Sydney news

The Cattle Council of Australia has welcomed recommendations to improve competition and transparency in the national cattle and beef supply chain, with some reservations.

Millions of Australians are preparing to celebrate the 156th running of the Melbourne Cup. Follow all the action from Flemington Racecourse and around the country.

Early racegoers arrive at Flemington for day-long festivities ahead of the 156th Melbourne Cup, which is dominated by international runners from Dubai's Godolphin stables.

The glyphosate debate has divided Australian farmers, with livestock producers joining a sector of the grain industry in rallying against a bid to legalise the use of the herbicide on late-growth crops.

As Dreamworld commits to an internal audit of all its theme park rides, more questions are raised about safety compliance at the park.

Temba Bavuma is one of the shortest batsmen in Test cricket history, but he is not worried about facing Australia on the bouncy WACA wicket.

Legislation to remove 17-year-olds from Queensland's adult jails will be debated in the hung parliament this week.

They made you cheer and perhaps shed a tearrelive five Melbourne Cups etched forever in Australia's sporting memory.

Australia's thoroughbred community remembers past Melbourne Cup winners laid to rest in the Hunter Valley.

Amid myriad battles, the eurozone continued to grow steadily but slowly in the third quarter.

Bank of England governor Mark Carney said he will extend his time to guide the economy through Britain's split from the EU.

Cup Day is set to be grey and drizzly but that doesn't mean abandoning your plans to lead the style stakes, if you take a few small steps to weather-proof your look.

Los Angeles: Michael Quinn, the Australian man caught in a US hotel room attempting to pay $US260 ($342) to rape a six-year-old boy, stood at his sentencing in a downtown Los Angeles court with tears in his eyes and voice quivering.

Val Kilmer has played down reports that he is in the late stages of throat cancer.

Queensland Transport Minister Stirling Hinchliffe says he was not made aware of an external consultants report warning 10 months ago of possible driver shortages that caused transport chaos last month.

ASX shares are set to edge lower at the open ahead of the RBA's policy meeting.

A draft report warning Queensland Rail bosses of an impending train driver shortage, completed earlier this year, only made its way to Transport Minister Stirling Hinchliffe on Monday night, he says.

The Bruce Highway is expected to remain partially closed for much of the day after a truck rolled near Rockhampton.

Georgia Love has confirmed the death of her mother after a six-month battle with pancreatic cancer.

Sebastian Vettel's expletive-laden radio rants betray his frustration at Ferrari's fading form, according to his former Red Bull teammate Daniel Ricciardo.

We're live from Flemington, bringing you news, tips, betting and live form, fashion highlights and everything you need to make Melbourne Cup day a great one.

Is butter, along with other sources of saturated fats, back on the table, as many have recently claimed?

When Q&A goes bush, Q&A gets bolshie - sometimes with a bit of barnyard banter thrown in for good measure.

Shares are on track to break a three-day losing streak, while ANZ reveals the sale of its Asian business.

Police are seeking a shirtless man who was with a woman at a roadhouse near Geelong just before she was struck and killed by a car.

Steph Cumming's free throws with 2.5 seconds left gave her Rangers a close win over the Boomers.

Banana plants will be destroyed on the farm recently purchased in response to the Australian industry's worst biosecurity outbreak.

Listening to music during a short, intense bout of exercise might change how you feel about hard workouts and encourage you to continue with the program in the future, according to a new study of intense interval training and how to make it more palatable.

One of the Melbourne Cup's rank outsiders has been the subject of a mammoth bet at the annual Call of the Card as punters swarmed to back two of the favoured runners on Monday.

Democrats argue that Trump and Republican Party officials were mounting a "campaign of vigilante voter intimidation".

Four out of five complaints by whistleblowers to the corporate watchdog last year were dismissed due to 'insufficient evidence', the regulator has said.

The news, traffic and weather to get you up to speed.

A man who allegedly threatened a service station worker on Halloween while dressed in a black mask, witch's hat and cape is expected to be charged with aggravated robbery.

Buyers desperate to get their hands on the few homes available this spring have pushed auction clearance rates higher across the city in October, but there is one particular part of Sydney where competition is fiercer than ever.

All the action you might have missed overnight.

Damaging winds over the weekend beach a paddle steamer on mudflats on the edge of Lake Albert, south-east of Adelaide.

Melbourne Cup racegoers are being urged to pack an umbrella and a raincoat, with good odds of showers throughout the day, including during the main event, which is dominated by runners from Dubai's Godolphin stables.

Health Minister Sussan Ley has denied the government's new ban on asylum seekers ever settling in Australia will apply to people currently living in Australia.

Despite the official bushfire season in the ACT being delayed by a month due to consistent wet weather, fire fighters are warning Canberra can still expect a dangerous summer.

A note from campaign lashes newspaper for failing to cover "the Senate race objectively and on its own merits".

The Comey letter repeats a longstanding cycle with the Clintons: it generates an incredible amount of smoke, but detailed investigation reveals no actual fire.

Max Presnell runs his eye over every runner.

A young girl and her mother have been taken to hospital with serious injuries after they were hit by a vehicle while out trick-or-treating in Sydney's west.

Oil dropped to a one-month low as hope faded for an accord to reduce the global crude surplus.

About 100,000 people are expected to be at Flemington Racecourse for the Melbourne cup later today. Despite the forecast drizzle, the race is expected to be a fast one. AM reporter Tom Nightingale is at the race track and is reminded that the race is not without its risks.

McMullin is interesting because he has a (very slight, largely theoretical) chance of becoming the next president of the United States.

President Barack Obama believes FBI Director James Comey is a man of integrity and is not trying to influence the US presidential election.

Wales rugby captain Sam Warburton is out of this weekend's Test against Australia in Cardiff as he continues to recover from a neck injury.

Advancing Iraq troops broke through Islamic State defence lines in an eastern suburb of Mosul on Monday, taking the battle for the insurgent stronghold to inside the city limits for the first time.

Suspended tennis star Nick Kyrgios has dropped one spot to No.14 in the latest ATP world rankings.