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Happy New Year Kogarah
To everyone across Kogarah, Happy New Year. As we welcome in 2026, we do so mindful of what has been lost, with the determination to rebuild, together. I wish every family a safe, peaceful and hopeful year ahead.  Photo credit: City of Sydney National Day of Mourning
On the 22nd of January 2026, our nation came together to mourn the tragedy that struck the shores of Bondi on December 14, 2025.
The night 15 innocent lives were stolen by merciless and evil hatred.
In the midst of our grief, many people across Australia have asked if this nation can truly live up to its promise that we would accept anyone, anywhere and have them live side by side in peace and safety? Free to live your life, raise a family and practice your religion?
The message was that Australia can live up to that promise.
But to do so we must take action, and indeed we must change.
The months and years ahead will require difficult conversations and tough decisions.
However, I believe that as a nation we will rise to the occasion and come out stronger, kinder, and more united than ever before.
January Update
Welcome to this month's community update!
Each month, I share local news, events, achievements and information to keep you connected with what's happening in our area. Whether it's celebrating local success stories or highlighting where to find support, this newsletter is all about you - our communityIt also has important information about what my Government is doing to serve you. If your organisation has an upcoming event, fundraiser or milestone you'd like to share, please email me: [email protected]. I'd love to hear from you!
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$441 Million Upgrade to St George Hospital Complete!
Construction on the $411 million St George Hospital upgrade is now complete.
The new 9-storey Kensington Street Building will bring more health services under one roof and allow our nurses, doctors and healthcare staff to deliver better care, faster.
NSW Health staff will start moving into the building and testing workspaces.
New and expanded services include three levels of inpatient beds, expanded ambulatory services, new operating theatres and surgical centres, and palliative care.
After 12 years of the Liberal National Government neglecting our health system and attempting to privatise health services and hospitals, we’re getting on with the job of providing better health services in our community.
We’re also delivering more health workers including 24 additional nurses at St George Hospital to administer better care.
This is all part of our plan to deliver better hospitals, more beds and better health services to ensure patients and their families receive the care they need, when they need it.
I am committed to delivering the health services and workforce our growing state needs.
$30 Million for Hurstville Pedestrian Bridge Across Forest Road
At the last election I committed to doing more to keep our students and pedestrians safe along Forest Road in Hurstville.
Before I became Premier, I was working with our school community to deliver a pedestrian overpass for our students and pedestrians.
Today, I am proud to announce we’re delivering $30 million to get the job done.
The pedestrian bridge will have accessibility lifts on both sides and help students at Hurstville Public School, Bethany College, Hurstville Adventist School, Georges River College and Sydney Technical High.
No one should have to take a risk just to get to school or go about their day.
I’ll always listen to our community and look forward to continuing to work with our schools to get this done.
Kempt Field Almost Finished
 The $11.8 million remediation project is addressing long-standing subsidence issues that arose from uncontrolled waste buried beneath the public reserve that was previously a privately owned waste landfill site. The remediation is almost complete, and to expedite this, work is taking place six days a week. The remediation is set to be completed in March this year pending weather delays. We are looking forward to returning the park to the community in the near future.
Holiday School Maintenance Blitz
Over $200 million in school upgrades and planned maintenance took place over the summer holidays across NSW.
While our students and teachers had some well-deserved time off, our schools have been getting a refresh, with over 1,300 maintenance projects taking place across our state.
Over 850 public schools across NSW are receiving planned upgrades or maintenance across our state over the holidays. This will include Beverly Hills Public School, Georges River College Hurstville, Hurstville Public School, Kingsgrove High School, Kogarah High School.
A big thanks to all the tradies working across Kogarah who are keeping our schools in great shape.
These essential works will help ensure classrooms and playgrounds are refreshed and ready for day one of Term 1.
My Government is continuing to deliver the biggest investment in education in a generation.
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Toll Cap Permanent
I am pleased to announce that there is now permanent toll relief, with the $60 weekly toll cap here to stay.
A decade of privatisation by the former Liberal National Government made our city the most tolled city on Earth. This locked NSW into contracts until 2060, costing NSW motorists $195 billion in tolls.
These roads should have never been privatised, and we opposed it every step of the way. Since coming to government we have been committed to delivering a fairer tolling system for NSW, and that means locking in the toll cap for good. The $60 cap has delivered welcome financial relief to motorists. I encourage any drivers who have spent more than $60 a week on toll trips to visit the Service NSW website and link your toll account to your MyServiceNSW account and claim if eligible via the following link, https://www.service.nsw.gov.au/transaction/claim-the-toll-relief-cap. Additionally, customers will be able to contact a new independent ombudsman for free and impartial support with unresolved complaints about NSW toll road operators and toll service providers. The ombudsman can be contacted via this link, https://nswtollwayombudsman.com.au/. My Government is committed to toll reforms that put drivers first. We are helping everyday motorists balance the family budget, ensuring they are not penalised for where they live.
Are you owed money?
As the new year begins, almost $300 million is sitting in the state’s unclaimed money pool – and my Government wants to see it returned to its rightful owners.
Unclaimed money is money that you are legally entitled to, but where a business hasn’t been able to find you.
Money typically becomes unclaimed when people forget to update their name or contact details with businesses, have lost paperwork, or when estates are unaware of funds belonging to deceased relatives.
Kogarah has as many as 18,000 registered items totalling $7,090,000 just waiting to be claimed by families and households.
Last year, my Government upgraded systems to simplify and speed up the unclaimed money process to ensure that money is reported to Revenue NSW, and put back in the hands of its owners sooner. To find out if you have any unclaimed money, you can search the Revenue NSW website at
www.revenue.nsw.gov.au/unclaimed-money.If you have any money owing, you fill in a form and provide your ID and your connection to the money. Claims are typically verified and processed by Revenue NSW within a month.
End of an Era: The last of the Lockout Laws Slashed
Twelve years to the day since they were announced, we are now declaring the lockout laws have been completely abolished. My Government has now removed the final major lockout conditions that damaged our night-time economy.
Announced on the 21st of January 2014, these lockout laws had the unintended consequence of damaging the city’s live music scene and Sydney’s reputation as a global 24-hr city, with over half of our music venues going out of business in the following decade.
The lockouts had good intentions but a devastating impact on the night-time economy and the reputation of our city, being the laws that saw Madonna and Justin Bieber not allowed into their own afterparties.
Live music is at the centre of the revival with more than 521 venues now taking up the Government’s extending trading hours for programming music, which is almost four times than the number of venues then when we took office. My Government has been slashing the red tape that was pushing venues out of business and stopping grown adults having fun.
Every child should be able to grow up in a city that encourages their interests and their passions. A city of music, a city of sport, a city with nighttime entertainment and a city with culture.
Sydney has never been a city of killjoys. It's a great global city of people that want to enjoy life and live it to its fullest.
These reforms are about making Sydney a true 24-hour city, vibrant, welcoming and full of life, and I'm delighted to say goodbye to this chapter of Sydney's nightlife story.
First Home Buyers
In less than 3 years, more than 82,000 people across NSW have been able to break into home ownership, saving an average of $20,475 thanks to our stamp duty concessions.
That’s $1.7 billion saved by first home buyers across NSW, and about 80 first home buyers benefitting every single day.
Right here in Kogarah, 1,382 first homes were bought with over $33 million saved, averaging at $24,000 per property!
We know how critical it is for NSW to be an accessible, affordable state. Without action, we risk becoming a city without grandchildren or a future.
Saving up to $30,000 on Stamp Duty means more money in the pockets of families and more opportunities for them to achieve the dream of home ownership.
So, as our landmark planning reforms deliver more homes, we’re going to keep making it easier for first-home buyers to get their foot in the door.
Housing Completions Hit Five Year High
The latest housing data out of the Australian Bureau of Statistics shows that NSW has recorded its highest housing completion numbers in five years, with 13,057 homes being completed between July and September 2025.
This is the highest quarter for NSW since March 2021.
NSW has continued to lead the nation with more than 75,000 homes under construction right now, with housing completions rising 37 per cent in the September quarter compared to the June quarter.
More houses are under construction, hitting 12,887 for the September quarter.
These figures show that my Government’s nation leading reforms and initiatives are starting to work together to build a better NSW.
These reforms include:
- Transport Orientated Development
- Low and Mid-rise Housing Policy
- Infill affordable Housing Scheme
- The Housing Delivery Authority
- Pre-sale Finance Guarantee
We know there is still more work to do, but more houses are being approved and more houses are being built, which is welcome news.
These new figures are not just numbers. They are real homes being delivered for the people of Kogarah and wider NSW. Each completion means a new key in the door to help address the State's housing challenges and give people the ability to choose the neighbourhoods they want to live in.
More Health Workers Across Kogarah
My Government is supporting healthcare students as we build a stronger health workforce across Kogarah and NSW. Applications are now open for the 2026 Tertiary Health Study Subsidies, where students studying nursing, midwifery, dentistry and more can access up to $12,000 of financial support. We want more people to study health so that’s why we are removing financial barriers for students wanting to make healthcare their career. With almost 8,000 students already benefiting from the program, a new round of applications has opened for another 4,000 students to receive the subsidies. To apply and find out more visit the link below! www.health.nsw.gov.au/careers/Pages/health-study-subsidies.aspx
$4.2 million for Improving Shark Safety
NSW is home to the most incredible beaches in the world and we want everyone to enjoy them as safely as possible.
But with an unprecedented number of shark attacks along our coast recently, we are doing even more to protect beachgoers, so you know when and where it's safer to enter.
As part of our multi-million funding package, we are:
- Expanding drone patrols at more beaches
- Carrying out focused research on bull sharks in Sydney Harbour and other estuaries, including tagging and monitoring
- Installing shark listening stations
- Strengthening community education and awareness.
There is no single solution, and no Government can ever promise to make the water completely safe, which is why we are using a range of tools to keep people informed and as safe as possible.
Sharing our beaches and waterways with sharks is a fact of Australian life, but it's one that means we need to work extra hard to keep everyone safe.
Sydney Fish Market
After years in the making Sydney's brand new fish market is officially open!
Sydney’s iconic new fish market has welcomed more than 230,000 people and traded more than 160 tonnes of seafood through its world-class auction, trading and retail facilities in its first week of operating.
Rising straight out of the harbour, this iconic new building will showcase tonnes of world-class Australian seafood to locals, businesses and tourists alike.
And as the biggest fish market in the world, we're expecting up to 6 million patrons walking through its doors every single year - more than double that of the old site just next door, establishing yet another reason why Sydney is the best place to be anywhere in the world.
This will all be boosted by a new ferry service and additional light rail services, including a brand-new metro station at Pyrmont, all while unlocking new public spaces and 1,400 new homes on the old fish market site.
So whether you’re a foodie, fisher or architecture enthusiast, consider this your official invitation to check the new Sydney Fish Market and enjoy everything it has to offer.
The opening of the Sydney fish market marks just another step in my Government's plan to build Sydney back into a lively, fun and vibrant city after 12 years of the Liberal Government's neglect.
Animal Welfare Laws
There's absolutely no excuse for animal cruelty in NSW. That's why we are tightening our laws to better protect all creatures great and small. As part of the largest reforms to the our animal welfare laws in years, anyone who leaves pets in hot cars will soon face new and tougher penalties for their actions. Cars can reach up to 73 degrees inside on a hot summer’s day, and cracking the window or parking in the shade is not sufficient to protect pets from overheating. On top of this, we're also outlawing painful and cruel prong collars and increasing penalties for people who engage in animal cruelty. These reforms follow animal welfare laws that we have delivered in the past two years including:
- Banning puppy farms by passing legislation in 2024
- Delivering over $25.3 million in funding across 2024-26 for approved charitable organisations to carry out animal welfare enforcement activities.
- Reformed legislation to prevent people convicted of animal cruelty offences from keeping and breeding animals.
Since coming to Government, we have been working hard to protect pets from harm in NSW and these latest reforms are the next step in that important mission.
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As your State Member of Parliament, I will always stand up for you and your family.
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Please fill out my community survey above to let me know what is important to you.
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2026 Lunar New Year Festival - Year of the Horse
Georges River Council - Lunar New Year Festival
21 February 2026
Georges River Council is hosting a Lunar New Year celebration, marking 2026 as the twenty third year of the festival being celebrated in the area.
The Lunar New Year Festival is a cherished event that brings together people from all walks of life to celebrate the rich tapestry of culture and heritage that defines our community. It’s more than just a festival - it’s a powerful expression of unity, tradition, and the shared hope for prosperity and renewal that the Year of the Horse represents.
The Lunar New Year event is set to be jam-packed with free entertainment, including live stage performances, roving acts, cooking demonstrations, and much more!
Address: Forest Road, Hurstville & Hurstville Plaza.
Date: Saturday 21 February 2026.
Event times: 11.00am - 9.00pm.
Official Proceedings: from 12.30pm.
Bayside Council - Lunar New Year Festival
27 February 2026
Bayside Council will once again be partnering with Aussie Night Markets to celebrate the Year of the Horse.
Ring the New Year in with a spectacular community celebration filled with good food, entertainment and plenty of cultural performances to keep you entertained.
Experience the richness and diversity of our multicultural community through captivating performances and traditions shared by local Asian communities.
Official proceedings from 6:00pm.
View the event program
For further information regarding this event, please contact Council’s Events team at [email protected]
This event will be joined by the Minister for Multiculturalism, The Hon. Steve Kamper MP.
Feel free to visit my stall at both events, as we will be handing out red packets.
Bexley Chamber of Commerce Trivia Night
Get Active in Kogarah!
Magnificals Chamber Orchestra's Gala Event
29 March 2026
Expressions of interest are sought from musical talent in St George, to perform in The Magnificals Chamber Orchestra’s inaugural local gala concert on 29th March 2026. ‘The Magnificals’ provide performance opportunities to young people as well as mature-aged professionals, in particular mothers returning to performance after raising families.
We also welcome expression of interests' (EOI) from local emerging composers to compose arrangements for this gala and for local visual artists to display their work.
Please submit your EOI to their artistic director Anna Damayanti at [email protected]
Include details of your performance or composing experience (can include links to your YouTube or social media channels), or a short introduction to your visual art practice.
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