DEEP divisions within the Liberal Party over the legalisation of same-sex marriage have been mirrored in Frankston and the Mornington Peninsula with local federal Liberal MPs Bruce Billson and Greg Hunt at odds on the contentious subject. Flinders MP and Environment Minister Greg Hunt declined to be publicly outed as a supporter of same-sex marriage when asked by The Times whether he supports its legalisation. Mr Hunt was coy last week about his stance on the issue despite being named as “a same-sex marriage supporter” in recent months by the The Australian and The Age newspapers and the ABC. Rather…
Author: Neil Walker
ITS very name means those diagnosed with borderline personality disorder (BPD) can face criticism and families can also be stigmatised. The word ‘borderline’ tends to make many think there is not really anything wrong with someone diagnosed with BPD and an individual’s ‘personality’ is often judged by others. In fact, the ‘borderline’ aspect refers to the disorder being on the borderline of psychosis and neurosis and the causes of BPD are not yet fully understood. For those facing life with the mental disorder the road to recovery can be paved with criticism and others not taking the condition seriously. BPD…
A POET from Frankston’s past has inspired poetry about the present with the compilation of several love poems about Frankston and its people. Author and poet Avril Bradley compiled City of Stars: An anthology of love poems for Frankston after researching the life and times of 1920s poet and entrepreneur Annie May (Nan) McClelland. Nan McClelland and her brother Harry McClelland moved to Long Island in 1912 and established a bohemian scene of creative artists in Frankston by the next decade. Ms McClelland also drove a Frankston Hospital ambulance and hosted the first children’s show on ABC radio during a…
FRANKSTON and Mornington residents have been receiving automated phone calls from an electrician in the past week but the sparky hasn’t been getting in touch about a home electrical wiring job. The call is part of a campaign by the Electrical Trades Union to “stop the China Free Trade Agreement” amid union fears electricians’ jobs are at risk. A pre-recorded message urges recipients to contact federal Dunkley Liberal MP Bruce Billson to make any concerns about the free trade agreement known to the Abbott government’s Small Business Minister. ETU state secretary Troy Gray said the “robo-calls” to Dunkley electorate voters…
COUNCILS have decided there is strength in numbers with the launch of a South East Melbourne Group of Councils regional plan to push the region’s case for business investment, jobs and more education opportunities. The SEM Group of Councils includes Frankston, Mornington Peninsula Shire, Kingston, Casey, Bass Coast, Cardinia and Greater Dandenong councils. Frankston mayor Cr Sandra Mayer has been elected chair of the SEM Group of Councils for a 12-month term until November on a rotational basis. She said the four-year regional plan brings together seven municipalities to find common ground to collectively lobby federal and state governments and…