State Matters - 1 September 2025
- Dave Layzell MP
- Sep 1
- 6 min read
Updated: 9 hours ago
NEW RECRUITS
A DOZEN of the state’s newest police officers are now working across two of the Upper Hunter Electorate’s police districts following the attestation of the latest class from Goulburn Police Academy.
Five new Probationary Constable's commenced duty last week in the Hunter Valley Police District with two officers each for Singleton and Muswellbrook and one officer for Cessnock.
Port Stephens-Hunter Police District received seven new Probationary Constables with three performing duties in the Raymond Terrace Sector and four assigned to the Maitland Sector.
I acknowledge the work of Hunter Valley District Commander, Superintendent Steve Laksa, and Port Stephens-Hunter District Commander, Superintendent Wayne Humphrey APM, for their advocacy to secure the new recruits.
Class 366 completed eight months of training, including four months via distance education and four months of in-person training at Goulburn, and have commenced 12 months of on the job training.
EIS CONSULTATION
EnergyCo has now lodged the Hunter Transmission Project EIS with the Department of Planning, Housing and Infrastructure with residents along its path encouraged to comment.
During the public exhibition period until 24 September, a series of community information sessions will be held with members of the HTP project team.
Cessnock will have sessions on Monday 8 September, 3-7pm, at Cessnock Leagues Club, and Tuesday 16 September, 3-7pm, at Cessnock Scout Hall.
Singleton Library Meeting Room hosts a session on Tuesday 9 September, 3-7pm, then
Thursday 18 September, 3-7 pm, at the Singleton Youth Venue Auditorium.
Community pop-up sessions will take place at Maitland Community Markets at Maitland Showground, Sunday 7 September, 9am-1pm, and Broke Village Fair, McNamara Park, Sunday 14 September, 9am-2pm.
Webinars providing an overview of the EIS and how to make a submission will be held Wednesday 3 September, 6-7pm, and Tuesday 23 September, 12-1 pm.
The HTP will deliver a new 110-kilometre overhead transmission line to unlock renewable generation from the Central-West Orana and New England Renewable Energy Zones.
The EIS is on the NSW Planning Portal: https://www.planningportal.nsw.gov.au/major-projects/have-your-say with more information and fact sheets at: http://energyco.nsw.gov.au/htp-EIS
HOSPITAL LATEST
Milestones are starting to be achieved with the Muswellbrook Hospital Stage 3 redevelopment according to Health Infrastructure’s August project update.
Work has begun with demolition in the new Community Health space on the lower ground floor near the main entrance, and the Operating Theatres are expected to be delivered by November.
In planning for the Community Health space, sustainable materials have been sourced from Australian company Noveco which use reclaimed waste materials for the reception’s joinery, and the tiles for basin and kitchen splashbacks.
A crane on site has brought in chillers for the plant room and lifted 225 solar panels which will produce around 400kWh of solar energy every day on average and up to 800kWh of solar per day in summer.
To see the August project update or more detail on the redevelopment visit:
BIRD PROJECT
A community BBQ and information session at Merriwa on Friday 5 September will encourage more landholders to participate in restoring Regent Honeyeater habitat.
The Merriwa region has some incredible threatened species calling the area home and Hunter Local Land Services wants to do its best to keep them there to thrive into the future.
To discover more about the critically endangered species and restoring Regent Honeyeater habitat along the Merriwa River be at The Hut at Merriwa Tourist Information Centre, 11am-2pm.
Register for the community BBQ and info session at: www.nsw.gov.au/departments-and-agencies/local-land-services/events/revegetating-merriwa-river
ROAD RENAMING
Singleton Council is calling for submissions to rename a section of the New England Highway as a result of the Singleton Bypass construction.
The section of road to be renamed is between the Hunter River at the Singleton Crossing bridge and approximately 570m north of Magpie Street at McDougalls Hill.
The community is invited to submit ideas with all submissions to be reviewed against the requirements of Transport for NSW and the Geographical Names Board before being presented to the elected Council for endorsement of a preferred name.
The preferred name will be publicly exhibited for community feedback, then submitted to the Geographical Names Board for official gazetting of the name.
Check your proposed name at the Geographical Names Board eligibility checker: https://proposals.gnb.nsw.gov.au/public/road-names/evaluation
Then make a submission before Tuesday 30 September on Council’s website:
A-DAY GRANTS
Grant applications close next Monday, 8 September, for Australia Day Community Events.
Councils, community groups, and not-for-profit organisations are encouraged to apply to the National Australia Day Council (NADC) for funding to help deliver local celebrations.
Since 2021, the program has backed more than 3,000 events from smoking ceremonies to family fun days, citizenship ceremonies and First Nations cultural activities to multicultural festivals and backyard BBQs.
Australia Day provides us all with the opportunity to reflect, respect and celebrate our proud, ancient and multicultural nation.
Three tiers of funding are available with a $10,000 Base Grant and access to the $5,000 additional grant for events that include significant Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander elements.
Alternate grants of $2,000 are also available to top-up your budget or cover the full cost of a smaller event.
Email questions to NADC at: grants@australiaday.org.au or discover more at: www.australiaday.org.au/grants
POWER BILL TIP
The Energy and Water Ombudsman of NSW (EWON) has given consumers a free tip on how to tackle their power bill.
The Ombudsman’s advice – ‘Don’t set and forget’ your electricity supply deal – from July 1, NSW default power prices increased between 8.3% and 9.7% for residential customers, and 7.9% and 8.5% for small business customers.
EWON encourages residents to call their retailer and ask to be put on the best contract for your energy use.
If that doesn’t work, shop around for a better offer on the government approved comparison site Energy Made Easy: www.energymadeeasy.gov.au
TELSTRA OUTAGE
A planned outage will affect Telstra mobile customers this week with the mobile base station that services Combo being upgraded.
Mobile services in the Singleton area will be temporarily affected while the upgrade works are underway to improve the 4G user experience.
The Combo site will be switched off at different times during Tuesday 2 September and Sunday 7 September.
Telstra mobile customers will receive texts advising of the upcoming work, however, landline services, NBN and satellite internet services, and mobile coverage from other providers will not be impacted.
To keep up to date on the outage: https://www.telstra.com.au/outages
Meantime, Telstra is seeking comment on a proposal to upgrade the existing mobile telephone base station at Martins Creek.
Comment closes on Wednesday 10 September with more information at www.rfnsa.com.au/2420007.
TEACHING SCHOLARSHIP
Year 12 students, university students or career changers interested in a teaching career can now apply for the NSW Department of Education’s future teacher scholarships.
Successful applicants receive a range of financial incentives and a permanent teaching position in a NSW public school once they successful complete their studies.
So, if you know a prospective teacher, encourage them to apply for a future teacher scholarship with the NSW Department of Education.
To learn more about the available scholarship programs and view the full list of benefits before Friday 12 September at: https://education.nsw.gov.au/teach-nsw/get-paid-to-study
BOOK NOW!
People wanting to know more about the proposed Upper Hunter battery energy storage system are being asked to register their interest in a community information session.
North Harbour Clean Energy will hold the session for the project on Wednesday, 17 September, 6-7.30pm at Aberdeen Public School Hall.
The session will include a short presentation from the development team and provide opportunities for community members to ask questions and receive feedback.
Please register to attend at: https://forms.office.com/r/bw16RDQfb1 or call 0466413645.
For more information on the project visit: www.nhcleanenergy.com or email: info@northharbourpl.com.
NEW TOURISM DATA
Food for thought for the Upper Hunter Electorate’s tourism industry with a new report revealing a shift in perception of retirement.
The Australian Seniors Grey Gap Year Report 2025 shows travel is now regarded as a central pillar of a fulfilling life.
The report findings include Australians aged 50 and over are more engaged in travel than ever before.
Nearly 39 per cent went on a 'big' holiday in the past year with 36 per cent of the big holidaymakers travelled within Australia - 26 per cent went interstate and 10 per cent stayed within their state.
The research also showed growing interest in 'slow travel' and 'JOMO' (joy of missing out) trips that feature experiences they enjoy, rather than worrying about what others are doing.
NOW IN FOCUS
The exhibition of the winning work and the 29 other finalists in the 2025 Mullins Conceptual Photography Prize is now underway until 11 October.
Adjudicator Antares Wells, Assistant Curator at the Museum of Contemporary Art Australia, recently announced the winner of the Australian Photographic Society and Muswellbrook Regional Arts Centre competition.
Johanna Ng was acknowledged with the $30,000 cash prize for the winning work entitled
"a woman wearing a choker is walking in a crowd, 2024".
It will be acquired and join all previous Mullins Conceptual Photography Prize winners in MRAC’s permanent collection of post-war contemporary paintings, ceramic and photography.
Muswellbrook Regional Arts Centre, located at 1-3 Bridge Street, is open Monday to Saturday 10am-4pm: https://artgallery.muswellbrook.nsw.gov.au
Contact:
Email address: upperhunter@parliament.nsw.gov.au;
New Address: 94 John Street Singleton 2330
Postal Address: PO Box 60 Singleton NSW 2330
Ph: 6543 1065
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