Parliament was back this week for the first week of the November sittings.

I gave a Notice of Motion calling on the Minns Labor Government to get on with the job in building the Glen Innes Hospital.

Since the project was announced in 2021, the delays have been going on long enough.

The debate on the Water Management Legislation Amendment was on Wednesday and unfortunately it was passed by the Minns Labor Government and the Greens.

The member for Cootamundra/ Shadow Minister for Water Steph Cooke and I spent many months putting together more than 40 amendments to the Bill to make it fairer for irrigators and water users across NSW.

We ran and lost those amendments on the floor of Parliament on Wednesday evening. The Bill will allow the Natural Resources Access Regulator to have overreaching and excessive powers over farmers and irrigators including the ability to conduct drone-assisted surveillance of farms without notice and the abolition of long standing basic fundamental legal rights.

It is a very disappointing result and another example of the Sydney-centric Labor Government unfairly burdening regional and rural NSW to win votes in Sydney.

I tabled Questions On Notice on the Crown Land Improvement Fund, the Glen Innes Agricultural Research and Advisory Station, the Glen Innes Hospital redevelopment, police numbers in the Northern Tablelands, bail applications, locum remuneration, water access licences, and the transmission corridor from Bayswater to Walcha.

I delivered Community Recognition Statements on Moree’s Penny Jones, Armidale CWA, Creative Streets Festival, The Bolt Inn, Guyra’s Wayne Mendes, Walcha’s James Rogers, the Warialda Honey Festival, Glen Innes’ Dave Munro, and Guyra Home Support Services.

My private members statement this week was celebrating the life of Inverell’s Nick Tindall who was tragically killed in a car crash in August.

Armidale PCYC

A total of $26,950 was secured from the Community Building Partnership program for the Armidale PCYC to re-sand and line mark the sports floor.

By upgrading the sports floor, the community’s youth will continue to have somewhere safe to go and engage in sports, leadership and education programs, and somewhere they can feel safe.

They also provide support for at-risk youth, foster cultural understanding and provide a range of accessible activities.

It is fantastic to see these facilities receive a much-needed upgrade and congratulations to the Armidale PCYC for being successful in the funding application.

Minns visits Armidale BackTrack

Premier Chris Minns visited Armidale last Friday to see the fantastic work BackTrack does.

He met with BackTrack founder Bernie Shakeshaft, chief executive officer Marcus Watson and some of the current participants and past individuals who have gone through the program successfully.

It was great to see the Premier make his way to town and see first-hand what BackTrack does.

Warialda Tennis Club

Warialda Tennis Club received $100,534 to transform their dilapidated synthetic courts with funding from the Clubgrants Category 3 Fund.

The funding means they will be able to update up to two of the courts which have been dormant for years. The club is hoping to get social tennis and lessons for children up and running with the improvements to their facilities.

Glen Innes Hospital redevelopment

In Parliament this week, I gave a Notice of Motion calling on the NSW Government to hurry up and start working on the Glen Innes Hospital redevelopment.

It has been more than four years since it was announced in 2021 the hospital would undergo a redevelopment.

It is still in the design stage and is yet to really get going. It is very frustrating to see progress has stalled and the Government needs to get on with it and start building.

Regional health survey

NSW Health have opened up a feedback survey to help improve health services and outcomes in regional, rural and remote parts of the state.

The survey is anonymous and will take up to 10 minutes. Please share your experiences in this survey to help better health services in our communities. The survey can be completed at Regional Health Strategic Plan.

Feral Pig and Pest Program

As part of the Feral Pig and Pest Program, Local Land Services is providing free grain and bait to combat feral pigs.

Feral pig numbers have exploded in recent years after a few good seasons. They cause widespread carnage and devastation with attacks on livestock and destruction of crops and I have been lobbying the NSW Government to do more to address the situation.

The latest round of the Feral Pig and Pest Program offers $850,000 worth of free grain and bait for landholders until it runs out. This won’t go far though and there needs to be more funding and more programs to really tackle the problem.

Landholders interested in accessing free grain and bait can contact their closest Local Land Services office on 1300 795 299.

ePetition for the rejection of the new transmission line corridor

Anna Young from Walcha has launched a Parliamentary ePetition which opposes the re-routed transmission corridor from Bayswater to Walcha.

It needs 20,000 to be debated in Parliament.

To view and sign, visit Walcha Parliamentary ePetition.

Have your say on the 2026-27 NSW Budget

The NSW Government is seeking feedback to deliver the 2026-27 NSW Budget which will be handed down in June 2026.

Individuals, businesses and community groups are encouraged to make a submission and include their views on what the NSW Government doing well and should continue doing, what work the NSW Government should pause or deprioritise, and what ways the NSW Government can raise funds to support service delivery and infrastructure.

Submissions will be  accepted until 5pm, Monday December 22, 2025. To make a submission, visit Have your say on the 2026-27 NSW Budget.

What’s On

November 14-15: Walcha Motorcycle Rally at Walcha Showground

November 15-16: New England Antique Machinery Club Rally at Armidale Showground

November 15: Waldorf School Fair

As always, please reach out if I can help with any State Government issues.

Commentary by Brendan Moylan, Member for Northern Tablelands