With the Labor government trying to get their hands on people's super and trying to stamp out freedom of the press, I thought a quote I came across was quite true.

"What the government gives you, they can take away.

And once it starts taking away, it can take more than it gave." - US Labor leader 1850-1924.

William Brooks, Wangaratta

Farmers breathing sigh of relief

The Victorian Farmers Federation (VFF) has welcomed the Victorian government’s decision to freeze the Emergency Services Volunteer Levy (ESVL) for a further two years and increase the property value threshold for volunteer exemptions from $5 million to $10 million.

The move is a huge relief for farmers and comes after a huge backlash against the fundamentally wrong cash-grab.

This tax was set to rip hundreds of millions out of the pockets of cash-strapped farmers in the middle of a record-breaking drought.

Freezing the levy and increasing the exemption threshold acknowledges the massive pressure farmers have been under, particularly following years of drought and escalating operating costs.

I would like to thank Premier Jacinta Allan, Treasurer Jacyln Symes and Minister for Agriculture Ros Spence for listening to farmers across Victoria.

Victorian farmers told us the ESVL was their number one issue and we’ve been moving heaven and earth to get to this decision.

The VFF will now turn its attention to engaging with the Victorian government over the next two years to engage in a serious and transparent discussion about how emergency services are funded in the long term.

We need a permanent and fair and equitable funding model that reflects modern realities and doesn’t continue to load disproportionate costs onto property owners.

Before next year’s election, we need a firm commitment on what the process will look like to work in partnership with farmers to deliver a long-term funding solution, one that supports farmers, volunteers, strengthens emergency service capability, and treats all Victorians fairly.

Brett Hosking, Victorian Farmers Federation president

State rushes law through before 2026 election

The Allan government is ramming though a grab-bag of legislation at the year’s end in order to get set for the 2026 election – for the past seven years, MPs voted on average on three bills a week, in the final sitting week, it is six.

I expect the Allan government to soon change the state’s voting system and scrap the Group Voting Ticket.

That will make it impossible for smaller parties like the Legalise Cannabis Party, Animal Justice and the Libertarian Party to get re-elected.

Labor might be fearful that the minor parties will give them the cold shoulder next year so is jamming through laws now.

The last time parliament pushed through so much legislation was seven years ago when Dan Andrews was premier and he was two months away from an election.

After the Electoral Maters Committee released its report on the upper house electoral system last week, it's highly likely the Allan government will soon change the state’s voting system to scrap Group Voting Tickets.

Doing so without reforming electoral boundaries (as WA and NSW did) to level the playing field for smaller parties like us, would be the death knell for political diversity in Victoria.

Such a change would only serve to entrench the old parties: Labor, Liberal, Nationals and Greens.

It's bad for democracy and bad for our state and I suspect the government is now anticipating a hostile reception from the minor parties so is in rush to get its legislative agenda through.

Some of these bills are for very controversial laws that will diminish the legal rights of Victorians.

They are complicated and contentious.

The Legislative Council, the house of review in this state, is being thrown thousands of pages of new legislation each week.

How are we expected to analyse and consult with stakeholders effectively before voting on these bills?

David Ettershank, Legalise Cannabis MP