National trust of Victoria award celebrates much-loved arboreal icons while calling for protection of green spaces Follow our Australia politics live blog for latest updates Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast For more than 160 years, a humble ginkgo tree raised from seed in Geelong’s botanic gardens has been the backdrop to “countless local love stories”. Standing beneath it is the most popular spot to get married at the park, its branches forming the backdrop of many wedding photos. Now, in addition to being the largest ginkgo biloba in the state – and possibly Australia – at a whopping 20 metres tall, it has a new claim to fame. The much-adored Geelong icon has been crowned Victoria’s tree of the year . Continue reading...
From a seed in China to the ‘backdrop for countless love stories’: a ginko’s 167-year journey to Victorian tree of the year
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Tony Blair’s former spokesperson says attacks on UK MPs did not bring about lasting cultural change and overheated rhetoric quickly returned to politics Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Tony Blair’s former communications guru, Alastair Campbell, says the UK political system was too quick to revert to overheated rhetoric and polarisation after attacks on MPs, urging politicians to “re-win the argument for democratic politics”. More than a week after independent MP Helen Haines was allegedly targeted in an attack outside her electorate office in northern Victoria, causing her to lose both legs, Campbell said the tenor of political debate in Australia should better reflect Haines’ own approach. Continue reading...
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