Tuesday, 17 June 2025

 Nathan LAMBERT (Preston) (14:48): (1167) My question is for the Minister for Local Government, and my question is: what levers do local councils and the state government have to address the issue of abandoned shopping trolleys? I raise this issue particularly thinking of the streets around Preston North East Primary and Crevelli Street, where unfortunately dumped trolleys and dumped rubbish have been a longstanding problem. Every time we doorknock down there, people raise it. We often go down and count up the trolleys ourselves, with often 30 or 40 in that little area, so we can report it to Northland Coles, Woolworths, Kmart, Aldi and others. We appreciate there are complex reasons why people dump rubbish and dump trolleys. Obviously not having a car is sometimes part of the issue, but nonetheless it has a significant negative impact on those communities and those neighbourhoods. It makes them feel uncared for and can lead to stigmatisation, and we will be grateful for any information the minister can provide about how we can work with Darebin council to find a long-term solution for this problem that works for everyone.