NSW FARMERS is warning state and federal governments must urgently respond to an acute cost-of-production shock with new data showing spikes in fuel and fertiliser prices caused by global shortages have slashed confidence. The latest NSW Farmers Farm Business Sentiment Survey suggests 80 percent price increases for fuel and fertiliser have flowed through to freight […]
MEMBER for Lyne Alison Penfold has introduced a Private Member’s Bill to the Australian Parliament to amend the Sex Discrimination Act. Ms Penfold wants to reinstate the Act’s 1984 definitions of a man and woman, which were based on biological sex, not self-identification. In a statement, she said, “The Parliament has a responsibility to provide […]
THE Koala Friendly Carbon Initiative is keen to hear from local landholders interested in having koala habitat trees planted on their properties. The initiative is a collaboration between the World Wide Fund for Nature Australia (WWF-Australia) and carbon farming service provider, Climate Friendly, supported by the NSW Government and HP Inc. This first-of-its-kind carbon farming […]
An endangered Manning River Turtle being released into the Barrington River by Aussie Ark in February. Photo: Aussie Ark.
NEW research indicates Manning River turtles are being recorded at pre-flood numbers, 12 months after one of the region’s worst floods on record. Gloucester and its nearby waterways were battered in the floods of May 2025, with serious concerns held about the long-term effects on fish and animals living in the rivers, particularly on the […]
Vehicles queueing at the Bucketts Way/Pacific Highway intersection in early 2026.
A SERIOUS accident on Friday 15 May has brought safety issues at the Bucketts Way/Pacific Highway intersection into sharp focus once more. In April, News Of The Area reported on the strong concerns held by former Roads and Traffic Authority senior engineer Gordon Chirgwin about the dangerous state of the intersection. “I believe that the […]
NATIONALS Member for Lyne Alison Penfold has called the Labor Government’s Federal Budget a “bloodbath for regional Australia”. In her response to Labor’s Federal Budget, delivered by Treasurer Jim Chalmers on 12 May, Ms Penfold said regional and rural communities like those in Lyne had been left behind. “Budgets can make or break the ability […]
Sports Star of the Year Jim Grech with his Blind Bowls director/guide Rob Heininger.
Sports Star of the Year Jim Grech with his Blind Bowls director/guide Rob Heininger. Winning Junior Team: Gloucester Public School Hockey. Junior Winner Charlie Coombe with Alison Penfold MP. BOWLING sensation Jim Grech has been named Gloucester’s Sports Star of the Year for 2025. He was among the many athletes recognised for their sporting achievements […]
IT’S always distressing to hear or read about people losing their lives in a house fire, particularly when many such tragedies can be prevented with simple safety measures. Each year, approximately 20 people die in NSW from fires that could have been prevented, and almost all of these fatalities occur in people’s homes. Fire safety […]
Opposition Leader Angus Taylor has unveiled his economic vision in a budget reply. Photo: Lukas Coch/AAP PHOTOS.
AUSTRALIA’S tax system would be overhauled, welfare restricted to citizens and immigration slashed under a future coalition government. In his first budget reply speech, Angus Taylor has conceded the Liberals and Nationals still have a long road to win back the confidence of voters, but asked Australians to “begin to believe again”. The opposition leader […]
Operation RAID was conducted across NSW. Photo: NSW Police.
MORE than 708 drivers have been detected allegedly driving with drugs in their systems during a statewide police traffic operation. Operation RAID (Remove All Impaired Drivers), which ran from Thursday 7 to Sunday 10 May, focused on roadside testing to identify people who may be driving while affected by alcohol and drugs. During the operation, […]
