Australian Government funding will benefit a Tingalpa business to develop and commercialise their state-of-the-art mine haulage truck.

Loadpro Australia is one of six Australian businesses sharing in $3.2 million worth of the Australian Government’s Accelerating Commercialisation grants.

Loadpro has been offered $1 million to assist in completing the final design of their X60 Truck, commercialising the X60, achieving domestic sales and laying the foundation for global sales yielding national benefits through job creation and export revenue.

Loadpro founder and Managing Director Ron Schliebs said development of the X60 Truck will fill a product gap for off-highway trucks in the mining and construction industries, in particular for extended hauls that other off-highway and articulated trucks are not suited for.

“The project will lead to a commercial production run to meet expected advance orders for the X60 in Australia and Indonesia from companies with which Loadpro has already established a relationship,” Mr Schliebs said.

“Features [of the X60] include high payload with low tare/gross weight, with less fuel burn. Future development for military/defence applications is also envisaged.”

Federal Member for Bonner Ross Vasta said Accelerating Commercialisation grants support businesses on the pathway to commercialisation.

“Businesses around the country are putting their hands up to work with the Australian Government on developing their ideas, and taking their products to domestic and international markets,” Mr Vasta said.

“The support to Loadpro will encourage other local businesses to think outside the box, and come up with ways to improve their business.

“I strongly encourage all businesses in Bonner to partner with the government to enhance their success, both locally and globally.”

For more information about how to apply for an Entrepreneurs’ Programme Accelerating Commercialisation grant, visit www.business.gov.au/ep.

More information on the grant recipients is available at www.business.gov.au/ac-funding-offers.

Uncle Bob’s Bakery in Belmont is pumping out the meat pies in a bid to take the title in this year’s ‘Pie of Origin’ competition. 

Up against Glenorie Bakery in New South Wales, Uncle Bob’s is flying the flag for Queensland and aiming to raise some much needed funds for the Brisbane Children’s Hospital Foundation. 

Federal MP for Bonner, Ross Vasta faced off in Parliament this week in a war of words with rival MP Julian Leeser, and encouraged all constituents to play their part and buy a pie from Uncle Bob’s.

“I spoke to the owner, Brett Noy, last week, and he's pumping out the meat pies, and I must say if you haven’t had one already you need to get down there. Not only are they supporting a great Brisbane charity but they’re damn delicious,” Mr Vasta said.

“So far it’s three a piece so we can’t be complacent. Taking out the 2018 ‘Pie of Origin’ comp will give us Queenslanders just one more chance to rub our winning streak in the faces of our Southern counterparts.”

Beginning in 2012 the competition so far has raised in excess of $90,000 for various charities in New South Wales and Queensland. 

The overall winner will be announced following the final State of Origin game on the 11th July.

Last Monday I had the pleasure of hosting the Minister for Aged Care in Bonner. There were many important visits and announcements on the day. I wanted to focus on two events that were particularly significant for my older constituents.

The first event was a Seniors Forum I hosted in Mt Gravatt. It was another great turnout: over 70 Bonner locals attended!

The Minister’s news of our record $5 billion investment in aged care, and the extra 20,000 home care places we’re providing, was very well received. Wishart local Muriel Mitchell said she learned a lot of useful information about residential and home care. She feels a lot more confident about her options to look after her husband at home for longer.

Carindale local Paul Williams brought his father Victor along to hear what the Minister had to say. They appreciated the Minister’s passion for finding new ways to improve aged care services. They also appreciated the range of stallholders at the forum, which included My Aged Care and Brisbane South PHN.

The Minister also spoke about how we’re investing over $100 million in mental health funding for older Australians. This is the largest ever single increase to mental health funding for older Australians. I’m proud to be part of a Government that is delivering for older residents in Bonner.

The second event was a meeting with a local Wynnum group that is doing great things for people living with dementia. The Dementia Awareness Advocacy Team is a wonderful group of people that is striving for a more dementia friendly community.

It advocates for people living with dementia and their care partners. It also aims to raise awareness of dementia and reduce the stigma and stereotyping of this condition.

The team provides dementia awareness training that has benefitted many local businesses, including my own office. This training gives people a thorough understanding of what dementia is and how to relate to people living with dementia. It’s a fantastic initiative and I thank them for their great work.

I’m also pleased to see $5.3 million in the Budget for dementia innovation which will benefit people living with dementia.

I thank the Minister again for his visit and speaking with my senior constituents about their experiences with aged care and mental health support.

The Turnbull Government has delivered income tax relief for all Australian workers.

In passing our Personal Income Tax plan through the Parliament, the Government has ensured all Australians paying tax will be better off. They will be paying less tax, and will be rewarded for their hard work both now and into the future, Federal Member for Bonner Ross Vasta said today.

“Taxes in Australia will now be lower, fairer and simpler. Over 66,500 people and their families in my electorate of Bonner will benefit from tax relief of up to $530 in 2018-19,” Mr Vasta said.

“This is a win for all working Australians who want to get ahead. You will have the certainty that when you earn more, get a pay rise or work more hours, you won’t face ever-increasing tax rates.”

“Under our plan, 94 per cent of Australian workers will not face higher marginal tax rate of more than 32.5c in the dollar, with our first priority low and middle income earners because we understand the benefits of a stronger economy have not yet flowed to all.”

More information on the legislated Personal Income Tax Plan is available at https://www.budget.gov.au/2018-19/content/factsheets/7-pitp.html.

I had a great experience recently connecting a local not-for-profit with local business, all for a great cause.

Makeables Tingalpa, which is part of Multicap, is a not-for-profit disability employer. Since 1991, Makeables has provided employment, job skills, and lasting working relationships for people with high needs disability.

Multicap business manager Joshua Walsh recently reached out to me asking for help connecting with businesses in the area. Makeables offers fantastic services for local businesses. This includes manual assembly, packing, or finishing services such as packaging, bag sealing and labelling. This can save businesses in employment costs and warehousing space.

Makeables employees also benefit from these arrangements. It gives employees life-changing skills and training. I had the great pleasure of meeting these employees at Makeables Tingalpa this month and seeing their work firsthand.

I thank my good friend David Bateson from Wynnum Business for putting Makeables in touch with Little Images, a local childcare photography business. Owner Leigh Farley says Makeables employees have done great work putting together a promotional mailout for Little Images.

Makeables employees folded letters and brochures for Little Images, and inserted them into a windowed envelope to be sent to prospective clients. They also included a chocolate drink so people could read over everything with a nice cup of hot chocolate!

I’m glad to have helped make this arrangement possible. I want to thank Multicap CEO Joanne Jessop for her time last week to discuss this, and also giving me a tour of their Eight Mile Plains facility where I got to meet more of their wonderful employees.

Local residents and business owners had the opportunity to learn more about the National Broadband Network (NBN) rollout in their area at NBN information sessions held in Gumdale and Upper Mt Gravatt by Federal Member for Bonner Ross Vasta.

NBN Co representative Justin Thomson, and Telstra representatives Scott Mullaly and Sarah Kenny-Brand, joined Mr Vasta to help answer questions and provide solutions to attendees’ various connection issues.

“I’m pleased to report that 55 per cent of the NBN rollout is complete in Bonner, with all premises to have access to NBN services by 2020,” Mr Vasta said.

“Over time the NBN will replace most of the existing networks as the deliverer of a new service network. At the end of 2020, there will be further plans for path upgrades and speed building to ensure the best service is continually on offer for all users.”

Mr Vasta warned local residents to be wary of scammers going door-to-door or calling them.

“If you’ve been contacted by someone claiming the NBN is here already and that you must pay them to connect now, they’re scammers—please report them to my office,” Mr Vasta said.

Mr Thomson advised attendees to use the “Check your address” tool available at nbnco.com.au to find out when they can expect to be able to connect to the NBN.

He said every household that wanted to keep their landline and internet would be required to switch over to the NBN.

“Every premise in Australia will be connected to the NBN free-of-charge. You will then have 18 months from the installation date to switch over. This will give you plenty of time to shop around and look into the options and packages available to you,” Mr Thomson said.

“When contacting a service provider about switching over, ask them: what plan do they suggest, whether there will be any additional installation fees, and if you can keep your current home phone number—in most cases you’ll be able to. Have a good think about what plan will suit you best, you’ll have plenty of time to decide.”

Mr Mullaly said Telstra was working closely with NBN Co on the rollout, and that people could make NBN enquiries at any Telstra store.

“If you have any questions on the rollout and want to chat to someone about what’s available to you and the installation process, you can book an appointment at your local Telstra store to find out everything you need to know,” Mr Mullaly said.

When asked what options are available to people in a non-FTTN (Fibre to the Node) area looking to move onto FTTN, Mr Thomson said they should look into NBN Co’s Technology Choice Program.

“The Technology Choice Program gives interested parties the option to pay to switch over to FTTN or another NBN access network technology—look on the NBN website for more details,” Mr Thomson said.

Dr Richard Allen and Dr Michelle Allen from Upper Mount Gravatt said the forum they attended had been informative and well conducted.

“We came tonight to find out some information for our neighbours and we learned quite a bit,” Dr Michelle Allen said.

“We’ve found by contacting Ross’s office in the past with our NBN enquiries he’s been very helpful. We would recommend others to contact Ross as well if they run into any issues.”

Mr Vasta asked those with further issues or questions to contact his office or visit the NBN Co website at www.nbnco.com.au.

As part of International Men’s Health Week, Federal Member for Bonner Ross Vasta today hosted a Barefoot Bowls event at Club Manly in Manly West, with over 30 locals attending.

Free health checks were provided to all attendees by a local health specialist from Wynnum Chempro Chemist. Raffle prizes, including a gift pack from Manly Village Compounding Pharmacy and a meat tray from The Local Butcher at Manly Village, were up for grabs, with all proceeds going toward Mates4Mates. Gold coin donations on entry also went to Mates4Mates.

Mr Vasta thanked attendees for their support of a great cause.

“International Men’s Health Week is an important week where men of all ages come together from all works of life and chat about their health,” Mr Vasta said.

“Mates4Mates is a fantastic organisation that provides support to wounded, injured and ill current and ex-serving ADF personnel and their families and I’m proud to support them.”

Special guests Queensland Bulls players Mitchell Swepson and Cameron Gannon thanked Mr Vasta for inviting them.

“It’s great to have an event like this where we’re recognising men’s health. In our team we all stick together and I like to make sure we’re all doing okay. It’s a really important issue and something that we need to look at more,” Mr Swepson said.

Chairman of Club Manly Ian Reed said it was great to see the attendees enjoying themselves.

“I’d like to thank Ross for promoting men’s health. It’s a great initiative and a great way to introduce people to the game of bowls, which is extremely good for men’s health in their later years and gives them a social outlet,” Mr Reed said.

Wynnum local Fred Petersen said it had been a good day for all involved.

“There were a good number of men here today and some good games,” Mr Petersen said.

Over 70 locals from across Bonner attended a Seniors Forum in Mt Gravatt hosted by Federal Member for Bonner Ross Vasta on Monday.

Mr Vasta was joined by Minister for Aged Care the Hon Ken Wyatt at the event, who spoke on what the Government is doing for people in aged care and took questions from the audience. Stallholders from My Aged Care, PHN Brisbane South, Office of Fair Trading, Queensland Rail, NBN Co, and Mt Gravatt Men’s Shed also took part on the day.

“I thank the Minister for coming out here today to chat with people about their aged care options and hear about their aged care experiences firsthand,” Mr Vasta said.

Minister Wyatt told attendees the Government was delivering the biggest reforms to aged care in years.

“The Coalition is investing a record $5 billion over five years for aged care. We’re delivering an extra 20,000 home care packages and an extra 13,500 residential places,” Minister Wyatt said.

Minister Wyatt also spoke on the importance of meeting the mental health needs of older Australians.

“We’re providing the largest ever single increase to mental health funding for older Australians, at over $100 million,” Minister Wyatt said. 

Minister Wyatt also set out the scope of the new Aged Care Complaints Commissioner, and asked people with family members in aged care to contact him and share their experiences dealing with the aged care system.

Paul Williams from Carindale and his father Victor thanked Mr Vasta for holding the Seniors Forum and said it had been a good opportunity to learn useful information.

“We appreciate the opportunity to meet the Minister and Department representatives. The Minister has a great depth of knowledge about the issues people face. It’s clear he’s passionate about finding new ways to improve services,” Victor said.

Muriel Mitchell from Wishart said it had been a great forum and that the Minister had explained things very well.

“I learned a lot of useful information today about residential care and home care, and how I can look after my husband at home for longer,” Mrs Mitchell said.

“I’m very grateful to Ross for holding this forum and everything he’s done for us.”

Mr Vasta thanked attendees for coming along and sharing their views with him and Minister Wyatt.

“I’m pleased to be a part of a Government that considers older Australians a top priority, and I’m proud that in the recent Budget we were able to deliver for older residents in Bonner,” Mr Vasta said.

Federal Member for Bonner Ross Vasta has visited LEAD Childcare Tingalpa to congratulate them on receiving a Most Improved Service award for their outstanding work this year, and to discuss their work helping families transition to the new Child Care Subsidy.

The centre received the award out of 16 LEAD childcare services across Queensland at LEAD’s management end of year conference.

“As only three awards are given each year, this was a very meaningful award for all of us at LEAD Childcare Tingalpa,” Centre Director Katrina Bira said. 

“We received the award as an acknowledgement for myself and the educators here for all the hard work that has gone into making LEAD Childcare Tingalpa into a welcoming, inspiring centre for children, families, and the community.

“Our teaching teams use an emergent curriculum which follow children's interests and ideas. Children's interests are encouraged and future learning opportunities are presented in a way that sparks children's sense of curiosity and wonder. Through our extensions and support children gain confidence to explore their world and take safe risks.

“Children's learning is recorded on our online learning community, Storypark. Storypark allows families to be involved in their child's learning journey, which enhances and improves educational outcomes for children. Our educators and families become co-learners in the child's development.”

Mrs Bira said LEAD Childcare Tingalpa had helped their families transition to the new Child Care Subsidy by making information available on Storypark.

“We also display posters through the service as updates come to hand and have information pamphlets for the parents to take home and read. We also offer one-on-one meetings for families to help them on a case-by-case basis if they require additional individual support,” Mrs Bira said.

Families have until 2 July 2018 to update their details or risk missing out on the new subsidies. More information is available at https://www.education.gov.au/ChildCarePackage.