal with Greens or Teals.

Far from getting us closer to a circular economy, Labor is going around in circles. New VAGO report says Victoria’s “proportion of waste going to landfill has not changed in the 4 years since the circular economy policy started.” (1/2) audit.vic.gov.au/report/recycling-resources-waste

Alarming to read of job losses in Victorian medical research institutes. This is the best time for targeted investment in medical research because Trump's cuts in the US will allow us to attract more talent to Victoria. Take a longer term view @victorianlabor.bsky.social and invest in research now!

After calls from Greens and integrity campaigners, Victoria started publishing ministerial diaries in December 2023, so we can see which corporates and lobbyists are meeting our government. Well done. Now could you please be a little more punctual. www.theage.com.au/national/vic...

Healthcare Workers for Human Rights shared some horrific scenes from an emergency department in Gaza with me this week. This Labor Government must sanction Israel now.

Privatising CSL might not have been Paul Keating's greatest idea. Very upsetting to see CSL is a member of the US pharma lobby campaigning to weaken Australia's PBS. That would give us the same exorbitant prices for medicines that Americans pay. www.theage.com.au/politics/fed...

Great to see Jacinta Allan visiting Brunswick East Primary School today. Maybe she can finally fix the school's roof while she's there? I don't think she goes anywhere without her hard hat.

The resumption of Israel’s bombardment of Gaza, with the full backing of the US government, is an outrage. Israel’s ongoing assault will only deepen the devastation and suffering already inflicted on Gazans.

Thanks to my federal Greens colleagues for raising this issue and calling for equitable public school funding that doesn't depend on "voluntary" contributions from parents. (1/2)

Today in Question Time, Victoria's Environment Minister claimed our nature laws are fit for purpose. But if that's the case, why do developers feel entitled to bulldoze 60 hectares of critically endangered habitat? 1/2

$100k salary just to rent in Melbourne without housing stress? The great majority of Australian workers earn less than that. The Greens want to cap rents and lower the price of housing so everyone can afford a home.

Infrastructure Vic has called for 30km speed limits on suburban roads! Road trauma is the leading cause of death for Australian children. Lowering speed limits from 50 to 30km reduces pedestrian fatalities by 75% - and has little effect on travel times for cars. It's a no brainer.

Note this Age editorial from the weekend, calling for an overhaul to Victoria's FOI scheme so that information is "pushed" into the public domain. This was recommended in a recent inquiry by the Integrity and Oversight Committee. Government due to respond soon. www.theage.com.au/national/vic...