Tasmania

The Stringer went live February 20. Some of our stories from the last week include:

Rising Renters Stress – 2/3rds of Australian live in rent

March 23, 2013

According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) ‘rental stress’ is a term often used to describe households at risk of experiencing difficulty meeting their rental costs. High levels of rental stress mean that affordability may be low and, as a result, those households experiencing rental stress may be less able to rent housing that meets their basic needs.

Newsletter date: 24 February 2013

Click on the links for details of the events ...

Event: Sun 24 February 2013: Fremantle, Perth, WA
Concert for the Kimberley:
A concert and march in the heart of Fremantle
The Wilderness Society WA
"Join us in Fremantle on Sunday 24 February 2013
for a free, open-air concert featuring the
John Butler Trio, Missy Higgins, Ball Park Music,
special guest Dr Bob Brown, and others."
"This concert and rally is a call to arms for
all West Australians to stand up and protect
one of our finest national treasures,

Click on the links for details of the events ...

Event: Thu 21 or Fri 22 March 2013: Tasmania
National Close the Gap Day
"A day for Australians to join together and remind
political leaders to close the life expectancy gap
between Indigenous and non-Indigenous Australians
within a generation." ATSI Support
"Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander People
still die 10-17 years younger than other Australians.
Closing this health gap cannot be done overnight.
We need a long-term commitment with adequate
funding, and investment in real partnerships." Oxfam

Tasmanian Liberals are vowing to postpone the heritage listing of native forests, further delaying a resolution of the decades-long community division.

Last Thursday the Tasmania Labor Government announced protection of 170,000 hectares of forests as part of the proposed forestry peace deal.

Liberal Senator Richard Colbeck told ABC on Friday the party opposed the deal on the grounds that it poses problems for mining and undermines parliamentary scrutiny of the peace agreement.

Senator Colbeck's clarification on how the protection does so has been sought.