English Olympic champion Matt Walls has been injured after being catapulted over the barriers and into a horrified crowd in another high-speed crash at London’s velodrome.
Walls was being treated for injuries in the stands of the Lee Valley VeloPark after he was caught up in a multi-rider crash on the final lap of the Commonwealth Games 15km scratch race qualifier on Sunday.
See the horror crash unfold in the video player below
Cyclist flies into the crowd after major crash
Cyclist flies into the crowd after major crash
British Cycling reported he would be going to hospital along with another rider, Isle of Man’s Matt Bostock, who had to be taken out of the sand on a stretcher.
One man in the crowd received treatment for cuts to his arm while a young girl also received minor attention.
Spectators were left ducking for cover after Olympic omnium champion Walls, high on the banking, was sent spiraling into the air, landing in the front seating section of the arena.
England’s Matt Walls, top left, and Canada’s Derek Gee, right, go over the barrier into the crowd at Lee Valley VeloPark on day three of the 2022 Commonwealth Games. Credit: AP
Walls was riding up the banking trying to avoid others who had fallen lower down, and appeared to clip another wheel before being sent flying over the top.
Stay up to date with the latest developments of the story in the article below
Western Australian teachers, nurses, police officers, cleaners and public servants have been offered a six per cent wage rise over the next two years as a buffer to rising inflation.
The Western Australia government has increased its pay offer for 150,000 workers to three per cent annually for the next two years, along with an additional $2,500 cost of living payment.
Premier Mark McGowan said the move was in response to peaking inflation and would cost the budget an extra $634 million over the next four years.
“Given the current economic climate we’ve listened and reviewed our wages policy,” he wrote on social media on Sunday.
“This is a reasonable and generous policy, but also responsible in these volatile economic times.”
The changes will immediately flow through to industries that have already accepted the government’s previous 2.75 per cent pay increase offer, including teachers and public hospital doctors.
Some workers’ wages will be increased more than the three per cent annual rate, with a patient care assistant who earns just over $55,000 a year set to effectively get a 7.5 per cent wage rise over the first year.
Perth’s consumer price index jumped 1.7 per cent in the June quarter, according to Australian Bureau of Statistics data, pushing its annual inflation rate well above the national average to 7.4 per cent.
Health workers and other WA public servants were lobbying for a pay rise above 2.75 per cent, with some holding stop-work meetings outside Perth hospitals in recent weeks.
The McGowan government banked a $5.7 billion surplus in this year’s state budget, which included a one-off $400 electricity credit for every household.
BEIJNG (AP) — The speaker of the US House of Representatives, Nancy Pelosi, confirmed Sunday she will visit four Asian countries this week but made no mention of a possible stop in Taiwan that has fueled tension with Beijing, which claims the island democracy as its own territory.
Pelosi said in a statement she is leading a congressional delegation to Singapore, Malaysia, South Korea and Japan to discuss trade, the COVID-19 pandemic, climate change, security and “democratic governance.”
Pelosi has yet to confirm news reports that she might visit Taiwan. Chinese President Xi Jinping warned against meddling in Beijing’s dealings with the island in a phone call Thursday with his American counterpart, Joe Biden.
Beijing sees official American contact with Taiwan as encouragement to make its decades-old de facto independence permanent, a step US leaders say they don’t support. Pelosi, head of one of three branches of the US government, would be the highest-ranking elected American official to visit Taiwan since then-Speaker Newt Gingrich in 1997.
The Biden administration didn’t explicitly urge Pelosi to avoid Taiwan but tried to assure Beijing there was no reason to “come to blows” and that if such a visit occurred, it would signal no change in US policy.
“Under the strong leadership of President Biden, America is firmly committed to smart, strategic engagement in the region, understanding that a free and flourishing Indo-Pacific is crucial to prosperity in our nation and around the globe,” Pelosi’s statement said.
Taiwan and China split in 1949 after the communists won a civil war on the mainland. Both sides say they are one country but disagree over which government is entitled to national leadership. They have no official relations but are linked by billions of dollars of trade and investment.
The United States switched diplomatic recognition from Taipei to Beijing in 1979, but maintains informal relations with the island. Washington is obliged by federal law to see that Taiwan has the means to defend itself.
Washington’s “One China policy” says it takes no position on the status of the two sides but wants their dispute resolved peacefully. Beijing promotes an alternative “One China principle” that says they are one country and the Communist Party is its leader.
Members of Congress publicly backed Pelosi’s interest in visiting Taiwan despite Chinese opposition. They want to avoid being seen as yielding to Beijing.
Beijing has given no details of how it might react if Pelosi goes to Taiwan, but the Ministry of Defense warned last week the military would take “strong measures to thwart any external interference.” The foreign ministry said, “those who play with fire will perish by it.”
The ruling party’s military wing, the People’s Liberation Army, has flown growing numbers of fighter planes and bombers around Taiwan to intimidate the island.
“The Air Force’s multi-type fighter jets fly around the treasured island of the motherland, tempering and enhancing the ability to maintain national sovereignty and territorial integrity,” military spokesman Col. Shen Jinke said on Sunday, referring to Taiwan.
Pelosi said her delegation includes US Reps. Gregory Meeks, chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee; Mark Takano, chairman of the House Committee on Veterans’ Affairs; Suzan DelBene, vice chair of the House Ways and Means Committee; Raja Krishnamoorthi, a member of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence and chair of the Subcommittee on Economic and Consumer Policy of the House Committee on Oversight and Reform, and Andy Kim, a member of the House Armed Services and Foreign Affairs Committees.
A visit to Taiwan would be a career capstone for Pelosi, who increasingly uses her position in Congress as a US emissary on the global stage. She has long challenged China on human rights and wanted to visit Taiwan earlier this year.
In 1991, as a new member of Congress, Pelosi irked Chinese authorities by unfurling a banner on Tiananmen Square in central Beijing commemorating those killed when the Communist Party crushed pro-democracy protests two years earlier.
“It’s important for us to show support for Taiwan,” Pelosi, a Democrat from California, told reporters this month.
But she had made clear she was not advocating US policy changes.
“None of us has ever said we’re for independence, when it comes to Taiwan,” she said. “That’s up to Taiwan to decide.”
On Friday, National Security Council spokesman John Kirby tried to tamp down concerns.
“There’s no reason for it to come to that, to come to blows,” Kirby said at the White House. “There’s no reason for that because there’s been no change in American policy with respect to One China.”
He said the reserve was about $1.38 million to $1.4 million.
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“[It’s a] pretty typical experience, I think the quoted prices are where things are at,” Roberts said.
He did not think the impact of interest rates had filtered through yet, and said the market was “very price-sensitive, but still good”.
“Vendors are selling and doing well and bringing things to the marketplace,” he said. “It’s about getting the pricing right.”
In Maribyrnong, a three-bedroom parkside home also sold in the vicinity of its price hopes, fetching $1,015 million. This was just above the top end of price guide of $900,000 to $990,000.
Most interested buyers were young families but a middle-aged couple won the competitive auction for 1 Nayook Lane, Biggin & Scott Maribyrnong’s Quentin Hinrichs said, beating three other parties.
It had a fluctuating reserve, but the vendors were hoping for about $1 million, he said.
“[The market is] certainly down from, way down from, where it was not long ago, price wise,” he said.
Not all homes sold under the hammer. A Brighton block with water views passed in on a vendor bid of $5 million.
The weatherboard house at 50 Esplanade was marketed as an opportunity for the buyer to build a dream home on the 903-square-meter parcel.
Kay & Burton Bayside Brighton’s Will Maxted said he was in negotiations with some parties post-auction, and his phone had not stopped pinging since, with potential buyers wanting to talk.
“They are just a bit gun shy to put their hands up, they want to negotiate afterwards,” he said.
A more affordable four-bedroom house in Frankston North soared above its reserve price, trading for $712,000 in front of a crowd of more than 90 onlookers.
An investor outbid another investor and two owner-occupiers for 5 Blackbutt Court, surpassing the reserve of $500,000 and price guide of $500,000 to $550,000.
Bidding began at the bottom of the price guide and went up in $10,000 increments, and cut back to $500 bids towards the end, OBrien Real Estate Frankston’s Mark Burke said.
He said it was on a large block of 837 square meters but not all homes could command a similar result in this market.
“I’m a bit more picky about what I auction but if you get the right property you can auction it,” he said.
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“Buyers are looking for better value for money and better bang for their buck – it certainly has an effect on prices.”
In Glen Waverley, a three-bedroom villa unit at 1/743 High Street Road sold for $836,000.
An investor beat three other parties, pushing the price above the $800,000 reserve.
“It was not a bad auction, there was quite a few people here which was a bit of a surprise for us for a main road property,” Barry Plant Monash’s Tony Ievoli said.
“At some of the other properties we have auctioned in recent times, there are much fewer buyers and much less activity.“
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The Backbone One for Android just launched about a month ago, and with it, gave anyone with a Google, Samsung, or other Android phone a fantastic alternative to the GameSir X2. Along the launch of the mobile gaming controller, a $65 USD in value of free Stadia Pro, Xbox Game Pass Ultimate, and Discord Nitro were given away to promote it.
Now, Sony has partnered directly with Backbone to create an accessory that PlayStation gamers will appreciate. We actually saw this device last year and thought that maybe the gaming giant was working on its own to pair with PS Remote Play as an alternative to the PlayStation Vita and as a companion to the PlayStation 5, but it looks like it was a collaborative design all along.
The Backbone One – PlayStation Edition is meant for use with Apple’s iOS devices (like the iPhone 13 Pro/Max), and features the same colors, face buttons, and overall design as Sony’s new DualSense controller for its latest generation console. It’s collapsible while not in use, and has a Lightning charging pass-through port for your phone.
You’ll also be happy to know that it has something that’s become incredibly rare in recent years – a 3.5mm headphone jack! While those familiar with these sorts of accessories will already know that this doesn’t come with an internal battery of its own (it’s just a controller that interfaces with your phone), I feel the need to mention this for those new to the space and who may be interested in expanding their gameplay options.
You can download the Backbone app from the Apple App Store for additional functionality, but don’t be mistaken – this isn’t just and only for PS Remote Play usage! You can use any Backbone device to play other things too like cloud gaming services (Stadia, Nvidia GeForce NOW, etc.) as well as App Store games built with gamepad support.
The Backbone One will cost $99.99 USD and is available in the US, UK, New Zealand, Spain, Sweden, Italy, Mexico, Australia, Canada, France, Germany, and the Netherlands with other locations gaining access to it as time progresses. I really hope Android users get a PlayStation version of this device as well, as this would scratch my itch for a new PlayStation Vita, which I’m almost certain will never happen.
Johnny Depp’s hotshot lawyer Camille Vasquez has conducted her first sit-down interview after Amber Heard officially filed a notice of appeal over the $US10 million verdict in the former couple’s defamation case.
A spokesman for Heard announced the appeal move with a statement appearing to pre-empt social media reaction earlier in July.
WATCH THE VIDEO ABOVE: Camille Vasquez speaks
For more Celebrity related news and videos check out Celebrity >>
“We believe the court made errors that prevented a just and fair verdict consistent with the First Amendment,” the spokesman said.
“We are therefore appealing the verdict.
“While we realize today’s filing will ignite the Twitter bonfires, there are steps we need to take to ensure both fairness and justice.”
Camille Vasquez on CBS Credit: CBS
Speaking to CBS Mornings co-host Gayle King on Friday, Vasquez said Heard’s appeal was “expected.”
“She’s indicated since the day she lost the trial that she was going to appeal.”
Vasquez said Depp’s team had prepared a strategy to deal with that.
Johnny Depp and Amber Heard in 2014 in New York City. Credit: Andrew H. Walker/Getty Images
“Mr Depp ended up filing his own appeals so that the court could have a full record.
“She insists on continuing to litigate this matter. We have to protect our client’s interests.”
Vasquez’s reference to Depp’s “own appeals” refers to the fact he has also filed an appeal against the jury’s ruling that he had defamed Heard via comments made by his attorney Adam Waldman in 2020.
Johnny Depp. Credit: Mondadori Portfolio/Mondadori Portfolio via Getty Images
Following Depp’s courtroom win, the actor told fans: “The best is yet to come and a new chapter has finally begun.”
King asked Vasquez: “How do you heal and move on when both sides are still in court arguing?”
“It’s pretty standard legal procedure,” Vasquez said.
“We just are hopeful that the court will uphold the verdict, which we think was the right verdict, and allow both parties to move on.”
“So is it safe to say that if she hadn’t appealed you all would not have appealed either and you would have moved on?” King asked.
Depp in 2020. Credit: NurPhoto/NurPhoto via Getty Images
“Yes,” Vasquez answered. “That’s a very fair statement.”
Before the official notice of appeal, Heard’s lawyers had unsuccessfully asked Judge Penney Azcarate to set aside the verdict and “investigate potential improper juror service”.
Among a variety of arguments, Heard’s lawyers suggested one juror on the panel may have been selected illegally.
Amber Heard stuns with Johnny Depp love confession.
Amber Heard stuns with Johnny Depp love confession.
According to court papers, a summons went out to a 77-year-old man.
But the man who responded in his place was his 52-year-old son, who has the same name and lives at the same address.
However, in a written order Judge Penney Azcarate rejected all of Heard’s claims and said the juror issue specifically was irrelevant and that Heard can’t show she was prejudiced.
A civil jury in Fairfax awarded $US10.35 million to Depp after they found he was defamed by Heard Credit: Getty/Instagram
“The juror was vetoed, sat for the entire jury, deliberated, and reached a verdict. The only evidence before this Court is that this juror and all jurors followed their oaths, the Court’s instructions, and orders.
“This Court is bound by the competent decision of the jury,” Azcarate wrote.
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Amber Heard releases never-before-seen Johnny Depp ‘evidence’.
Amber Heard releases never-before-seen Johnny Depp ‘evidence’.
Supercars drivers Thomas Randle and Andre Heimgartner have walked away from a big start line crash.
Starting from the front row, Randle stalled his Ford Mustang and was collected by a clearly unsighted Heimgartner, who then hit an innocent Nick Percat.
Both drivers were able to climb from their cars, although both are out for the rest of the weekend.
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The race was immediately red-flagged.
Heimgartner’s car owner Brad Jones said he thought the Commodore would be a write-off.
Andre Heimgartner and Thomas Randle have walked away from this monster start line shunt at Tailem Bend in the Supercars. (Supplied)
“I don’t think that thing is going to be running again any time soon… he was certainly going pretty quickly when he hit him,” he said on Fox Sports’ coverage.
“Andre’s okay, which is the important thing, and then we’ll work out where we go from here.
“I’d be very surprised, as clever as my guys are, if we can get the thing going again. It just looks really badly damaged. Lucky no one was hurt.”
Tim Edwards, team boss at Tickford Racing said he was thankful both drivers were able to walk away from the crash.
Another angle of the crash. (Supplied)
“Thankfully both of them got out. Both of them look a bit sore, but anyway,” he said.
“The main focus is that he’s physically alright. We’ll talk about the mental side after today. It’s just one of those things – drivers stall. In those situations, you just hope everybody avoids them. It’s always a fine line.”
Off the race restart, pole-sitter Cameron Waters spun the rear tires on the oil-soak resin on the track surface at the crash site and was swamped into turn one.
Van Gisbergen then looked after his tires and took the lead via an undercut during the pit stop cycle. He won the race by 2.5secs.
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Incredible exhausts: The worst crashes in motorsport history
Amid the sound of air-raid sirens and the threat of missiles, Sofiia Yakymenko logs onto her computer for an online lesson.
Key points:
More than 120 Monash University student teachers have joined an international initiative to educate Ukrainian children affected by war
The program was initiated by Smart Osvita and provides online classes to thousands of children
The university is encouraging Australian educators to register interest if they want to be involved
The 12-year-old takes two to five online classes a day from her home in kyiv about anything from atmospheric science to how to practice yoga.
These classes are held by teachers from all over the world, including from Monash University in Melbourne.
“I walk a lot, I read a lot – but mostly I take online classes,” she said.
With ambitions to be a biologist, the lessons have been a lifeline for Sofia since school stopped when Russia invaded Ukraine.
Her mum Yuliia Lashko is a physicist and has found comfort in the classes too.
“There’s no guarantee any missile does not hit your house,” she said.
“But it’s important to understand there are much more good people who can share something good.
“They remind us we do not stay alone and our children have a future.”
Sofia, Yuliia and their dog Peppi on holiday before the war.(Supplied: Yuliia Lashko)
Monash University provides lessons
More than 120 Monash University student teachers have been involved in providing online lessons for Ukrainian children who are living in the war-torn country or have fled abroad.
Maria Pakakis is one of the student teachers who ran a session about Mars from the Victorian Space Science Education Centre, where they have a simulated Mars surface.
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How Victorian teachers are helping Ukrainians
She said 30 students joined the session, where they spoke about all aspects of the planet.
“It was a privilege and a pleasure — they were definitely eager to learn and asked some really great questions,” Ms Pakakis said.
“They were amazing considering what they’re going through.”
Michael Phillips has been Monash University’s faculty of education digital transformation associate professor and said the program started after Ukrainian organization Smart Osvita — an online learning NGO — approached him to run virtual classes.
Monash University’s Mike Phillips with student teachers John Wall and Emma Hart.(Monash University: Tim Herbert)
Dr Phillips quickly said yes and within 24 hours of sending the word out to his students more than 100 put their hands up to teach.
He said he has been able to equip his young teachers with the skills to teach virtually, guided by “trauma-informed practice”.
“For [people in Ukraine] being able to experience that and see there are people who are wanting to support and help in any way gives them a sense they are not alone in this,” Dr Phillips said.
But he says remote learning also has a significant place at home and is an essential platform for teachers of the future.
“A lot of people don’t realize it, but Victoria’s biggest school is a fully online school with 5,500 students,” he said.
“And what we’re realizing with issues like COVID and the flu is the place of online learning isn’t going to go away any time soon.”
‘We’re going to keep going’
Smart Osvita international volunteer program coordinator David Falconer is continuing to search for ways the program can be not only expanded in Ukraine, but in other places affected by conflict.
Smart Osvita volunteer David Falconer working from his home in northern Canada.(Supplied: David Falconer)
Mr Falconer is an educator based in northern Canada who started working with the kyiv-based NGO soon after Russia invaded Ukraine.
“They invited me to coordinate the recruiting effort and to invite educators for the online learning program,” he said.
After approaching educators around the globe, he has since involved more than 20 institutions and organizations that are now teaching thousands of Ukrainian students.
They have even facilitated lessons hosted by Canadian film director Sergio Navaretta and astronaut Chris Hadfield.
Despite many children living in a war zone, Mr Falconer says the internet has been reliable thanks to Elon Musk’s low-lying satellites providing high-speed connections.
“We have kids joining lessons from bomb shelters – not for days, but weeks,” he said.
But it has not come without its challenges. Dr Falconer says the team has thwarted attempts by mysterious hackers attempting to derail the lessons.
“They’re wanting to disrupt these sessions because this program is successful and they want us to stop,” he said.
Mr Falconer is continually looking to grow the program and provide specialized tutoring for high school students in Ukraine.
Yuliia and Sofiia recently walking in a meadow near their home in kyiv.(Supplied: Yuliia Lashko)
He is also currently working to develop a similar program for children affected by the conflict in Burma.
But for now, Mr Falconer is calling for Australian institutions, organizations and individuals to get in touch if they want to join the effort.
“We’re going to keep going as long as it takes,” he said.
“You see those faces, you hear those voices, and you don’t forget.”
If you are interested in getting involved, you can register with Monash University here.
Man dies after jumping from plane before landing near Raleigh; pilot hospitalized, officials say
MORRISVILLE, NC — A twin-engine cargo plane made an emergency landing Friday at Raleigh-Durham International Airport after reported landing-gear issues and a search for the co-pilot who jumped from it before the landing ended with a recovery of a body, according to officials from Wake County.
ABC 11, Channel 9’s sister station in Raleigh, reported a man jumped out of the plane before it made its emergency landing near Raeford after a wheel had come off the landing gear.
There are now questions about he exactly exited the plane. The conversation between the plane and air traffic control can be heard in a 40-minute recording, ABC 11 reported on Saturday night.
“Emergency, we’ve lost our right wheel, we’d like to proceed to Raleigh and make a landing at Raleigh,” one pilot said. “We were attempting to land, we made contact with the ground, had a hard landing, and decided to go around, and at that point we lost the wheel.”
The CASA C-212 Aviocar, made in Spain in 1983 landed on Runway 5R-23L at RDU around 2:40 pm and viewed into the grass. The pilot on board was taken to Duke Hospital with minor injuries, according to RDU first responders.
“How do you intend to land at Raleigh-Durham?” air traffic control asked. “Get as slow as we can… I guess we’re going to put it on the belly,” the caller said.
After the emergency landing, the pilot was taken to Duke Hospital with minor injuries and has since been released.
The body of co-pilot Charles Hew Crooks, 23, was found 20 miles away from the airport in a Fuquay-Varina neighborhood.
Several residents told ABC 11 they heard the crash, one of them being a person who realized it was in his backyard.
“I honestly thought it was somebody who was slamming their trash can lid or something cause it was pretty loud,” the eyewitness said.
The pilot told authorities that co-pilot aboard jumped out before the landing attempt, according to ABC 11’s reporting. The jumper was initially thought to have exited the plane toward a body of water near West Lake Middle School in Apex.
Another resident who lives two doors down from where Crooks was found near called it a “surreal,” experience.
“I guess I don’t know if we’ll ever really know, but it’s just crazy” Matt Stone told ABC 11. “If he jumped a second earlier, he could’ve been right here in my kid’s playset. Just a million things, and the sadness about it, of it being a 23-year-old guy who probably woke up that day, had breakfast, ready to go fly a plane.”
Several agencies assisted in the massive search before it ended Friday evening. The National Transportation Safety Board is in charge of the investigation, but questions remain on how Crooks exited during the flight.
Wake County authorities said on Friday there was no indication he had a parachute with him.
“Maybe he fell, or jumped, I don’t know,” an eyewitness said. “But I was feeling remorseful for his family from him.”
The plane landed after it was unable to open its right landing gear, but the left landing gear appeared to be working properly. The plane is owned by Spore LTD LLC in Colorado Springs and took off from Raeford.
The FAA and the National Transportation Safety Board will investigate the incident. Runway 5R-23L at RDU was reopened on Saturday and the airport returned to normal operations.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
(WATCH BELOW: Travelers stuck at Charlotte airport as flights delayed, canceled across US)
Travelers stuck at Charlotte airport as flights delayed, canceled across US
“We’ve never ever queried about rental increases, and we’ve understood,” he said. “[But] it’s quite tough at the moment.”
Zahos acknowledged that the committee didn’t put his rent up during the 2020 and 2021 COVID-19 lockdowns and that he expected an increase this year.
However, he said after revenue loss due to the pandemic and increases in costs due to inflation, the suggested amount was extraordinary. He also declined to make the amount public.
Fresh produce stalls remained open during the lockdowns, while other stalls were forced to close.
The other stallholders who spoke to The Sunday Age did so on the condition of anonymity, out of concern it could affect negotiations.
One woman, whose rent could increase by about 30 per cent, accused the committee of being bullies.
“They are essentially going to send our businesses bust … during a recession, during a pandemic,” she said.
The woman said she felt pressured to provide her financial records.
“It’s outrageous, disgusting behaviour. We’re being treated like kids,” she said.
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Another stallholder, whose rent could increase by about 40 per cent, called the move a “shake down”.
“They’re trying to draw blood from a stone,” he said.
“Before you know it, the face of the market will change forever to a glorified food court because takeaway food or big chains will be the only thing that can survive.”
A fourth stallholder said prices could soon be as high as at the Stonnington Council-run Prahran Market, while another said the process had caused him extreme stress. “It’s been hell,” he said.
Port Phillip Council owns and operates the South Melbourne Market. The land it is on was made available under a crown grant for a general market in 1867.
Mayor Marcus Pearl said the council provided $1,193,725 in rental support to stallholders impacted by the COVID-19 lockdowns and that the rent increases were the first in three years.
“The reality is that it’s expensive to run and maintain a market of this size and complexity,” he said. “This means we have to increase rents to meet our obligation to ratepayers to keep the market financially sustainable.”
Pearl said the council aimed to keep rents as affordable as possible for traders and that most would face a 3.5 per cent rise.
He said the committee took into consideration the public benefit of the market and that financial records were requested to ensure the stalls could remain viable.
The committee’s charter calls the market one of the council’s “prime infrastructure assets” and notes its intention to develop it as a “premier shopping destination”.
“The market is an integral part of [the] council’s long term financial sustainability and, as such, must continue to operate profitably and competitively,” it says.
Shoppers Keren Amor, Terry Lees and Linda Pankhurst at South Melbourne market on Saturday.Credit:Simon Schluter
On Saturday, the market was bustling with people, some there to do their weekly shop, others to browse or meet friends.
Terry Lees, who has been shopping at the market for 30 years and now visits three times a week, said if prices increased he would shop at other markets more often, including the Queen Victoria Market.
“Este [market] would be less competitive with Vic Market,” the local South Melbourne said. “It’s going to force some people out because they don’t want to put the prices up and [make the market] more expensive.”
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Keren Amore said she did her main shop at Preston Market, which had lower prices, and that she came to South Melbourne for a few select specialty goods. The local Northcote said she would still visit if prices increased.
Regular Linda Pankhurst, who lives on St Kilda Road, said she too would still shop at the market, but that she worried about people on lower incomes and for the stallholders.
“A lot of these guys have really struggled, especially over the last couple of years,” she said.
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