Bush Summit Expands Nationally to Amplify Regional Voices

Regional communities across Australia will soon have direct access to the nation's most powerful decision-makers as News Corp Australia transforms its flagship Bush Summit into a national event.

The 2023 expansion brings the conversation to regional Australia in a major new way. Instead of a single annual gathering, the Summit will now visit six locations across the country: Tamworth in New South Wales, Perth, Port Lincoln in South Australia, Hobart, Wodonga in Victoria and Rockhampton in Queensland. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese will deliver the keynote address at the Tamworth event on August 11, marking his fifth time attending the Summit.

For communities in these regions, the shift represents something significant: a platform to raise issues directly with federal, state and local politicians, alongside industry leaders and thought leaders who shape national policy. It's not simply another conference—it's a chance for the people who live and work in regional Australia to demand accountability and practical solutions to challenges affecting their livelihoods and futures.

The Bush Summit's roots trace back to 2019, when The Daily Telegraph created the event in response to a regional community in crisis. That year, the bush was gripped by one of the worst droughts in Australian history. As Ben English, editor of The Daily Telegraph, explained, the Summit was conceived to ensure rural and regional Australians "were not alone and not unseen."

Four years on, the challenges facing regional Australia have shifted but remain pressing. Agriculture, supply chains, population decline, investment and infrastructure gaps continue to weigh on communities. Yet the expansion now creates the potential for each region to advocate for solutions tailored to its own circumstances—not a one-size-fits-all approach from the capital cities.

Michael Miller, News Corp Australasia's executive chairman, described the Summit as "agenda-setting and policy-shifting," highlighting the willingness of politicians from all sides to attend. "The fact that federal, state and local members from all sides of politics have invested the time to participate each year is testament to this Summit's reputation," he said.

This year, the Summit's reach across multiple states means regional leaders, farmers, business operators and community members have more opportunities to make their voices heard. Issues unique to Tasmanian agriculture will be debated in Hobart. Victorian rural communities will have their concerns aired in Wodonga. Queensland's regional sectors will get a turn in Rockhampton.

The expansion also signals a broader shift in how national media and political attention is being directed toward the regions. Rather than regional Australia being addressed as a peripheral concern, this national event framework positions it as central to the nation's economic and social future—"the beating heart of our economy," as English described it.

For residents in these communities, the real question now is whether the conversations will translate into action. The Summit's value lies not in the gathering itself but in whether politicians leave with a genuine mandate to address the problems they hear and the commitment to deliver solutions.