Category: NSW News

The Albanese and Minns Governments have activated disaster assistance to communities in five Local Government Areas (LGAs) in the New England region following widespread severe weather including heavy rainfall and snow.

The NSW Government’s Natural Disaster Declaration applies to the LGAs of Gunnedah, Narrabri, Tamworth, Uralla and Walcha.

Support has been made available under the joint Commonwealth-state Disaster Recovery Funding Arrangements (DRFA). 

Assistance measures that may be provided to communities include: 
• Assistance for eligible residents to help meet immediate needs like emergency accommodation and essential items generally provided from evacuation or recovery centres. 
• Grants for low-income, uninsured residents to replace lost essential household items to maintain basic standard of living. 
• Grants for low-income, uninsured residents to undertake essential structural repairs to restore their homes to a basic, safe and habitable condition. 
• Support for affected local councils to help with the costs of cleaning up and restoring damaged essential public assets.
• Concessional interest rate loans for small businesses, primary producers, and non-profit organisations and grants to sporting and recreation clubs to repair or replace damaged or destroyed property. 
• Freight subsidies for primary producers to help transport livestock and fodder. 
• Financial support towards counter disaster activity undertaken by emergency service organisations to keep communities safe. 

Federal Minister for Emergency Management Kristy McBain MP:
“The Australian Government is working closely with the NSW Government to ensure that affected communities across New England receive the support they need to recover.

“The storms and snowfall have caused significant disruption to homes, roads, and services, and we know the impact is being deeply felt across these communities.

“This support will help ease immediate hardship and assist with longer term rebuilding efforts, including restoring public infrastructure and helping uninsured households get back on their feet.

“Our focus remains on standing with these communities as they recover, rebuild and prepare for future severe weather events.”

NSW Minister for Recovery Janelle Saffin MP:
“The Minns Labor Government is activating targeted support to meet immediate community needs and to get vital infrastructure back up and running. 

“The recent storms have caused damage across the New England region and we want to ensure that councils in particular are supported so that communities know the repair and reconstruction work that needs to be done can be done.   

“Roads, bridges and essential services have been damaged after being inundated with water and snow, and there’s a significant clean-up ahead to deal with debris and restore access.

“A natural disaster declaration is the first step in unlocking support these communities urgently need.” 

More information on disaster assistance can be found at https://www.nsw.gov.au/emergency/recovery and www.disasterassist.gov.au

The NSW Government is continuing to deliver on its commitment to foster the next generation of artists, creative practitioners, and leaders.

Among the ten small to medium not-for-profit arts and culture organisations supported through a new $500,000 grant program are projects ranging from a multi-platform festival, an interactive futurist activation, to a multi-sensory dining experience. Each project showcases the exceptional strength, talent and entrepreneurial vision of NSW’s arts and cultural sector.

The Creative Industries Connectivity Grants program was established to incentivise new collaborative opportunities and develop new partnerships between the traditional arts and cultural sector and creative industries.

The $500,000 program delivers on the Creative Communities commitment to align NSW Government investment to prioritise programs, services and advocacy that builds pathways to partnerships to enhance distribution opportunities for artists and creative practitioners.

Through grants of up to $50,000, the 10 not-for-profit arts and cultural organisations will each invest in a new venture and work in partnership with creative businesses including 3D imaging technology providers, landscape architects, e-learning platforms, fashion powerhouses, global radio broadcasters, and restaurants.

These projects pioneer new visionary concepts blending traditional artforms with new mediums and influences, that transform how artists connect with audiences and how stories are told.

The program promotes ongoing collaboration across the arts, cultural and creative industries ecosystem, driving further innovation, long-term sustainability, and successful product development.

The recipients of the inaugural Creative Industries Connectivity Grants program are:

– Arts & Cultural Exchange Inc – The Dharug Voices Digital Archive
– Asian Australian Artists Association Inc – Haymarket 2050
– Diversity Arts Australia – Creative Equity at Work Online Learning Program
– Erth Visual & Physical Incorporated – Dinner is the Show
– Marrugeku Inc – Ngurragabu [From the last night]
– NSW Aboriginal Culture Heritage and Arts Association Inc – NSW Aboriginal Cultural Centre Online
– Port Macquarie Historical Society Inc – Birrbay Barray Djuyal (Birpai Country Stories)
– Powerhouse Youth Theatre Inc – From Stage to Screen
– Soft Centre Pty Ltd – SOFT CENTRE 2025 x NTS | White Bay Power Station
– Wagga Wagga Civic Theatre – Mercury Rising

Minister for the Arts, John Graham said:

“Creative Communities outlined a shift in value, scale, focus and settings. We said at its release that the vision cannot be realised overnight or by government alone. Partnerships are crucial.

“These grants are built upon developing partnerships across the creative industries and into other larger creative industry organisations and businesses.

“The goal with this investment is to support collaborative projects that have potential for ongoing partnerships and develop sustainable outcomes for organisations across the creative industries.”

Create NSW Executive Director Kerri Glasscock said:

“The NSW arts and cultural sector is renowned for innovating and pushing boundaries. This new program has delivered a strong line-up of inspiring ideas in its inaugural round.

“These projects have been selected to demonstrate possible future direction of arts and culture and creative industry partnerships.

“We are excited to see so many high-impact partnerships that will combine the vision and talent in the arts and creative industries and create some truly innovative projects.”

Thea-Mai Baumann Artistic Director and Chief Executive Officer, 4A Centre for Contemporary Asian Art said:

“Haymarket 2050 is a living time capsule – an immersive, cross-disciplinary collaboration that reimagines the future of one of Sydney’s most iconic precincts.

“Through holograms, cult fashion shows, and augmented reality portals at sites like the Lion Gate, Paddy’s Markets, at 4A and our incubator space 4A LAB, we’re preserving Haymarket’s cultural DNA while projecting its stories into the year 2050. This is about memory, imagination, and placemaking – activating community voices to shape a speculative archive we will unlock again in 25 years.”

Creative Industries Connectivity Project Highlights include:

– Haymarket 2050 is a groundbreaking collaboration between 4A, INJURY x REAL PARENT, local community members and key cultural partners, reimagining Haymarket’s cultural future through contemporary art, fashion, and technology. The bold project features immersive installations, AR activations, and a global virtual experience, bridging physical and digital realms to engage diverse audiences and shape Haymarket’s cultural narrative.

– “Dinner is the Show” is an innovative collaboration between Erth Visual & Physical Inc. and Kitchen by Mike. This multi-sensory exploration examines the intricate relationship between food and art, providing an immersive dining experience throughout the performance. 

– Dance company Marrugeku will partner with landscape architectural firm, REALMstudios to develop Ngurragabu [From the last night]. This partnership will imagine, research and map speculative environmental futures, expanding Marrugeku’s ongoing commitment to creating immersive performances that highlight the interactions between human and non-human species, Country, and weather.

– Port Macquarie Museum and creative technology partner Studio ESEM will create an immersive interactive installation using Gathang voices and language to introduce and connect audiences to Country and stories. Birrbay Barray Djuyal (Birpai Country Stories) will weave narratives of kinship, culture and the environment into a multi-sensory artwork using historical, contemporary and virtual imagery and sounds.

The Minns Labor Government is creating a new role of Chief Midwife in NSW Health to support the experiences of pregnant women and their families, and strengthen leadership to midwives across the NSW public health system.

Established in response to the NSW Birth Trauma Inquiry, the Chief Midwife will develop policy and strategies related to midwifery professional practice and the role of midwives in maternity services.

They will also focus on workforce planning, training and retention to support the growth and development of midwifery-led care across public health maternity services.

The Chief Midwife will provide their expert advice to the Minister for Health Ryan Park and the NSW Health Secretary Susan Pearce AM.

They will work with key professional bodies including the Australian College of Midwives, and universities offering midwifery training programs.

The establishment of the Chief Midwife role is the latest step by the Minns Labor Government to improve maternity care across the state.

This announcement follows the recent NSW Budget to support healthier families and communities with more than $83 million to boost maternity care which includes:

• $44.8 million to increase access to midwifery continuity of care models, including funding for an additional 53 full-time equivalent midwives in regional NSW
• enhanced training for clinicians in respectful maternity care
• enhanced antenatal education and consumer information for patients
• $26.8 million to maintain seven family care centres, five mobile services and the Macksville residential unit, all in regional and rural NSW
• $5.7 million to support free vaccination to pregnant women to protect them and their babies from whooping cough, influenza and respiratory syncytial virus infection
• $250,000 for virtual paediatrician support to general practitioners across NSW.

This builds on the five accelerated initiatives that are in progress in response to the Birth Trauma Inquiry. These five initiatives include:

• increasing access to maternity continuity of care models
• embedding trauma-informed maternity care
• improving the way information is provided to women
• improving consent processes in maternity care
• supporting women who experience pregnancy complications.

Recruitment to the role is expected to commence shortly.

Minister for Health Ryan Park

“Nearly 90,000 women give birth in NSW each year and I am committed to ensuring that all women in the state receive respectful, evidence-based, and equitable maternity care.

“I want to thank the courage and strength of the thousands of women who shared their deeply personal and difficult experiences throughout the Birth Trauma Inquiry.

“We will continue to listen and learn, and the Chief Midwife will provide important advice so that we can deliver the best possible midwifery care for women, babies and families in NSW.

“The establishment of the new role of Chief Midwife strengthens our commitment to improving experiences for all women and ensuring they have the choice and care they deserve.”

NSW Health Secretary Susan Pearce AM

“Midwives are essential to the NSW public healthcare system, playing a vital role across the state’s hospitals and health facilities.

“I’m thrilled that the new position of Chief Midwife will provide expert advice and leadership to the profession now and into the future.

“The experiences of women heard throughout the Birth Trauma Inquiry highlighted the critical importance of respectful, compassionate, trauma-informed and culturally safe maternity care.”

The revelation that Labor has overseen a fourteen percent increase in people waiting for public housing over six months underlines the fact that their approach to the housing crisis is not working says Deputy Leader of the ACT Greens, Jo Clay.

The news was revealed after questioning from the Greens in Budget Estimates yesterday afternoon. The line of questioning found that the housing waiting list had increased from 2975 to 3402 in the six months between November 2024 and June 2025.

Quotes attributable to Jo Clay, Deputy Leader of the ACT Greens:

“The news that Labor has been sitting on the fact there has been a fourteen percent surge in the public housing waiting list is yet another blow to the credibility of their so-called plan to build more affordable homes in this territory.

“During the election, Labor only committed to building one thousand new public homes by the end of the decade. That’s a clear admission from the Labor Government that they will leave people struggling on the streets given we already know the public housing waiting list is over three-thousand people long.

“The news that the public housing waiting list has grown is no surprise given we know our community has been facing a serious housing crisis for years now. This should be a wakeup call for Labor that their policies which leave thousands of Canberrans out in the cold are not going to cut it—they need to step up to the plate.

“Already during estimates, we’ve heard from numerous community housing providers that the government will not be able to meet their target of five thousand new so-called ‘affordable’ homes—and this news takes that fact one step further.

“The reality is, if Labor was serious about building homes that people can actually afford to live in, they would step in and build enough public homes for every single person on the public housing waiting list—not leave it to the community sector.

“No doubt Labor’s hubris will mask this damning announcement as just another quirk of governing, and the government will continue giving handouts to the gambling industry and wasting money on road duplications while people are hungry, homeless and in need of support from a government that has forgotten about them.”

Major route preparations are underway to safely deliver the world’s largest fun run this Sunday.

A sold-out field of 90,000 people are expected to power across Sydney’s streets on 10 August for the 55th annual City2Surf – a 14km fun run from the CBD to Bondi Beach.

The Minns Government is asking the public to prepare for road closures and detours, with strict parking restrictions to be enforced along the entire course.

The Government is also calling on motorists to prepare for significant delays across the Eastern Suburbs while roads are closed to keep runners safe.

Road closures will begin at 3:30am around Hyde Park’s starting line, with major closures rolling out from William St and New South Head Rd at 6am through to Bondi Beach. All roads will be sealed off by 7am.

From 1am Sunday, the entire 14km course will become a special event clearway – including Bondi Road, where hundreds of buses will shuttle participants throughout the day.

Roads won’t start reopening until 11:30am in the city and 1pm in the eastern suburbs, with full access restored by 4pm.

Motorists are being urged to avoid unnecessary travel through the eastern suburbs entirely.

The event runs from 7:35am, with the final runners crossing the finish line around 2pm.

Event organisers are strongly encouraging participants toward public transport, with extra metro, train, bus and light rail services running. Travel on all modes is included with race registration – participants just need to show their race bib or event t-shirt.

However, shuttle bus queues from Bondi Beach are expected to be extensive, with participants warned to be patient or consider enjoying local venues until crowds clear.

Major bus route diversions will be in place between the city and eastern suburbs throughout the day.

Special event clearways are strict no-parking zones that will be heavily enforced. Vehicles left in clearways will be towed with fees applying.

Visit the Transport for NSW website for more information about the transport planning and road closures.

Visit the Live Traffic NSW website for detailed road closure information.

Minister for Roads Jenny Aitchison said:

“The City2Surf is one of Sydney’s most iconic events.

“While it’s a fantastic celebration of community, fitness and fun, it does bring major road closures and detours, and we are calling on everyone to plan ahead.

“We’re closing up to 14 kilometres of Sydney’s roads to keep 90,000 runners safe – it’s a massive operation and we’re asking for motorist’s patience.

“The clearways are strict no-parking zones for all vehicles and will be enforced. Make sure you check signs carefully on Saturday and especially if you leave your car overnight.

“We urge all City2Surf participants and volunteers to catch public transport because travel on all modes of public transport is included with event registration – just show your race bib or t-shirt to transport staff when boarding services.”

Minister for Tourism and Minister for Sport Stephen Kamper said:

“The City2Surf is a shining example of why Sydney is one of the world’s great destinations – 90,000 people from across the globe will experience our beautiful harbour city from the CBD all the way to iconic Bondi Beach.

“This event showcases Sydney at its absolute best, with participants running through some of our most spectacular locations while being cheered on by thousands of locals lining the streets.

“I encourage everyone to get out and cheer on the runners this Sunday – it’s a celebration of everything that makes Sydney the incredible destination it is.”

The Minns Labor Government is continuing work to build a better New South Wales, where homelessness is rare, brief and not repeated, with the release of the NSW Homelessness Strategy 2025-2035 today.

Led by Homes NSW, the whole-of-government 10-year strategy is the first of its kind in New South Wales and will shift states system to focus on early intervention, local coordination and long-term housing outcomes.

Developed in collaboration with homelessness and housing services, people with lived experiences of homelessness and Aboriginal organisations the Strategy outlines a coordinated approach to homelessness reform across government, the homelessness and housing sectors, local services and communities.

Key reforms in the first stage of implementation include:

• replacing hotel and motel stays with more appropriate homelessness accommodation delivered with supports that are tailored to the person or family’s needs
• developing local housing and homelessness collaboration networks in partnership with local homelessness services, housing providers, councils, to identify and address service gaps, reduce duplication and target resources where they will have the most impact
• establishing a NSW Street Sleeping Registry to improve service coordination for people sleeping rough by ensuring people don’t have to keep retelling their story and better coordinating access to housing and support
• developing new targeted responses for young people and Aboriginal people who face particular challenges in the service system
• designing a system-wide Housing First approach for NSW with the homelessness and housing sector, so people can access stable housing as quickly as possible, with the supports they need
• reducing exits from government services into homelessness, through new cross agency governance, referral pathways and better service system responses.

The NSW Government will continue to work with the sector as these reforms are developed and implemented.

This is the latest in the Minns Labor Government’s action to make the housing system in New South Wales fairer, which has so far seen:

• a record $6.6 billion investment into social housing and homelessness through the Building Homes for NSW program
• the delivery of over 1,700 homes over the past year, the largest increase in government-built public, community and affordable homes in over a decade
• the upgrading of over 6000 social homes
• the social housing waitlist reduced by an average of 8 months across New South Wales
• modular housing being utilised for mass public housing for the first time in New South Wales, with over 90 modular public homes to be delivered over the next year.

For more information, please visit the NSW Homelessness Strategy 2025-2035 web page.

Minister for Housing and Homelessness Rose Jackson:

“We are formalising and embedding the Housing First approach as the official government policy to end homelessness in NSW. This approach ensures that people have stable housing first, backed in by the support they need to rebuild their lives.

“This strategy is a first for our state. It’s a game-changing, long-term approach to homelessness that shifts our focus from crisis management to prevention and support.

“You simply cannot take on a complicated challenge like homelessness without a strategy. Without a plan, your interventions are random and uncoordinated, and you can’t make or measure progress. We are changing that.

“The establishment of the NSW Street Sleeping Registry will revolutionise how we coordinate services for people experiencing homelessness. No one will have to tell their story repeatedly. We’ll connect them to housing and support faster and more effectively.”

Dom Rowe CEO of Homelessness NSW:

“The cost of living crisis our communities are facing sees more people living in their cars, couch surfing between friend’s places and worst of all sleeping rough on our streets.

“Our sector has been calling for a whole of government response to this crisis, that acknowledges a need to respond now but also sets a reform agenda for the future.

“This Homelessness Strategy answers that call and sets a path to a better future for people at risk of homelessness and the services that support them.”

The Minns Labor Government is helping specialist food and drink businesses from across NSW take centre stage at Fine Food Australia to be held in Sydney next month – showcasing their products the largest industry event of its kind in the Southern Hemisphere. 

Following an expression of interest process, the NSW Government has provided subsidies of $4,500 each to 18 unique food and beverage manufacturers from Greater Sydney and Regional NSW, including producers of sauces, spirits, chocolates and spices, who will exhibit within the ‘Flavours of NSW’ zone at the tradeshow. 

Around 25,000 trade visitors from over 50 countries will converge on the International Convention Centre (ICC) from 8 to 11 September, providing a prime opportunity for NSW businesses to connect with interstate and international buyers, secure distribution partnerships and explore export markets. 

In 2023-24 NSW produced 45.6 billion revenue in the manufactured food and beverage industry, making it the largest manufacturing sector in NSW, comprising of 4,600 businesses. 

Business support and trade experts from the NSW Government will be on hand to help the exhibitors showcase their products and facilitate connections with prospective buyers.  

The NSW Government’s support for Fine Food Australia aligns with the local manufacturing mission of the NSW Industry Policy, while agrifood is a focus sector in the NSW Trade and Investment Strategy, providing significant export growth opportunities particularly in Southeast Asia.

For more information on Fine Food Australia visit the Investment NSW website. 

The NSW businesses receiving subsidies to exhibit at Fine Food Australia 2025 are: 

• Alka Power Water: Producer of alkaline water sourced and bottled in NSW’s Southern Highlands
• Aurum Mead: A Byron Bay producer of wines made from varietal honey and native ingredients
• Chef Luca Ciano: Producer of sauces, pasta and salad dressings, based in Bondi
• Chief Nutrition: Sydney-based producer of beef jerky, collagen bars and snacks
• Choices Gluten-Free: Sydney-based producer of gluten-free baked goods, including breads and cakes
• Dharawal Distilling Co: First Nations producer of native vodka and gins, based in the Illawarra
• Duro Pasta: Based on the South Coast, Duro Pasta is made from 100% Australian durum wheat and produced using sustainable farming practices
• Gather By: Northern Rivers based producer of Australian Manuka Honey and Manuka gummies
• Healthyroo: Producer of protein powder blends, protein bars and shakes from Sydney’s Northern Beaches
• Karu Distillery: Produces a diverse range of gins, rums and vodkas from its distillery in the Blue Mountains
• Kreenuts: Family-owned business in Sydney, producing chocolate and cookie covered peanuts
• Mindful Foods: Producer of organic and activated granolas, nuts and snacks, based in the Northern Rivers 
• Nimbus: Sydney-based producer of powdered oat and soy milk
• Nunka. Hampers & Gifts: First Nations business in Penrith, producing native sauces, jams, compote and blends
• Pacdon Park: Based in the Murray region and uses local ingredients to produce British foods including black pudding, scotch eggs and haggis 
• Rub-A-Dub: Sydney-based producer of seasonings, rubs and sauces
• Spicevine: Sydney-based producer of gluten free vegan marinades, stir-fry pastes and sauces
• The Honey Library & Meadery: Producer of alcoholic mead, creamed honey, chilli honey and raw liquid honey, based on the Central Coast.  

Minister for Industry and Trade Anoulack Chanthivong said: 

“Fine Food Australia is an incredible platform for our up-and-coming food and beverage manufacturers to showcase their unique products, connect with buyers, and pursue growth opportunities both domestically and internationally. 

“The NSW Government has been involved in this annual tradeshow for over 20 years, helping to grow our world class food and beverage industry.

“From spirits to sauces, from jams to jerky, we’re delighted to support our exhibiting businesses and their exceptional products that are made right here in NSW.”

Minister for Regional NSW Tara Moriarty said: 

“Regional NSW is the engine room of the state’s agrifood industry, home to thousands of food and beverage businesses, and many more jobs. 

“Our producers lead the way in terms of innovation and ingenuity, with many utilising native ingredients and sustainable ingredients to bring their products to life.  

“Protecting our food’s excellent reputation is critical to domestic consumption and international trade and that is a key driver for the Minns Government’s recent historic investment in biosecurity plus primary industries research and development.

“Fine Food Australia is one of the biggest trade events in the industry and is unrivalled when it comes to connecting with key players in the industry and I wish our producers all the best in promoting their goods.”

Chef Luca Ciano Director Luca Ciano said:

“Cooking has always been about family, tradition, and quality for me. Growing up in Italy, I learned the art of creating fresh pastas and sauces from my family, who instilled in me the values of using the freshest ingredients and time-honoured techniques.

“With the support of the NSW Government, I am excited to showcase our products at Fine Food Australia and connect with international distributors, retailers, and investors who value quality as much as I do.

“It presents a fantastic opportunity to introduce our products to new markets, grow our brand, and help us to share our passion for fresh, quality ingredients with the world.”

Mindful Foods Director Jordan Epstein said:

“Mindful Foods is thrilled to be exhibiting at Fine Food Australia to feature our wide range of Organic & Activated Granolas, Nuts, Snacks & herbal teas with an audience of B2B buyers across the health food, independent grocery and food service channels. 

“Mindful Foods is actively exploring export opportunities into new markets, so Fine Food Australia will be a great platform to meet international buyers and share the special story behind each of our delicious products!”

The Minns Labor Government is getting on with much-needed improvements to the Oxley Highway, with community consultation under way on vital traffic upgrades at ‘The Port Macquarie Donut’ interchange with the Pacific Highway. 

The consultation forms part of the Government’s $20 million investment for the first stage of a major upgrade at the interchange to address traffic queuing, safety and congestion at this well-known pinch point.

The Minns Government recognises that Port Macquarie Hastings region is fast growing and needs infrastructure investment to help build this community. Around 30,000 vehicles using this section of the highway every day.

The $20 million investment covers the design and delivery of improvements to the Interchange.

Stage one of the preferred proposal outlined in the Review of Environmental Factors includes:

• adding two westbound lanes between the roundabout and Billabong Drive
• installing traffic lights on all roundabout legs
• new line marking to streamline traffic flow.

Construction on stage one is expected to start in early 2027, with works expected to take around two years.

This project forms part of the Oxley Highway Future Growth Project and was accelerated due to the interchange operating above its designed traffic capacity, resulting in congestion during peak hours.

This project will improve safety and increase capacity to keep traffic flowing smoothly at the interchange.

The NSW Government previously completed short-term improvements at the intersection in late 2024 to relieve immediate pressure while long-term solutions were developed. Improvements included extending the approach lane to the roundabout from the northbound exit ramp.

Transport for NSW is inviting the community to have their say on the upgrade that will make the intersection safer and faster for all road users.

Community feedback is open now. To view the proposal and provide input, visit the Transport for NSW website.

Minister for Roads Jenny Aitchison said:

“We’re getting on with the job of building safer and more efficient roads across regional NSW.

“This upgrade will cut queues, save time and improve safety at one of the most important intersections on the Mid North Coast.

“The local community has told us this intersection is a pain point and we’re acting with a smart, staged upgrade that will deliver results. So far, we’ve increased capacity on the Northbound ramps.

“We are inviting motorists to have their say on the proposed design, and all feedback will be considered before we take the next steps.”

Labor spokesperson for Port Macquarie Cameron Murphy said:

“Whether you’re heading to work, doing the school run, or driving through on holidays, everyone in Port Macquarie knows how frustrating this intersection can be. That’s why we’re focused on real, practical upgrades that will make it safer and more efficient.

“This is about listening to the community and acting. The consultation process is now open, and I strongly encourage everyone to get involved and have their say.

“Stage one will fix some of the worst choke points and set the foundation for even bigger improvements down the track. We’re serious about getting this right – and that starts with hearing directly from road users.”