The RWA offers free business advice to Small Business

Geoff Turnbull from the Chamber of Commerce, in a recent Chamber newsletter reports:

“Following a meeting with the RWA we discovered a free business advice service funded by the Redfern Waterloo Authority and the Department of State and Regional Development which will be of considerable use to existing business as well as to those thinking of setting up a business in the area. The service provides free one-on-one confidential advice through an experienced business advisor who has over 20 years experience helping start new businesses or grow existing ones. You can download from these links the leaflets for the Free Business Advice Service (79 KB PDF) and the Free Aboriginal Business Advice Service (79 KB PDF).”

Block drug bust

Early last month, on the day of the NSW Upper House inquiry into Aboriginal Disadvantage, scores of police descended on the Block for a drug raid labelled Operation Strike Force “Gildea”. Raids on homes in Louis, Eveleigh and Vine streets resulted in 17 arrests, including 11 women and six men, for the supply and possession of prohibited drugs. The raid received support from the AHC, Babana and The Settlement at the Inquiry. Redfern Police Commander Superintendent Mark Walton said it was part of an operation that began back in March to limit supply and use of drugs at the Block.

On May 22 there was the tragedy of the stabbing on the Block.

Police media reported:

"Police are investigating the stabbing death of a man at Redfern this morning.
Shortly after midnight police were called to Vine Street after reports a man had been stabbed. Officers from Redfern Local Area Command found the 23-year-old man lying on the road with a stab wound to his upper chest. The man was taken to Royal Prince Alfred Hospital where he was pronounced dead. Police established a crime scene and an investigation has been launched involving detectives from Redfern Local Area Command and the Homicide Squad.''

Drug busts and stabbings. What a tragedy! The community deserves better.

Breast Screen van in Redfern

The Breast Screen van returned to Pitt Street, Redfern last month. Situated outside the Rachel Foster Hospital site, the van offers free mammograms to women over 40. Early detection of breast cancer is vital and many older women in NSW are not aware of the need to be checked every two years, with one in nine women developing breast cancer in their lifetime. The van will remain on Pitt Street until late June.

Rudd Government not popular at the Factory

The Turnbulls’ Redfern Waterloo updates late last month reported on the effects of the Rudd Government’s first budget on Redfern-Waterloo.

“Not all local services were lucky in the budget. One of the projects axed by the government’s first budget was the Regional Partnerships Program of the Commonwealth Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Services and Local Government. The Factory had put 12 months of work and the expense of hiring an architect and putting a DA to council as a requirement for an application to the Regional Partnerships Program to refurbishment of its kitchen and disabled toilet.”

The update continues: “The negotiation was quite complex and necessitated matching funding from Housing NSW (which had been approved but are now at risk). The programme has now been axed by the Rudd government leaving The Factory significantly out of pocket and without the facilities to run its proposed new programmes on Nutrition, Health Awareness and Food Security. If you have any suggestions or know of any other programmes that might help The Factory get its kitchen upgrade please contact Patrick Russell on 9698 9569.”

There seems to be some confusion as to these facts, some of which are contested by Tanya Plibersek’s office. We will have a full report next month, but if you can help the Factory, ring Patrick.

Alexandria hero, Ben Aveling!

Ben, the man from the Alexandria Branch of the Labor Party who has taken on the Premier and Michael Costa, the State Treasurer, with charges in relation to the Head Office of the NSW Labor Party has been published in Crikey.com. Ben wrote a good opinion piece about electricity. If you are a Crikey subscriber, I hope you have read it.

Hopefully, you will read it in this august publication next month.