Business

Bendigo and Adelaide Bank has continued its assault on its community bank network, forcing the closure of 28 agencies run by community franchises. All the agencies are in regional Australia and 17 of the affected towns will be left with no banking services after the closures. Bendigo Bank made no mention that the agencies were all operated by the owners of community banks when making the announcement last week that it was “retiring” its agency network.

Retiring Mayor Matt Paterson is coy about his second job, in addition to his $116,000 a year gig heading up the council. It’s conveniently just across the road from the civic centre, at the office of Amentum, a Pine Gap defence contractor. We texted him on December 16: “Do you work for Amentum? Just checking a rumour.” No answer. Last week we asked him again...

So, after more than a year without a resident police officer, Katamatite's single-member station is about to spring back to life. Detective Senior Constable Charles Ryall is trading his role with Cobram's Crime Investigation Unit for something entirely different – becoming Katamatite's first live-in police officer in about 12 months.

Maari Ma Health Aboriginal Corporation has renewed calls as a matter of urgency for a new government approach to address high lead levels in Aboriginal children in far west New South Wales. The call comes after the Far West Local Health District released the latest report into lead levels in Broken Hill children.

J Robotics has been selected as a finalist in the inaugural Propel-AIR program ... with their chemical-free vineyard treatment platform. The Ocean Grove-based agricultural technology company has developed a smart platform that uses targeted UVC light to treat grapevines for powdery mildew without chemicals.

The Victorian Farmers Federation (VFF) has reacted with concern following recent comments from Victorian Energy Minister Lily D’Ambrosio, warning that the State Government’s energy transition risks alienating the very communities it needs most.

Dr Chris Parker. The threat of lumpy skin disease (LSD) to Australia’s beef cattle industry may have fallen off the front pages, but the current outbreak in Europe proves the risk of this horrid disease remains very real. It is my view that LSD is by far and away the most likely exotic disease of ruminants to enter Australia.

The Barkly Regional Council today issued a strong call to action, urging the Northern Territory Government, Infrastructure Australia, and all stakeholders to reinstate Tennant Creek as a core component of the Territory Energy Link (TEL) corridor. The Council asserts that bypassing Tennant Creek risks squandering decades of strategic planning and undermining critical regional development.

Fraser Island can certainly tell a few tales, and here is one of the saddest. On July 22, 1970, a routine sightseeing trip to Fraser Island turned into a disaster that claimed seven lives, marking the darkest day in the island’s tourism history.

Launch of ground-breaking new first aid app, the All Hands Lifesaver app. “We wanted to put access to immediate help in every parents' pocket across Australia, removing some of the barriers rural and regional people face when it comes to both first aid education and access to emergency healthcare”:  Grace Larson, co-founder of charity The Sisterhood Project and paediatric intensive care nurse.

Leader of The Nationals David Littleproud said the Trump Administration’s comments, following Labor’s decision to allow US beef born and raised in Canada or Mexico to be imported into Australia, seem to have validated his concern that a deal was done before the biosecurity protocols were finalised.

Birchip Cropping Group (BCG) organised leading experts in fields of sensor technology, weed management and automation support, including interactive panels with leading tech-savvy growers to answer any questions that arose on the day. Peer-to-peer learning was a key focus of the day, as discussion between farmers turns knowledge into practical insight ...

Mount Alexander Shire Council (MASC) has been keeping play a priority; it has featured as a key agenda item at its recent council meeting and in the recently released budget. It comes as school starts back again, after a holiday period that saw local children and visitors looking for wintry activities in regional small towns.

The final days of the Maldon in Winter Festival and the school holidays resulted in some interesting sights around Maldon ... On Thursday 17 July, the mythical Knight in Shining Armour became a reality for participants in a drawing session with Greg Nash, who is a professional jouster from Kryall Castle (one of only two in Australia, guess where the other one works?).

Quill. Featuring in local news this month has been the 150th anniversary of this very publication – the “Buloke Times” ... Amidst the 150th celebrations has been a special visit from ABC Landline journalists, Tim Lee and Andrew Alltree-Williams, covering the history of our humble paper from its first edition as the “Donald Times” on July 29, 1875, right up to its current bi-weekly publication as the “Buloke Times”.

Former Donald resident, Mary Raynes, was among speakers at the 2025 AEGIC Australian barley seminars in China, early this month. The daughter of Donald’s Peter and Colleen Raynes, Mary was the leader of the delegation representing the Australia barley supply chain delivering the two major seminars.

NSW Farmers have backed calls for an independent scientific panel to review federal authorities’ decision to lift biosecurity restrictions on US beef imports into Australia. NSW Farmers’ President Xavier Martin said there was no room for error when it came to biosecurity and said a review was vital to ensure confidence that US beef imports would comply with Australia’s biosecurity and food safety standards.

The Australian Lot Feeders’ Association (ALFA) acknowledges the Australian Government’s announcement to reinstate access of beef processed from the United States of America into Australia. This follows conclusion of a science-based risk assessment process undertaken by the Australian Government since 2019 to determine whether beef processed in the USA sourced from cattle from Canada or Mexico can meet Australia’s biosecurity and food safety requirements. 

Queensland’s inland fishing program, the Stocked Impoundment Permit Scheme (SIPS), was introduced in 2000 and has since grown from 25 dams to 63 impoundments. To celebrate, the “SIPS 25” fishing competition will be held in the September school holidays at SIPS destinations across the State.

Towong Council workers have launched historic industrial action over what they consider an "unfair" pay offer and rising charges for residents. For the first time in the council's history, its workers have commenced are taking protected industrial action in response to a wage proposal that workers say fails both staff and the local community.

The body of a pilot missing after his plane crashed in the Snowy Mountains near Khancoban has been located in the debris. A rescue helicopter located the plane near Khancoban ... after it went missing on a flight from Wangaratta to Moruya with pilot 74-year-old Bega man, David Stephens, on board.