It has been over a month since Federal Health Minister Mark Butler announced Australia will overhaul its vaping laws and regulations, but the effect of the new crackdown is yet to be seen with a Wollongong vape user claiming nicotine e-cigarettes have never been easier to buy. Restrictions on selling e-cigarettes and increased penalties on nicotine vaping laws placed back in October 2021 saw a growth in the vape black market, in response the government is trying to now take control of the situation through the reforms. The main goal of the government crackdown is to put a stop to…
Author: Keeley Hurry
An icon of many a childhood is being used to improve health and well-being at the University of Wollongong. UOW Pulse Wellness and the Happy Body Collective have run free hula hooping classes for students every Wednesday of this semester. Collective leaders Lauren Green and Bianca Pentecost have greeted students to teach hula hooping from basic through to advanced skills and tricks. https://youtu.be/0mkMO-WoobE UOW Pulse Wellness Program Lead Jaimee Evans said by learning and developing a new skill, many participants don’t realise they are exercising. Ms Evans said participants work muscle groups that are often ignored and participants also exercise…
Today is World No Tobacco Day, declared in the 1980s by the World Health Organisation to discourage people from taking up smoking and engaging current smokers to quit. However, in the wake of new government regulations on vapes and e-cigarettes, the battleground has expanded. RadioU UOW · World No Tobacco Day: Smoking or Vaping? In the following audio, UOWTV reporter Keeley Hurry chats with Harry, a UOW student who goes through a vape a week. We also hear from UOW’s Dr Jody Moller, who is researching vapes and e-cigarettes. Dr Moller says cracking down hard on vapes will most…
The Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) has announced a rise in the unemployment rate and an increase in working hours. According to the ABS, the seasonally adjusted unemployment rate rose to 3.7 per cent last month from February, a 0.1 per cent increase. Despite the alarming figures, ABS head of labour statistics Bjorn Jarvis has stated that these figures still remain above pre-Covid levels. “With employment dropping by around 4,000 people and the number of unemployed increasing by 18,000 people, the unemployment rate rose to 3.7 per cent,” Mr Jarvis said. “Even with these falls, both indicators were still well…
Recent data has shown an increase of Australians going without the medical help they need due to unaffordability, with many finding trips to the GP too expensive, as well as their prescribed medications. The Australian Government Productivity Commission’s 2023 Report on Government Services has found that nationally in 2021-22, total expenditure per person on general practice was $444 per person, a small decrease from $445 in 2020-21. The former president of the Australian Medical Association (AMA) Mukesh Haikerwal told the ABC that prices to see a GP has risen as a result of less medical graduates choosing the path of…
JobSeeker increased last month in line with the bi-annual indexation but some Wollongong residents are calling for the government to increase payments to align with the cost of living. It comes as Treasurer Jim Chalmers addressed Australia’s inflation problems in today’s press conference on the upcoming federal budget. “The worst of the inflationary pressures are behind us but they will hang around higher than we like for longer than we like,” Mr Chalmers said. In March, the JobSeeker rate increased by $24.70 a fortnight, from $668.40 to $693.10. This is an extra $1.77 per day, taking daily payments from $47.75…
Recent data has indicated that the scope of mental health related illness in the Illawarra Shoalhaven district is consistently higher than NSW and national averages, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, HealthStats NSW and the Illawarra Shoalhaven Suicide Prevention Collaborative. Safe Haven Wollongong services manager, Sarah Holmes believes that the high statistics of mental illness in the Illawarra Shoalhaven is due to multiple environmental factors, as well as the pandemic. “Over the last year we had not only the response to COVID-19 and what that meant for households and communities, but also significant environmental disasters,” Ms Holmes said. “We…
The Wollongong Conservatorium of Music has celebrated 50 years of music education in the Illawarra, with a free music festival in the surrounding Botanic Garden. The music celebration showcased both staff and student orchestras, choirs and bands, along with headlining guests DOBBY and the Hot Potato Band. WollCon chief executive officer, David Francis said 50 years is something the Conservatorium and the community should celebrate. “It’s really important that we celebrate this milestone because the Conservatorium is 50 years old and that means there are multiple generations of people who have been here to learn music,” Mr Francis said. “It’s…
A national LGBTQI+ live story-telling project and correlating podcast, Queerstories was a sell out event at Thirroul’s Community Library in June. Queerstories featured six local queer speakers from the Wollongong community, joining over 250 LGBTQI+ speakers across Australia. Director and host of Queerstories Maeve Marsden never anticipated the rate of success and national recognition she gained from her first event. “I initially hosted the event thinking it would be a one off, a chance to celebrate and honour LGBTQI+ storytelling and oral histories,” Ms Marsden said. “I always hope my creative projects will be a success, but I never could…
Wollongong’s music scene has received a financial boost from a NSW Government support package aimed at reviving live music across the state. Jobs, Investment and Tourism Minister Stuart Ayres revealed the funding in late May, with Anita’s Theatre, Diamond Dogs Lounge, La La La’s, Servo Food Truck Bar, UniBar and the Vault Entertainment Value all benefiting from the scheme. La La La’s operations manager Grace Stranger said the injection of funds was a welcome relief, but claimed no amount of funding would cover the damage inflicted by the pandemic. “We’re looking at getting some new heaters, better lighting in the…