Nursing body demands urgent Medicare overhaul for remote Australia
The Australian College of Nursing (ACN) has formally called on the federal government to overhaul Medicare structures, claiming current policies are restricting equitable access to primary care for millions of residents in rural and remote Australia.
The virtue premium: How Australia locked itself out of fuel and fertiliser
Australia has just signed up to a free trade agreement with the European Union, which is being sold—predictably—as a great leap forward for the inner city consumer ... Out in the paddock, however, the mood is less celebratory. Because the small print tells a more familiar story. Australian once again, signed a deal where farmers pay the costs.
Ten million Australians now call the regions home as growth continues: RAI
Ten million people now call regional Australia home, and Western Australia is leading the way with its regional population growing faster than the cities, according to a deep dive into the latest population statistics released by the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS).
Maldon battery: MP reflects
The installation of Maldon Community Battery has been finalised, complete with its bold surface design by Dja Dja Wurrung artist Daikota Nelson. The TT [Tarrangower Times] has been in touch with Federal Member for Bendigo Lisa Chesters, who was a key champion of the project, to find out what she thought about the outcome.
New analysis shows Basin water buybacks sending Victoria backwards: VFF
The Victorian Farmers Federation (VFF) says the Murray-Darling Basin Authority’s (MDBA) own analysis shows further water buybacks are unlikely to deliver significant improvements in environmental objectives across the Basin and zero improvements in any Victorian river systems including the Victorian Murray.
Farmers hit hard by food waste – New national trial targets $2.5bn in losses: Hort Innovation
Australian fruit and vegetable growers are missing out of sales of up to one million tonnes of produce that never makes it to market, estimated at up to $2.5 billion a year. In response, a new national research program aims to help farmers keep more value from every harvest by tackling surplus and losses on-farm.
NSW Government introduces temporary freight measures to keep goods moving and help ease fuel pressure: Minns, Sharpe, Graham, Mookhey, Scully, Aitchison
The NSW Government is boosting freight efficiency to keep goods moving and help reduce pressure on fuel supply in NSW, working closely with the Commonwealth and other states under the new National Fuel Security Plan. In line with Level 2 of the Plan - Keeping Australia Moving - these measures will increase access to the road network for larger trucks that can carry more goods in a single trip, and ease restrictions on operating hours.
CLP takes unprecedented action to hold fuel companies to account: Yan
The Finocchiaro CLP Government has enacted the Price Exploitation Prevention Act for the first time, since its inception in 1949, in an unprecedented move to manage the on-going fuel crisis.
Labor must reverse its bad Export Finance Australia changes in fuel crisis: Canavan, Tehan, McDonald
The Coalition is pushing for crucial changes to ensure Labor removes restrictions on investment in oil, gas and critical resources and produces its own energy ... the Coalition will move amendments in the Senate to Labor’s Export Finance and Insurance Corporation Amendment (Strategic Reserve) Bill 2026 and the Fuel Security Response Appropriates Bill during Australia’s fuel crisis.
National Fuel Security Plan, powers and fuel excise – Government announcements
Following a meeting of the National Cabinet ... the Australian Government will halve the fuel excise on petrol and diesel for three months ... is acting to shield Australia against any future fuel supply chain disruptions, by establishing new fuel security powers, enabling government to work with fuel suppliers to keep fuel flowing to Australia.
CSBP Fertilisers GM Ryan Lamp responds regarding supply
Ryan Lamp. CSBP Fertilisers has been part of Western Australian agriculture for more than 100 years. We’ve grown alongside the farmers and communities we serve, and we value those relationships deeply. We understand how critical reliable fertiliser supply is to growers, particularly leading into seeding.
CSBP’s force majeure gamble: Contracts, conflict and consequence
As the Iran–USA–Israel conflict ripples through global fertiliser markets, Western Australian farmers are discovering just how fragile their supply chains really are. At the centre of it is CSBP, which has reached for the force majeure clause in its contracts to step away from its contractual obligations.
Enough talk, it’s time for action – Queensland growers are at breaking point: QFVG
Queensland horticulture growers have been dealing with rising input costs for years. Now, surging fuel prices, and critical input shortages are compounding those pressures, pushing farms to breaking point, threatening jobs and the state’s long-term supply of fresh fruit and vegetables.
National fuel plan must deliver results: NSW Farmers Association
NSW Farmers has welcomed a coordinated national response on fuel security and fuel supply chain resilience, but says immediate, practical action is needed to fix regional distribution failures now impacting food and fibre production – with the latest data on Friday indicating at least 178 NSW service stations out of diesel.
Profoundly unprepared – Think tank reveals dire need for a Hyper Australia: Canavan, McDonald
Australia is “critically exposed to geopolitical risk”, unless Australia can reliably produce a domestic supply of liquid fuel, The Nationals’ think tank has warned.
“A tough operator”: Bob Katter heads south to back Michelle Milthorpe in Farrer by-election
The Hon Bob Katter MP, the Member for Kennedy, has endorsed independent MP Michelle Milthorpe for the upcoming Farrer By-Election ... Of Mrs Milthorpe, Mr Katter said: “Michelle’s taken some hard hits and she’s a tough operator, and she’s very knowledgeable.”
Irrigators face tighter rules as NSW lifts Menindee threshold for floodplain harvesting
Irrigators in the northern basin will face tighter conditions for floodplain harvesting under new rules introduced by the NSW Government, which has raised the threshold at which water access is permitted. Under the previous framework, irrigators could capture water from floodplains once the Menindee Lakes system held 195 gigalitres. That trigger has now been lifted to 250 gigalitres, meaning harvesting cannot proceed until the lakes are more substantially filled.
Being up in the air
I went to Adelaide yesterday. This is very naughty given that NT Tourism Minister Marie-Clare Boothby had just announced a strategy aiming at making more money for our travel industry ... My booking with Qantas triggered an avalanche of texts and emails...
Coalition calls for immediate halving of fuel tax as national fuel crisis deepens: Webster
The Nationals are calling on the Albanese Government to immediately halve the fuel tax for three months to provide urgent cost of living relief to Australian households and small businesses facing a deepening national fuel crisis.
War fuels anxiety
A survey conducted last week by market research agency Nature shows that 97 per cent of Australians are concerned about fuel supplies amidst current global tensions. In response to concerns about fuel shortages, the Victorian Farmers Federation is urging drivers and the government to make changes to commuting. Meanwhile, the State Government has introduced penalties for petrol price-gouging and the Opposition is saying the government is not doing enough...
Agforce leader talks on food security
The General President of AgForce, Shane McCarthy has highlighted the issues creating big problems for primary producers as a result of current unrest at an international level ... "One big lesson we've learned from this latest chain of events is that fuel plus fertiliser equals food," Mr McCarthy said. "It's surprising how quickly our food security can be put at risk without even one of those crucial ingredients.
Nats listen to water users as pressure rises
The Nationals team met with Murray-Darling water users in Narrandera on Sunday, speaking about increasing pressures from water buybacks, fuel costs and energy costs. Key stakeholders, businesses and members of the public met with key Nationals members to have their water issues heard at a roundtable meeting.
