Sydney news

Scientists in Melbourne expect the development of cancer drugs to speed up after being awarded a grant for a crucial piece of technology.

Protesters lock themselves onto a coal-loading conveyor belt at the Port of Newcastle, scale equipment at Port Kembla and tie themselves to trees in Brisbane, calling for more action to stop climate change.

The New South Wales Health Minister, Jillian Skinner, has conceded increased staffing at the new Tamworth Base Hospital Emergency Department was warranted because of increasing demands.

Two people are arrested in counter-terrorism raids in Sydney as part of an ongoing operation.

An injured crewman who "heard his ribs crunch" is brought to Hobart for treatment after a yacht is hit by wave in a Southern Ocean storm.

Two people have been arrested by the Joint Counter-Terrorism Team in Sydney as part of the ongoing Operation Appleby.

Growing anger over temporary drum-line plan.

A candid account of the life of one of Australia's most-loved comic performers. (R)

A group of Indigenous students who have struggled with regular classroom work spend their last week of the school year learning horsemanship skills in Queensland's central highlands.

Testing issues and incorrect results at Queensland's Biosecurity Sciences Laboratory for Ovine Brucellosis may have resulted in a large number of rams being culled for no reason.

The Coonamble Shire says it believes a bigger police presence could help curb a spike in vandalism in the town.

The New South Wales Government has abandoned plans to close Bathurst's Trustee and Guardian office and open a new site in Dubbo.

Surgeons in Toowoomba use a robot to remove a larynx and insert a voice valve at the same time, in what is being hailed a world first.

There are concerns there is not enough time to fully analyse a mine's proposal to use Bathurst's treated sewage water.

Despite the northern prawn fleet injecting millions into the Cairns economy, trawler operators say they are still the "poor cousin" in the port.

Now is not the time to write off the Australia v West Indies series as a non-event, writes Geoff Lemon.

The appointment of a new Prime Minister may have boosted consumer confidence around the country, but the possibility of more budget cuts means the effect is muted in Canberra, retail forecasts suggest.

Australia's only certified Lego professional, Ryan 'the Brickman' McNaught, talks art, recreating the Ferris Bueller car, and what makes the world's most famous brick so enthralling.

Two homes in central Victoria are threatened after a series of suspicious fires start along a roadside, prompting police to investigate.

Country vet exodus caused by lack of opportunities for families

NSW Police link the 2011 shooting murder of Saso Ristevski in Illawarra to organised crime and say it may be connected to the deaths of two other men.

Regional Express (REX) may be wanting to find a way back into the plane painting and refurbishing business at Wagga Wagga Airport.

Newcastle's new multi-million dollar court complex looks set to be open in late February 2016.

Newcastle's legal fraternity has welcomed moves by the New South Wales Government to ease a backlog of cases in the District Court, but says it is simply a short-term fix.

A Hunter Valley magistrate has taken aim at an alleged domestic violence victim for recanting evidence that saw the case against her partner thrown out.

South Australians need to do all they can to better understand and respect gender diversity and different relationships, the state's equal opportunity commissioner says.

The state's workplace safety watchdog says it is investigating recent work health and safety incidents at the Visy Pulp and Paper Mill at Tumut.

Bellerive Oval curator Marcus Pamplin plays down concerns of a devastating greentop being unleashed in Australia's first Test against the West Indies.

Three people have this morning locked themselves onto a coal loading conveyor belt at the Port of Newcastle, calling for more action to stop climate change.

Muswellbrook's business leaders are pleading with New South Wales planning officials to approve a Hunter mining project due to the flow-on effects.

Road improvements on Northcott Drive at Adamstown Heights will get underway this morning in response to community feedback and a safety review.

Staff at several of Queensland's key public hospitals are regularly being kicked, hit, spat on and even seriously injured for doing their job, an ABC investigation reveals.

Cate Blanchett calls for more Australian actors on screen while accepting one of the highest honours in the AACTA Awards, while the latest instalment of the Mad Max film series has taken out the best film award.

Australia's richest woman Gina Rinehart attacks the media for its "relentless negativity' about the Roy Hill project in WA's Pilbara, as iron ore prices tumble to their lowest levels in a decade.

A bushfire burning near Mount Crawford in the Mount Lofty Ranges, east of Adelaide, is contained by firefighters.

Anti-domestic violence campaigner Rosie Batty says she is stunned at a Queensland court's ruling to downgrade Gerard Baden-Clay's murder conviction to manslaughter.

The public face behind the successful battle to secure cancer compensation for Northern Territory firefighters has his claim rejected by the Territory Insurance Office.

Champion Brumbies and Wallabies back-rower David Pocock is awarded the RUPA Medal for Excellence for a second time.

The University of Western Australia will lay off 300 staff as part of sweeping cuts aimed at reducing costs.

It will be the end of an era on Sunday when the Sydney Kings play at the Entertainment Centre for the final time after 25 years in the "Kingdome".

Water bombers join the firefighting effort at bushfire near Mount Crawford in the Mount Lofty Ranges, east of Adelaide.

Meet the people on either side of an imaginary line that has separated good land from marginal in South Australia for more than a century.

Take a deeper look into radioactive material as the Federal Government searches for a permanent home for Australia's nuclear waste.

An inquest into the disappearance of Sydney man Matthew Leveson hears that his partner Michael Atkins waited four days before attempting to call him on his mobile phone.

An aggressive declaration by Queensland captain Chris Hartley backfires after a final-day captain's innings from Nic Maddinson sets up an unlikely New South Wales victory in the Sheffield Shield clash in Mackay.

A man convicted of seriously maiming a teenage boy in 2013 with a homemade golf ball bomb is sentenced to four years in jail.

A swamp wallaby found swimming more than a kilometre offshore from Arrawa, on the New South Wales north coast, is rescued by a group of marine students.

Victoria's auditor-general has criticised public servants in a report into the cancelled east-west link motorway. The report finds both the former and current governments were poorly advised by bureaucrats. It says some public servants withhold advice based on fears for their own careers, and this could risk the integrity of the public service.

An Indigenous healing ceremony is held in southern Tasmania to remember soldiers who fought for Australia in the two world wars.

The WA Government agency overseeing Perth's Elizabeth Quay development remains confident property giant Brookfield will be able to go ahead with a key part of the waterfront project, amid prolonged negotiations.