After some time in Sydney for committee work, meetings and sorting out some details for a Royal Flying Doctors torch relay (more on that later), last week I was back out on the road.

I spent some time in Narrabri for meetings, a concert, a farm tour and a light show and was able to get home briefly to Mendooran, before heading off to Wagga Wagga for the National Trap Shooting Championships. After that I will be heading back to the electorate for more meetings and a lawn bowls tournament, with the largest prize pool in the world, before I have to head back to Sydney to get ready for the RFDS torch relay.

RFDS Flare (Torch?) Relay

During the March sitting weeks, NSW Parliament played host to the Royal Flying Doctor Service, which held an event commemorating the upcoming 90th anniversary of the establishment of the first NSW base of the RFDS. On display at that event were three flares, exactly like the ones they use to light up an outback airstrip, but these ones are decorated with artwork specially commissioned from an Aboriginal artist. These flares are soon going to be carried across the electorate by three people, one of them being me, as a kind of torch relay. I will carry the torch on a customised trailer behind my motorbike, while we are also planning to have a team member tow a full-sized RFDS plane fuselage, which is used to teach people about the Flying Doctors.

Meanwhile, two other torches will be moving across the state, all three converging on Broken Hill for the commemorations of the 90th anniversary in May.

The RFDS does some amazing work in remote areas of the state, especially in my electorate, and they have been doing that work in places the government can’t operate, largely based on philanthropy. This torch relay and the anniversary celebration remind people of the role the RFDS has played in our health system for nine decades, and it is also helping to raise money for and raise the profile of the RFDS.

Clarence Valley Orchestra in Barwon

Recently, while I was in Narrabri, I had the privilege of being invited to a performance by the Clarence Valley Orchestra, who were doing their Outback Pops tour, a series of concerts in regional NSW, including visiting Cobar, Broken Hill and Lightning Ridge. Featuring the world-renowned Australian soprano Mirusia Louwerse, known for her performances with Andre Rieu, the concert was a mixture of show tunes by the likes of Leonard Bernstein and Cole Porter, along with big band music from the 40s and pop hits from the 60s and a rousing patriotic Peter Allen number to finish the night.

This remarkable orchestra was formed in 2014 by Greg Butcher, who is the artistic director and conductor. The musicians volunteer their time to perform and raise money for charity. The money raised from the Outback Pops concerts will go to the Royal Flying Doctors Service. The Narrabri concert was a great success, plenty of tickets were sold and the enthusiastic audience gave the orchestra a standing ovation. I sincerely hope that there will be more performances by the orchestra, and Mirusia, in Barwon in the future.

Farmer of the Year

I spent a couple of hours recently taking a tour of Bellevue Farm at Narrabri, which has been farmed by the Eather family since the 1930s. Earlier this year Tom Eather and his family were named Farmers of the Year for 2025. While the family are strong on tradition in that they have been farming in Narrabri for seven generations, it is their willingness to try new techniques and technologies as well as diversifying their produce that has earnt them their award.

Their latest venture is to grow premium citrus fruits. Their company J&T Hort has planted over 300 hectares of citrus and hopes to begin producing a commercial crop in 2027-2029. Tom and his family are always on the lookout for new opportunities and ways to improve their operations. I will be working on ways to connect them with other organisations that will help them in their future endeavours.

NarraBRIGHT

Sydney may have Vivid but last week (April 10) I was in Narrabri to be part of its own festival of lights. Known as NarraBRIGHT, this annual event draws thousands of people to see a series of light and sound installations around town, as well as to enjoy a variety of foods and music. I joined mayor Darrell Tiemens to count down to the switching on of the lights. This is a great initiative by Narrabri Shire Council to bring a bit of light and fun at a time of uncertainty in the world. This was the sixth annual NarraBRIGHT and I want to congratulate the organisers, and the people of Narrabri, on an event that literally gets bigger and brighter every year. It is these sorts of events that not only bring the community together for an upbeat celebratory occasion but also attract tourists, bringing money to the economy and showing the world a bit of country hospitality.

Fuel supplies

There are still serious concerns about fuel supplies. At the time this was written, the war was still threatening fuel supplies to Australia and other countries around the world, despite failed attempts to broker a ceasefire. Hopefully, by the time this is published, things will have changed.

Here in NSW, we have seen that the impact has been greater in regional areas where service stations seemed to experience more shortages than the cities.

Prices have risen more sharply in regional areas, adding significantly to the costs of running vehicles and machinery, at a time when farmers need extra fuel for cropping, which will have a knock-on effect to living costs in the cities and have an impact on the GDP (Gross Domestic Product). Coming at a time when we are seeing drought conditions in parts of the electorate, this will hit primary producers particularly hard. There has also been a downturn in tourism. Several mayors in my electorate have told me that it was unusually quiet over the Easter long weekend and so far during the school holidays.

Various strategies have been discussed to deal with the crisis; and the federal government has taken measures in both the short and long term, including releasing stockpiles, looking to diversify sources of oil to bolster supplies and cutting the fuel excise to make fuel more affordable as prices rise. But this is a crisis that did not need to happen, our fuel security could have been guaranteed years ago. Short term solutions will help cushion the blow but there needs to be a long-term plan to ensure better reserves for the bush. A plan using private investment was presented to the state and federal governments in 2022 and 2023, however, neither took it up.