Politics coverage
May 3 Election
AUSTRALIANS will go to the polls on Saturday, May 3, with the Parkes electorate fielding five candidates vying to fill a very big pair of shoes left by retiring Nationals’ MP Mark Coulton. The Nationals candidate Jamie Chaffey, Labor Party’s Nathan Fell, Libertarian Sally Edwards, Family First’s Maurice Davey and Trish Frail from The Greens [...]
Northern Tablelands
ARMIDALE rural maternal health advocate Jen Laurie has started a Parliamentary ePetition to address the decline in maternity services in rural and regional NSW. There has been a huge number of closures to maternity services and Ms Laurie is asking the NSW Government to act. Bundled Funding for Maternity Care: We urge the Government to [...]
Youth Crime
The NSW Opposition is pushing for strong and immediate legislative reform to stop repeat serious youth offenders from carrying out crime sprees across regional New South Wales. Shadow Attorney General Alister Henskens will introduce the Crimes Legislation Amendment (Youth Crime) Bill 2025 in Parliament after in-depth collaboration between the Liberals and Nationals. It will offer [...]
Federal Budget
LAST night’s Federal Budget underscores just how critical the upcoming election will be to deliver the key investments needed to secure and grow Australian agriculture in an increasingly uncertain environment, says the National Farmers’ Federation. NFF president, David Jochinke, said this was a chance for the Federal Government to back Australian agriculture and give the [...]
Federal Budget
THE 2025-26 Federal Budget is a mixed bag for rural, regional and remote Australia in terms of funding for healthcare, says the National Rural Health Alliance. While certain aspects of the budget benefit rural populations, there is a lack of a targeted strategy to address the unique health challenges these communities face, the organisation says. [...]
Federal Budget
HOUSEHOLD cost-of-living measures were front and centre of Treasurer Jim Chalmers’ pre-election Budget last night, but the government has failed to deliver initiatives that would improve business productivity, innovation and growth, says CPA Australia chief executive officer, Chris Freeland. CPA Australia is the country’s leading professional accounting body and one of the largest in the [...]
Northern Tablelands
The Local Small Commitments Allocation program will provide up to $400,000 in funding across the Northern Tablelands. The LSCA program provides benefits to local communities through a range of events, services and programs, playground and park upgrades, and more. This week we revealed Delungra’s Anzac Park will receive $88,000 to construct a skate park and [...]
Regional News
THE Nationals candidate for Parkes, Jamie Chaffey, and Nationals deputy leader, Senator Perin Davey, have announced a future Coalition Government will provide funding to upgrade facilities at the Nyngan Showground and the Bogan Shire Early Learning Centre. Mr Chaffey said if he’s elected, and The Nationals help form government at the forthcoming election, $90,000 will [...]
Rural Health
NARRABRI Shire mayor Darrell Tiemens and Wee Waa community members, today delivered the Save Wee Waa Hospital petition to Member for Barwon, Roy Butler MP at Macquarie Street, Sydney. Following a strong community campaign, the petition collected 12,000 signatures, well above the 10,000 signatures required to trigger a debate in NSW Parliament. Mayor Tiemens thanked [...]
Northern Tablelands
Inverell’s Sandy Cook has been named the Northern Tablelands Electorate’s Senior of the Year. The Senior of the Year award recognises someone who contributes to and works tirelessly in their community. Ms Cook received the honour as part of the NSW Seniors Festival which runs from March 3 to 16. Since the age of 17, [...]
