Regional coverage
Bush Banking
AN alliance of regional banks, small businesses and community supporters are calling for an urgent fix to the ongoing desertion of essential bank branch services across regional Australia – a situation that has blown a $1 billion-a-year hole in regional investment, and cost nearly 4000 local jobs in just nine years. Current band-aid measures like [...]
Fuel Crisis
THE Coalition has proposed a plan to double Australia’s minimum fuel reserves to 60 days and deliver at least 1 billion litres of new storage through an $800 million Australian Fuel Security Facility. The plan will build long-term resilience against future supply shocks in the Parkes electorate. Under the plan, the threshold amount of fuel [...]
Education
IN 1898, the Sisters of Mercy walked from Gunnedah to the black-soil plains in north-western New South Wales to establish a Catholic school and convent on the eastern side of Moree. Led by Mother Aloysius, the Sisters of Mercy, a Catholic order founded in 1831 by Sister Catherine McAuley, established a convent and school in [...]
Border News
THE Queensland Government has passed new laws to expand landmark Adult Crime, Adult Time and make Queensland safer. The new laws, passed in parliament late last week, strengthens Queensland’s response to youth crime, drugs and anti-social behaviour. Adult Crime, Adult Time has been expanded to include 12 additional offences, including aggravated assault occasioning bodily harm. [...]
2026 Census
THE Australian Bureau of Statistics has ramped up its recruitment drive ahead the 2026 census, with positions available in all major cities and regional areas nationwide. Field officers are a key part of the Census team, with the position providing opportunities for people across Australia to play a role in making sure communities are counted [...]
Our Community
THE man with the wheelbarrow will be back in town this week to start planning the Moree leg of an epic, Australia-wide fundraiser that includes a drop-in to Pallamallawa Public School. David Batterham, from Goondiwindi and originally Moree, was in Moree last year to take part in Run the Plains. What set Mr Batterham apart [...]
2026 Anzac Day
TWO schools from very different parts of New South Wales came together for Anzac Day commemorations on Saturday. Collarenebri Central School welcomed students from Granville Boys High, with the visit marked by a moving performance by Granville’s renowned bagpipe band. Collarenebri Central School relieving principal, Fiona Donnelly, said Granville’s bagpipe band played a beautiful rendition [...]
Regional News
NARRABRI Shire Council minutes from the Crime Prevention Committee generated discussion at a recent council meeting regarding illegal drug use in the Shire. Cr Navin Erathnage, a Narrabri doctor, raised concerns about the ongoing problem of drug use, particularly among younger people. “I have seen many people affected by drugs,” Cr Erathnage said. “I know [...]
Regional Tourism
THE hugely successful NarraBRIGHT festival has been widely praised. At a recent Narrabri Council meeting, Cr Ethan Towns thanked the team who worked on NarraBRIGHT, including those who worked behind the scenes on the event, which drew thousands of visitors to the region. “To see all of the people come to NarraBRIGHT, I want to [...]
Lest We Forget
MOREE War Memorial Hall was re-dedicated and officially reopened on Saturday as hundreds of people gathered at the historic building to observe Anzac Day. Built in the early 1920s and officially opened on April 17, 1923 by Governor of New South Wales, Sir Walter Davidson, the Balo Street showpiece has been lovingly restored to its [...]
