Sydney news

Canberra drivers who are caught texting or using social media while behind the wheel could face a $511 fine or lose four demerit points from Thursday.

A mix-up with the bodies of a stillborn and a miscarried baby in a Sydney hospital prompts renewed calls from the NSW Opposition for Health Minister Jillian Skinner to be sacked.

Queensland graziers are hopeful exclusion fencing will be the answer to protecting their livestock from wild dogs.

A royal commission begins a public investigation today into allegations of child abuse by the Catholic diocese of Maitland-Newcastle.

Canberra drivers who are caught texting or using social media while behind the wheel could face a $511 fine or lose four demerit points from Thursday.

Family and friends of the Tom Jackson, who died yesterday from injuries sustained trying to save a woman from a stabbing attack in north Queensland, pay tribute to him for his final heroic actions.

Australian researchers are recruiting participants for a trial to see whether the pneumococcal vaccine can reduce the risk of heart attacks and stroke by up to 20 per cent.

A Wollongong mother is expected to face court today after a 21-month-old boy allegedly consumed the drug ice while in her care.

The Victorian Government is introducing legislation to create new offences with tough penalties relating to carjacking and home invasions.

Queensland tops the country for locking up children under 12 years old, a new report finds.

After a four-year ordeal, the High Court is set to rule on whether Gerard Baden-Clay is convicted of wife Allison's murder or manslaughter, after an appeal launched by Queensland's Director of Public Prosecutions.

The Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse will begin a public investigation today into one of the institutions that led to its very inception. The hearing examining the Catholic Diocese of Maitland-Newcastle in NSW comes after a Special Commission of Inquiry.

Rebekha Sharkie

Pat Dodson and Derryn Hinch

Labor MP Anne Aly

The Fair Work Ombudsman finds six United Petroleum service stations across Australia breaking workplace laws, including underpaying staff thousands of dollars.

Former prime minister Paul Keating warns the nation does not have a foreign policy to accommodate the rise of China, claiming Australia's international influence is waning.

A 14-year-old boy whose death sparked a violent riot in a Western Australian town has been remembered at an emotional candle-lit vigil as community leaders call for calm but voice concerns about racism they fear sparked the incident.

Labor MP Linda Burney

The bodies of two babies are mixed-up in a Sydney hospital, resulting in one of them being accidentally cremated, New South Wales health authorities say.

Tom Jackson, who was critically injured trying to shield a 21-year-old backpacker during a stabbing attack in north Queensland last week, is remembered as a hero after he dies in hospital.

An Adelaide man is arrested for 43 counts of communicating with a child, with the intent of making the child amenable to sexual activity.

Chloe had to give up dance lessons after one week due to a rare degenerative disease. Now thanks to the Sydney Opera House she's able to experience dance again.

Marine scientists studying Sydney's little known reefs say corals damaged by a bleaching event in Sydney Harbour earlier this year are "starting to show good signs of recovery".

A corruption probe in NSW has exposed shady deals and illegal donations, revealing the efforts some politicians will go to in order to get their hands on cash, and what some donors will do to buy influence.

Liberal Senator Cory Bernardi joins Leigh Sales to discuss amending the Racial Discrimination Act.

The first day of the new parliament has been dominated by debate over same-sex marriage and the Racial Discrimination Act.

Melbourne man Frank Grima faces a $65,000 penalty if found guilty of carrying out what his lawyer describes as "trivial" building work on public land at Werribee South.

South Australia's Liberal Opposition defends its criticisms of the Government's job creation grants, after leaked documents revealed the Liberals considered adopting an even less generous scheme.

A pewter dish believed to be the nation's oldest known artefact of early European contact is headed back to Australia.

A police officer, who was involved in a siege in Adelaide's south, appears in court charged with a range of offences including aggravated stalking and making unlawful threats.

The Balinese are mourning the sudden death of 'adopted' Australian son Made Wijaya, a tropical garden design guru with celebrity clientele including David Bowie and Francis Ford Coppola

An interactive online map allowing people to share where they feel safe or unsafe in Canberra is launched by the Women's Centre for Health Matters and hailed a success by its first user.

A coronial inquest into the death of a man at Perth's Casuarina Prison hears there were more than a dozen points from which someone could hang themselves in the storeroom where he was found.

A dozen officers are injured and several arrests are made in Kalgoorlie, Western Australia, after riot police were forced to move in when a protest over the death of an Aboriginal teenager turned violent.

The bodies of two babies are mixed-up in a Sydney hospital, resulting in one of them being accidentally cremated, New South Wales health authorities say.

One of those experiencing their first Federal Parliamentary sitting today was Linda Burney - the first Aboriginal woman elected to the House of Representatives. With a long career in New South Wales politics behind her, Linda Burney is already the shadow minister for human services under Bill Shorten. She was previously, among other things, the first Aboriginal woman ever elected to the New South Wales parliament.

The Federal Government has put budget repair at the top of its 'to do list' for the 45th Parliament. The Governor-General has delivered his speech setting out the Government's priorities for the term. But the numbers in this Parliament are so tight it will be tough for the Government to achieve all the aims Sir Peter Cosgrove has set out in his formal address.

The Anglican Archbishop of Perth has conceded that he failed to take proper action against alleged sex offenders during his time as a Bishop in the NSW Diocese of Newcastle. Roger Herft finished giving his evidence today at the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse after more than two days in the witness box.

Anti-whaling group Sea Shepherd launches its latest campaign in the Antarctic, despite a recent court settlement between the US arm of the conservation society and Japan's whaling body barring direct attacks on the whalers.

New South Wales Premier Mike Baird rules out former police minister Mike Gallacher returning to cabinet in light of the ICAC report into political donations handed down today, but says he and other MPs have already paid a "heavy price".

A senior New South Wales Police Constable convicted of mid range drink driving is "shattered" by his "lapse of judgement", the Goulburn Local Court hears.

Seven teenage international students are taken to hospital after getting into trouble in the surf off Bondi Beach, in an incident which left two of them unconscious.

Former emergency services minister Jane Garrett will make a formal complaint against the United Firefighters Union boss Peter Marshall over what she calls his distressing conduct against her.

Greater Western Sydney midfielder and former number one draft pick Lachie Whitfield is investigated for allegedly avoiding drug testing last year.

At least one officer is injured and several arrests are made in Kalgoorlie, Western Australia, after riot police were forced to move in when a protest over the death of an Aboriginal teenager turned violent.

The first meeting of the transition taskforce for the greyhound industry hears calls for a ban to be delayed up to three years.

Time, patience and buns of steelkeen photographer Margaret Smith heads to Bool Lagoon to capture the birdlife.

Deb Colquhoun is 62 and is sharing her passion for ballet with the advice to never give up on dreams.

A Victorian Supreme Court judge declares Julian Knight, the Hoddle Street killer, a vexatious litigant for life, meaning he will have to seek court permission before taking legal action.