2023 AGRIFUTURES RURAL WOMEN’S AWARD NATIONAL FINALISTS REVEALED

Seven remarkable women have been recognised for their contribution to Australia’s rural and emerging industries, businesses and communities by being named national fnalists of the 2023 AgriFutures Rural Women’s Award.

The AgriFutures Rural Women’s Award is the leading award empowering and celebrating the inclusive and courageous leadership of rural women across Australia. The seven national fnalists were announced at events in their respective states and territories across Australia, after a highly competitive selection process.

Women from all over Australia were encouraged to apply with a project, business or program having a positive impact on rural and emerging industries, businesses, and communities.

Each of the seven female leaders will receive a $15,000 Westpac grant to help boost, expand or elevate their work, with the National Winner awarded an additional

$20,000 Westpac grant and National Runner Up, an additional $15,000.

AgriFutures Australia Managing Director, John Harvey says he’s impressed with the breadth of innovative projects that were submitted this year.

“2023 is an exciting year for the AgriFutures Rural Women’s Award with our seven national fnalists an outstanding representation of the impact that female-led initiatives are having within their industries and communities.

“We’re delighted to be able to provide our winners with a platform to not only celebrate their achievements but also to build on their leadership skills to drive change in rural and regional Australia,” said Mr Harvey.

BIG SAVINGS WITHIN REACH FOR FIRST HOME BUYERS

Signifcant savings for frst home buyers are closer to reality today as legislation to lift thresholds for stamp duty exemptions and concessions passed the NSW Legislative Assembly late last night.

The NSW Government has moved swiftly to enact its commitment to have more frst home buyers pay zero or a reduced rate of stamp duty under the First Home Buyers Assistance Scheme and abolish the previous government’s forever land tax.

The legislation lifts the thresholds for stamp duty exemptions under the First Home Buyers

Assistance Scheme from $650,000 to $800,000 and stamp duty concessions from $800,000 to $1 million.

Based on current market conditions, NSW Treasury expects about 8,600 frst home buyers in the $650,000 to $800,000 range to enjoy total exemption from paying stamp duty each year, while about 4,400 frst home buyers in the $800,000 to $1 million range will now enjoy a concessional rate of stamp duty.

First home buyers purchasing a property for $800,000 stand to save $31,090 in stamp duty upon the legislation passing NSW Parliament. The First Home Buyer Legislation Amendment Bill 2023 will now be debated in the Legislative Council on Thursday 1 June, with the new thresholds due to begin on 1 July 2023.

Treasurer Daniel Mookhey said:

“The Premier and I repeatedly said we wanted to see more frst home buyers pay zero stamp duty rather than the former government’s forever land tax, and we are now one step closer to enacting this commitment.

“This is a fairer and simpler way to help more frst home buyers get into the market.

“The former government’s inequitable land tax program was delivering 50 per cent of the additional beneft in duty forgone to just 13 per cent of frst home buyers.

“These changes will help fve out of every six frst home buyers pay no stamp duty, or a concessional rate, and delivers a key election commitment to abolish the annual property tax.”

BUILDING APPROVALS LOWEST SINCE 2012

Concerns are mounting in the building community with building approvals hitting their lowest levels since April 2012, impacting Australia’s ability to meet its housing targets says Master Builders Australia Acting CEO Shaun Schmitke.

“According to the ABS, new home building approvals sank by 8.1 per cent over the month with a total of 11,594 dwellings approved in seasonally adjusted terms.

“The reverses in new home building approvals come in the aftermath of twelve months of rising interest rates and infation at its highest in over 30 years.

“The data refects the cautious approach being taken by developers and consumers in the face of economic uncertainty and high building costs.

“The biggest drops were in higher density home building approvals and home renovations falling 16.9 per cent and 26.6 per cent respectively.

“Although demand for medium and high-density housing is surging, the pipeline of new stock is rapidly diminishing.

“The fall in new builds will exacerbate pressures in the rental market at the worst possible time with media reports today showing the portion of income needed to pay rent lifting to the highest level since June 2014.

“Builders recognise the importance of a healthy and vibrant building and construction sector in supporting economic growth and addressing the housing needs of a growing population.

“To ensure we continue to supply enough homes to house all Australians, governments need to look at what impact their regulations and policies have on the cost of building homes and on the cost of building social infrastructure.

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Quick Crossword

ACROSS

1 M.D.’s (4)

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No. 149

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8 The River Lagan runs through which European capital?

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Using the nine letters in the grid, how many words of four letters or more can you list? The centre letter must be included, and each letter may only be used once. No colloquial or foreign words. No capitalised nouns, apostrophes or plural words ending in “s”.

Word

Secret

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Each number corresponds to a letter. Can you crack the code?

Hidden Word

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1 Someone who doesn’t eat animal products

Insert each number from 1 to

A O

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HOW WELL DO YOU KNOW...

1. Who co-hosts I’m a Celebrity… Get Me Out of Here! with Morris?

A. Grant Denyer

B. Chris Brown

C. Osher Günsberg

D. Beau Ryan

2. Which character did she perform as on The Masked Singer Australia?

A. Queen

B. Dragon y

C. Cactus

D. Kitten

3. Which dating show did she host in 2018?

A. Take Me Out

B. Love Island

C. Blind Date

D. Beauty and the Geek

4. What is the title of her 2009 memoir?

A. Don’t You Know Who I Used To Be?

B. No Judgement

C. I’m Not Even Joking