Latest news with #Dunnett
Herald Sun
12 hours ago
- Politics
- Herald Sun
NSW Bill protecting Snowy Mountains brumbies could be repealed in new push
Don't miss out on the headlines from Animals. Followed categories will be added to My News. Controversial laws protecting NSW's famed Snowy Mountains brumbies could be scrapped under a new Bill as parks staff celebrate success in their aerial culling campaign. Independent Wagga Wagga MP Joe McGirr is expected to give notice on Wednesday of his intention to introduce a Bill to repeal the Kosciuszko Wild Horse Heritage Act. The Act, introduced by former deputy premier John Barilaro, recognised the 'heritage' value of the feral horses and mandated their population be reduced to 3000. The Bill faced significant pushback from conservationists and scientists following its introduction in 2018, including a 2023 challenge to its constitutional validity. Invasive Species chief executive Jack Gough said Labor, the Liberals, and the Greens had all recognised the need to take action to protect the park. 'Parliament now has an opportunity to right a historical wrong by repealing this damaging law which has protected a feral animal over our native wildlife in a national park,' he said 'For the sake of our native animals and precious mountain streams, we are calling on Premier Chris Minns and Opposition Leader Mark Speakman to come together.' NSW National Parks Association chief executive Gary Dunnett said the expected Bill was a 'long-overdue step' to ensure success of recent aerial culling of brumbies continued. A May state government report found the number of brumbies in Kosciuszko could be as low as 1500. Picture: Wikimedia A May state government report found the number of brumbies in Kosciuszko could be as low as 1500, down from a whopping 13,000 to 22,000 in 2024. The survey put the Labor government well ahead of its legally mandated goal of reducing the population to 3000 by June 30, 2027. 'Feral horse numbers in the park are finally trending downward,' Mr Dunnett said. 'No one likes to see animals killed but this is the tough decision we have to make to protect our wildlife. 'We're already seeing early signs of ecological recovery – but unless this law is repealed we will still have over 3000 horses trashing one third of the national park. 'Now is the time to finish the job.' Mr Dunnett said the Bill would be a chance to 'right an historic wrong' and protect the future of one of Australia's most precious landscapes. The future of the Brumbies, an invasive species, is a hot-button issue across Dr McGirr's Wagga Wagga electorate, which covers half of Kosciuszko National Park. The other half is covered by Labor Minister Steve Whan, who has backed the law's repeal. Speaking on his proposed Bill, Dr McGirr said the horses caused major damage to the alpine landscape, trampling wetlands and destroying habitat. Independent Wagga Wagga MP Joe McGirr says it's time to reverse a wrong. Picture: Contributed 'It makes no sense to continue with a law that effectively requires that damage to continue,' he said. 'We would never accept a law that prioritises the protection of wild pigs, goats or foxes over native species, yet under the current law, we do just that for horses. 'It is time to reverse a wrong of the past and give the fragile high-country environment a chance to recover from years of degradation.' More than 11,000 people signed a petition in March to repeal the so-called Brumby Bill. For its part, the NSW Parks and Wildlife Service released photos in May of restoration to the fragile alpine ecosystem amid the reduction in feral horses. The Australian Brumby Alliance, which has have been vocally opposed to aerial culling of feral horses, described May's report as 'a horribly vexed tale'. The organisation is supporting a parallel petition by NSW Animal Justice Party MP Emma Hurst that is calling on the state government to implement 'nonlethal solutions'. An attempt to stop aerial culling of wild horses was dismissed by the NSW Supreme Court last year. Originally published as NSW Bill protecting Snowy Mountains brumbies could be repealed in new push
Perth Now
12 hours ago
- Politics
- Perth Now
‘Finish the job': Call on state's brumbies
Controversial laws protecting NSW's famed Snowy Mountains brumbies could be scrapped under a new Bill as parks staff celebrate success in their aerial culling campaign. Independent Wagga Wagga MP Joe McGirr is expected to give notice on Wednesday of his intention to introduce a Bill to repeal the Kosciuszko Wild Horse Heritage Act. The Act, introduced by former deputy premier John Barilaro, recognised the 'heritage' value of the feral horses and mandated their population be reduced to 3000. The Bill faced significant pushback from conservationists and scientists following its introduction in 2018, including a 2023 challenge to its constitutional validity. Invasive Species chief executive Jack Gough said Labor, the Liberals, and the Greens had all recognised the need to take action to protect the park. 'Parliament now has an opportunity to right a historical wrong by repealing this damaging law which has protected a feral animal over our native wildlife in a national park,' he said 'For the sake of our native animals and precious mountain streams, we are calling on Premier Chris Minns and Opposition Leader Mark Speakman to come together.' NSW National Parks Association chief executive Gary Dunnett said the expected Bill was a 'long-overdue step' to ensure success of recent aerial culling of brumbies continued. A May state government report found the number of brumbies in Kosciuszko could be as low as 1500. Wikimedia Credit: Supplied A May state government report found the number of brumbies in Kosciuszko could be as low as 1500, down from a whopping 13,000 to 22,000 in 2024. The survey put the Labor government well ahead of its legally mandated goal of reducing the population to 3000 by June 30, 2027. 'Feral horse numbers in the park are finally trending downward,' Mr Dunnett said. 'No one likes to see animals killed but this is the tough decision we have to make to protect our wildlife. 'We're already seeing early signs of ecological recovery – but unless this law is repealed we will still have over 3000 horses trashing one third of the national park. 'Now is the time to finish the job.' Mr Dunnett said the Bill would be a chance to 'right an historic wrong' and protect the future of one of Australia's most precious landscapes. The future of the Brumbies, an invasive species, is a hot-button issue across Dr McGirr's Wagga Wagga electorate, which covers half of Kosciuszko National Park. The other half is covered by Labor Minister Steve Whan, who has backed the law's repeal. Speaking on his proposed Bill, Dr McGirr said the horses caused major damage to the alpine landscape, trampling wetlands and destroying habitat. Independent Wagga Wagga MP Joe McGirr says it's time to reverse a wrong. Contributed Credit: News Corp Australia 'It makes no sense to continue with a law that effectively requires that damage to continue,' he said. 'We would never accept a law that prioritises the protection of wild pigs, goats or foxes over native species, yet under the current law, we do just that for horses. 'It is time to reverse a wrong of the past and give the fragile high-country environment a chance to recover from years of degradation.' More than 11,000 people signed a petition in March to repeal the so-called Brumby Bill. For its part, the NSW Parks and Wildlife Service released photos in May of restoration to the fragile alpine ecosystem amid the reduction in feral horses. The Australian Brumby Alliance, which has have been vocally opposed to aerial culling of feral horses, described May's report as 'a horribly vexed tale'. The organisation is supporting a parallel petition by NSW Animal Justice Party MP Emma Hurst that is calling on the state government to implement 'nonlethal solutions'. An attempt to stop aerial culling of wild horses was dismissed by the NSW Supreme Court last year.
Times
07-05-2025
- General
- Times
Births, marriages and deaths: May 7, 2025
IF YOU declare with your mouth, 'Jesus is Lord,' and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved. Romans 10.9-10 (NIV) Bible verses are provided by the Bible Society *** JACKSON on 11th April 2025 to Laura Nagel and David Jackson, a son, Louis Charles Ulrich. *** MR M. G. S. DUNNETT AND MS R. C. BERTORELLI-BIARD The marriage took place on Tuesday 6th May 2025, at Islington and London City Register Office, between Michael, son of David and Janet Dunnett of Hauxton, Cambridge, and Ruby, daughter of Mikaël and Anna-Maria Biard
Scotsman
25-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Scotsman
Restless Natives creator Ninian Dunnet on the new stage version: 'the parallels are still so strong'
Ninian Dunnett wrote Restless Natives 40 years ago, but a new musical version shows how relevant the story remains today, writes Joyce McMillan Sign up to our Arts and Culture newsletter, get the latest news and reviews from our specialist arts writers Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know with a Digital Subscription to The Scotsman, you can get unlimited access to the website including our premium content, as well as benefiting from fewer ads, loyalty rewards and much more. Learn More Sorry, there seem to be some issues. Please try again later. Submitting... Ninian Dunnett is an Edinburgh man through and through. His father was legendary Scotsman editor Alistair Dunnett, his mother the novelist Dorothy Dunnett, famous for her brilliant historical adventures based on Scottish history. And although his own life as a writer and journalist has often taken him far from his native city – notably for spells in the United States – he has always returned home; where, these days, he teaches a course in popular music at Edinburgh University, as well as continuing his writing career. They say, though, that a little distance makes it easier to see the home place clearly; and Dunnett was working as a young journalist in Newcastle, at the moment in the early 1980s when he wrote the script that would make his name in the world of film. 'I didn't even know what I was writing, really,' says Dunnett. 'It was just little scribbles and notes here and there. And those were busy times in the north-east of England; the miner's strike was looming, and I was out there interviewing people whose livelihoods were on the line, and who mostly weren't too keen on journalists. Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad 'But I picked up this leaflet in my bank advertising a screenwriting competition – the Lloyds Bank National Screenwriting Competition 1984 – and I decided to enter. I tidied my material into the script that became Restless Natives, and to my huge surprise it won the prize, which was a chance to take the film forward to production. The Clown and the Wolfman pictured in Leith Theatre PIC: Colin Hattersley 'I don't know if opportunities like that still exist, now, for complete outsiders to get a foothold in the film industry. But for me, it was fantastic; and it marked the beginning not just of a new career, but of what have become lifelong friendships, particularly with the director, Michael Hoffman, and Andy Paterson, who was a co-producer on the original film.' And it's those friendships that have come back into play 40 years on, as Dunnett, Hoffman and Paterson work together again – with a whole new team of artists and co-producers – to create a new stage musical version of Dunnett's much-loved story. The 1985 film features actors Vincent Friell and Joe Mullaney as Will and Ronnie, a pair of dead-end kids from Wester Hailes who, in the darkest moments of the Thatcherite 1980s, decide to get on board Ronnie's Suzuki motor bike, don a pair of wolf-man and clown masks acquired from the Edinburgh joke shop where Ronnie works, and launch themselves into a new and lucrative career as latter-day highwayman, holding up tourist buses full of wealthy Americans on some of the most scenic roads in the Highlands. The pair soon become media legends, redistributing some of their winnings in deprived areas of Edinburgh; and Will also acquires a love interest, in the shape of rebel tour guide Margot. The police, though, are in hot pursuit; and the film unfolds as a slightly surreal light-touch comedy caper, in a similar vein to other 1980s' Scottish film hits Gregory's Girl and Local Hero. And despite the 40-year gap between the film and the musical, Dunnett and the rest of the team have seen no reason to update the story from its 1980s' setting. 'We felt that we just didn't need to move it,' says Dunnett. 'Despite all the changes of the last 40 years, the parallels are still so strong. And, of course, there's the wonderful music by Big Country that helped shape the film. We couldn't lose that wonderful 1980s Celtic rock romanticism; and with our terrific composer Tim Sutton, and full support from Big Country and Stuart Adamson's family, we've been trying to reflect that spirit in developing the songs for the musical.' Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad Set to open at Perth Theatre on 24 April, before a Scotland-wide tour, the musical features a multi-talented cast of eleven, including young actors Kyle Gardiner and Kirsty MacLaren as Ronnie and Margot; and they agree that despite the 40-year time lapse, in many ways the Restless Natives story could have been written today. A still from the original 1985 film version of Restless Natives PIC: Courtesy of Studio Canal 'I think the political parallels are really interesting,' says MacLaren, 'both the economic and political landscape, and all the questions about Scottish identity the story raises. The story is a bit crazy and surreal – but I think that's what we need, right now. Margot talks about needing heroes, who can really change things – and here are two guys taking matters into their own hands, in a way that's brilliant, and very funny. I'm sure that will still have a huge resonance with young audiences today – and the Big Country music is great, as well.' And Kyle Gardiner – who has lately been winning acclaim as an actor in shows ranging from football drama Moorcroft to recent Play, Pie, Pint hit Dookin' Oot – strongly agrees. 'These are two young guys who are stuck,' says Gardiner. 'They have no prospects, and they have to somehow create a future for themselves. So the idea behind the story and the characters is brilliant, and absolutely still relevant today. My character, Ronnie, is the dreamer behind the whole project, the one for whom this adventure is the only valuable thing his life, the one who gets his foot down on the Suzuki and makes it happen. "It's a wonderful story arc, and I love playing him. And no, I'm not telling you whether there's going to be a live Suzuki on stage. If you want to know that, you'll have to come and see the show!' Advertisement Hide Ad Advertisement Hide Ad 'In the end,' adds Dunnett, 'this is a show about individuals and community, and about two young guys transforming their lives in a way that's funny and surprising, and makes people feel good. The Clown and the wolf pictured at the King's Theatre in Glasgow, where Restless Natives is playing from 24-28 June PIC: Colin Hattersley "And we know that these characters and their story really meant something to people, when they first appeared in the film. It was a joyous experience, a journey of uplift that left everyone feeling enhanced, in some way; and we hope the musical will be the same.'
