THE Treasurer handed down his Budget with the theme of correcting the intergenerational imbalance on housing. He used this excuse to introduce new taxes in order to reduce his government’s borrowing crisis. The theory is that the older generation invests in housing by adopting legal methods of ownership such as negatively gearing their finance, then […]
From the Mayor’s Desk: Cr Claire Pontin
IT is the time of year for us to put our budget and operational plan out for public comment ahead of adoption in June. Please have a look at it and give us some feedback, recognising, of course, that each year we must decide how to spread the money that we receive over a large […]
Letter to the Editor: A vicious cycle of inflation
DEAR News Of The Area, AUSTRALIA is being told inflation is the nation’s biggest economic threat, yet the actions of the Federal Government suggest something very different. Australians are tightening their belts, cutting household spending, struggling with mortgages, rent, groceries and power bills, while Canberra continues to spend at record levels. The question many ordinary […]
Letter to the Editor: This isn’t progress
DEAR News Of The Area, I AM writing in support of Leigh Allen’s letter this week on the above subject. I am a golfer of many years and have been to several meetings at the Golf Club on the proposed development adjacent to the golf course. At the beginning the developer assured us together with […]
Letter to the Editor: Development could be ‘overpowering’
DEAR News Of The Area, MANY of us delight in the village tone that is Hawks Nest. The lack of overpowering developments has helped retain our village feel with our “treedness”. I have a concern that this State Significant Development on Sanderling Avenue, Hawks Nest could be overpowering visually considering the image that is being […]
If you’re reading this, you probably won’t benefit from the new social media tax. We want to change that
YOU may have heard that the government is proposing a new levy on tech giants like Google and Facebook to help fund Australian journalism. Before you look away, thinking ‘what has this got to do with me?’ – a quick question. What do you like about the website or newspaper you’re currently reading? Maybe it […]
NDIS
Letter to the Editor: Council staff do a great job
DEAR News Of The Area, I DROVE past the Anzac memorial recently. I noticed the local MidCoast Council outdoor staff working hard to ensure the grounds around the memorial and the memorial itself were looking their absolute best for Anzac Day, as they do every year. Often the community can be critical of local council […]
EXPLAINER: Comet returns after roughly 170,000 years
A VISITOR from the deep past is about to grace Australian skies. For those willing to rise before dawn, it offers something close to time travel. The long-period comet C/2025 R3 (PanSTARRS) – last seen when humans were shaping stone tools and learning to master fire – has returned after an absence of roughly 170,000 […]
‘On the couch’ with Jasminda
DEAR Jasminda, MY 70-year-old mother has expressed an interest in learning the electric guitar. How can I encourage her to try something more age-appropriate? Gerard H. Dear Gerard, Well, don’t you sound like a wet sock. And when I say wet sock, I mean one of those sports socks that ends up stuck behind the […]
