Australia Wide
Australia Wide brings you daily news from regional Australia, leveraging the ABC's extensive network of local reporters. Hosted by Sinéad Mangan, the podcast covers stories and issues affecting communities outside the major cities. It offers a unique perspective on life in rural and regional areas across the country.
Episodes
Alice Springs’ Americans respond to midterm election result
The sound of regional Australia. News and analysis from the ABC's network of regional reporters.
Tiny homes for region's rough sleepers held up by planning rules
A charity in the NSW Southern Highlands wants to alleviate its homelessness crisis by building tiny homes on privately-owned rural land.
Alice Springs jockey Ethan Brown wins Melbourne Cup
British stallion Point of Law has won the Melbourne Cup ridden by jockey Ethan Brown who grew up in Alice Springs.
Country town reliant on backpackers warns visa changes will cripple business
The federal government is pushing ahead with its plan to limit working holiday visas, which include ballots for second and third-year extensions much to the dismay of the regional town of Manjimup[ in WA.
From Juukan Gorge’s ancient secrets to outback gold | Australia Wide this week
The sound of regional Australia. News and analysis from the ABC's network of regional reporters.
Cold and calculating' Erin Patterson loses appeal, has sentence increased
The sound of regional Australia. News and analysis from the ABC's network of regional reporters.
Helen Haines's offices reopen to community after alleged attack
The sound of regional Australia. News and analysis from the ABC's network of regional reporters.
Regional Australians are feeling lonely, but these Old Bastards are helping
Community groups are doing a lot of the heavy lifting when it comes to addressing loneliness in regional Australia, according to leading loneliness expert Associate Professor Michelle Lim.
Former councillor dies in floodwaters on Queensland's Fraser Coast
The sound of regional Australia. News and analysis from the ABC's network of regional reporters.
Uncovering the ancient secrets of WA's Juukan Gorge
Family fears there will be deaths as NDIS changes hit close to home | Australia Wide this week
The sound of regional Australia. News and analysis from the ABC's network of regional reporters.
Flash floods hit south-east Queensland
Emergency crews have responded to multiple swiftwater call-outs across the south-east and closed dozens of local roads due to rising catchments.
Critics say NT Child protection review doesn’t go far enough
The sound of regional Australia. News and analysis from the ABC's network of regional reporters.
Phil Haines thanks community and medical staff for their support following car attack
Phil Haines thanks community and medical staff for rallying around his family following car attack on his wife MP Helen Haines.
Wangaratta community in shock following attack on Helen Haines
The regional community of Wangaratta is struggling to understand a violent attack on its local federal MP Helen Haines.
What are younger voters thinking ahead of the Victorian state election?
What are the younger generations thinking ahead of the Victorian state election?
NSW jails consider drone guns and the sport of woodchopping | Australia Wide this week
Australia Wide this week - The NSW government is procuring drone detection technology for jails across the state to combat the "emerging threat" of contraband smuggled in from the sky
Airlines defend rising ticket prices and axing routes
The bosses of Qantas and Virgin Australia have faced a parliamentary inquiry into the state of regional air travel.
High fuel prices continue to see tourist numbers plummet
Tourism operators in Bundaberg and Hervey Bay say visitor numbers are lower compared to last year.
Gold Coast's housing push collides with growing climate risks
The Gold Coast's push for more housing faces growing climate risks, with urban planners warning rising seas and worsening flooding will force up premiums and push people out of some suburbs.
Alice Springs bracing for more storms after 'worst in 40 years'
A wind-lashed Alice Springs is bracing for another storm even as residents have not yet finished clearing up from "the worst storm in 40 years" on Monday afternoon.
Town planning under pressure to tackle rising heat risk
As the climate warms, and many urban environments become more densely developed and there is growing concern about how heat is impacting communities.
Regional tourism and iconic attractions hit with major overhauls | Australia Wide this week
The sound of regional Australia. News and analysis from the ABC's network of regional reporters.
Gambling rates in young men soar due to social pressure
As the major parties continue to thrash out policy over gambling reform, new research suggests having a bet during the game is becoming less about winning money and more about fitting in with your mates - especially for young men.
Snowtown serial killer spotted outside pre-release centre
The youngest of the infamous Snowtown serial killers has been seen walking out of an Adelaide pre-release centre.
Event organisers announce end of Big Red Bash
The sound of regional Australia. News and analysis from the ABC's network of regional reporters.
How will the Coalition's migration plan impact regional Australia?
After weeks of debate about Australia's migration intake for the coming years, the Opposition has finally revealed it's plan.
Regional Queenslanders in the dark over data centres
Australia's largest data centre proposed for a cattle feedlot just out of Dalby, 250 kilometres west of Brisbane in Queensland.
Worker visa limbo, a coroner's inquest into missing men, and timeless tales of the Eyre Highway
The sound of regional Australia. News and analysis from the ABC's network of regional reporters.
Regional businesses facing tough decisions after major financial changes
Two Fraser Coast family-owned businesses have been forced to make difficult decisions to keep their livelihoods afloat following a fourth interest rate hike and the removal of credit and debit card surcharges.
Remote businesses fear working holiday visa changes will mean fewer 'essential' backpackers
Business owners voice their worries about the potential negative impact of the recently announced changes to working holiday visas.
Planning decision to extend life of mega coal mine saves 1,500 jobs
Planning decision to extend life of mega coal mine in Hunter Valley saves 1,500 jobs.
Get rules in place to hold data centres to account, experts tell Tasmania
As companies continue their push to build AI data centres in Australian communities, an AI institute cautions that the touted jobs and economic benefits may not materialise if public authorities do not put binding conditions on proponents.
The residents and wind farm on the frontline of Australia's energy wars
The sound of regional Australia. News and analysis from the ABC's network of regional reporters.
The Deadwater wreck | Australia Wide
Australia Wide presents: The Deadwater WreckA mysterious ship now thought to be buried in the depths of a murky lagoon in WA's South West, continues to baffle wreck hunters for more than a century.The Deadwater Wreck is one of WA's longest-running maritime mysteries, stretching back to the earliest decades of British colonial rule.The case rests on colonial eyewitnesses, curious
Roadside births on the rise and crime-fighting drones, a modern saint and a new flock of young birdwatchers
The sound of regional Australia. News and analysis from the ABC's network of regional reporters.
As fuel prices soar again, regional Australia is hurting
Fuel prices rise again, hitting regional Australians harder due to the greater distances they must travel
Migrant doctors fill GP gaps in towns where 'there's nobody else' to care
Most of Australia's GPs were born overseas and, as political debate rages over immigration numbers, regional medical clinics rely on them to keep their doors open. But the process isn't easy.
Moree crime rates falling but residents say drone use is overreach
Moree crime rates falling but residents say drone use is overreach
Rate of babies born before reaching hospital climbs in regional NSW
Babies are being born before arriving at hospital at double the rate in regional NSW areas since 2001.
Lives and personalities of Hillcrest jumping castle victims shared as Tasmanian inquest starts
A coronial inquest into the deaths of six children in the Hillcrest Primary School tragedy has started in Devonport in Tasmania's north-west.
Data centre deal, families caught up in migration debate, the toll of jury duty | Australia Wide this week
The sound of regional Australia. News and analysis from the ABC's network of regional reporters.
Regions feel the pinch as diesel price surges
The sound of regional Australia. News and analysis from the ABC's network of regional reporters.
Labor unveils migration cuts targeting students and backpackers
Labor is tightening visa rules for international students and backpackers, while increasing efforts to remove overstayers as it seeks greater control over migration.
How the migration debate is playing out in the bush
Australia's immigration policy involves a complex system of visas designed to fill labour shortages, reunite families, sustain our higher education sector and provide refuge. Australia Wide takes a look at how the debate plays out in regional and rural Australia.
The wind farm plan being hailed as an economic boon for struggling town
Mixed reactions on Tasmania's west coast to a developer's plans to build a massive 280 turbine wind farm that could potentially feed energy hungry data centres.
Whyalla steelworks to cut 600 jobs amid blast furnace closure
Hundreds of workers at Whyalla steel works in South Australia will lose their jobs as a result of a decision to permanently shut its blast furnace.
Aged care fight, hidden costs of kids' sport, and wildlife resurgence | Australia Wide this week
The sound of regional Australia. News and analysis from the ABC's network of regional reporters.
Graduate nurses overwhelmed by workload pressures in rural Queensland health facilities
A lack of emergency care training is putting nurses in vulnerable positions during rural and remote placements, according to a national report.
Sick of the city, Queenslanders head west and boost property prices
Warwick on Qld’s southern Downs is defying every market prediction - a place where property prices have gone up while everywhere else seems to be going down.
Can Australia's film industry produce another outback classic like Crocodile Dundee?
Regional Australia has been key to so much of Australia's cinematic success. Can Australia's film industry produce another outback classic like Crocodile Dundee?
$40b data centre land granted to firm where NT minister's relative works
The sound of regional Australia. News and analysis from the ABC's network of regional reporters.
Short cut across the country via Outback Way inches forward
The sound of regional Australia. News and analysis from the ABC's network of regional reporters.
Nepali community grieves, entitled travellers and why the earth hums?
Following the devastating flood disaster the ever-growing Nepali community in Australia is in deep grief, from the cities to the small country towns that many now call home
Australians travel to Nepal to search for missing relatives
The sound of regional Australia. News and analysis from the ABC's network of regional reporters.
Amateur drone pilots put races and aircraft at risk, authorities say
Event organisers, pilots and authorities have reported risky behaviour by amateur drone users.
Fracked gas from Beetaloo Basin starts flowing to Northern Territory power grid
Eight years after a moratorium on fracking gas was lifted in the Northern Territory, the tap was officially turned on at the massive Beetaloo Basin gas development.
28,000 irrigators lose $1.5-billion Murray Darling class action
A group of 28,000 irrigators has lost a $1.5-billion class action against the Murray-Darling Basin Authority (MDBA).
A mysterious wreck, Victorian bird flu response criticised, WA forestry debate, and remembering Dolly Parton
The sound of regional Australia. News and analysis from the ABC's network of regional reporters.
Single mother rejected by homeless services as more people live in tents and cars
Community groups in Townsville warn more people are living in cars and tents, and have launched a petition for an emergency shelter to be built.
After bushfires and the algal bloom, bird flu's spread has Kangaroo Island on edge
The deadly strain of bird flu is suspected to have infected a second mammal in Australia.
Massive AI data centre gets approval by Tassie council despite opposition
Tasmania's George Town council has approved a proposal to build an AI data centre at the site of the former Gunns pulp mill at Long Reach.
Drinking water supply diluted amid elevated PFAS levels
Riverina Water diluting drinking supply in Wagga Wagga amid elevated PFAS levels.
SpaceX spectacle, health system review and wildflower magic | Australia Wide this week
The sound of regional Australia. News and analysis from the ABC's network of regional reporters.
NSW Police commissioner apologises to family mistakenly told missing hiker was alive
The sound of regional Australia. News and analysis from the ABC's network of regional reporters.
Mushroom murder appeal begins
Lawyers for triple murderer Erin Patterson front Victoria's highest court in a bid to overturn her convictions.
Rural doctors see a resurgence of vaccine-preventable disease
Falling vaccinations rates and growing inoculation hesitancy are putting communities at risk, according to doctors working in the bush.
Housing project helps domestic violence victim-survivors enter rental market
Housing project helps domestic violence victim-survivors enter rental market on the Sunshine Coast of Queensland.
Bird flu threatens coastal tourism, regional hospitals at breaking point, and outback ballooning | Australia Wide this week
The sound of regional Australia. News and analysis from the ABC's network of regional reporters.
Bird flu confirmed in Tassie as battle for survival looms for Coorong's pelicans
A battle for survival looms for South Australia's pelicans as bird flu advances.
Mortgage stress increasingly common amongst over 50s in regions
Middle-aged prospective home buyers are increasingly moving in with their parents in a bid to save for a house deposit.
Bird flu vaccine to be rolled out to vulnerable species in captivity
The government will roll out a vaccine against the deadly H5N1 bird flu in priority for native species in captivity.
Regional emergency departments are overcrowded and risking patient safety, doctors say
Regional Victorians are facing far longer wait times than Melburnians when they go to an emergency department, government hospital data shows.
Census time, gambling reforms and a hitchhiking resurgence | Australia Wide this week
The sound of regional Australia. News and analysis from the ABC's network of regional reporters.
Census 2026 - getting the bush to stand up and be counted
The sound of regional Australia. News and analysis from the ABC's network of regional reporters.
NAPLAN reveals the widening gap between city and country students
The sound of regional Australia. News and analysis from the ABC's network of regional reporters.
What will new gambling laws mean for the home of online gaming, the NT
The sound of regional Australia. News and analysis from the ABC's network of regional reporters.
First bird flu mass mortality confirmed in Australian wildlife
The first mass mortality of Australian wildlife from the deadly H5 bird flu has been confirmed in greater crested terns found on an island off South Australia's south-east coast.
Bleached Great Barrier Reef coral recovers due to Cyclone Alfred
It's been more than 12 months since residents along the Queensland coast watched and waited as Tropical Cyclone Alfred travelled down the coastline.While the cyclone caused damage to southern parts of the state, it also brought some cool relief to one of the world's greatest wonders, the Great Barrier Reef. Grace Whiteside went out to the southern tip of the reef.
Bunbury's woodchip bombing | Australia Wide
Australia Wide presents: The Bunbury woodchip bombing50 years ago, the city of Bunbury woke to a bang. Two men had tried to blow up the city's port in protest of the woodchipping industry. Five decades later, one of the bombers reflects on the incident which leaves a complicated legacy in Australia's conservation history.
