June 14, 2014

A $120,000 grant will be spent fixing a Subiaco black spot where accidents have put at least three people in hospital in the past five years.

Subiaco council will use the cash to fix up the Thomas Street and Heytesbury Road junction.

The money will be used to build a “seagull island” with an extended left-turn slip lane and to upgrade line markings.

Six of the report 11 crashes at the intersection from 2009 to 2013 were right-angle collisions while another two were rear-end incidents and all happened in daylight.

Another $121,240 will go to Perth council to install a central median island in Welington and Outram streets and to improve the exit at Lucknow Place in West Perth.

There have been 41 crashes there in five years and while there are no reported hospitalisations after accidents there, seven people have needed medical attention.

The vast majority of accidents at this intersection were right turns or right-angle collisions.

Curtin MP Julie Bishop said work on the black spots would be carried out in the next year.

 “These two projects have been recommended by a panel of road safety experts because the intersections have been identified as particularly troublesome spots for motorists, with a total of 41 crashes at the West Perth junction and 11 at the Subiaco junction in the five-year period until December 31, 2013,” Ms Bishop said.

“Black spot projects target dangerous roads to save lives and reduce road trauma, ensuring our local roads are safer for motorists, cyclists and pedestrians.

“A recently evaluation of the program has found that fatal and casual crashes are reduced at treated sites by 30 percent.”

They are among 32 black spots in WA to be improved in the next year. 

June 9, 2014

Federal Member for Curtin Julie Bishop today visited Dalkeith Primary School to present Year 6 students with certificates following their recent visit to Australian Parliament House.

Ms Bishop spoke candidly about her role as the Minister for Foreign Affairs as well as the Prime Minister’s recent visit to commemorate the 70^th Anniversary of the D-Day landings in Normandy, France.

“I was delighted to be able to personally present these certificates to the students as a momento of their visit which I trust has made an impression of these young students,” Ms Bishop said.

“It was encouraging to hear that the students had enjoyed their time in Canberra – especially their visit to the Australian War Memorial – and I look forward to welcoming the Year 5 students when they visit Canberra next year.”

June 7, 2014

Students from John XXIII have laid a wreath at the foot of the Tomb of the Unknown Australian Soldier at the Australian War Memorial in Canberra.

The Year 6 students – who were joined by the director of the Australian War Memorial, Brendan Nelson – heard how 60,000 Australian servicemen and women lost their lives in World War I. 

“Today is a very somber moment for you as you reflect on the fact that so many members of the armed forces had been prepared to sacrifice their lives so we can live in freedom, prosperity, stability and security,” Curtin MP and Foreign Affairs Minister Julie Bishop said. 

“I hope that this visit makes a real impression on you – it is a very special place in Australia’s history.” 

She told them the service and bravery of two World War I Subiaco soldiers – Victoria Cross winner Lieutenant Clifford Sadlier and Distinguished Conduct Medal recipient Sgt Charles Stokes – had been recognised this year at Villers-Bretonneux in France, at the Anzac Day dawn service. 

As part of their week-long camp to Canberra, students also visited other institutions, including Government House, the new and old parliament houses, the National Museum, National Dinosaur Museum and Royal Australian Mint. 

May 30, 2014

The development a new $62 million marine research centre at The University of Western Australia will create a world-class facility that will position the State – and the nation – as a leading oceans researcher within the Indo-Pacific region.

Minister for Foreign Affairs and Federal Member for Curtin Julie Bishop today unveiled a foundation stone to mark the start of work on site. Local company BGC Construction is building the new six-storey Indian Ocean Marine Research Centre, which will bring together 240 of the world’s leading scientists.

The focus for research will be in the areas of oceanography, marine ecology, fisheries, geochemistry, governance, marine technologies and engineering, enabling critical studies into the sustainable use of resources, environmental protection and climate change.

Winthrop Professor Peter Davies, Pro-Vice Chancellor (Research) at UWA said the centre would significantly advance Australia’s marine science capability.

“The Indian Ocean remains one of the world’s largest and least explored marine environments,” Professor Davies said.

“Managing this globally significant marine estate requires a world-leading marine research capability and with this new centre, we will undoubtedly have that capability.”

Designed by Ferguson Architects, the Indian Ocean Marine Research Centre will target a 5 Star Green Star rating – a benchmark in sustainable development. Featuring a sandstone finish and terracotta wall panels, the building will incorporate castings representing marine life at the entrance to the building.

The new centre – expected to be completed by mid-2016 – is being built as part of collaboration between UWA, CSIRO and the Australian Institute of Marine Science (AIMS). It has been made possible by a $34 million grant from the Australian Government as part of the Education Investment Fund, and contributions from the three organisations.

Located on the western side of UWA’s Crawley campus, it will be complemented by a seawater facility at Watermans Bay which is currently undergoing an $11 million refurbishment, funded by UWA, CSIRO and the State Government, through the Department of Fisheries.

May 6, 2014

By Jon Bassett

Increased trade, defence links, education and workforce training were on the agenda for 80 Canberra-based ambassadors and high commissioners hosted by Curtin MHR July Bishop during a three-day tour of Perth and WA last week. 

“WA is open for business, as about 97 per cent of Australia’s iron ore exports and 79 of our natural gas exports come from Western Australia,” Ms Bishop, the Foreign Minister, said. 

The tour, which included the ambassadors of the US, China, Japan, the EU and UK, was the first time a large group of diplomats had been brought to WA. 

They flew to the Pilbara to see BHP Billiton, Woodside and Rio Tinto mining operations last Friday. 

After Prime Minister Tony Abbott’s China and Japan trade push last month, Ms Bishop said the tour was part of the overall policy of Australia’s economic development, including seeking new sources of investment. 

In Perth, the ambassadors visited Kings Park before attending the University of WA In The Zone seminar centered on Australia’s role in the Asia-Pacific trade, including a panel discussion on maritime navigation that included former Perth MHR Stephen Smith. 

Premier Colin Barnett hosted a lunch at Cottesloe’s Indiana restaurant. The ambassadors were also briefed on opportunities in WA before visiting Fremantle. 

Some were interested in the human resources they could provide to Australia. 

“For us, it is how WA can provide work for our semi-skilled workers here, particularly in horticulture and hospitality,” Vanuatu High Commissioner Kalfau Kaloris said. 

He planned talks with the State Government about job training for the people of his Third World Pacific island state.

“We would love to see a FIFO working coming from Vanuatu to WA one day,” he said. 

Malaysian High Commissioner Zainal Ahmad saw increased links between his nation and Western Australia. 

“During the briefing we were told about the number of our tourists coming to your beautiful WA, and we seethe opportunity for more students studying here after seeing your education facilities,” he said. 

May 3, 2014

Curtin home and community care provider TAPSS Community Care has undergone a name change, as it continues to provide assistance to seniors and residents living with a disability.

Shine Community Services provides a number of important services, including assistance with transport, social support, meals, outings, home maintenance and in-home respite.

The organisation also provides day care facilities including a reading room, onsite podiatry and a cafeteria staffed by local volunteers.

Federal Member for Curtin Julie Bishop was invited to attend the organisation’s open day on May 3, where the rebranding officially took place.

“Shine Community Services provides a vital service, enabling seniors and disabled persons to live an active and healthy lifestyle,” Ms Bishop said.

“I have no doubt they will continue to offer an outstanding service to Curtin residents for many years to come.”

Shine Community Services is always on the lookout for new members as well as volunteers who assist with the day-to-day running of the facility.

For more information, visit www.tapss.com.au.

April 28, 2014

By Natalie Brown

It is rare that a piece of history makes it back into the hands of its creator but as former prisoner of war Paul Royle read a letter he wrote more than 70 years ago, it brought back many fond memories. 

Mr Royle, whose story of a dramatic bid for freedom in March 1944 was told in the book and move The Great Escape, clearly remembers the generosity of strangers who sent him parcels of food and clothes during his years in German camp Stalag Luft III. 

Mr Royle, 100, is the oldest survivor of the so-called Great Escape after joining 76 World War II allied airmen in digging and attempting to escape from the camp through a tunnel. 

He was returned to camp less than 24 hours after escaping, while 50 others – including his escape partner Edgar Humphreys – were killed. 

Yesterday, a handful of letters and documents from his years in the camp, including a letter of thanks written to a woman who had sent him clothing in 1941, were presented to Mr Royle by Foreign Affairs Minister Julie Bishop. 

“The socks and pullover are nicely made and fit me perfectly,” he wrote. “It’s still rather cold so they are especially useful.” 

Mr Royle said he made sure he always thanked those who had sent the parcels after receiving the names of prisoners of war through the Red Cross. 

While he does not remember receiving the pullover, it was gratefully received by an Australian during the northern spring. 

He recalls the generosity of one particular donor – a woman – who continued to send him gifts, which seven decades later, he still remembers being touched by. 

“She sent me a parcel very early on, it was the very first parcel any of us got and it was a nice parcel of food,” he said.  “I didn’t know her and I don’t know how she got my name, I think probably from the Red Cross. And afterwards I wrote to her and thanked her.” 

Mr Royle said reading his handwritten note in his Nedlands care home, surrounded by his fascinated family, reminded him of the kindness afforded from people around the word. 

“It’s well in my memory and I’m very happy to see them and go back and learn about them and to see what other people did for us,” Mr Royle said. 

“We got lots of Red Cross parcels, hundreds of them … the biggest parcel we ever got was a huge thing and it was full of toilet paper.” 

Ms Bishop said a newspaper clipping picturing her with Mr Royle on his 100th birthday had prompted staff at Geneva’s International Committee of the Red Cross to delve into their archives for files from Mr Royle’s years in Stalag Luft III. 

They were given to her during her recent visit to the committee’s headquarters. 

“I was absolutely thrilled that they had managed to retrieve his records and had made the connection between my visit and Mr Royle,” she said. 

“It’s a little part of our history that we should never forget and the fact that one of our local community members went through such an incredible experience being a prisoner of war and being part of the Great Escape.” 

April 25, 2014

Shenton Park RSL sub-branch will rewrite history in time for next year’s Anzac Day centenary commemorations.

An honour board listing local men who served in World War I, and those who lost their lives, will be updated. It hangs in the Shenton Park Community Centre and was made after the war. The West Subiaco Roll of Honour’s 76 names will grow to 79 when it is revamped.

Sub-branch president Peter Hopper spent months researching every Digger named on the board, searching for extra information about them.

“Our honour board is unique, in that it includes the names of those men from Shenton Park– or West Subiaco, as it was then – who fought and died in the Great War,” said Peter, who served in Vietnam. “Most boards just list the names of those who were killed in action or died from wounds or disease.“

But it is inaccurate and incomplete and needs to be fixed.

”One name will be removed permanently. Corporal Wallington’s name will not appear on the new board because he was on the run from the law when he enlisted.”

Peter said Wallington had not seen any action but had claimed to be a veteran, and had even been awarded medals he was not entitled to.

“He should never have been on the board in the first place,” he said. “He was a swindler and a criminal.”

The honour board’s first woman will be among the four names to be added. After his research into war-time nurses from Subiaco, Peter discovered Ivy Bradshaw, who had been a staff nurse. The other three new names are of men from the same family. Several months ago, a family who used to live opposite the Shenton Park Community Centre got in touch with Peter about their grandfather.

“They said their grandfather, Alexander Anderson, wasn’t on the honour roll and asked if he could be added,” he said. “There is an Anderson already on the board, from Redfern Street, but he is not related to them. As it turns out, Alexander Anderson had a son, Roy, and a brother, George, who will also be going on the board.”

Sub-branch treasurer and secretary Clive Goddard, a sailor on HMAS Hobart during World War II, has a strong connection with the roll. His uncle, William Browning,was a bugler with the 16th Battalion and was killed by a sniper at Gallipoli less than a week after the Anzacs landed.

Clive was born in the house in Hilda Street where he still lives, and where his mother was also raised. Two of his mother’s relatives, Robert and James Browning, are listed on the honour board.

The sub-branch will get federal funding for projects to mark the 100th anniversary of World War I and Australia’s involvement in the war. It got $1810 of the $125,000 set aside for the Curtin district. Curtin MP Julie Bishop headed the committee that looked at applications for funding.

Ms Bishop said: “The Anzac centenary grants are helping to assist community groups across Curtin to undertake projects that commemorate the service and sacrifice of Australian servicemen and women in the First World War.

“It is encouraging to see so many organisations and individuals take an interest in preserving and remembering Anzac history and I look forward to the Curtin electorate delivering commemorations the community and the nation will be proud of.”

The new honour board is expected to be completed and installed at the Shenton Park Community Centre later this year.

April 14, 2014

Foreign Minister and Federal Member for Curtin Julie Bishop met with Curtin student Cailin Molinari while visiting Hiroshima for the Eighth Ministerial Meeting of the Non-Proliferation and Disarmament Initiative (NPDI) on April 11 and 12. 

The former Churchlands Senior High School student, who is currently studying at the University of Western Australia, was in Japan as part of an Australian Youth Exchange program. Students were involved in a dialogue between Foreign Ministers and atomic bomb survivors at the NPDI. 

Formed by Australia and Japan to strengthen efforts under the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, the NPDI aims to prevent the proliferation of nuclear weapons and promote the peaceful use of nuclear energy. 

Ms Bishop’s visit followed the historic Australia-Japan free trade deal agreed by Prime Minister Tony Abbott and Trade Minister Andrew Robb with Japanese counterparts this month.