The federal assistant minister for regional and rural health, Emma McBride shares with FlowFM listeners how the Albanese Labor government is working towards the May 2023 budget to assist remote, rural and regional communities accessing better primary health care. A pharmacist before her election, the assistant minister also discusses the rural multidisciplinary practice model recently discussed on FlowFM with rural health commissioner Dr Ruth Stewart, and how we might improve the number of medical students studying general practice - or a rural generalist practice program in future.

Australians are shopping around to beat inflation pressures by looking for private label or 'home brand' supermarket milk, China has bolstered its own milk production and Australian dairy farmers will get better farmgate prices in a falling supply environment - these insights and many more in our chat with Dairy Australia's industry analyst Eliza Redfern

The big four banks' proposed or actual closures of branches in regional towns such as Junee NSW, Sale and Robinvale Victoria and Coober Pedy, Kingston SE & Kapunda has sparked an inquiry moved by Queensland LNP senator Gerard Rennick. The chair of the senate rural, regional and transport references committee tasked with the inquiry, Matt Canavan, speaks with FlowFM listeners in regional NSW, Vic and SA about the first hearings of the inquiry in Sale, the likelihood of hearings in SA and NSW, and how the banks have responded to the call to postpone closures until the committee concludes its work.

Adelaide residents and visitors are being encouraged to report sightings of tagged ibises as they are sighted more frequently in South Australia's capital after their spread into urbanised centres on the eastern seaboard - more information: https://www.greenadelaide.sa.gov.au/news/2023-monitoring-white-ibis

... and we discuss the multi-disciplinary approach already used in regional areas as a model to alleviate strain on doctors practising in regional Australia. Dr Tonkin says AHPRA has been streamlining approvals processes and believes the fees charged for approvals are not a substantial barrier to securing doctors in rural Australia.

Could a Viterra and Aurizon proposal to re-open Eyre Peninsula railway lines take the strain off local roads after some bumper winter crop harvests? We discuss with the CEO of Grain Producers SA how such a proposal might be viable, what role they envisage government might need to play, and how other commodities - such as mineral resources - may need to be part of the mix to make it viable.

Lee McLean the chief executive officer of Australian Grape and Wine calls for a rethink on the Export Market Development Grant program criteria with some producers already exhausting their opportunities there, as the challenges re-entering the Chinese export market continue. AGW welcomes the improved relations between Australia and China but reflects on ABARES data out today showing just how hard Australia's wine and grape producers have been suffering in recent years.

Sarah Strachan is the Group Manager - Adoption and Commercialisation at Meat and Livestock Australia and shares with Flow listeners how MLA has been working to achieve consistency across Australia's cattle producing regions on how their stock are described through new guidelines.

The Western Australian government recently announced it would require mandatory mental health checks for firearms owners. We speak with the president of the Shooters Union of Australia, Graham Park, about this departure from the National Firearms Agreement, Western Australia's tendency to go it alone, and where policing activity should focus when it comes to gun crime.

Dr Anne Webster speaks with Flow listeners in north western Victoria from Canberra during the sitting week, reflecting upon the two-day regional health forum she staged as shadow assistant minister for regional health at Mildura, Victoria in her electorate. We discuss what role the regulator AHPRA could play in helping alleviate the regional health doctor, nurse and skills shortage, as well as cover the Senate inquiry into regional bank branch closures (such as Robinvale in her electorate) and the concerns of Australia's trucking industry in attracting and training labour.