Contributor, ARR.News

Liberal Member for Northern Victoria Wendy Lovell has slammed the Allan Labor Government for the unacceptable delay in providing housing support for people affected by the 2025-26 summer bushfires. Ms Lovell spoke in parliament last week to demand that the Minister for Natural Disaster Recovery take immediate action to provide proper housing support to those affected by the fires.

The Animal Health in Australia (AHiA) Annual Report 2025 and the Animal Health in Australia System Report (Second Edition) are now available.

This second round of foreign investment reforms is all about making more improvements so the regime is much stronger where risks are high and much faster where risks are low ... These reforms will increase certainty for investors and will lead to faster and fewer approvals, reduced regulatory burden, and improved tools to address high-risk investment. 

As part of the Finocchiaro CLP Government’s year of Growth, Certainty and Security, Minister for Trade, Business and Asian Relations Robyn Cahill is leading a targeted government delegation to Taiwan this week, advancing the Territory’s position as a trusted and competitive partner for one of our most important trading partners.

Energy and Decarbonisation Minister Amber-Jade Sanderson has secured a delay to the decommissioning of the Albany Gas Distribution System, giving the community more time to navigate the transition. Provider ATCO has decided to exit the market in Albany, with the three-year decommissioning process originally set to begin in the second half of 2026.

The Barmah Narrows trade provision will start the 2026–27 water year with around 24 gigalitres (GL) available for downstream trade. A restriction on the trade of water downstream of The Narrows (previously referred to as the Barmah Choke) has been active since 2014 to protect water delivery to existing entitlement holders and to maintain the local river environment.

Grain Producers Australia (GPA) has secured a national emergency permit allowing grain growers to access stronger mouse bait as significant mouse numbers plague several states. Australian grain growers have been desperately calling for permits to access stronger mouse bait to tackle the growing problem, with the standard available bait proving inadequate. 

Queensland’s 2026 sugarcane crush will officially get underway this week, with harvesters rumbling into life across the state’s far north. Tableland crews will fire the starter gun on the 7 month harvest, with the first rakes of cane due to go through the rollers at MSF’s Arriga mill on 18 May. 

Seeing the healthcare barriers faced by rural families inspired Armidale medical student Fleur Steen to pursue medicine, and now a national grant is helping support that goal ... Now studying medicine at the University of New England in Armidale, Fleur said growing up in rural communities made her aware from an early age of the challenges many people face when trying to access healthcare.