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Australian news: federal and state politics, the economy, courts, weather and the stories that matter across the country.
2056 articles · page 20 of 43
The federal government has endorsed Queensland's enforcement blitz against illegal cigarettes as a national blueprint, injecting a further $2.7 million into the state's model after new data showed legal tobacco sales surged 55 per cent following the crackdown.
The Minns government has refused to amend legislation that would give the Law Enforcement Conduct Commission (LECC) clearer authority to access NSW Police documents, despite the watchdog warning it faces obstruction that delays investigations into serious misconduct. The standoff comes as the commission has paused or cancelled high-profile probes, including into alleged improper promotion practices among senior officers and police actions during protests in Sydney.
A New South Wales banana farmer with 30 years of supply to Coles says the supermarket's decision to stop buying his produce is a sign that small, family-run farms may not survive, as industry experts warn major retailers are centralising supply chains.
A Four Corners investigation has found that some for-profit health companies are aggressively targeting Australian veterans through advertising and phone calls, offering 'free' DVA-funded treatments. In one case, a veteran was prescribed up to 1,220mg of THC per day — a dose described by medical experts as 'ghastly' — without ever speaking to the prescribing doctor.
As world leaders gather in Fiji for pre-COP climate talks ahead of next month's COP31 summit, Pacific islanders displaced by extreme weather are calling out Australia's expanding fossil fuel industry as a contradiction to its climate diplomacy. Marica Malumuca, 66, has lived in a tent for five years after cyclones damaged her village of Nabavatu, and her son Sami Veloko urged industrialised nations to recognise their contribution to the crisis.
Sadistic online networks are using popular gaming platforms including Steam, Minecraft, Roblox, and Fortnite to coerce Australian children into self-harm and violence against siblings and pets, experts have warned. A scathing report by Australia's e-safety commissioner has found that failures at gaming giants Valve and Epic Games risk exposing children to sexual exploitation and abuse.
Australia is debating whether sharply cutting net overseas migration would deliver a population 'reset' and restore stagnant living standards or 'trash the economy', with both sides pointing to Canada as a test case. One Nation has proposed cutting temporary migrants by more than 750,000 over three years, while Labor maintains a longer-term target of 225,000 net arrivals per year.
Victorian Opposition Leader Jess Wilson has pledged $99 million to establish patient transit lounges at hospitals, a plan she says will free up beds faster, reduce emergency department overcrowding and ease ambulance ramping. The promise, part of the opposition's election platform, would deliver up to 10 new or expanded lounges where patients who are ready to leave hospital can wait for medication or transport. Premier Ben Carroll immediately criticised the plan, accusing the Liberals of funnelling public money into private healthcare and seeking to 'Americanise' the public health system.
Australia has recorded its first achievement of the UNAIDS 95-95-95 targets — a global benchmark for HIV diagnosis, treatment and viral suppression — as new data shows annual diagnoses have fallen by a quarter over the past decade. However, researchers from the Kirby Institute at UNSW Sydney warn the gains are not shared equally, with First Nations Australians, overseas-born communities and people diagnosed late continuing to face heightened risks.
James Tedesco has been awarded the Clive Churchill Medal for best on ground after the Sydney Roosters held off a valiant Newcastle Knights 19-18 in one of the tightest NRL grand finals in memory. The victory was sealed by a one-point margin, with Spencer Leniu departing the club with a fourth premiership ring.
Newcastle Knights captain Kalyn Ponga remained on the field during Sunday's NRL grand final despite a high shoulder shot on Sydney Roosters forward Victor Radley, a decision that left Roosters skipper James Tedesco questioning the consistency of on-field officiating. The incident in the 25th minute at Accor Stadium drew only a penalty and a report, with bunker official Chris Butler declining to instruct referee Adam Gee to send Ponga off. Tedesco was overheard telling Gee, 'If we're consistent with the rules, that's a shoulder to the head. It's been a sin bin all year.' Ponga, who had been sin-binned for a similar act during State of Origin earlier this season, went on to run 95 metres for a try that extended Newcastle's lead to 10-0.
Mark Nawaqanitawase delivered two moments of freakish brilliance to steer the Sydney Roosters to a 19-18 NRL grand final victory over Newcastle at Accor Stadium on Sunday, a performance that has sharpened the debate over whether the dual-code international will stay in the NRL.
Reality TV personality and fitness entrepreneur Sam Wood has been refused bail on domestic violence charges and terminated from the fitness empire he founded, as the full extent of the business fallout from the allegations emerges.
The NRL reversed its decision to have no grand final pre-match entertainment, pivoting to a tribute to former South Sydney Rabbitohs star Jai Arrow, whose forced retirement due to motor neurone disease has been one of the season's most emotional stories. The late change caps a chaotic week in which several high-profile acts fell through and league supremo Peter V'landys initially said he would rather spend the budget on junior development.
New federal data reveals that 58 Victorian non-government schools and education authorities received a combined $95 million above the nationally agreed funding benchmark in 2025, while public schools continue to battle for their share. Melbourne Grammar School, where median family income is $375,000 – the highest in the state – received $1.18 million more than its entitlement under the School Resource Standard (SRS).
Multiple Australian newspapers have published investigations into the inner circle of controversial influencer Andrew Tate, with one outlet reporting that an Australian member of Tate's cohort taught secret classes on how to 'game' the mega-rich.
Western Australia's Opposition Leader Basil Zempilas has called for more research into the state's shark situation, arguing beaches 'have to be safe for people to enjoy'. The call comes as debate intensifies over the response to a dead humpback whale that washed ashore at City Beach last week, attracting large numbers of sharks including a 3.7-metre great white that was tagged off Floreat Groyne.
St Kilda's AFLW team kicked its lowest ever score on Saturday, managing just a single behind against the Western Bulldogs in Ballarat, a performance that has intensified calls for senior coach Nick Dal Santo to be replaced. Sports reporter Hannah Kennelly, writing for Nine newspapers, argues that Dal Santo's position is now untenable after the Saints' winless start to the season.
Newcastle Knights legend Andrew Johns will fulfill his commentary duties for Sunday's NRL grand final despite being offered the option to skip the broadcast and enjoy the club's first title decider in a quarter-century, while South Sydney back-rower David Fifita had his stolen phone recovered during the Prime Minister's XIII trip to Papua New Guinea.
The 2026 AFL trade period officially opened on Monday with a large media pack and recruiting chiefs from multiple clubs gathering at Marvel Stadium. St Kilda have set a steep asking price for contracted ruckman Rowan Marshall, demanding Geelong's first-round draft pick (No. 14) and a player in return, according to sources.
Photographers for Nine newspapers are documenting the 2026 NRL and NRLW grand finals at Accor Stadium, capturing fans arriving early and the atmosphere around the biggest day on the rugby league calendar.
The Sydney Roosters have won the NRLW premiership, beating the Brisbane Broncos 30-6 in Sunday's grand final to equal the biggest winning margin in the competition's history and avenge last year's agonising decider loss to the same opponents.
Newcastle Knights supporters began gathering early Sunday morning for the NRL grand final, their team's first appearance in the decider in 25 years, as the city absorbed news that a five-year-old girl struck by a car in a Saturday crash that hospitalised several fans was now in critical but stable condition after emergency surgery.
A man has been shot dead by police in the New South Wales town of Rugby after crashing his car into a tree and allegedly aiming a rifle at officers who tried to help him.
Beaches along the New South Wales mid-north coast have been closed following the removal of a juvenile humpback whale carcass from the Clarence River, with authorities warning of increased shark activity in the area.
Residents of Queensland's Sunshine Coast were jolted awake early Saturday morning when the Australian Defence Force detonated an unexploded World War II-era artillery shell found on Wurtulla Beach.
The number of students taking the most difficult Higher School Certificate mathematics course remains near record levels, with boys accounting for 90 per cent of the additional 500 enrolments compared to a decade ago.
Hilary McPhee, the legendary Australian publisher who co-founded McPhee Gribble and nurtured the careers of writers including Helen Garner and Tim Winton, died on Thursday at age 85.
On 3 October, a rare tornado swept through the New South Wales coastal town of Ulladulla, damaging properties and knocking over trees. Several people filmed the event. The Bureau of Meteorology attributed the tornado to severe thunderstorms and said it is very uncommon to see one in such a populated area.
As the Wallabies prepare for the opening Bledisloe Cup Test against the All Blacks at Eden Park, a strategic debate has emerged over whether to rush star centre Len Ikitau back from an ankle injury or hold him out until the return match in Sydney a fortnight later. Writing across Nine newspapers, rugby columnist Paul Cully argues that a loss in Auckland would not be disastrous if the Wallabies can reverse the result in Sydney, and that a drawn series would fuel the momentum building under coach Les Kiss.
The AFL trade period officially opens on Monday when list managers from all clubs gather at Marvel Stadium to negotiate deals that will shape their teams for 2027. The big questions centre on whether Essendon's Zach Merrett will finally join Hawthorn, whether Gold Coast will match the Hawks' free agency offer for Ben King, and where Melbourne's Jack Viney will land.
Nathan Buckley has withdrawn from the race to become North Melbourne's next senior coach, delivering a major twist in the Kangaroos' search for Alastair Clarkson's replacement. Two industry sources who spoke on the condition of anonymity confirmed that Buckley informed those involved in the process late last week that he would not pursue the vacant position, ruling himself out of a return to senior coaching at Arden Street. He had been due to formally present to the coaching panel on Saturday.
Dr Lauren Roberts, an RSPCA animal welfare inspector, has started a program to provide crisis accommodation for pets after witnessing how perpetrators of family violence use animals to control their victims. The initiative was sparked by a case in which a woman's dog was deliberately stabbed by her intimate partner, an injury that police later treated as animal cruelty.
Viewers in parts of regional South Australia and the Riverina in New South Wales will lose access to Network 10, 10 Drama and 10 Comedy after the network and its regional affiliate, WIN Network, failed to reach an agreement, with WIN citing high transmission costs and declining advertising revenue.
Treasurer Jim Chalmers has warned of ‘very substantial and intensifying’ economic pressures on the federal budget, but insists Australia is not heading for a recession, as he prepares to identify further spending cuts ahead of the mid-year economic update in December.
When a specialist told Judy Sharp that her three-year-old son Tim would be 'unfeeling and incapable of love' due to his autism diagnosis, she refused to accept those limitations. Through drawings, Tim expressed his feelings, sense of humour and love for his mother, proving them wrong.
A Western Australian non-profit is ending its Commonwealth-funded home care services for 75 clients, including people with multiple sclerosis, saying federal aged care changes made the program financially unsustainable. Affected clients now face finding new providers at roughly double the hourly rate.
Treasurer Jim Chalmers has signalled the government will run a constrained mid-year budget update, warning that a spike in bond yields and last week's interest rate rise will add billions to the federal budget and likely preclude major new cost-of-living relief.
NRL great Brad Fittler has recalled his first meeting with Kerry Packer in 1995, during the height of the Super League war, when the media mogul asked him how he thought you win a grand final. Fittler draws on his experience winning the 1991 premiership with Penrith as evidence that a title cannot simply be bought.
Australia's economy faces a $13.4 billion hit over two years as a strengthening El Nino dries out farmland, threatens crops and pushes up food prices, according to Commonwealth Bank analysis. The forecast estimates gross domestic product will be about 0.45 percentage points lower than it would otherwise be.
Hundreds of Sydney’s pokie clubs, hotels and pubs are claiming millions in liquor licensing discounts and extra trading hours by offering live music under the Minns government’s $150 million ‘vibrancy reforms’, sparking accusations that the policy bolsters powerful gaming venues at the expense of the cultural sector.
Two teenagers have been hospitalised after separate Lime bike crashes at Sydney intersections overnight. An 18-year-old man was seriously injured when struck by a car in Surry Hills, while the circumstances of the second incident are yet to be detailed by police.
The Australian Antarctic Program has opened recruitment for more than 200 positions for the 2027-2028 season, seeking tradespeople and specialists to staff research stations in the far south.
A hundred years after his birth, the legendary racehorse Phar Lap was honoured with a birthday celebration at the Melbourne Museum, where his taxidermied remains continue to draw admirers who remember him as a symbol of hope during the Great Depression.
An Adelaide mother is demanding answers from China Southern Airlines after her autistic 10-year-old son was removed from a flight minutes before takeoff, following complaints from other passengers about his excited noises. The family was on its way to Pakistan to visit relatives and celebrate her daughter's 14th birthday.
Two homes have been deemed uninhabitable after a rare tornado tore through the NSW South Coast town of Ulladulla on Saturday, with wind gusts reaching 98 kilometres per hour and causing significant damage to properties in and around the town centre. The State Emergency Service said volunteers responded to 34 jobs, many of them significant, as severe storms continued to lash the region.
During catastrophic bushfire conditions in central Victoria on January 9, 2026, Castlemaine resident Fiannuala Morgan experienced a cascading failure of the communication systems relied on for emergency warnings: her mobile phone lost service, the emergency app froze, she could not call or text her parents, the NBN failed with the power blackout, and the ABC broadcast tower at Mount Alexander burned down. A grassfire that eventually destroyed 66 dwellings in nearby Harcourt and threatened Castlemaine underscored what happens when the digital safety net collapses in a disaster, as detailed in a new report by Rhiannon Stevens and Kylie Silvester.
Australia has broken its previous points margin in a rugby league test match in Papua New Guinea on Saturday, with a second-half blitz capped by Rory Owen scoring the final try. The win featured standout performances from Jada Taylor and Taneka Todhunter, each scoring a hat-trick for the Jillaroos.