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Australian news: federal and state politics, the economy, courts, weather and the stories that matter across the country.
2062 articles · page 32 of 43
Guardian Australia can reveal that Pauline Hanson and Barnaby Joyce stayed overnight at Gina Rinehart's $20 million Brisbane mansion after fundraising events held for One Nation, with Joyce conducting a live television interview for Channel Seven's Sunrise from what appears to be a bedroom in the home.
Assistant Technology Minister Andrew Charlton has alarmed colleagues with a briefing on the dangers of rogue artificial intelligence agents, fresh from a visit to the United States, as Communications Minister Anika Wells signals a willingness to reduce her own regulatory powers.
South Australian authorities have confirmed the first death of an endangered Australian sea lion from H5 bird flu, discovered on Kangaroo Island. The case is the first known H5 infection in the species, which experts estimate numbers fewer than 12,000 animals — and possibly as few as 10,000 — with most of the population concentrated in South Australia.
A 30-year-old Melbourne man has been charged with possessing violent extremist material after being arrested at the airport before a scheduled flight to the Middle East. Police allege he was part of a dedicated online network sharing ISIS propaganda and refused to let authorities access his electronic devices when presented with a court order.
The New South Wales government has announced it will introduce mandatory limits on screen time in public school classrooms starting in 2028, alongside a push for daily pen-and-paper learning. The move aligns with similar restrictions recently unveiled in Victoria and comes after federal Education Minister Jason Clare suggested Australian students may need a ‘digital detox’ in the wake of declining national test scores.
A man has been shot in the Perth suburb of Hamilton Hill, with WA Police urging residents to lock their doors and remain inside as two suspects remain at large. The victim was taken to hospital with serious injuries after the incident early Sunday morning.
The New South Wales government has announced a new policy that will cap student screen time at as little as 15 minutes, require at least one hour of handwriting with pen and paper each day, and restrict the use of laptops, tablets and other digital devices in homework, following a decline in test results.
Two men have died in two unrelated crashes in Adelaide's southern suburbs on Saturday, bringing South Australia's road toll to 79 for 2026.
Liberal MP Andrew Hastie has stated he feels sorry for Barnaby Joyce and that both he and One Nation MP David Farley probably have 'buyer's remorse' after joining Pauline Hanson's right-wing party, amid an ongoing feud over a One Nation animated cartoon that labelled Hastie a 'traitor'.
An Australian man has been arrested in Bali on suspicion of drug dealing and could face up to 12 years in prison, according to reports from Australian media. The man, whose identity has not been released, was taken into custody by Indonesian authorities.
A woman was pushed to the ground during a scuffle outside an election event for former AFL footballer turned One Nation candidate John Barnes. Victoria Police are investigating the incident.
The New South Wales government has paid for a homeless man in Wagga Wagga to be sent back to New Zealand rather than offering him temporary accommodation, according to a report. The decision forms part of ongoing efforts by local and state authorities to clear an encampment along the Murrumbidgee River, where a newborn baby died in May.
A 17-year-old who refused to provide his name to a police officer has prompted criminal charges from a state corruption watchdog and a compensation claim, after the officer allegedly responded by pepper spraying the teenager.
Parramatta Eels winger Josh Addo-Carr’s career is at a crossroads after he allegedly tested positive to cocaine during a random police roadside stop on Friday night, with his management confirming the 29-year-old is now 'seeking professional support'.
Hundreds of Canberra cyclists gathered for a memorial ride on Saturday morning to honour Bridie Lee and Ryan Riethmuller, two members of the local triathlon community who were killed when a car struck them while riding on Gungahlin Drive last month.
Security experts have warned that Australia is being exploited by its alliance with the United States, which could draw the country into an unwilling war with China, as former prime minister Kevin Rudd reaffirmed the alliance's importance in the most contested region in the world.
Neo-Nazi groups have pledged to campaign for Pauline Hanson to become prime minister, prompting calls from Labor and the Coalition for the One Nation leader to reject the backing.
Five years after a state government promised to overhaul the mental health system, new data reveals more than half of patients are left waiting in emergency departments due to a critical shortage of specialist beds, raising urgent concerns about patient safety and hospital strain.
Confidential warnings from dementia advocacy groups told patients not to apply for home support due to fears the government's new aged care algorithm could reduce their funding, according to documents obtained by Guardian Australia under freedom of information laws.
The Albanese government has been accused of breaking a longstanding commitment to introduce mandatory packaging standards aimed at cutting plastic waste, after the federal environment department told industry representatives via email that the promise would not be kept before the next election to avoid exacerbating cost of living pressures.
Australia is set to lift its ban on plug-in solar systems and batteries, a move that would allow millions of renters and apartment dwellers to access solar energy for the first time. Energy ministers from all states and territories agreed to explore pathways for the ‘safe deployment’ of the technology during a recent meeting, bringing Australia in line with countries such as Germany and the United Kingdom.
Two Indigenous mothers have settled a trespass case against New South Wales Police after officers visited one of their homes 150 times in 20 months, often between midnight and 4am, to conduct bail checks on the woman's sons. The case, launched in April 2024, was settled on confidential terms three weeks before it was due to go to trial in the NSW Supreme Court.
A 20-year-old man is in custody after allegedly being hired to shoot a man multiple times at a home on the NSW Central Coast, in what police describe as a 'crime as service' attack. Bison Zounis was arrested at Gosford train station on Thursday morning and has been charged with 10 offences, including shoot with intent to murder.
Treasurer Jim Chalmers has released exposure draft legislation for the Innovative Business CGT Concession (IBCC), significantly softening key conditions after fierce criticism from the startup and investment sectors. The revised plan cuts the minimum share holding period from five to three years, removes a proposed $10 million lifetime cap on gains, and extends company eligibility from 10 to 15 years.
More than 100 residents from southern NSW gathered in Deniliquin to protest the permanent end of a firewood permit program in two national parks, saying they depend on the wood to heat their homes and cook. The Riverina Domestic Firewood Program will close when the collection season ends on October 30.
Australian motorists face another 20 to 30 cents per litre increase at the bowser in coming weeks, after the escalating Middle East conflict pushed global oil prices to their highest levels since mid-May, while investors continued dumping stocks and bonds amid mounting financial uncertainty.
The devastating honey bee parasite Varroa destructor has been found in Far North Queensland, the northernmost detection of the pest in Australia, with Biosecurity Queensland confirming two cases near El Arish and Cardwell and a third suspected near Innisfail.
Daniel Billings, the former partner of Molly Ticehurst, has been sentenced to 28 years in prison for her murder, with a non-parole period of 20 years, after pleading guilty to stabbing her 15 times at her Forbes home in April 2024.
Luke Sayers, the former president of the Carlton Football Club and former PwC boss, has apologised unreservedly to his ex-wife Cate Sayers and accepted that she was not responsible for posting an explicit photo of him on his X account, as her defamation case against him settled in the Victorian Supreme Court on Friday.
A destructive pest insect, the flower thrips Frankliniella intonsa, has been detected in Australia for the first time and is causing millions of dollars in damage to berry crops in south-east Queensland, with authorities unable to determine how it evaded national biosecurity measures.
A class action has been launched against BHP subsidiary Operations Services (OS), months after the Federal Court found the company improperly required employees to work on public holidays. The action, run by Sydney-based AEN Legal on behalf of two lead plaintiffs and funded by the Mining and Energy Union (MEU), potentially covers about 7,000 employees who worked for OS between December 2019 and March 2023.
An investigation is under way after more than 150 critical hospital referrals were forgotten in cardboard boxes for 16 months, leading to potentially catastrophic delays for cancer patients, with one patient having died.
A man was filmed throwing bacon and ham at the entrance of the Warragul Mosque in regional Victoria on Wednesday afternoon, in an act that Muslim leaders have condemned as hateful and Islamophobic.
Dozens of approved but yet-to-be-built AI data centre projects will escape the federal government's proposed restrictions on energy and water use because the new rules are not expected to be retrospective, according to an ABC News analysis of planning records and company documents. The analysis reveals that the new generation of data centres will be significantly larger and more power-hungry than existing ones, with a combined computing capacity of at least 2.9 gigawatts — nearly double the 1.5 gigawatts of the 162 centres already operating across Australia as of March this year.
The Sydney Swans demonstrated their depth and resilience last weekend, overcoming the suspensions of the so-called 'Pullman Five' to defeat Brisbane with a display of pressure, sacrifice and unwavering commitment to the team system.
A woman with a 30-year history of an eating disorder says she spent 55 hours in an emergency department waiting for a mental health bed that never came, before being discharged without being admitted to the specialist unit.
The ACT Coroner's Court has recorded the territory's first death with an established link to a novel psychoactive substance — the synthetic opioid protonitazene — following the overdose of a 42-year-old woman in Ainslie in July 2022.
Victorian Premier Ben Carroll now faces the prospect of Labor's promised work-from-home legislation not being passed before the November state election, following a surprise move by a former Labor minister.
Liberal MP Andrew Hastie is facing political attacks from One Nation after complying with a subpoena to testify in the failed 2022 Ben Roberts-Smith defamation case, a role the former SAS soldier has described as deeply reluctant.
The Greens have struck a deal to support a carbon credits scheme for forest protection, defying intense lobbying from former leaders Bob Brown and Christine Milne to vote against a Nationals motion to abolish the program.
The Victorian premier has accused the opposition and crossbench of derailing the ALP's plan to enshrine a right to work from home, after MPs voted to send the bill to a parliamentary committee for further review.
Grace Tame has apologised for comments she made in March labelling the rape of Israeli women by Hamas during the 7 October attacks as 'propaganda' and 'debunked', saying her words were misinterpreted.
Sydney businessman Alexander Csergo has become the first Australian sentenced for reckless foreign interference, receiving a three-and-a-half-year prison term for compiling reports on topics including lithium mining, defence and AUKUS for two suspected Chinese intelligence officers. The 58-year-old will be eligible for parole as early as October 2026 after time already served.
NSW Police say one of Australia's largest fraud syndicates has defrauded banks of more than $600 million, with the country's Big Four banks issuing an estimated $500 million in fraudulent loans. Three people were charged yesterday, including an accounting firm director and two accountants, bringing the total number of people charged by Strike Force Myddleton to 33.
Alexander Csergo, 58, has been sentenced to three years and six months in prison for preparing fake defence reports for individuals he met on LinkedIn who were later identified as Chinese spies. The sentence was handed down on Thursday after a jury found him guilty in March of reckless foreign interference.
Labor premiers, farming groups, and business associations have pushed back against a reported migration crackdown by the Albanese government, warning that cutting visa numbers could damage the economy and deprive businesses of needed workers.
Journalist and author Peter FitzSimons has taken the witness stand in Alan Jones's criminal trial, telling a Sydney court that a young colleague of the broadcaster appeared 'deeply upset' and 'revolted' as he detailed allegations of indecent assault. Jones has pleaded not guilty to 22 counts relating to six men.
The Hillgrove mine near Armidale has resumed operations after more than a decade, driven by a boom in antimony prices that have more than doubled since 2023, as global demand for the critical mineral intensifies amid growing concerns over supply security.