MONDAY 30th MARCH South West Local News

This morning on south west local news

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fuel tax to be cut in half to aid motorists, with hopes of easing cost pressure

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Vline free for south west  residence during april, along with metro trains

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South west areas relying on tourists impacted by fuel prices  

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Koroit export talor bryne  lands their first afl goal on sunday 

For everything making and breaking news in South West Victoria.

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Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:00

This morning on Southwest Local News. Fuel tax to be cut in half to aid motorists with hopes of easing cost pressure. V-Line free for Southwest residents during April along with Metro trains. Southwest area is relying on tourists impacted by fuel prices. Corrid Export Taylor Byrne lands his first AFL goal on Sunday.

SPEAKER_04 0:28

Live from Silver Bowl Studios in Warnerball. This is Southwest Local News with Shanna Rogers.

SPEAKER_00 0:36

Good morning and welcome to Southwest Local News. A huge boost for motorists with the federal government announcing it is slashing its fuel excise tax. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese today said the fuel excise will be cut in half. This will move the excise number from 52.6 cents per litre to 26.3 cents per litre. This reduction will be in place for the next three months. It comes after the Federal Coalition last week asked for such a change to occur. The reduction came after the National Cabinet met for almost three hours today to look at the next steps in dealing with the global fuel crisis. V-line services will be free for Southwest residents during the month of April. This comes as part of a state government announcement that all public transport will be free in Victoria across metropolitan areas and V line services. The move was announced by Premier Jacinta Allen on Sunday. The move is aimed at taking pressures off the state's fuel supplies as war in the Middle East continues. The Southwest is hoping high fuel prices do not discourage people travelling to the region this Easter long weekend. Wanneville, Port Ferry, and Port Campbell are among the Southwest areas that rely on a strong Easter tourist trade. Sporting competitions, community events, and seaside location makes the Southwest an attractive destination. Moineshire Council Mayor Jordan Lockett said there is plenty to offer for visitors over East and beyond.

SPEAKER_03 2:16

Beaches, it you know, it's hopefully we'll get some good weather. And we've got, you know, lots of Easter egg hunts and things like that across the Shire. We've got amazing natural, diverse landscapes up from Pudge Bim to of course Tower Hill and things like that. So come on down and check it out in Moyne.

SPEAKER_00 2:32

Emergency services attended an incident in the Warnable CBD on Friday when a vehicle drove into a building. Rad Health has appointed a new CEO. Alistair Stevic steps into the lead role, replacing Mark Powell. Mr. Stevik has held a number of high-profile positions, including CEO of the Oceana Regional Anti-Doping Organization. He will begin at Rad Health on April the 27th. Mr. Stevic said he was drawn to the organisations that deliver meaningful outcomes for the community. April has been nominated as Parkinson's Awareness Month. With 38 Australians diagnosed with Parkinson's each day, the search for a cure remains an important one. Activities suggested to raise funds for Parkinson's research during April include pancakes for Parkinson's. This encourages people to cook up the famous breakfast fair and share with family and friends, incorporating fundraising as part of their gathering. Construction has begun on a new 1.7 kilometre footpath in the Warnerville Industrial Estate. This is Warnable City Council's biggest footpath project in more than two decades. The project is being jointly funded by Council and the Federal Government and will come at a cost of$534,000. Merivale Drive, McMeekin Road, Albert Street, and Braithwaite Street will be linked by the footpath. Completion of the footpath is expected by the end of June. Rehabilitation of a section of the Princess Highway in Pamua between Ellersley Pamure Road and Harris Street begin today. The stretch of road is 980 metres, with crews working from 7am to 6 p.m. Monday to Friday with the possibility of some weekend works. For the safety of worker crews and road users, single-lane closures and reduced speed limits will be in place during the works. The section of the highway is in the Moinshire Council. A variety performance with a difference will light up the small town of Simpson next month. BMX Trick Bike Show will take place in JC's Park in Simpson on April the 16th. The star of the event will be the BMX Flatland Rider, circus artist and storyteller Scott Hone. The event is free and includes a community barbecue from 12 noon. Families attending need to register for catering purposes. Warnerball Community Gardens Quarry Amphitheatre will host an acrobatic circus in April. The Onefell Swoop Circus will present its newest production in common. The visit to town will also include a hands-on workshop earlier in the day. The event will be held on Saturday, April the 18th with tickets on sale now. Convener of the Warnable Community Garden, Courtney Matthew, said it would be exciting to see the amphitheatre used this way. It's a space with so much history and natural beauty, and we're thrilled to explore new and creative uses that bring people together, said Miss Matthew. This performance really reflects that our community garden is all about connection, care, and collaboration. First making news in sport, Croy teenager Taylor Byrne had a memorable AFL debut on Sunday. Byrne played his first game at the highest level against Melbourne at the MCG. In a brilliant start to the game, Byrne kicked a goal in the first quarter with his first kick. It was a part of a flying start for the Blues, who jumped to a seven-goal lead, but it was to be a disappointing end for Carlton with the Demons storming home to win by 23 points. It was a winning feeling for Byrne's Karoit counterpart Finn O'Sullivan. The umbola played a key role for North Melbourne in its victory over Essendon on Saturday night. O'Sullivan was given a run with roll with Cobden star Zach Merritt and limited the Essendon Champions impact. O'Sullivan went on to gather 24 possessions of his own as the Kangaroos recorded a 12-point victory. Illingworth is coming off a season that included time playing for Victoria, the Melbourne Renegades, and Geelong. She continued to enhance her reputation as one of the country's most promising fast bowlers. She told Fitzmedia injuries had been a disruption this season and she was looking forward to what comes next.

SPEAKER_01 7:19

So, Millie, just uh the season you've had, you've had a lot of cricket. Um, happy with how it's gone?

SPEAKER_02 7:23

Uh yeah, a bit of mixed bag with results-wise, uh, in terms of the girls. Um, coming back from injury, obviously I had a stress fracture in my back, so I um I only came in for the last four games of the season fixed, but I was lucky enough to go over to Mumbai and I learnt a lot over there, which was really cool. And just to see at like how another franchise does it. Um we had a pretty good season with the renegades, so yeah, I always have fun playing with them as well.

SPEAKER_01 7:47

So, what's your season ahead like 12 months, next 12 months? What do you want to achieve there?

SPEAKER_02 7:53

Um, hopefully get a few more uh wins with the fix. Um, I think we'll we'll shape up to have a pretty cool, hopefully have a good season um in blue, and then with the renegades, I think uh we'll try and push our case against the finals, which would be nice. So, yeah, hopefully get our second trophy.

SPEAKER_01 8:08

And with Geelong, a lot of the Southwest girls there in the end, you must really enjoy seeing them girls come through.

SPEAKER_02 8:13

Absolutely, yeah. No, I love I love spending my time down at Geelong. Um the girls are great, great value, great cricketers. Um, Sedden Field's got a really great, great programme down there and rides a really tight ship. So, yeah, no, I love seeing those Geelong girls uh succeed.

SPEAKER_00 8:27

Warner's Taylor Ralph has completed a successful first weekend of the 2026 FIM Women's Circuit Racing World Championship. After a weekend of racing in Portugal, Ralph sits ninth on the rider standings. In the first race of the weekend, she finished 10th with a mechanical issue slowing her down. Overnight repairs had the bike in better shape for race two, with Ralph coming home in 8th place. Around the region, it will be a partly cloudy day for most of the week with a foggy start to the day. Now, further into the forecast. In Port Ferry tomorrow, we're expecting a sunny day with a top of 27 degrees and strong northerly winds. Wednesday, there'll be a shower or two with a top of 22 degrees and northwesterly winds. Thursday, partly cloudy conditions for most of the region. In Malt Lake tomorrow, sunny with a top of 20. There'll be a slight shower on Wednesday with 2mm to fall. As for Thursday, partly cloudy conditions with a top of 23 degrees. Around the Colback and Camperdown region, a sunny day with a top of 29 tomorrow. On Wednesday, a top of 23 degrees and only 1mm to fall. Thursday will be partly cloudy with a top of 23 degrees and a chance of fog in the morning. In the Port Campbell region, a top of 24 degrees and sunny conditions, 22 with a shower. Wednesday, only 2mm to fall with strong winds for most of the day. Thursday, partly cloudy conditions with temperatures reaching to 19. Home to Warnable, 29 degrees tomorrow with a sunny day. Wednesday, showers are clearing up with a top of 22 and showers are on the way. Thursday, partly cloudy with a top of 21 degrees and no rain. That's it from your Southwest Local News team, and thank you for tuning in. Remember, you can also watch this bulletin online at southwestlocalnews.com.au. Until Thursday morning with peace. Have a great day.