Federal politics

The National Farmers’ Federation (NFF) has welcomed a new report detailing the economic potential of Indigenous agricultural products. The study also examined the value of a credential system that would enable Indigenous-made agricultural products to be labelled and differentiated in market.  

Greenpeace Australia Pacific recently visited Lord Howe Island as part of its work to protect the global ocean, where the organisation aims to protect 30 per cent of the world’s ocean by 2030. Greenpeace is seeking to do this by encouraging governments around the world to ratify the Global Ocean Treaty, to which Australia is a signatory.

Peter Hobbs. ... three major issues ... The first is the invasion of arable land which will reduce the capacity to grow the primary products for food production; the second being the thoughtlessness in procuring land that has been with families for generations; and the third and perhaps the most devious is the government’s divide and conquer tactics resulting in friendship and harmonious neighbourhood destruction.

Australia  Post has lodged a draft notification with the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC), proposing an increase to the Basic Postage Rate (BPR) of $0.20 for small letters, from $1.50 to $1.70, and to the prices for ordinary large letters, delivered at the regular timetable – to take effect from July  2025.

The Australian Taxation Office (ATO), Fair Work Ombudsman (FWO) and Department of Home Affairs have joined forces under the Shadow Economy Taskforce to investigate labour hire providers suspected of unlawful conduct in the agriculture industry through surprise visits in the Gatton region in Southeast Queensland.

Farmers who hold properties in self-managed super funds (SMSFs) have had a win, with Labor delaying its shocking SMSF tax policy until after the next election.

In his latest attempt to channel Australia’s wealth into government-approved projects, Chalmers announced plans to steer the Future Fund toward housing and renewables, claiming these priorities will secure both national prosperity and a moral high ground. But if the Treasurer is serious about backing industries with real potential, it’s time to herd the Future Fund into the sheep yards of Western Australia, where $200 million could establish a state-of-the-art abattoir to breathe life into a sector gasping under the weight of Canberra’s policy redirection.  

Labour shortages in the horticulture sector have eased slightly, according to a report from the Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics and Sciences (ABARES). ABARES executive director Dr Jared Greenville said the report, based on a survey of over 2,000 horticulture farms across Australia, showed a fall in the number of farms struggling to find workers.

The Albanese Labor Government’s Aged Care Bill has today passed Parliament, ensuring once-in-a-generation reforms to aged care ... Starting from 1 July 2025, the new Act will deliver a range of improvements including a tougher regulatory model, strengthened Aged Care Quality Standards and a Statement of Rights to ensure older people and their needs are at the centre of the new aged care system.

Federal Member for Parkes Mark Coulton delivered his valedictory speech, just a few days short of 17 years since he was first elected as the 1029th  Member of the Australian Parliament ... “I said in my first speech that I have a deep and unshakeable belief in inland Australia; and I still believe that today. It holds the keys to the future prosperity of our country."

With election season upon us and rural mobile networks pushed to their limits during harvest, it’s an ideal moment to examine the persistent gaps and dropouts in mobile coverage. Before diving into the political and economic factors shaping mobile connectivity, let’s take a step back and explore the history of Australia’s mobile network rollout. By tracing its development, we might uncover how so much of the bush was left behind.

A workshop in Fiji this month will seek to strengthen biosecurity in the Pacific by developing a new strategy to manage risks associated with sea container movements. The strategy aims to reduce the global spread of hitchhiker pests across the Pacific region via the sea container pathway.

New research commissioned by the Regional Australia Institute (RAI) shows the number of city-dwellers looking to relocate to the regions has doubled over the past 18 months, demonstrating an urgent need for solutions to regional pressure points. The results of a nationwide survey shows 40 per cent of capital city residents are considering a move to regional Australia – up from 20 per cent in May 2023.

The Federal Government’s push to go ‘green’ appears to be spiralling out of control, with new costs estimated that the transition will take $1.3 to $1.5 trillion … What do we get for our money? Cheap, reliable, centralised power generation, with technology that will last for more than half a century? Or expensive, decentralised, precious metal intensive, unreliable, short-lived technology that will carve across some of Australia’s most precious landscape?

GrainGrowers has called on the federal government to work with industry to ensure Australian growers can tap into biotechnology developments and deliver timely access to innovative crop genetics.

"The Albanese Labor Government has introduced a new Bill to the Federal Parliament that gives the government and its bureaucrats extraordinary powers to regulate speech and decide what is classed as misinformation ... We have seen the Bill opposed by the Victorian Bar Association, the NSW Solicitor-General, Human Rights Commission, and the Queensland Council for Civil Liberties": Member for Page, Kevin Hogan.