With demand for food relief outstripping supply, you have significantly helped warm-up winter for some of the most vulnerable people in the community.

Across 16 years and with 16 million kilograms of food donated – that is the equivalent to over 30 million meals donated to Foodbank by Woolworths since our partnership began in 2002.

And this winter, thanks to Woolworths customers, that number is growing even larger, providing much needed help to some of the 3.2 million Australians who require food relief assistance each year.

By generously adding so many $2 Foodbank tokens to shopping trolleys, Wimmera District residents helped us reach our national goal of providing 762,948 meals to Australian families in need.

With each $2 token enabling Foodbank to provide four warming meals, Victoria contributed 114,340 meals.

With 40 per cent of food insecure households families having dependent children, the funds raised during the winter appeal have helped struggling families make ends meet.

Thank you once again for your generosity at a time of year when families most desperately need assistance. Woolworths’ aim of supporting the growing need for hunger relief and helping feed millions of Australians in need would not have been possible without your support.

Luke Maguire, manager, Woolworths Ararat, Horsham and Stawell group  

TIME is quickly running out for local residents to vote for some of the amazing contenders for Pick My Project funding.

Pick My Project is a unique was of funding important community projects because it allows the public a direct say on funding.

Western Victoria has embraced the concept, with hundreds of projects on offer between Ballarat and the border.

All residents over the age of 16 can vote, and projects with the most votes in each area will receive funding for their project of between $20,000 and $200,000.

I urge residents to make sure they have a say and cast their vote on the Pick My Project website before voting closes at 5pm this Monday.

Jaala Pulford, Member for Western Victoria

AS WE wind down and reflect on a successful Daffodil Day last month, I wish to extend heartfelt thanks to all those in the local community who volunteered, donated, purchased daffodils or bought a pin.

With 90 Victorians diagnosed with cancer and 30 people losing their lives to the disease every day, supporting Daffodil Day has never been more important.

The funds raised through Daffodil Day are already at work, allowing Cancer Council to continue to fund some of Victoria’s brightest researchers and their cutting-edge projects which will lead us to be better able to detect, treat and fight cancer.

We have made phenomenal strides in cancer control, leading us to improve the five-year cancer survival which is now at 68 per cent in Victoria. However, we have much left to do. Cancer Council Victoria is working with a focus to increase survival for low survival cancers through research, including our Forgotten Cancers Project.

Each year we also fund research projects taking place in Victorian hospitals and universities that are working on developing new treatment options for less common and low survival cancers.

Clinical trials are an essential step in translating cancer research findings into improved treatments for patients. Over the past three decades Cancer Council has provided about $20 million in funding for clinical trials through the Cancer Trials Management Scheme.

We want to enable as many people as possible to have access to a clinical trial, including in regional areas, as part of our commitment to extend opportunities to potentially lifesaving cancer treatments to all Victorians.

Thanks to you, this Daffodil Day we were able to raise awareness and funds for investing in gold-standard cancer research, research that could save the life of a loved one in the future.

Todd Harper, chief executive, Cancer Council Victoria

LAST week, the Liberal Nationals introduced two Bills to the Victorian Parliament which aim to crack down on law and order and make Victoria safer.

The state government has failed Victorians with its soft on crime approach, leaving residents fearful and criminals getting lenient sentences that are not in line with community expectations.

The Corrections Amendment (Adult Parole Board) Bill 2018 would ensure the perspective of victims is considered every time a decision is made to grant a parole order by the Adult Parole Board of Victoria. These laws would remove the uncertainty of whether the voices of victims are heard and enshrine it in legislation that they must be heard.

The Crimes and Sentencing Amendment (Bus Drivers) Bill 2018 proposes tougher sentences for violent offences against bus drivers, recognising the very special role played by Victoria's bus drivers and the need to ensure they receive the full protection of the law when providing services essential to the welfare of the Victorian public.

More information on the proposed Bills can be found at www.parliament.vic.gov.au/legislation.

Emma Kealy, Member for Lowan