Sydney news

Australia has more than two million landlords yet thousands of properties are sitting empty. So is it possible for owners to claim tax benefits by leaving them that way?

Animal activists are campaigning to make Byron Bay Australia's first town offering pet-friendly accommodation for all renters.

A Victorian Farmers Federation representative says the political stalemate over the backpacker tax demonstrates "utter contempt" for food producers.

The City of Fremantle axes its Australia Day festivities in favour of a "culturally-inclusive alternative" celebration two days later.

Seven improvement notices are issued to Dreamworld by Workplace Health and Safety officers, with the Gold Coast theme park saying none relate to the safety of visitors despite the recent deadly ride malfunction.

Josh Hazlewood says Australia timed David Warner's injury-enforced exit from the field badly, allowing a crafty Proteas declaration to put the hosts under pressure in Adelaide.

New research finds rural children cope better when a parent is diagnosed with cancer if they are not burdened with adult problems.

For Faf du Plessis to put the crowd fury aside, to focus as he did, and to not just perform but to out-perform his team-mates by such a margin, makes this an extraordinary innings to have witnessed, writes Geoff Lemon.

The NSW Planning Minister Rob Stokes breaks ranks with his federal Liberal Party colleagues on the issue of negative gearing, arguing the rules should change to help ease Sydney's housing affordability crisis.

Indigenous women are 10 times more likely to be killed by domestic violence than non-Indigenous women. Reversing this will take a community approach, say men who care about making a difference.

When lawyer Phoebe Mwanza first moved to Australia, she was told she should bleach her skin to blend in. Now when she walks down the street in her African-inspired designs, she's doing anything but. And she couldn't be more confident.

The Australian honeybee industry worries pests will get past Australia's border surveillance, saying the situation is like a game of soccer without a goalie.

The Federal Government will today announce it will move the Australian Pesticides and Veterinary Medicines Authority from Canberra to Armidale, in Agriculture Minister Barnaby Joyce's electorate.

Around 10,000 tonnes of corn has been shipped out of Wyndham, as part of a new export deal for farmers in the Kimberley's Ord Irrigation Scheme.

Towns just north of Adelaide look back on the progress they have made since a ferocious bushfire started at Pinery and left a trail of damage and loss.

A huge blaze in Port Melbourne destroys a house under renovation and damages three neighbouring properties.

Amateur photographer Stuart Milde captures a year of extreme seasons and colours at Pinkerton Plains in South Australia's mid-north.

South Australian grain farmers are on track to produce a record breaking crop - but those in the state's lower mid-north are balancing optimism with anxiety. Just 12 months ago two lives were lost and livestock, crops and homes destroyed in the region, in one of the fiercest fires the state has seen. And with harvest starting late and right on the cusp of the bushfire season, there are many nervous weeks ahead.

An ambitious restoration project to revive the Great Melbourne Telescope in time for its 150th anniversary is running out of time and money.

ABC soundman and photographer Tony Hill retraces his footsteps in the farming community of Wasleys, 12 months after the deadly Pinery bushfire.

Perth teenager Jamie Murphy arrives back in Perth with his family after being released from police custody in Bali on suspicion of carrying drugs.

New homes, big crops and young livestock are bringing South Australia's bushfire-ravaged lower Mid-North back to life, as the state marks the first anniversary of the deadly Pinery blaze.

South Africa captain Faf du Plessis says he was disappointed at the booing he received from the Adelaide Oval crowd after making a superb hundred on day one of the third Test.

Police are waiting to question a man that has been seriously injured in a shooting in Brisbane.

When Aboriginal people in remote parts of Australia need treatment for kidney disease, Western Desert Dialysis is called upon to take the care to them.

Harry Ascroft and Roy O'Donovan both score in Central Coast's 2-0 home A-League win over Perth Glory.

A century from under-fire captain Faf du Plessis is enough to prevent South Africa from posting a low first-innings total on the first day of the third Test in Adelaide.

Australia's reshuffled opening pair showed excellent grit to survive the late session after a clever Proteas declaration. Look back at how it all unfolded in our live blog.

A Tasmanian Magistrate dismisses a P-plater's drink-driving charge after hearing evidence that a device meant to stop alcohol-affected drivers does not always work.

Jamie Murphy is at Bali airport and waiting to board a flight home to Perth tonight, after Bali police confirmed there were no drugs detected in the teenager's blood and urine, or in the white powder found on him in a nightclub.

It could take up to four times longer for medical staff to access paper records at the new Royal Adelaide compared with the existing hospital, analysis confirms.

Shirley Manson, frontwoman of 90s indie band Garbage, says she is bewildered by what she sees as the erosion of women's rights.

Bishop Greg Thompson says members of the Newcastle Anglican diocese acted like a Sopranos-style protection racket when it dealt with sex abuse complaints.

Victorian Health Minister Jill Hennessey saysthere is 'much to learn' from the thunderstorm asthma incident.

The thunderstorm asthma catastrophe has raised serious questions about the capacity of Victoria's emergency services to cope with a sudden disaster.

The WA Government has increased a compensation offer to a policeman left permanently disabled while working in the state's remote north.

Bishop Greg Thompson says members of the Newcastle Anglican diocese acted like a Sopranos-style protection racket when it dealt with sex abuse complaints.

A multi-million-dollar Tasmanian youth detention centre had 61 staff to watch over eight inmates in September this year, the ABC can reveal, as calls mount for the jail to be closed.

Scallop fishers are told the Federal Government may step in and restrict fishing and exports for the entire trawling industry in Queensland if stock numbers do not dramatically improve.

Perth Zoo is preparing to release 19 numbats into the wild in an attempt to secure the future of the species, which is under threat from foxes and feral cats.

Toowoomba's Zimra Hussain, 10, is named the inaugural number one ticket holder for the Brisbane Lions AFL women's team.

They read like someone raided a very strange dictionary, but miners and historians say the names of Western Australia's gold mines provide a window into the industry's history and controversy.

Self-driving and smart vehicles will be tested on south-east Queensland roads in the largest trial of the emerging technologies in Australia.

Turkeys bewarethe carving sets are coming out earlier this year as more Australians celebrate Thanksgiving.

Australia's Adam Scott and Marc Leishman are five shots back after the opening round of the World Cup of Golf.

Radio National staff have passed a motion of no confidence in senior ABC management. The ABC plans to axe up to seven jobs at Radio National in the new year, as part of major changes to the station's programming. At a meeting this afternoon, staff unanimously passed a motion accusing management of breaching the ABC Charter, and failing to properly consult staff. Some staff have expressed a concern the station is being dismantled.

An exhibition of the work of Brett Whiteley captures how the rolling hills and rustic villages of inland New South Wales were an early solace and shaper of the young artist and continued to permeate his career.

TasRail's CEO vows an unexpected $5.8 million operating loss, which it blames on flood damage and a mine closure, will not defer the company's three-year capital works program.

We asked Crowded House fans to share their memories of the band's historic farewell concert at the Sydney Opera House in 1996. Here are our favourite responses.

A Western Australian ecologist is part of a world-first study into how restoring degraded rainforest affects human health, and may find another way to prevent malaria.