Mark Coulton (Parkes, Deputy-Speaker) Share this | Hansard source

On 1 October a significant event happened in the north-west part of New South Wales, in my electorate: the Narrabri Courieroriginally the North Western Courierchanged hands after 104 years. It has been in the Dunnet family since 1920, when it was purchased by JS Dunnet. Since then, various members of that family, most recently the third generation, Wanda and Ian Dunnet, have been managing that newspaper. It is an institution not only in Narrabri but in Wee Waa, where they run the Wee Waa News, and more recently in Gunnedah, where they have the Gunnedah Times and the North West Magazine.

The Dunnets have shown the importance of having a newspaper that is connected to the community and understands the community, one that does not run an agenda but shares the highs and the lows of the community through the newspaper and deals with contentious issues from time to time. I'm really pleased that Mark and Susie Slack-Smith have purchased the Courier, and I welcome them. I know that the residents of the towns that are serviced by these newspapers are really pleased that Mark and Susie have taken on the ownership and that they will see those papers continue.

Over the years there have been some contentious issues that the Courier has not been afraid to be involved in. The first one in my memory would probably be the introduction of irrigated cotton and the change in the landscape in Narrabri and the Namoi Valley, from grazing, largely, to more intensive irrigation. The introduction of the coal seam gas industry in the Pilliga forest is an issue that is still bubbling away. More recent has been the route of the inland rail through Narrabri. The Courier has been instrumental in allowing opinions from all sides of the arguments to be voiced.

When the Namoi Valley Independent closed down, Ian and Wanda Dunnet started a new newspaper in Gunnedah, and the Gunnedah Times is now a very solid newspaper servicing that community. I want to touch on that time. During the pandemic, ACM received significant funds from the Commonwealth government to keep their newspapers going and their journalists employed. During that time, ACM closed down the Namoi Valley Independent. They gutted out the Moree Champion. The Dubbo Daily Liberal, which services a community of over 50,000 people, now only has a paper on Saturday, and that has gone largely online.

ACM have gone through rural newspapers like a mob of locusts. They've hollowed them out, sold their real estate and left a shell behind. It's so important that we are seeing these newspapers in private hands. In my electorate, we've got newspaper owners like Lucy Peart, who is not only based in Gilgandra but now has newspapers in Narromine, Warren and Nyngan, and Lee O'Connor, who runs the Coonamble Times. These people are committed to their communities. They understand the importance of journalism and are committed to it. I am so disappointed at the actions of ACM. They have treated the people of regional Australia with contempt, and that's unforgivable.

I'm looking forward to catching up with country newspaper proprietors, editors and journalists next week in Dubbo for their awards. They need the support. Journalism has been dealt a shocking blow by these corporate takeovers. The Narrabri Courier and others are now in safe hands, and I thank the Dunnets for what they've done in 104 years.

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