Council bosses have admitted that details included in a planning application to refurbish Rochdale Crematorium are incorrect.

The application, submitted by Rochdale Borough Council for the refurbishment of the crematorium, stated that the crematorium is unable to process bariatric coffins - which hold people who are severely overweight - among a backlog of other issues.

However, when contacted by the Observer, the council admitted that details included in the application were "incorrect."

They said: "Rochdale definitely has the capacity to process bariatric coffins at Rochdale Crematorium."

They added that the planning department has now been contacted over the issue.

In explaining the need for the refubishment - a section which the council has not disputed - the application highlights the issues of equipment consistently breaking down.

A council spokesman said: Rochdale Council currently operates two cremators at Rochdale Crematorium, one of which is capable of processing larger bariatric coffins it is one of the few bariatric cremators in Greater Manchester, regularly assisting with cremations from neighbouring local authorities.

"And, we already have fully functioning cremulators and ash transfer cabinets at Rochdale.

We are also well underway in replacing Crawford cremators and Mercury abatement system with two further bariatric cremators; new abatement systems and ash processing equipment for our Rochdale site. Works are expected to be completed within the next twelve months.

Further cremation facilities can also be found at Middleton Crematorium, with similar ash processing equipment meaning we have a greater capacity to offer cremations for families who have lost loved ones than most other authorities in the area.

Rochdale Crematorium is the only crematorium out of eight areas to have not had its faulty equipment replaced, causing delays in cremations, the application says.

In 2011, Rochdale was one of eight authorities to have cremators installed by a firm which went into liquidation two years later.

The cremators have caused a catalogue of problems, frequently breaking down among other operational issues, according to planning docuements.

In total eight crematoriums fitted the cremators, and all authorities have now removed them and installed different manufacturers equipment, apart from Rochdale, council chiefs say.

As plans have been submitted to refurbish Rochdale Crematorium, it is hoped the cremators will now finally be replaced.

Cremation equipment usually has a life span of twenty years and Middleton Crematorium's equipment has currently been in use for over 25 years.

The problems at Rochdale have been compounded further by the poor quality of both the cremators and mercury abatement equipment.

As a result, the council must now to consider replacing the entire installation with proven equipment from a new manufacturer which will also be flexible to cope with anticipated future emission level requirements, and operate more energy efficiently than at present.

New cremation equipment makes up part of the proposals to renovate the crematorium.

The Leader of the Conservative Party in Rochdale has criticised the facilities, which sometimes require people to be cremated in Middleton.

Councillor Ashley Dearnley said: "I think it's really unfortunate if that's the case because people who live in Rochdale wish their families to be cremated in Rochdale, and not need to go out of the town.

"Often, they have to wait weeks and weeks which is unacceptable.

"We should make sure that the equipment not only works but is also able to deal with present day circumstances - people are bigger than they used to be.

"We should be able to handle larger coffins.

"I am aware there have been major breakdowns in the past.

"It's so unfair for the families and it's not good for our undertakers either.

"We need to make sure that our equipment is of the standard it should be.

"Middleton is always the fallback and it shouldn't be like that - there have been problems with Rochdale crematorium since almost the start of the equipment being fitted."

The chapel at the crematorium is also to be extended and refurbished, with a new waiting area created.

The crematorium, situated in Rochdale Cemetery, first opened in 1938 and has largely remained the same except for a small extension to the existing crematory, enlarged staff facilities and small book of remembrance building.

The facilities "therefore do not reflect those which are expected by visiting mourners in the modern day", the docuements say.

The building is not listed, but is situated in the landscape of the cemetery.

The area housing the existing cremation process is very restricted and requires enlargement together with strengthening works to the support slab, improvements to the electricity supply and replacement of the central heating boiler, according to council documents.

A new cremulator and ash transfer cabinet - which process the remains post-cremation - are required along.

Further improvements planned include upgraded accommodation for funeral directors on site and enhanced weather protection for mourners attending services between the new waiting room and the chapel entrance.

Also integral with the new layout will be facilities for those mourners wishing to safely view the charging of a coffin into the cremator, as required by some religious groups notably Hindus and Sikhs.

Whilst this cremator is fully operational it does not have mercury filtration equipment fitted, and therefore consideration will have to be given in the future to either replacing it, which may not be viable given the relatively small number ofcremations being held there, or removing it entirely, offering the opportunity to expand the chapels capacity and carrying out the cremations at Rochdale instead.

A planning application has now been submitted by the council to replace the cremators and refurbish the crematorium.

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Council admits wrong information was included in crematorium planning application - In Your Area

By Bev Knight

Due to a number of factors, we are enjoying one of the best sellers market of this millennium. Interest rates are still at historic lows, and the world is changing significantly due to COVID-19. People who are working at home and sharing their space with kids who are doing remote school have a compelling reason to rethink where they live. There is a notable exodus from crowded cities, and vacations have become staycations. Its a great time to move to the lake; therefore, its a great time to sell your lake house, especially since there is a shortage of available homes. You have very little competition.

For a lot of lake homeowners, once they decide to sell, panic sets in. Many of the homes built in the housing boom of the 80s are now outdated. The thought of renovating an entire home is quite overwhelming, so experts agree that you should probably start with the kitchen. Thats great, but what are the latest trends? Here are some guidelines on renovating kitchens in 2021.

Lets start with the good news. Homes that are more than 20 years old had enclosed rooms with doors. For several decades, open floor plans have been the trend and these chopped up homes have fallen out of fashion. Now, picture mom and dad working on their laptops while the kids are doing their remote schooling in the same room. The noise and chaos of that situation have reignited the need for doors that shut. There are still people who prefer open floor plans, but others are now seeing the value in rooms with walls.

Counter tops have evolved, too. For years, very dark Uba Tuba granite was in almost every house. Todays most popular counter tops are lighter with more of a marble look. In addition, granite is no longer the market leader. Quartz counters, which have come down in price, are more common.

Granite counters are carved out of quarries, whereas quartz counters are man-made by mixing crushed rock with resin. While granite is better for hot pots, it does need to be sealed and can stain. Quartz counters, because they have resin in the mix, are not good for hot pots. However they do not stain easily and do not need to be sealed.

If you need help deciding, the top selling quartz counter at Home Depot is Calacatta Gold. According to their rep, it goes with everything. The top-selling granite is White Springs. Keep an eye out for the next big trend which will be Ultra-compact counters. These do not have resin and are extremely durable counter tops. Unlike other counters that yellow and wear in the sun, Ultra-compact is ideal for outdoors.

Youd be surprised to see what a difference a refreshed coat of paint on cabinets and new counters can do for an older home. The average counter replacement job is in the range of $2,000-$3,000, much less than you might expect. Youll probably want an expert to paint your cabinets, so that price

will vary with the number of cabinets in your kitchen. Its worth the effort because this is one update that you will get back with the sale of your home. Good luck, and have fun renovating.

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Need to renovate to sell? Start with the kitchen - Lakeside on Lanier

To minimize the spread of COVID-19, Gov. Andy Beshear today announced an extension of a special program for remote renewal of qualifying expired Kentucky drivers license and ID cards. The new official order grants Kentuckians access to renew or replace a driving or identity credential through their Circuit Court Clerks preferred mail-in or drop method.

The order applies to Kentucky drivers licenses, permits and state-issued identification cards that expired or will expire by June 30, 2021. Applicants who require driver testing performed by Kentucky State Police must successfully complete that step before renewing a credential. Up to now, the cutoff has been a Feb. 28, 2021 expiration date.

The COVID-19 pandemic has taken the lives of nearly 4,000 Kentuckians, so all of us have a responsibility to minimize its spread however we can. Mail-in renewal of drivers licenses is just one way to enable people to stay healthy and avoid crowds, Gov. Beshear said.

Those who qualify can apply for renewal or replacement remotely through the circuit court clerk in their county of residence. The lone exception is Fayette County, where all driver licensing functions including mail-in renewal have been transferred from the circuit court clerk to a new Kentucky Transportation Cabinet (KYTC) Regional Driver Licensing Office at 141 Leestown Center Way, Suite 125.

For residents of all other counties, check with the clerk as to preferred method, such as drop-off form or mail-in form. The forms can be downloaded here. Please note that there is one form for residents of Fayette, Franklin and Woodford counties and a different form for residents of all other counties.

Dont wait until the expiration date to renew by mail, Kentucky Transportation Secretary Jim Gray said. Plan ahead and allow sufficient time for processing. A license can be renewed up to six months before its expiration date. We want to make renewal as convenient and as healthy as possible.

The mail-in option is not available for REAL IDs or new standard licenses, permits and IDs, all of which must be renewed or obtained in person. Nor does it apply to commercial driver licenses or cardholders who have had an address change. Learn more at drive.ky.gov.

There now are 14 KYTC regional driver licensing offices Paducah, Madisonville, Owensboro, Bowling Green, Elizabethtown, Frankfort, Lexington, Burlington, Richmond, Somerset, Morehead, Prestonsburg, Columbia and Jackson. There also are temporary offices, operating by appointment only and with limited services, in Louisville and Catlettsburg. More regional offices will be opened around the Commonwealth as conditions permit.

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Gov. Beshear extends mail-in renewal option for expiring driver's licenses to limit COVID-19 exposure - The Trimble Banner

First ministerial cabinet of Ivn Duque in 2018 / Presidency of Colombia

Since the presidential campaign, the now president Ivn Duque announced that he was going to work, for the first time, with a joint cabinet, that is, where half (or even more) were women, a commitment that he fulfilled when he appointed eight within his ministries : Culture, Justice, ICT, Education, Mines, Labor, Transportation and Interior, the latter one of the most important. But in February 2020, his cabinet became the opposite.

As La Silla Vaca analyzed it, this was one of the commitments that Duque repeated the most in the campaign, which Today it could be classified as a lie since of those eight that started, only two remain (ngela Mara Orozco in Transportation and Mara Victoria Angulo in Education). According to the Quota Law cited by the media, women should occupy at least 30 percent of the positions, but today they represent 27.78 percent of these. With the vice president and Duke himself, the quota would be 30 percent closed.

In January 2020, the president appointed Mabel Torres as head of the newly inaugurated Ministry of Science and thus women became a majority in the cabinet. For the first time in the history of the country, 10 of the 18 most important positions were led by a woman. La Silla recalls that even the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights congratulated Duque on the cabinet at the beginning of his term.

But the bliss didnt last long: in February of last year, Duque lowered the quota to nine when he sent Alicia Arango to the Interior Ministry and replaced ngel Custodio Cabrera in the Ministry of Labor, all this after the resignation of Nancy Patricia Gutirrez. But it was in June, four months later, when the parity ended. Duque appointed Diego Mesa as a replacement for Mara Fernanda Surez in the Ministry of Mines, leaving the list of women at eight and, later, leaving the cabinet with seven women when he changed the current Attorney General and then Chief of Justice, Margarita Cabello, by Wilson Ruiz.

But it didnt stop there. In December 2020, Alicia Arango left the Interior Ministry, replaced by her vice minister, Daniel Palacios, and Carmen Vsquez from the Ministry of Culture, who handed over her position to Felipe Buitrago. Currently, as of February 2020, there are only five female ministers, of 10 that came to be, while men occupy 13 headquarters.

La Silla also brought up that Duques idea of having permanent ministers throughout his term was not fulfilled with the 14 changes he has made and taking into account that of the 18 that started only five continue: Alberto Carrasquilla, in the Treasury and to whom the opposition has tried several times to remove from office; Jos Manuel Restrepo in Commerce, Jonathan Malagn in Housing and who accused of having plagiarized his thesis; Mara Victoria Angulo in Education and ngela Orozco in Transportation.

Finally, the media says that of the six administrative departments, only one has a woman as head and that of Social Prosperity, with Susana Correa. He also mentions that of 38 vice ministries there are only 10 women and in their 18 general secretariats, there are seven. The promise was not kept.

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Originally posted here:
Parity in government: only five women remain in 18 ministries - Explica

Katherine Gregg|The Providence Journal

PROVIDENCE Weeks away from his likely stepup to governor,Lt. Gov. Dan McKee has begun lining up his cabinet, his own replacement in the state's No. 2 spot, and his counter-arguments to legislators seekingto halt the expansion of "charter" schools.

In a wide-ranging interview on Sunday, McKee said he has been reaching out one-by-one to the members of Gov. Gina Raimondo's cabinet that he hopes to keep.

He said a handful, he declined to name, have already signaled their intent to leave their jobs soon. But he said state Health Department Director Nicole Alexander-Scott,Business Regulation Director Elizabeth Tanner,VeteransAffairs Director Kasim Yarn,Adjutant General Christopher P. Callahan and James Manni, the superintendent of the R.I. State Police, would remain at the helm of their respective agencies.

And he told The Journalhehad more calls to make.

At the same time, he confirmed that Johnston Mayor Joseph Polisenais leading his effort to screen the candidates seeking to replace him aslieutenant governor when Raimondo leaves for her anticipated new job as commerce secretary in the new Biden administration and he moves up.

Once he is governor, McKee will get to appoint his own replacement, subject to Senate confirmation. .

The mayor of Cumberland before his own election as lieutenant governor six years ago, McKee said Polisena, as a mayor, "knows me [and] that's a top priority."

Polisena has already stated his first choice out of the dozen or so applicants: former Central Falls Mayor James Diossa.

Im coming out publicly for Mayor Diossa,'' Polisena told the Johnston Sunrise."Hes a friend and I feel confident in his abilities."

"I think he would make a great lieutenant governor,'' Polisena is quoted as sayingin an article published on January 15,"because hes got experience in running municipal government... Its not a position for someone to start learning... Hes very bright, very articulate, he ran Central Falls and he left Central Falls in a better position than when he took over.

McKee said: "I talked to Joe about that ... I know that mayors like mayors and I like (James)Diossa as well, but that doesn't mean the decision is made."

Women'sadvocates have pushed for the appointment of a woman; Black advocates for the appointment of a Black person and Latinos for a Latino.

McKee said the most important characteristic to him is: "someone that is able to work with me."

As an example, he would like the next lieutenant governor to be someone who would keep the 39 city and town plaques he placed on the wall leading to his State House office. Put another way: "somebody who has an interest in including all 39 cities and towns in their efforts."

Asked how important "diversity'' will be in the decision, he said: "It's important ... but I don't think it is a disqualifier to be non-minority ... I think that would be discrimination as well, right?"

McKee said he's been briefed on the state's budget predicament, but will not be in a position to say how he intends to close the projected $513-million deficit in the budget until he has a clearer picture of how big the deficit really is.

"If you need to raise taxes to be solvent, you are going to do it,'' he said, while stressing he is not yet convinced that is necessary.

He is most clear, at this point, on where he stands on the latest in a series of annual bills to curb the expansion of "charter schools."

The latest championed by Senate President Dominick Ruggerio and the top-ranked players on his leadership team is scheduled for a hearing Wednesday by the Senate Committee on Education.

Charter schools are publicly funded alternatives to traditional schoolswith more freedom from mandates.

The legislation says: "The state shall not approve or appropriate funding to any new charter school orto expand an existing charter school that had not been approved by the council on elementary andsecondary education prior to July 1, 2020."

McKee, who as a mayor helped found a type of charter school in which mayors chair the board of directors and teachers dont pay into the pension system, objectedto any effort to stop the sixcharter schools that won approval in December toexpand or open in Providence.

"The agenda there is pretty obvious,''he said. "The agenda is to stop charters."

He said he would be "open'' to discussing a "reasonable pause to take a look at it."

But he pushed back hard against the argument "an argument motivated by self interest" that the public dollars given charter schools come at the expense ofthe traditional public school system.

"It's public money that's going to a public school," McKee said.

"So the notion that it is taking away from kids' education is not accurate,'' he said, citing the overall improvement in schools in his hometown when "mayoral academies" were added to the mix.

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McKee starts putting the puzzle pieces in place for move up to governor - The Providence Journal

Katherine Gregg|The Providence Journal

PROVIDENCE Lt. Gov. DanMcKee expects every member of current Rhode Island Gov. Gina Raimondo's cabinet to stay through his own imminent, mid-terminauguration as Raimondo's replacement.

How long they actually stay is another question.

For example, Commerce Secretary Stefan Pryor "has told the incoming governor that he is exploring all his options,'' according to Pryor spokesman Matt Sheaff. (For what it's worth:Pryorwas a Yale Law School student in the mid-1990s withRaimondoand her husband, Andrew Moffit.)

Democrat Raimondo is poised to resign mid-term to take a new job, in Washington, as President Joe Biden's commerce secretary. Her confirmation hearing was Tuesday.An committee vote on her nomination is anticipated next Wednesday, February 3.

The exact timing of Raimondo's departure is unclear. ButSen. Roger Wicker, the Mississippi Republicanwho chairs theU.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, told Raimondo on Tuesday: "I do not believe you will be serving as governor of the state of Rhode Island for very muchlonger."

Against that backdrop, McKee is preparing for his move up one flightto the governor'sState House suite as soon as next week. He has set 5 p.m. Tuesday as the deadline for those seeking appointment by him as R.I.'s next lieutenant governor to submit "a letter of interest'' online to his transition team at http://www.mckeetransition.com/.

McKee, who had no working relationship with fellow Democrat Raimondo and no role in her administration's pandemic response efforts, issued this statement:

Selecting the nextlieutenantgovernorprovides an opportunity to reimagine Rhode Islands governance model and demonstrate how thelieutenantgovernors office can be leveraged to support the states pandemic response and economic recovery.

Our team looks forward to engaging in the selection process and identifying a partner to work closely with our administration starting on day one.

Brown University has confirmed that onecontender -former Central Falls Mayor James Diossa - started worked on January 25, on a six-month job as senior advisor to the BrownPolicy Lab.

According to a statement from Diossa, conveyed by the Brown public relations staff: "The Policy Lab conducts applied research to improve public policy in Rhode Island and beyond, bringing together experts from government, universities, and community organizations to collaborate and develop evidence-based policy and programs that improve lives and strengthen communities.

"As Senior Advisor, I will work closely with The Policy Lab Director, David Yokum, and senior staff to provide strategic advice on The Policy Labs engagement with state and local government partners at a high level...in particular, assessing and revising a proposal for a statewide municipal student internship program to support Rhode Islands recovery from COVID-19 and undertaking exploratory conversations with an array of prospective partners to refine this proposal and identify sources of philanthropic support."

Asked if Diossa wastaking his name out of the running for lieutenant governor, his political spokesman Chris Hunter said:: "He's still open to the opportunity for public service."

McKee's transition team plans to post updates onwww.mckeetransition.com.

Raimondo, meanwhile, appears to have spent much of the last week or so talking, in advance of Tuesday's confirmation hearing,to the members of the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation.

Both she and they referenced these detailed conversations where the senators laid out the issues on their minds from "salmon infrastructure" and fishing in the Pacific Northwest to China trade policy so she could address them at the hearing.

On Tuesday, her Rhode Island press office announced a spate of 11th-hour appointments to state boards and commissions.

Most but not all were reappointments, such as the reappointment of organized labor activistScott Duhamel and retired union chief Stan Israel to the State Labor Relations Board.

An online profile describes Duhamel asan assistant to the general president of the International Union of Painters and Allied Trades and the secretary-treasurer of the Rhode Island Building and Construction Trades Council. Israel was the long-time executive vice president of SEIU District 1199.

Her new appointees include some familiar names, such as former Auditor General Ernest Almonte to the Narragansett Bay Commission.

Other new appointees include Bill Stone to the board of the R.I. Commerce Corporation. Stone isaco-founder and managing member of Outside CFO, Outside GC, which describes itself as "the nations largest provider of on-demand general counsel services," and Patent GC, "an on-demand provider of intellectual property legal services."

She also appointed Mark Amato, president and CEO of Innova Logic, to the governor's Workforce Board; former Providence City Councilman Peter Mancini to theR.I.Convention Center Authority andMarcy Reyes, founder and CEO of The Financial Literacy Youth (FLY) Initiative, to the R.I. Public Transit Authority.

Explaining the rush of appointments in what could be Raimondo's last week as the state's elected governor, spokeswoman Audrey Lucas said: "Making appointments to Rhode Island's boards and commissions is a responsibility that Governor Raimondo takes seriously, and one that has been significantly delayed as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic."

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Lt. Gov. McKee expects Raimondo's cabinet to stay through his own inauguration, unclear how long after that - The Providence Journal

The establishment wings of center-left parties know how to fight when confronting left-wing challenges from within their own ranks. But they rarely show the same capacity or willpower when turning to face their conservative opponents.

Hillary Clinton pulled out all the stops to beat Bernie Sanders in 2016, only to be bested by a candidate who proved the most unpopular president since the advent of modern polling. Four years later, Joe Biden rallied the Democratic establishment against Sanders once again, but his narrow victory over Donald Trump probably would not have happened without a disastrous pandemic that should have buried Trump altogether.

In Britain, Keir Starmer has concentrated on waging a factional war against the Labour Partys left wing, including his predecessor Jeremy Corbyn. Meanwhile, Starmer still lags behind Boris Johnson and the Conservatives in most opinion polls, even after their incompetent handling of the pandemic has led to one hundred thousand deaths and counting.

The Australian Labor Party (ALP) follows the same pattern. The ALPs right faction likes to mythologize itself as the embodiment of ruthless pragmatism, willing to do Whatever it Takes to win power a motto most famously associated with the brutal bashing of a left-wing branch activist in the 1980s. But Labor Rights last candidate, Bill Shorten, was Labors most unpopular leader in thirty years, losing two consecutive elections in 2016 and 2019.

Since Shortens second defeat, Labor Lefts Anthony Albanese has led the party. Albanese has been an uninspiring leader, whose inadequate attempts at organizational reform have done nothing to challenge a coterie of right-wing bureaucrats who dominate the party machine. Few people in the ALP think he can win a national election against Liberal PM Scott Morrison, and theres mounting speculation that hell soon face a leadership challenge.

This would be the ninth time the ALP has changed its leader in just twenty years. But a change of personality at the top that leaves the ALPs organizational culture and policy platform unchanged will do nothing to address its problems. And most of the candidates to replace Albanese would represent a clear step backwards.

The nicest thing you could say about Jim Chalmers is that hes a nonentity. Right Labor presents him as a sensationally popular shadow treasurer, but 82 percent of Australians cant even recognize his name. Among those who follow politics closely, Chalmers is probably best remembered for having tearfully begged then Labor PM Kevin Rudd to support his preselection as an ALP candidate.

Chalmerss supporters insist that he is the right man to lead Labor because he hails from Queensland, which has a reputation as Australias most conservative state ignoring the fact that Chalmers has worked full-time in Canberra and Sydney since 2001.

Chalmers penned a hero-worshipping PhD thesis on former Labor prime minister Paul Keating, the man who first introduced Australias policy of indefinitely detaining asylum seekers. Keatings time in office revealed a staunch commitment to neoliberal economics: he referred to one economic downturn as the recession we had to have, and his stewardship of the Australian economy locked in a model characterized by spiraling inequality, privatization, and declining union membership.

Fans of Chalmers prefer to focus on his literary magnum opus, the bizarrely titled Glory Daze, which expresses his bafflement at the ingratitude of the Australian public toward the last Labor government. After all, Chalmers points out, former treasurer Wayne Swan for whom he worked as chief of staff delivered economic growth. Perhaps the lack of appreciation has something to do with the fact that for young Australians, the most realistic pathway to home ownership is waiting for their parents to die.

As immigration minister under Julia Gillard, Chris Bowen ensured that asylum seekers, including children, remained imprisoned in offshore camps. Some of those refugees sewed their lips shut in protest. He bears more responsibility than most for Australias illegal and inhumane asylum policy of indefinitely detaining refugees. When the history books are written, his name will be marked with shame.

While Labor Right members claim to be expert political tacticians, Bowens track record suggests otherwise. As shadow treasurer, he championed a reform to franking credits tax refunds paid to shareowners that are equivalent to the value of tax already paid by the companies whose shares they own. Even though Bowens policy would only have affected the wealthiest 10 percent of households, the Liberals still managed to present it as Labors death tax.

Bowen seemed helpless in the face of this bad-faith campaign, which presented franking credits as something that ordinary people could expect to benefit from. After the Liberals won the election, there were reports of pensioners ringing up the authorities to ask when their franking credits would come through, only to discover that the refunds were only available for the minority of people who actually own shares.

Albanese has just reshuffled the ALPs shadow cabinet, giving Bowen the climate change portfolio most likely in an attempt to appease Labors coal lobby representative, Joel Fitzgibbon. Fitzgibbon recently quit the shadow cabinet in protest against his partys confusing and scary climate change targets. Bowens promotion has brought Labor one step closer to abandoning those targets, leaving the planet to go to hell on a handcart.

Kristina Keneally perfectly embodies the gulf between the ALPs right-wing powerbrokers and Australian voters. Keneally oversaw the death throes of Labors last New South Wales (NSW) state government. Shes the apotheosis of the NSW disease, in which Labor frantically cycles through leaders in the hope of finding a popular one. Two Ministers in the former government have since been imprisoned, and one is currently facing a retrial. The NSW anti-corruption commission found that two more have been engaged in corrupt conduct.

Those corruption hearings were ultimately a sideshow compared to the social pain Keneally tried to inflict on the people of New South Wales with dogmatic neoliberal policies. In the teeth of entrenched opposition from unions and even her own right-wing faction, Keneally tried but ultimately failed to privatize the states monopoly on power generation, a move that would have raised electricity prices and led to cuts in pay and conditions for workers.

Labors right-wing bureaucrats may have forgotten about this, but voters havent. In 2011, Keneally led the most unpopular state government in NSW history to a record low vote share for the ALP of 25.5 percent less than half of the right-wing coalitions total. Six years later, she lost a federal by-election by 10 percent in Bennelong, a multicultural hub that should be one of Labors natural heartlands. That hasnt stopped the Right from trying to force through her preselection in Parramatta, against the wishes of left-wing party members.

Having found her way into the federal senate, Keneally has continued two old Labor Right traditions: hostility to immigrants and sycophancy toward the Catholic Church. Although she is an American immigrant herself, Keneally has called for crackdowns on asylum seekers and dog whistled about cheap foreign workers taking Australian jobs. At the same time, she has pandered to the religious right, most recently by opposing laws that would make it mandatory for Catholic priests to report child sexual abuse disclosed in confession.

Can a souffl rise not once, not twice, but three times? Faction man Bill Shorten, the most unpopular Labor leader in thirty years, hopes the answer is yes. Despite having led Labor to one of its worst results in recent history in 2019, Shorten hasnt had the grace to take a back seat in the ALP, seeking instead to undermine his successor Anthony Albanese.

The word voters most associate with Shorten is untrustworthy. Even his factional allies agree. As Samantha Maiden reports in Party Animals: The secret history of a Labor fiasco, ALP veteran Stephen Conroy told former general secretary Jamie Clements that he still wouldnt call Shorten a friend, despite being the only person to have attended Shortens 18th, 21st, and 40th birthdays (not to mention his wedding).

Shorten has earned that reputation with his long record of destabilizing Labor leaders. Hes the power broker behind the right-wing ShortCon subfaction, immodestly named after himself, and orchestrated the downfall of both Labor prime ministers to have been elected this century.

The Right claims that Shorten lost in 2019 because his platform was too far to the left. In reality, it was a very mild set of policies, with a handful of progressive proposals like scrapping tax concessions for property investors and bringing fairer taxes on family trusts used by the superwealthy. The policies werent the problem in fact, they were demonstrably more popular than either Shorten himself or the ALP.

Compared to the other contenders, Tanya Plibersek, from Labor Left, may seem like a distinct improvement. As health minister, she brought in plain cigarette packaging laws that were so effective big tobacco sued her twice in a bid to stop them. Plibersek also made the chemical abortion pill RU486 accessible to all women through the Pharmaceutical Benefits Scheme.

Plibersek supported same-sex marriage at a time when Jim Chalmerss hero Paul Keating was noisily insisting that two blokes and a cocker spaniel dont make a family. At times, shes even been willing to take controversial stands for example, by condemning Israeli prime minister Ariel Sharon for war crimes committed against the Palestinians.

However, we should still be wary. Even if the next Labor leader also hails from the Left, they will still have to face right-wing dominance over the party machine, which gives it massive influence over Labor candidates, caucuses, and policy. Even if Albaneses replacement proves to be another leader of the NSW Left, its hard to see what this would achieve without a more drastic reorientation of the party and its organizational culture.

Pliberseks personal record may not be as woeful as those of her potential rivals, but she has already shown signs of her willingness to capitulate to the Right in the interests of so-called party unity. Shes also been known to float conservative ideas like a pledge of allegiance for schoolkids a proposal that even right-wing talkback radio thought was pretty weird.

The real problem doesnt lie with the personnel at the top of the ALP its the factional balance inside the party. Labor Right claims to be in the busines of building an electable party. In practice, the factions tired mix of social conservatism and neoliberal economics has never inspired the electorate, but its leaders dont really care as long as they control the ALP itself.

This will only change if the ALPs left wing can find leaders with the courage to break up the corrupt, gerrymandered regime that controls the party, and decisively repudiate a commitment to neoliberalism that dates back to the age of Bob Hawke and Paul Keating. Until that happens, the only real leadership choice will be one between disappointment and despair.

Excerpt from:
If Anthony Albanese Steps Down Now, His Replacement Will Be Even Worse - Jacobin magazine

Reforming business risk management (BRM) programs, such as the AgriStability program, has been top of mind for many across the agriculture industry.

Federal Agriculture Minister Marie-Claude Bibeau proposed changes to the program at the federal-provincial-territorial agricultural ministers meeting in November, which the federal government says would increase AgriStability payouts by 50 per cent, but the three Prairie provinces have not signed on. Under the terms of the Canadian Agricultural Partnership, two of the three must agree to the program for it to proceed nationally.

The provinces have been given until the end of January to inform Minister Bibeau on whether they are still considering the proposal. The federal minister told reporters covering the Keystone Agricultural Producers annual meeting in Manitoba on Tuesday (Jan. 26) that she had not yet received an official response from any of the Prairie provinces.

Speaking with RealAgriculture, Minister of Alberta Agriculture and Forestry Devin Dreeshen says Alberta is still working with commodity groups to develop a potential replacement program to AgriStability. For Dreeshen, his primary concern is that cash flow should be much more immediate than the up-to-two years it currently takes under AgriStability.

Were looking at a more structured approach of replacing AgriStability with a margin-based insurance program, Dreeshen explains. Its something that weve released a report out to commodity groups. Weve had our intentions of looking at what the problems are that have flawed the design of AgriStability, and how a new AgriStability program should be a) more timely in its support when it actually pays out, and b) it should be something that is equitable across commodity types. It should also be predictable in that farmers and ranchers should be able to know in a year if they are actually going to get a payment or not, versus the melees and the question marks that are currently out there.

Currently, the province is working on getting to the cabinet treasury board to consider the AgriStability changes they are looking for; however, the main focus still lies on fixing the structural problems of AgriStability, and developing a program that does work for the entire ag sector, says Dreeshen.

Check out the full conversation between Minister Dreeshen and RealAgricultures Kara Oosterhuis, below:

Federal government sets deadline for provinces on AgriStability enhancement offer

Federal AgriStability proposal set up to fail, suggests Alberta Agriculture minister

Manitoba ag minister says federal offer doesnt address challenges with AgriStability

No deal, so far, on AgriStability enhancements

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Alberta working on margin-based insurance replacement for AgriStability - RealAgriculture

KARACHI: Sindh Education and Labour Minister Saeed Ghani said on Monday that Murad Ali Shah would continue to serve as the provinces chief minister even if he got arrested in a graft case recently registered against him.

In response to a question at the Meet the Press programme of the Karachi Press Club about the replacement of Mr Shah as the CM in case of his arrest by the National Accountability Bureau (NAB), the senior PPP leader said that he will remain the provincial chief executive.

We have been saying since day one that NAB is a Niazi nexus and it has become an instrument of the government, he said, adding: NAB would make a reference against whoever gives a tough time to the federal government.

He said Mr Shah had spoken about the rights of Sindh, talked about the National Finance Commission share of this province and done record development work in Karachi. He has shown the people of the country that Sindh has a constitutional right on the gas of this province and in return for it, there is a NAB reference against him, he said.

Threatens to air recording of Jan 16 meeting that saw a spat between chief minister and PTIs Ali Zaidi

Video of CM-Ali Zaidi spat

Talking about a terse exchange between the CM and Maritime Affairs Minister Ali Zaidi during the Jan 16 meeting of the Karachi Coordination Committee, he said they had not made any secret recording of the meeting but many participants had joined in through a video link and it is all recorded.

If the real face of this PTI government were to be shown to the people, then we would definitely air that recording, he said.

Mr Ghani also said that the federal cabinet and the prime minister were answerable to the people about the sugar, wheat and medicine scandals.

Also, with all the reports about the petrol, LNG and gas scandals coming to light and the involvement of cabinet members including their prime minister and their ATM and bank accounts that are being filled, there is also a burden of billions of rupees on the nation. The federal cabinet is full of crooked ministers and spokespersons and when they get stuck somewhere they resort to shenanigans, he said.

Talking about the Pakistan Steel Mills, the minister said that the Sindh government still wanted to take it over and run it.

It is the governments incompetence that the Steel Mills incurred a loss of Rs42 billion. Instead of questioning those who destroyed the Mills by cutting off gas connections, punishment is being meted out to the poor workers there, he said.

Published in Dawn, January 26th, 2021

Read more:
Murad will not be replaced as CM if arrested in NAB case: Ghani - DAWN.com

FRANKFORT, Ky. Gov. Andy Beshear today announced that the Kentucky Transportation Cabinet Regional Driver Licensing Office in Owensboro has moved into larger, permanent quarters that will accommodate customers while maintaining social distance and all necessary COVID-19 public health protocols.

It is the 13th permanent regional office the cabinet has established in a network that eventually will number about two dozen offices around the commonwealth to handle driver licensing. The expanded office is at 2620 KY 81, in Owensboro.

Like all other KYTC regional offices, the Owensboro office adheres to Gov. Beshears Healthy at Work guidelines to limit the spread of the novel coronavirus 2019 also known as COVID-19.

We are offering essential, in-person public services while taking care to do so in a way that protects public health, said Gov. Beshear. Those essential services include issuing, renewing and replacing operators licenses and official identification cards for our fellow Kentuckians who depend on them for employment, travel and emergencies.

The new office will process applications for REAL ID or standard licenses and ID cards. Any required driver testing, which is conducted by Kentucky State Police, must have been completed beforehand. Application for a REAL ID must be done in person, with proof of residence, social security and identity at a KYTC regional office.

Those seeking to renew or replace a standard-issue license or ID card can do so by mail or drop-off with the circuit court clerk in the license holders county of residence, provided there has been no change of name or address and the license holder does not require driver testing by Kentucky State Police.

Gov. Beshear encouraged anyone able to use remote services to do so, thereby limiting person-to-person contact. Forms for renewal or replacement can be downloaded here.

The same services are offered at other KYTC regional driver licensing offices in Paducah, Bowling Green, Madisonville, Elizabethtown, Frankfort, Lexington, Morehead, Somerset, Richmond, Columbia, Jackson and Prestonsburg. KYTC also has temporary regional offices operating by appointment only at Catlettsburg, Florence and Louisville-Bowman Field.

The new Owensboro office expands an important customer service, KYTC Secretary Jim Gray said. But we are doing so in a way that protects the health and safety of our customers and our employees. That includes social distancing, wearing face masks and having a sanitized work station for every customer.

The Owensboro office will be open Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Central. Applicants may make appointments online at drive.ky.gov. A limited number of workstations will be available to serve walk-ins. To avoid gatherings in common waiting areas after checking in, applicants may be asked to wait in their vehicles and will be individually notified when to return to the issuance office to be served.

To maintain the safest possible environment, office employees and customers will adhere to Gov. Beshears Healthy at Work standards, which include wearing a mask. Social distancing will be observed. Surfaces will be cleaned and touchpad equipment sanitized after each use. The complete list of Healthy at Work requirements can be found at Healthy at Work.

Keep up with information from Gov. Andy Beshear and his administration about the COVID-19 pandemic at governor.ky.gov, kycovid19.ky.gov and on the Governors official social media accounts Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.

Please consider subscribing today and support our work in the community. If you are already a subscriber, thank you very much. Subscribers get access to our daily email newsletter of every headline and obituary from the last 24 hours as well as access to OC Healthy, our new community wide initiative to help Ohio County get healthier.

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Opening of new location for KYTC Regional Driver Licensing Office in Owensboro announced - Ohio County Monitor