State politics

Chels Hood Withey. A week-long homeless camp outside Minister for Recovery, Small Business and the North Coast, Janelle Saffin’s Lismore office ended after the MP refused meeting with housing advocates, and called police on constituents seeking help with the homelessness crisis. The camp was established by community members made homeless by recent NSW Reconstruction Authority evictions, skyhigh rents, and unaffordable homes.

The Limestone Coast is facing a worsening homelessness crisis, with Naracoorte among the towns where families, young people, and older residents are being pushed to the brink by rising housing costs and limited rental availability ... The [Naracoorte] News caught up with ac.care’s Homelessness and Community Services senior manager, Trish Spark, to discuss the issue...

Drivers using the Bluff Point ferry at Lawrence are waiting up to an hour to cross the Clarence River, with a school bus getting stuck when boarding the ferry last Thursday sparking panic in parents.

Yorke Peninsula Council has taken its algal bloom advocacy all the way to Prime Minister Anthony Albanese. Acting Mayor Richard Carruthers was part of a delegation of SA mayors, industry leaders and marine experts that travelled to Canberra to seek more bloom support ...

South Australians impacted by the harmful algal bloom sweeping South Australia’s shores are being denied a real opportunity to have their say – with the Senate inquiry into the crisis only allowing public evidence to be given at Port Lincoln.

Premier Chris Minns says it’s unthinkable that koalas are at risk of extinction. He’s spot on. Koalas are not now and never have been at risk of extinction ... Environment Minister Penny Sharpe says the Great Koala National Park has been a dream for more than a decade. Indeed. The Great Koala Park is the culmination of a campaign by NSW National Parks and Wildlife Service to extend their empire ... Agriculture Minister Tara Moriarty says the Government is committed to a sustainable forestry industry in NSW. I think her ministerial title gives the lie to that.

Clarence Nationals MP Richie Williamson has slammed the Minns Labor Government’s announcement of the 476,000-hectare Great Koala National Park, describing it as “a massive kick in the guts” for regional communities across the Richmond and Clarence valleys and the wider North Coast region.

Forestry Australia, the nation’s leading body representing forest scientists, managers and growers, expresses its dismay at the New South Wales State Government’s decision to create a Great Koala National Park without a clear, science-led plan to deliver measurable outcomes and avoid negative flow on consequences.

The Minns Labor Government has confirmed the next major step delivering on an election commitment to protect koalas in the wild, announcing the proposed boundary for the Great Koala National Park, alongside a comprehensive plan to support workers, industry and local communities ... The park will reserve 176,000 hectares of state forest and connect with existing national parks to create a 476,000-hectare reserve – one of the largest in NSW.

A fin-tastic new project is set to bring more fish swimming into Sunshine Coast rivers ... Two new fishways will be installed on Petrie Creek, providing vital passage for a variety of native fish.

Locally produced survival thriller, We Bury the Dead, is set for its Western Australian premiere screening at the CinefestOZ Film Prize Premiere event tonight and Birthright on Friday night. We Bury the Dead and Birthright are two of four finalists in contention for the 2025 Film Prize of $100,000.

Hugh Schuitemaker. Struggling Riverland grape growers would have a better chance of staying in the industry – and sustaining the region's economy – if an indicative pricing Bill being introduced to State Parliament today becomes law, an SA MP says. The Bill would force processors to release indicative prices by September 30 each year, giving growers the choice of opting out of loss-making vintages months in advance, rather than plunging further into debt ... MLC Sarah Game will introduce the Bill to the upper house ...

Liberal Member for Northern Victoria Wendy Lovell has urged Treasurer Jaclyn Symes to repeal Labor’s Holiday Tax that is harming Victorian tourism businesses. Recently released data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics show that international visitors are choosing other states over Victoria, as the Allan Labor Government’s Holiday Tax has made taking a holiday in Victoria more expensive than ever.

Primex director Bruce Wright has signed an agreement between Primex Field Days and the Lismore Showgrounds to hold the Primex ag event in Lismore starting next year ... “What a significant coup to secure this premier event for Lismore and for it to be based at our much loved Lismore Showgrounds,” Ms Saffin said.

As local government rates notices hit letterboxes across the state, farmers are highlighting the madness of the Emergency Services and Volunteers Fund Tax (ESVF) now hitting the pockets of Victorian homeowners. Victorian Farmers Federation (VFF) President Brett Hosking said the mounting outrage is adding more weight to calls to scrap massive increases in the tax. 

Country race meetings are the heartbeat of regional Australia. Unlike city races where only a small percentage of people attend, country race days see entire towns turn out to support their local event.

Alex Nelson. This week marks the 34th anniversary of the official opening of the Commonwealth's Jock Nelson Centre in August 1991. This is the splendid Commonwealth building I suggested ought to be re-purposed as the permanent home of the Museum of Central Australia during my presentation at the Friends of the Strehlow Research Centre Symposium in April 2018.

The Victorian Farmers Federation (VFF) has expressed deep disappointment at the passing of the VicGrid Bill through the Legislative Council, warning it grants sweeping powers to the government while doing little to protect farmers and regional communities.

Every time someone brings up the Southern Oscillation Index or the Indian Ocean Dipole, I nod along and drift off. But a recent conversation with an old boarding school mate gave me hope that maybe it’s not as complex as I originally thought and maybe some of the amateur Wheatbelt weather forecasters might have more than half a clue about what's going on out there.