Tim Watts: We are now deep in a national recession, but the Morrison government still don't have a plan for getting Australia out of it. The Morrison government expect another 400,000 Australians to lose their jobs between now and Christmas, but they won't tell us what they're going to do about it. They've got a political plan for whom they're going to blame, and we've seen that throughout the...
Read More >Tim Watts: My question is for the Prime Minister. More than 50 COVID-19 cases have been linked to the Doutta Galla aged-care centre in Yarraville in my electorate. Sandra, whose father Wilhelm was a resident who died in the outbreak, responded to the Prime Minister's claim of a plan by asking, 'What was this plan? If there was a plan, it was not implemented properly, or maybe it was the wrong plan.' Why...
Read More >Tim Watts: I rise to express my sadness and shock at the horrific explosion in Beirut earlier this month and to express my commiserations and solidarity with the people of Lebanon and the Lebanese Australian community. 2020 has been a horrific year, and nowhere more so than for the people of Beirut. Six thousand people have been injured and more than 160 people killed, including, tragically, one...
Read More >Tim Watts: It's been a scary fortnight in my electorate. More than 100 aged-care residents and workers have been infected in COVID-19 outbreaks. Tragically, seven people have died in my electorate and 335 people, loved ones, have died of COVID-19 in residential aged care across Australia. It's a terrible way to die and a horrible thing to endure for everyone involved. I've had to hear about it this week...
Read More >Tim Watts: I rise to celebrate the life of Paddy Garritty. A proudly militant trade unionist for the Painters and Dockers and for the Seamen's Union, Paddy was a beloved member of the labour movement in Victoria, and Australia. A champion of participation and engagement of working people in the arts, Paddy was a founding member of the Footscray Community Arts Centre and the arts officer at the...
Read More >Tim Watts: Well, it's hard being an artist in Melbourne now-really hard. Aussie artists were the first to bear the brunt of COVID-19 restrictions. Social-distancing restrictions introduced in March meant no gigs, no exhibitions, no galleries, no musicals, no theatre productions and no comedy performances, and for many it meant no livelihood. Nearly 650,000 Australians work in the arts, and their...
Read More >