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Wednesday, April 9, 2025
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Dancing the night away in Moyhu
ALL ABOARD.. AS NEW WEST PLATFORM OPENS
Page 10
WANGARATTA Railway Station now has two platforms in operation. Monday was a red letter day as the new west platform opened to the public. Carly Van Schijndel and her son Liam were among the first to catch a train from the new platform, jumping aboard the 9.47am service bound for Albury.
plus
tv GUIDE
O&M, O&K netball wrap
■ STORY PAGE 3 PHOTO: Kurt Hickling
Sport
Candidates clash on home battery boost Indi incumbent welcomes Labor’s $2.3 billion pledge, but Libs want ‘more balanced’ energy mix
INDI election candidates have shared split views on the federal government’s plan to subsidise home batteries in a campaign pitch to cut costs and take climate action. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese released Labor’s
BY BAILEY ZIMMERMANN bzimmermann@ nemedia.com.au
$2.3 billion plan on Sunday to provide incentives for small scale batteries to reduce power bills for
households, small business and community groups like sporting clubs as one if its signature policies for the forthcoming election. Included in the incentives, the federal government pledged to slash 30 per cent on the cost of a new house-
hold battery, with Labor expecting to see over one million new batteries by 2030. According to analysis by the Department of Climate Change, Energy, the Environment and Water, a household installing a new solar and a battery system
could save up to $2300 a year – around 90 per cent of a typical family electricity bill. Incumbent Independent MP for Indi Helen Haines has been campaigning for cheaper access to home batteries since she introduced her own legislation in 2022,
and welcomed the incentives. “I listened to local people in my electorate, brought forward a solution and campaigned on it, and now we see the major parties acting,” she said. ■ Continued page 2 ■ EU trade deal - page 2