15.9 C
Byron Shire
June 5, 2026

Voters swing

Latest News

Council tightens ‘affordable housing’ rules

Byron Council has tightened its definition of ‘affordable housing’ in a bid to make access to housing more equitable on major projects like the former Mullumbimby Hospital site and 57 Station Street.

Other News

Return Mullum hospital to Bundjalung

‘Public land should serve the public vision,’ Greens councillor Elia Hauge is quoted as saying in The Echo (May...

Mullum Giants celebrate Old Boys Day

Sunday, 31 May saw everyone having some fun as the sun finally shone at the Mullumbimby Giants games which included the Old Boys Day. Photos by Sarah Archibald.

Eclectic Selection for the week beginning 3 June 2026

Eclectic Selection: What’s on this week is a taste of some of the events that can be found in the Byron Shire and beyond this coming week.

Love Lennox Festival returns June 13

The all day Love Lennox Festival returns Saturday, 13 June, with organisers saying they expect more than 10,000 attendees to gather across town for one of the region’s most loved community events.

Murwillumbah biz networking breakfast tomorrow

Join the Murwillumbah business community for their June Business Murwillumbah Networking Breakfast, to be held at at Crystal Creek Estate.

NBN News reduces local content, sparks MP concerns

Local federal MP Justine Elliot (Labor) has voiced concerns after NBN News announced a reduction in local TV news quality and service.

Was always a Labor voter (power to the ‘real’ people stuff in those earlier times), then became a Labor/Green person and for a long time now I’ve been politically Green. 

Watching Albanese’s performance and feeling the knot in my gut getting tighter and tighter. He’s just another tiny cog bowing down to the mega-machine that is run by madmen. I wouldn’t piss on him if he was on fire!

What chance does the natural order of this once clean and beautiful planet have against the power of assault with the ever-increasing murderous might of so-called ‘sophisticated’ weaponry? Our chances are rapidly sifting through our fingers like sand. 

To see so many lives controlled by beings with evil, self-interested intent is not only obvious but frightening and absolutely torturous. 

Hannah Grace, Ocean Shores



For four decades The Echo has printed the stories some people loved, some people hated, and some pretended not to read. If you want us to keep telling the truth, the real truth, not the sugar-coated version. We’ll need your support to keep the presses rolling.

If you are a local business owner help us and in turn we help you. All The Echo asks for is advertising, not a free ride. It is every advert in The Echo and on www.echo.net.au, which creates the space for all the stories and coverage of community events, happenings and concerns.

If you are a reader you can become a sponsor of The Echo. Your support keeps the us independent.

Even a small one-off or regular donation from you will help keep the echo’s independent voice alive and strong.

Support Us

Become one of the supporters who helps keep independent, local journalism alive in the Byron Shire by contributing anything from as little as the cost of a coffee each month.

You're Wonderful, Thank you for supporting independent journalism in the Byron Shire

You’re supporting The Echo, thank you

Your contribution is keeping independent, local journalism alive in the Northern Rivers.

Because of supporters like you, we can keep every story free for everyone — no paywall, no exceptions. Your money goes directly to funding our newsroom of 40-odd local workers covering the stories that matter to this community.

Tell us what you think, give us your opinion

The Echo loves your letters and comments and is proud to provide a community forum on the issues that matter most to our readers and the people of the NSW north coast. So don’t be a passive reader, email us your epistles at editor@echo.net.au.

The letters deadline for The Echo is noon Friday. Letters longer than 200 words may be cut. The publication of letters is at the discretion of the letters editor. Please remember to include your full name, address and telephone number.

Online comments are no longer available.

Push to slow traffic outside Coorabell Hall

The campaign to slow traffic on the short stretch of Coolamon Scenic Drive outside Coorabell Hall is gradually gathering momentum, with Byron Council supporting a lower speed limit despite advice the road may not meet state criteria.

Temporary home for Queer Family after heated debate

Byron Shire Council has voted to provide struggling local LGBTQIA+ support service Queer Family Inc with temporary access to a Council-owned property at peppercorn rent, following an impassioned plea from the organisation and a lengthy debate over governance and fairness.

Naturism

For decades, naturism has struggled with a strange communication barrier. Most naturist educational material contains nudity, which means it is often automatically classified as NSFW...

Invisible elderly women

The 2026 Federal Budget has sent a clear, heartbreaking message to the senior women of the Tweed: you are invisible. While the treasurer boasted about...