January 30, 2025
Royal Hotel reigns as most popular NSW pub name The Royal Hotel, Dungog.
Gloucester District

Royal Hotel reigns as most popular NSW pub name

  THE most popular names for NSW pubs have been revealed, with Royal Hotel taking the top spot as the most common watering hole in 2025. The latest data from Liquor & Gaming NSW shows that 73 out of the state’s 2,112 licensed hotels share this prestigious name, reflecting its iconic status in Aussie pub […]

Read More
A decade past its due date, the NBN promises to deliver The NBN is finally expected to realise its original mission. Photo: James Ross/AAP PHOTOS.
Gloucester District

A decade past its due date, the NBN promises to deliver

  TEN years after the National Broadband Network was declared “fully operational,” industry experts expect the project to finally realise its original mission: high-speed internet connections for almost everyone. The accomplishment is expected in 2030 after the announcement of a $3.8 billion investment to strip more ageing copper connections from the network, replacing them with […]

Read More
Barrington Tops cops 525mm of rain in stormy week Residents reported being flooded in at Waukivory. Photo: Sasha Fenton, FB.
Gloucester District

Barrington Tops cops 525mm of rain in stormy week

A LOW-PRESSURE system off the northern NSW coast caused widespread rainfall and strong winds across the Hunter and Mid North Coast regions last week. Flood warnings for the Gloucester area began on Wednesday, 15 January, with predictions of dangerous flooding on the Manning and Gloucester rivers. By 5:30am Saturday, 18 January the Gloucester River at […]

Read More
Wildfires and other weather extremes raising new climate alarms Extreme weather events are becoming more frequent and damaging.
Gloucester District

Wildfires and other weather extremes raising new climate alarms

WILDFIRES in Los Angeles, heavy snow in other parts of the US, floods in Saudi Arabia and heatwaves across Australia have all confirmed the fears of climate scientists. The Climate Council, an independent organisation formed after the Abbott Government abolished the Climate Commission in 2013, says scientists have confirmed 2024 was the world’s hottest since […]

Read More
Ways for consumers to put the ‘sun tax’ in the shade For those with solar panels who can afford it, adding a battery could beat the "sun tax". Photo: Lukas Coch/AAP PHOTOS.
Gloucester District

Ways for consumers to put the ‘sun tax’ in the shade

  FOR those who can afford it, adding a battery could beat the “sun tax” that will further deplete the once-generous rate of return for rooftop solar pioneers. A third of Australia’s households have rooftop solar and almost three quarters of the output has historically been exported into the electricity grid. But a new tax, […]

Read More