3 October 2014 NT government

The Northern Territory Government is a major partner of the Food Futures Conference, which is being held at the Darwin Convention Centre from 3 to 5 November.

Coordinated by the NT Farmers Association, the conference will focus on the future development of agriculture in Northern Australia.

Guest speakers include Chief Minister Adam Giles, Minister for Primary Industry and Fisheries Westra van Holthe, NT Farmers Association Chief Executive Grant Fenton, Chairman [...]

23 October 2014 Penelope Arthur Queensland Country Life

THE construction of new dams throughout Queensland would be just one measure taken to help drought proof the state if federal Agriculture Minister Barnaby Joyce has his way.

Mr Joyce released the green paper on agricultural competitiveness in Canberra on Monday, identifying 27 projects nationally as worthy of capital investment or further investigation. Projects included nine potential dams in Queensland.

He said the projects would not “drought [...]

28 October 2014 Luis Narvaez Daily Mercury

REGIONAL councils expect to play an important role in the development of northern Australia.

Road freight, particularly heavy road freight, will also become increasingly important as the population and quantity of goods demanded increases.

At the 118th annual Local Government Association of Queensland conference in Mackay yesterday, speakers discussed how regional roads were the arteries of future northern development.

LGAQ chief executive officer Greg Hallam said safety was [...]

28 October 2014 The Northern Star

EXPRESSIONS of interest are now open for people interested in joining the board of Regional Development Australia Northern Rivers.

A map of the area covered by Regional Development Australia Northern Rivers.

Community members with commitment, strong leadership skills and a vision for their local region are encouraged to submit their expressions of interest by Monday, November 10.

For more information go to the RDA Northern Rivers website.

Courtesy [...]

28 October 2014 Colin Bettles The Land

A MASSIVE class action claim of compensation for Labor’s live export suspension has been welcomed by the National Farmers’ Federation (NFF) and the Northern Territory Cattlemen’s Association (NTCA).

NT-based Brett Cattle Company and other industry members have launched legal proceedings over the impacts of the then federal government’s month-long ban on live exports to Indonesia in June 2011.

Dougal and Emily Brett – members of the NTCA – [...]

24 October 2014 Queensland Country Life

BEEF cattle veterinarian Lee Fitzpatrick has been named the new chairman of the North Australia Beef Research Council (NABRC).

Dr Fitzpatrick will begin his three-year term at the end of October, following a handover period with outgoing chair Ralph Shannon, who is standing down after four years in the role.

Dr Fitzpatrick said his primary focus would be to drive the delivery of the Research Development and Extension Priorities [...]

22 October 2014 Cecilia Jamasmie mining.com

The Chinese government has decided to scrap tariffs on Australian coal imports announced earlier this month once ongoing negotiations on a free trade agreement (FTA) between the two nations is finalized.

“The news is very surprising because just like the implementation of the tariffs, no one expected it to happen so quickly,” ICIS coal analyst Deng Shun told The Australian.

Canberra and Beijing are trying to seal a FTA before the end of [...]

26 October 2014 Tim Lee 7 News

Retail giant Brett Blundy is better known for bras than Brahmans.

The Australian entrepreneur, who last year re-located his head office to Singapore, has made his name and fortune, estimated at more than $800 million, through a range of retail investments.

Brett Blundy Retail Capital (BBRC) has a portfolio of products including lingerie, fashion jewellery, manchester and homewares, sold in 850 stores in 13 countries.

Mr Blundy sees [...]

22 October 2014 Matt Brann ABC Rural

The Northern Territory Chief Minister has used a conference in Darwin to spruik the ‘major projects’ that could change the fortunes of those living in regional and remote areas.

Speaking at the fifth annual Major Projects Conference, Adam Giles said there was ‘unlimited scope for growth’ in the NT.

From the 16 projects in the Territory which have been granted ‘major project status’, Chief Minister Giles said he [...]

30 September 2014 Kimmaree Thompson The Northern Star

TOURISM is a leading industry on Northern Rivers, bringing $1.5 billion to our economy and employing more than 7% of our workforce. But as the NSW Parliamentary Research Office recently reminded us, only 6.4% (one in 16) of domestic and international visitors to NSW come here.

Although the North Coast is Australia’s third most popular tourist destination, trailing only Sydney and Melbourne, these numbers tell us there [...]