SHOW YOUR SUPPORT - SIGN AND SHARE OUR PETITION MEDIA RELEASE - December 1, 2015Jamie Parker MP, Member for Balmain, attended today’s sporting facilities’ summit with representatives from a number of Inner West sporting associations and peak groups, as well as UrbanGrowth NSW and Leichhardt Council. “I would like to thank Leichhardt Council and the Mayor for hosting this event, which is an important next step in the “Spaces to Play” campaign,” said Mr Parker. “Whilst neither Labor nor Liberal committed the seven new sporting fields in the run up to the March 2015 state election, I am confident we can work constructively to deliver a minimum of seven multipurpose sporting fields and indoor recreation centre in the Bays Precinct.

MEDIA RELEASE - November 25, 2015Greens Member for Balmain, Jamie Parker MP, acknowledged the concerns raised by over 100 local residents who attended Tuesday’s public meeting called at short notice by community members concerned about the development proposal for Bidura in Glebe. “This site includes the historically significant Bidura villa at 357 Glebe Point Road which was designed in Victorian Regency style by renowned architect Edmund Blacket,” said Mr Parker.“Bidura was the home of the Blacket family from 1858-1860 while Blacket was designing the nearby Great Hall at the University of Sydney. The Glebe community is fiercely proud of this heritage property, the last remaining 1850s villa on the eastern side of Glebe Point Road.

Sydney College of the Arts (SCA) currently occupies the historic  Kirkbride complex at Callan Park which was the largest project undertaken by the colonial architect in the 19th century. Kirkbride is listed on the National Estate and became home to the SCA in 1996 after an investment of around $19 million dollars to renovate the site and create purpose-built facilities.The University of Sydney has indicated it intends to move SCA from the site in 2017.“Callan Park is colloquially known as the ‘jewel of the inner west’ and that is because people cherish its historical, social and environmental values. SCA has been a significant tenant in Callan Park for almost 20 years,” said Jamie Parker MP, Greens Member for Balmain."This move is more about saving money than it is about creating an arts centre of excellence.

UPDATE: to be introduced to the Legislative Assembly by Jamie Parker on 10 March 2016.  Jamie's record on cleaning up politics in NSW MEDIA RELEASE - NOVEMBER 19, 2015Greens NSW anti-corruption spokesperson and Member for Balmain, Jamie Parker MP, has today given notice in Parliament of a new bill to reduce corruption risk by banning political donations from mining companies. “Having arrived at the end of the Parliamentary year and still no action from the Premier, I have taken the initiative to address the concerns raised by the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC),” said Mr Parker.

MEDIA RELEASE - November 12, 2015Greens Member for Balmain, Jamie Parker MP, today welcomed news that the NSW Department of Health has issued landowner’s consent for the construction of a long-anticipated regional skate park in Lilyfield.

MEDIA RELEASE - October 27, 2015The Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC) is again under fire from right wing elements within the Liberal Government who seem determined to weaken the Commission’s ability to fight corruption.  Commenting on Tuesday’s SMH report that Liberal MP Damien Tudehope will instigate a parliamentary inquiry into ICAC’s powers, Greens MP Jamie Parker said it was just another blatant attempt to curb the effectiveness of the corruption watchdog.

MEDIA RELEASE - OCTOBER 22 2015Commenting on the release of The Bays Precinct Transformation Plan on Thursday, Member for Balmain and Greens spokesperson on urban growth, Jamie Parker MP, said the promotional video and 80-page brochure are reminiscent of an episode from the satirical comedy series, Utopia.“The computer generated vistas and full-page diagrams are certainly colourful, like the fictional TV series, but the plan is light on detail for housing density, mass transport options and recreational spaces to play,” said Mr Parker.

MEDIA RELEASE - October 22, 2015With unprecedented development slated for the Parramatta Road corridor, the NSW Government has committed to a value-capture mechanism to ensure the windfall benefits are shared by the wider community, not simply private interests.Value-capture can be simply defined as the private sector contributing to the costs of public infrastructure. The concept is also referred to as value sharing. Local councils have long been funding community infrastructure through developer payment by way of Section 94 contributions and voluntary planning agreements but it is often inadequate to meet the needs of the community.“I am encouraged that in response to my direct question in Parliament, Planning Minister Rob Stokes acknowledged more needs to be done as existing contribution systems, such as Section 94 and voluntary planning agreements, are insufficient for the required infrastructure and services following infill development,” said Jamie Parker MP, Member for Balmain and Greens spokesperson on urban growth.

MEDIA RELEASE - October 20, 2015The Baird government has today made public the so-called ‘Fit for the Future’ assessment of local Councils, proposing forced amalgamations in a bid to slash up to half of NSW Councils. “The political motivations of the Independent Pricing and Regulatory Tribunal (IPART) report are called into question,” said Jamie Parker MP, Greens Member for Balmain. 

MEDIA RELEASE - October 7, 2015The High Court of Australia has found that NSW laws which ban specific classes of political donors are constitutionally valid. NSW laws currently ban alcohol, tobacco, gambling and developer interests from making political donations. The Court also upheld NSW laws which apply caps on the amount of political donations. “Elections should be about the contest of ideas, not the contest of cash. Whether it is cash in a brown paper bag or buying a table at a fundraising event the community needs to be sure that politicians aren’t being bought.” said Greens NSW anti-corruption spokesperson Jamie Parker MP.