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2061 articles · page 7 of 43
Brendon Nugent has been charged with three offenses, including intentionally causing injury, over the alleged attack on independent MP Helen Haines. Haines remains in a critical condition in hospital, where she underwent emergency surgery after losing a leg, with surgeons working to save the other. Police allege the incident was a deliberate attack.
· 17 sourcesVictorian Coroner Paul Lawrie has found that an online gambling addiction was the 'direct and paramount' causative factor in the suicide of 22-year-old Kyle Hudson, delivering a devastating rebuke to wagering giant Sportsbet. The coroner rejected the company's argument that Hudson was not a problem gambler, describing its defence as 'chilling' given repeated missed warnings and hundreds of targeted inducements.
· 4 sourcesA 23-year-old man has been jailed for 4½ years in the Perth District Court over a ram raid and arson attack on a Midland tobacco shop, a crime he carried out for an organised crime gang for a $5,000 payment.
· 3 sourcesDual international Michael O'Connor says Mark Nawaqanitawase's two-year NRL run, capped by a State of Origin series win and a premiership with the Sydney Roosters, proves Australian rugby still produces world-class talent even as the Wallabies' Bledisloe Cup drought reaches 24 years. Wallabies coach Les Kiss wanted the winger for next month's Nations Championship campaign in the United Kingdom, but Nawaqanitawase ruled himself out in favour of rest before joining Japanese club Saitama Panasonic Wild Knights.
· 3 sourcesAn independent review into the Northern Territory child protection department's handling of a five-year-old child's case before her alleged murder has revealed extensive failings, with the report calling for a 'system-wide reset' and all 45 recommendations accepted in full by the government.
Wil Malady, a top AFL draft prospect from Bairnsdale, secured a scholarship at Caulfield Grammar after sending an email to several private schools with spelling mistakes that admissions staff found charming and sincere. The 18-year-old, expected to be selected inside the first 15 picks of next month's AFL draft, said he wrote the email after realising scholarship deadlines had passed, telling this masthead he included spelling mistakes because he rushed to send it.
A 40-year-old woman has entered not guilty pleas in the ACT Magistrates Court to charges of culpable driving causing death over a crash that killed two cyclists on Gungahlin Drive in Canberra's north.
Trainer Chris Waller has spoken for the first time about the death of stable star Ohope Wins in Saturday's Caulfield Cup, saying his staff are taking the loss “one day at a time” and that jockey Jye McNeil is recovering well after being cleared of serious injury.
· 4 sourcesIn the hours before federal independent MP Helen Haines was allegedly deliberately run down outside her Wangaratta office on Monday, a meme reading 'Not enough politicians are afraid for their lives right now & I think that’s a problem' was posted on the Facebook page of NSW Nationals MP Nichole Overall, prompting renewed scrutiny of online hate speech and political violence in Australia.
· 25 sourcesThe ACT Legislative Assembly has contracted armed security guards for the first time, responding to an escalation in violent threats against politicians. Speaker Jeremy Hanson announced the measure after a security audit found the territory's parliament needed greater protection, as members have increasingly faced threats of physical and sexual violence, and death threats.
Collingwood AFLW captain Ruby Schleicher has announced she is leaving the club to return to Western Australia, a considerable blow to a women's program that is enduring a disastrous 1-9 season.
· 4 sourcesThe Coalition has confirmed that two politicians and party volunteers were targeted in an incident in Port Melbourne on Saturday, days before independent MP Helen Haines was critically injured in an alleged car attack in Wangaratta. Police say there is no evidence linking the two events.
Melbourne-based choreographer Lucy Guerin is stepping away from Lucy Guerin Inc after 25 years at the helm, conferring the artistic directorship on choreographer Melanie Lane. Before departing, Guerin returned to the stage for a solo show, Place Dances, at Buxton Contemporary art gallery - her first public performance in 13 years.
· 2 sourcesAll 24 expeditioners were evacuated from Macquarie Island in August after the federal environment department warned of the 'psychosocial' risks of witnessing a prolonged bird flu outbreak. But in a letter later obtained by the ABC, the expeditioners described the decision as 'unnecessary' and warned that leaving the island's aging fuel farm unmanned could cause major environmental damage. H5 bird flu has since been detected in an elephant seal and a kelp gull on the island, confirming the virus's presence.
· 2 sourcesAustralia is exporting tens of millions of litres of biofuels that could otherwise add at least three days of supply to the nation's petrol and diesel stocks, fresh data shows, as the federal government consults on whether to force petroleum companies to buy domestically produced low-carbon fuels. With petrol prices averaging $2.42 per litre and the Iran war dragging on, Australia holds 41 days of petrol and 33 days of diesel, well below the international requirement of 90 days.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has called for a return to respectful political debate as a joint counter-terrorism team investigates the alleged attack on independent MP Helen Haines, who remains in critical condition after being struck by a car outside her electoral office in Wangaratta on Monday.
· 16 sourcesFremantle Dockers captain Alex Pearce says he feels uncomfortable defending the club's long-running sponsorship by oil and gas company Woodside, and believes fans, players and leaders can influence sponsorship decisions made at boardroom level. He made the comments at the Global Citizen NOW: Perth event on Monday.
· 4 sourcesThe man arrested after independent MP Helen Haines was struck by a car has been identified as 43-year-old Brendan Nugent, from the Victorian town of Tarrawingee. Haines remains in a critical condition at a Melbourne hospital after she was struck outside her electorate office on Monday afternoon. Victoria Police are investigating whether the collision was intentional, while counter-terrorism police and ASIO are investigating its motive.
· 15 sourcesNew South Wales Premier Chris Minns has announced special legislation to allow Indonesian-owned MACH Energy to maintain current production levels at its Mount Pleasant coal mine near Muswellbrook, after the High Court ruled the mine's expansion approval invalid on climate change grounds. The government says the move protects 400 jobs while the company resubmits its application, but critics argue it undermines the state's climate targets.
· 3 sourcesIndependent MP Helen Haines remains in a critical condition after undergoing surgery overnight, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said on Tuesday morning, as police and counter-terrorism teams investigate the circumstances of the collision outside her electorate office in Wangaratta. Albanese said he believed the collision was deliberate, but said the motivation remained unclear.
· 7 sourcesAir New Zealand has become the first international passenger airline to land at Sydney's new Western Sydney International Airport, touching down on Monday morning. The milestone comes a day after Jetstar operated the airport's first commercial passenger flight, as aviation experts caution that the curfew-free airport's success will not happen overnight.
· 14 sourcesScott Boland, recalled at 37 for his first Test since January, tore through South Africa's top order with 4-31 as the hosts slumped to 5-97 on a rain-shortened second day in Gqeberha. The Indigenous paceman said he is determined to make the most of every opportunity he gets.
· 8 sourcesAustralian news outlets are reporting that arrests have been made in connection with an alleged machete attack. No further details of the incident have been released so far.
· 4 sourcesJames Tedesco will make his return to the Kangaroos at Suncorp Stadium on Sunday against Fiji, three years after his last Test appearance, and has played down any suggestion the match is a showdown with Reece Walsh for the fullback jersey.
· 3 sourcesPrime Minister Anthony Albanese has confirmed the attack on independent MP Helen Haines was a deliberate act, as police investigate the incident with the assistance of a joint counter-terrorism taskforce. Haines remains in critical condition at Melbourne's Alfred Hospital after surgery, following the alleged attack outside her electorate office in Wangaratta on Monday afternoon.
· 18 sourcesComplaints to the ACT Human Rights Commission jumped 21 per cent last financial year, driven by a 50 per cent rise in complaints from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people and a third more reports of abuse, neglect and mistreatment of vulnerable people, while the watchdog warns it lacks the staff to meet demand.
Talatau 'Junior' Amone, the 24-year-old playmaker deregistered by the NRL over a hammer attack on a roofing contractor almost four years ago, is poised to return to international football when Tonga name their squad on Tuesday for Friday night's World Cup clash with Lebanon.
· 4 sourcesAustralia has revealed three previously secret payloads for its Ghost Shark robotic submarines, including naval mines, armed aerial drones and underwater supply caches, in a major expansion of the uncrewed fleet's military capabilities. Defence Industry Minister Pat Conroy unveiled the weapons during a visit to defence technology company Anduril's Sydney headquarters, saying the submarines now “have teeth”.
· 3 sourcesDeputy chief justice and former Labor attorney-general Robert McClelland has been appointed head of the National Anti-Corruption Commission, Attorney-General Michelle Rowland announced on Monday, after a turbulent first four years for the federal integrity body. McClelland will start in January with the task of restoring public confidence in the watchdog, which lost its inaugural commissioner early amid questions over conflicts of interest.
· 4 sourcesThe Age has published a first-hand test of Victoria's black-market tobacco trade, ordering a carton of illicit cigarettes through a nondescript e-commerce site and collecting them at an inner-city package locker just over a week later. The purchase highlights how sellers are shifting to social media advertising and home delivery as authorities shut down illegal tobacco shops across the state.
· 3 sourcesA 13-year-old boy has been charged over an alleged drive-by shooting at a home in Perth's east, with police reporting multiple shots were fired at the house in the early hours of Saturday. Three people were inside the home at the time, but no injuries were reported.
Gungahlin public school teachers stopped work for an hour on Monday morning as part of ongoing industrial action that will reach other regions of the ACT later this week, with the Australian Education Union and the ACT government still at odds after 15 months of bargaining.
The New South Wales government will legislate to approve an expansion of the Mount Pleasant coal mine in the Hunter Valley, overriding a High Court ruling that found the original approval invalid for failing to consider emissions from exported coal. Premier Chris Minns announced the intervention on Monday, saying the move was necessary to prevent about 400 job losses before Christmas.
· 9 sourcesRobert McClelland, a former Labor attorney general and federal court judge, has been named the new boss of the National Anti-Corruption Commission. Attorney General Michelle Rowland announced the appointment on Monday, along with Christopher Savundra as the commission's new deputy commissioner, following the May resignation of inaugural boss Paul Brereton.
· 2 sourcesNew video footage played in a Sydney court shows police grabbing protesters by the head and neck and forcibly breaking up a group of Muslim worshippers at the February protest against Israeli President Isaac Herzog's visit, in scenes a defence lawyer says amount to unlawful arrests and excessive force. A judge has also ruled the defence can pursue communications between senior police and state government ministers, describing the material as having a "legitimate forensic purpose".
· 7 sourcesMatthew Renshaw's transformation from a defensive opener into Australia's three-format weapon was driven by a winter fitness push, technical changes and a new perspective as a father, according to the coach who guided the comeback.
· 3 sourcesThe Federal Court has overturned an Aboriginal protection order covering part of the billion-dollar McPhillamys goldmine project near Blayney in New South Wales, ruling the decision-making process behind it was 'fundamentally flawed.' Justice James Stellios found that when Wiradjuri elders revealed the blue-banded bee Dreaming story in December 2023, officials should have treated it as a new application rather than extra detail, meaning the public never had an adequate chance to respond to the specific claim for protection.
· 2 sourcesPauline Hanson has dismissed Jacqui Lambie's anger over a One Nation cartoon mocking the Tasmanian senator's vaginal prolapse, telling her to "get over it" and "have a bit of a laugh", as cross-party condemnation of the attack continued to mount. Lambie accused One Nation of adding hatred and spite to public life, while Liberal MP Garth Hamilton called the cartoon 'nasty, crass and vulgar' and demanded an apology.
· 6 sourcesBen Simmons' long-awaited return to the NBA has been derailed before it could begin, with the Australian star reportedly tearing his Achilles tendon in training just days before the Sacramento Kings' season opener. The injury is expected to rule the 30-year-old out for the entire campaign.
· 3 sourcesReports across several Australian news outlets on 18 October 2026 indicate that hundreds of workers in Whyalla, South Australia, have been offered a lifeline, though details of the offer have not yet been disclosed.
· 4 sourcesTwo Greenpeace activists have been charged with interfering with offshore petroleum installations after a weekend protest on Woodside's Scarborough gas platform off Western Australia, and are due to face Karratha Magistrates Court today. The offence carries a maximum penalty of 10 years' imprisonment.
· 8 sourcesGreens leader David Shoebridge and senator Jordon Steele-John are openly at odds this week after the senator released a lengthy statement denying allegations of misconduct towards women and disputing his leader's account that he agreed to take leave. While Mr Shoebridge's office maintains leave was agreed and is appropriate, Senator Steele-John insists he never consented to stepping back and accuses party factions of weaponising unsubstantiated rumours for preselection battles.
· 13 sourcesA former Victoria Police digital forensics officer who worked on child abuse investigations has been charged with 23 offences, including possessing child abuse material and misconduct in public office. The allegations triggered a sweeping audit that delayed over a hundred court cases and caused significant distress for victims.
· 4 sourcesGreens senator Jordon Steele-John has accused factions within the party of weaponising rumours about him for political reasons, as he denied taking leave from the party despite leader David Shoebridge claiming Steele-John would not be in parliament while an investigation is ongoing.
· 5 sourcesMultiple Australian news outlets, including the Sydney Morning Herald, WA Today, Brisbane Times, and The Age, reported on October 18, 2026, that a woman has been arrested in connection with a hit-run spree in Adelaide. No further details have been released by these outlets.
· 4 sourcesNavy leadership has condemned an incident involving a hidden camera, according to reports carried by four major Australian newspaper websites on October 18. The published versions contain no further detail: the article text behind the identical headlines has not appeared, leaving the nature of the incident, where it occurred and any response unknown.
· 4 sourcesAustralia's intelligence agencies are operating without specific rules for artificial intelligence, the Independent National Security Legislation Monitor has warned, as a planned review into the legal framework stalls. The Monitor's 2025-26 annual report says internal rules set by Defence Minister Richard Marles and Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke 'say nothing about AI specifically', leaving a gap between common law and internal oversight that creates uncertainty about how AI is used in decisions such as warrant applications.
Labor has unveiled a $30 road toll cap in Victoria, according to headlines published on 18 October across The Sydney Morning Herald, WA Today and Brisbane Times.
· 3 sources