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People passionate about improving healthcare in regional, rural and remote areas of NSW are invited to apply to join the Regional Health Ministerial Advisory Panel.

Expressions of interest (EOIs) are now open due to the conclusion of the current Panel’s three‑year term in July 2026.

The Panel is an independent advisory body that provides strategic advice to the Minister for Health and Regional Health, and the NSW Health Secretary.

Its role is to identify opportunities and solutions that improve healthcare access, outcomes and service delivery across hospitals and health support services in regional, rural and remote NSW.

The Panel also plays an important role in strengthening community engagement and ensuring local perspectives inform the design and delivery of healthcare services.

Applications are encouraged from people who can represent the interests of regional communities, including Aboriginal people, and those who have knowledge, experience, or expertise in one or more of the following areas, aligned with the NSW Government’s priorities for regional, rural and remote health:

• Strengthening and supporting the regional health workforce
• Enabling better access to safe, high-quality, and timely health services
• Keeping people healthy and well through prevention, early intervention and education
• Keeping communities informed, building engagement and seeking feedback
• Expanding integration of primary, community, and hospital care across regional, rural and remote settings
• Harnessing and evaluating innovation, technology, and digital solutions to support a sustainable regional health system.

The Panel members may be appointed for a term of up to three years and will meet at least every three months.

For more information, including how to apply, visit EOI Regional Health Ministerial Advisory Panel or contact MOH-ODS-Regional@health.nsw.gov.au. Applications close on Friday 29 May 2026.

For more information on regional health initiatives, visit www.health.nsw.gov.au/regional.

Minister for Health Ryan Park:

“The NSW Government is investing in regional health services so communities across the state can get the care they need, closer to home.

“No matter where people live, they deserve access to safe, high‑quality healthcare. Listening to our local communities is central to tailoring our health services to what families need.

“That is why the Regional Health Ministerial Advisory Panel is so important. Its members bring the voices of regional, rural and remote communities to the table, helping us deliver safe, sustainable and high‑quality healthcare with real outcomes for people who live outside our major cities.”

Land purchased through the Resilient Homes Program at sites in the Northern Rivers and Central West will now have more flexible land uses, allowing them to be repurposed for community benefit.

The NSW Reconstruction Authority (RA) will work with local councils to plan the future of these buyback areas as parklands, community hubs, or environmental projects. In specific cases where flood risk is strictly managed, some sites may also be used for commercial or industrial purposes. Meaning valuable land can continue to serve a public purpose.

However, the fundamental requirement remains: buyback land cannot be returned to residential use.

RA is partnering with local councils to ensure the future of these sites is informed by the community. Over 1000 parcels of land will be integrated into local planning, with work already progressing in key areas:

• Lismore – Planning is underway for more than 600 properties across four precincts. Residents will be invited to share feedback on preferred land uses and locally supported outcomes to ensure the transition reflects community needs.
• Tweed Shire – Work has begun on a resilience-focused master plan for South Murwillumbah. A specialist consultant has been appointed to lead a comprehensive design and engagement process with the local community.
• Northern Rivers Expansion – Future planning will also extend to buyback clusters in Richmond Valley, Kyogle, Byron, Ballina, and Clarence Valley.
• Central West – RA is working with Cabonne Shire Council on future land use for Eugowra and Molong, ensuring outcomes reflect the unique character of these towns.

Community members are encouraged to participate in upcoming consultations and track the progress of these projects at nsw.gov.au/resilienthomesprogram

Federal Minister for Emergency Management Kristy McBain said:

“The Albanese and Minns Governments are continuing to work constructively through the Resilient Homes Program to help ensure Northern Rivers and Central West communities thrive in their recovery.

“Our aim is to move people out of areas that are prone to flooding so that they, their families, and their homes are safer and better prepared during the next flood emergency.

“This change to the Resilient Homes Program will ensure these communities will also benefit from new community and commercial spaces.”

Federal Member for Richmond Justine Elliot said:

“Our recovery continues in the North Coast following the devastating 2022 flooding event.

“As your strong voice in the Albanese Labor Government, I’m proud to be working with the NSW Government and local councils to unlock this land for community use.

“This ensures we can build back better for our community and improve our resilience against future flooding events.”

Minister for Recovery Janelle Saffin said:

“The Resilient Homes Program has already given hundreds of families across our regions certainty and peace of mind.

“Now that we are moving into a vital new phase – we are giving this land back to the community in a way that is safe and sustainable.

“We are creating space for new opportunities. Whether it’s parklands, community hubs, or environmental projects, the future of these sites will be shaped by the people who live there.

“It is essential that the community has a direct say in how we restore these connections and grow our local communities and economies.”

NSW Reconstruction Authority CEO Kate Fitzgerald said: 

“We welcome the Australian Government’s confirmation that flood buyback land can be used for things other than housing, such as community spaces, environmental projects, businesses, or industry, if planning rules allow it and the flood risk is manageable.

“It’s an important next step in the recovery for the Northern Rivers and the Central West communities.

“This decision shows the value of the existing planning and flood risk management frameworks in NSW, which guide what can be built in flood-prone areas.

“We will make these decisions with councils and communities, with the main focus on reducing future flood risk and supporting strong local communities.”

Work is now underway on a major upgrade of the Golden Highway at Merriwa, making one of regional NSW’s key freight routes safer forlocals and freight operators.

The Minns Labor Government is investing $23.7 million to deliver a new westbound overtaking lane on the Golden Highway near Merriwa.

For more than a decade, the Liberal–National Government failed to deliver the safety improvements communities along the Golden Highway desperately needed, leaving residents of the Upper Hunter languishing.

This project gets on with delivering the improvements that should have happened years ago.

The Golden Highway is a critical east–west link connecting communities, industry and freight between Newcastle and Dubbo, playing a central role in supporting the Upper Hunter’s economy.

Transport for NSW has been progressively upgrading the Golden Highway since 2016, investing $109 million as part of the NSW Government’s Regional Freight Pinch Point and Safety Program with an additional $24 million contribution from the Australian Government’s Heavy Vehicle Safey and Productivity Package.

The ongoing investment into the Golden Highway will ensure the corridor is able to support safer and more efficient journeys for all road users.

This $23.7 million commitment includes $12 million announced during the 2023 election campaign and a further $11.7 million allocated in the 2025–26 NSW Budget.

The investment builds on the more than $133 million jointly invested by the NSW and Australian Governments to improve the Golden Highway between Newcastle and Dubbo.

Site establishment will start from today (Tuesday, 19 May). Construction is expected to take around ten months to complete, weather permitting.

Acting Minister for Roads, John Graham:

“Communities along the Golden Highway spent years hearing the same promises from the former Government, while critical safety upgrades were left sitting on an ever-growing list of projects that never got off the ground. We’re getting on with the job to make sure that changes.

“Investments like this are about more than a single overtaking lane or safety upgrade – they are part of a broader effort to strengthen and future-proof critical regional roads like the Golden Highway for decades to come.

“We said we would invest in safer, more reliable regional roads, and that’s exactly what we’re doing here in Merriwa.”

Minister for the Hunter, Yas Catley:

“Hunter locals know better than anyone the significance of the Golden Highway for the region.

“From coal, grain, livestock, fertiliser and other goods, this stretch of road is part in parcel of the Hunter’s booming economy. It connects towns like Merriwa, Denman and Dubbo to jobs, services, markets and most importantly, to each other.

“This new overtaking lane will help locals and freight operators move more safely and reliably across the region at a time when demand on this road continues to grow.

“The Minns Labor Government said we would invest into this road, and that is absolutely what we are doing.”

Labor Spokesperson for the Upper Hunter, Emily Suvaal:

“Communities across the Upper Hunter have been calling for upgrades to the Golden Highway for years, and this project is finally delivering those long-overdue improvements.

“This upgrade will make daily journeys safer and less stressful for the thousands of motorists and heavy vehicle operators who rely on this route every day.

Family First NSW Legislative Council candidate Lyle Shelton has re-committed Family First to restoring fairness and safety in girls’ and women’s sport by banning biological males from female sporting competitions if elected next March.
 
Mr Shelton said the issue had again exploded into public debate following revelations on Sydney radio today that biological males are competing in women’s community AFL competitions in NSW under policies which allow self-identification alone to determine eligibility.
 
“These policies are madness and Family First has been saying this for years while both sides of politics have remained silent,” Mr Shelton said.
 
“Women and girls should not have to wait until someone is seriously injured before sporting administrators and politicians rediscover biological reality.”
 
Mr Shelton said it was deeply unjust that his friend, women’s rights advocate Kirralie Smith, would next week be back in the NSW Supreme Court appealing a $95,000 vilification penalty after publicly raising concerns about biological males competing in women’s soccer competitions.
 
“Kirralie Smith simply highlighted publicly available information about men playing in women’s sport, yet she has been dragged through the courts and hit with a crippling fine,” Mr Shelton said.
 
“That should alarm every Australian who believes women deserve fair competition and safe changerooms.”
 
Mr Shelton said NSW Premier Chris Minns was attempting to straddle both sides of the debate while refusing to confront the consequences of his government’s gender ideology agenda.
 
“Chris Minns talks tough about protecting women’s sport one day, yet his government changed birth certificate laws so biological sex can effectively become a matter of personal declaration.”
 
Mr Shelton also criticised NSW Minister for Women Jodie Harrison after she refused this week to define what a woman is.
 
“It is absurd that the Minister for Women cannot tell the public what a woman is,” Mr Shelton said.
 
“If Labor politicians cannot define womanhood, they cannot protect women’s rights.”
 
Mr Shelton said there was also little reason for confidence in the Liberal Party under Kellie Sloane.
 
“Kellie Sloane marched in the Mardi Gras political parade — an event explicitly designed to pressure politicians and institutions into embracing radical LGBTQA+ ideology, including gender fluidity,” Mr Shelton said.
 
“The major parties have enabled this madness for years. Family First will be the clear voice for common sense, biological reality and the rights of women and girls.”
 
Mr Shelton said Family First would pursue legislative protections for female-only sport, changerooms and other sex-based spaces if elected to the NSW Parliament next March.
 
“Women and girls should never be forced to surrender fairness, privacy or safety to satisfy ideological activism,” Mr Shelton said.
 
“Family First will fight to restore common sense to NSW law and public policy.”

The Minns Labor Government is calling for more recruits to join the NSW Police Force, with a new Police Academy class to be added this year, giving more people the opportunity to join the force and protect their communities.

In a major boost to recruitment, the NSW Police Academy will move from three attestation classes to four, creating a larger, faster pipeline of new probationary constables for commands across NSW.

This follows the recent attestation at the Police Academy of another record-breaking class, with Class 368 being the largest in more than 13 years – underscoring the Government’s commitment to rebuilding and strengthening frontline policing across the state.

The new class will be backed in with a new advertising campaign, calling on the community to sign up and be a part of the best police force in the country.

The new recruitment program is just one part of the Government’s effort to rebuild the NSW Police Force after more than a decade of neglect, underinvestment and the Liberal-National’s wages cap that made it harder to recruit and retain officers.

Since coming to office, the Minns Labor Government has:
Delivered a historic pay rise for police
Introduced paid study for recruits, resulting in a 70 per cent increase in applications
Established the Be a Cop In Your Hometown program to allow regional recruits to return to or near their community after training
Established new recruitment pathways for experienced officers from interstate and New Zealand.

The Government has been clear, NSW needs more police and we will pull every lever to make it happen.

Recent months have shown us that our police are being asked to do more than ever: responding to domestic and family violence, confronting organised crime, keeping roads safe and protecting communities in every part of the state, sometimes on their darkest days.

This additional class is about getting more recruits through the Academy, curbing the attrition of retiring and experienced officers and placing more probationary constables into commands in every corner of New South Wales.

Premier of New South Wales Chris Minns said:

NSW needs more police, and this addition means more recruits coming through the Academy and onto the frontline every year.

This is about opening the door to more people who want to serve their community and making sure we can get them trained and into the field as quickly as possible.

We know we can’t make the job of a cop safe, you just need good, brave people willing to step up.”

Minister for Police and Counter-terrorism Yasmin Catley said:

We are putting more police through the Academy and onto the frontline.

This is about rebuilding the force, strengthening the pipeline and getting more boots on the ground in communities right across New South Wales.

We have worked hard to recruit and retain more officers, be it with better pay, paid study at the Academy, and new pathways for experienced police to join our police force.

Under the Coalition’s decade of neglect our police were treated as a spreadsheet. Their wages were capped, their conditions worsened and our force was not adequately invested in. We are turning that around each and every day we govern.

We will keep backing them, because keeping NSW safe starts with a strong, supported and growing police force.”