Defence Department boss could not make reasonable pay offer under Tony Abbott.

Agile government takes a stumble as digital pioneer logs off after just six weeks.

Morale within the Turnbull government spiked on Wednesday following the successful passage of its long-denied building unions watchdog legislation, but any smiles were shortlived when a crossbench deal on its 15 per cent backpacker tax collapsed just half an hour later, delivering a humiliating defeat in the Senate.

• EXCLUSIVE

"There have been some dark days where I have thought, 'am I in the right political party?'."

They chanted "close the camps" and accused the Coalition and Labor of being world leaders in cruelty.

Some of the nation's best known organisations have been named and shamed for failing to comply with the workplace equality act.

• EXCLUSIVE

Documents obtained by Fairfax Media and marked "sensitive" and "protected" reveal details of the proposed overhaul.

The Turnbull government has successfully passed the legislation to re-establish the ABCC construction watchdog, marking a key victory for Malcolm Turnbull who used the legislation to trigger this year's double dissolution election.

The beleaguered "backpacker tax" is back in limbo after the Senate snubbed a deal between One Nation and the Turnbull government.

Two Australian Hornet fighter planes dropped bombs in the botched coalition air strike that accidentally killed pro-Syrian regime fighters instead of Islamic State terrorists in September, Defence has confirmed.

The Turnbull Government has acknowledged for the first time that Australia is failing to secure a fair share of revenue from oil and gas companies, with Treasurer Scott Morrison calling a review into the tax scheme governing offshore projects.

I think they're appalling results ... I am embarrassed for Australia that we are not performing at the standard that we would expect our schools to perform. quality of teachers, curriculum

Libertarian senator David Leyonhjelm says he will consider appealing a Human Rights Commission decision to reject his racial discrimination claim against a journalist who labelled him an "angry white male".

"Clearly, we have a problem."

New High Court chief justice once said she was was a "lonely tree" in a forest of men.

Denied free speech and subjected to fear tactics, public servants grab their chance to vent.

What's scarier: a crazed gunman storming the entrance to the Senate, or an irate tourist who can no longer scale the surface of one of Australia's most significant buildings?

Tax avoidance by multinational oil and gas companies, and the rigour with which the Federal Government ensures they pay a fair share for the offshore riches they exploit, will be put under the spotlight of a Parliamentary inquiry.

Immigration Minister Peter Dutton has acknowledged there is a limit to the number of refugees who will go to the US as part of a resettlement deal, but said it is "not in our best interests" to reveal the figure.

Bad press from financial scandals forces the RSL to cancel centenary concert aboard navy flagship HMAS Canberra.

A stunning back down by the Nick Xenophon Team senators over water policy has cleared the way for the Turnbull government to claim a year-ending Senate victory that would see the construction watchdog re-instated.

Lawyers for the Labor Party have accused the Coalition of "authoritarian behaviour" after the Turnbull Government doubled down on its legal threats to a retiree and demanded the ALP also stop using the Medicare logo in its campaigning.

An emphatic majority of Australian farmers are witnessing the effects of climate change and want their representatives to beef up actions to prepare the country for a future that is drier, less predictable and more prone to bushfires.

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has hosed down - but not ruled out - a reshuffle of his frontbench, amid speculation in Coalition ranks that some personnel changes are in the offing.

ACCC boss's admissions come as public service disputes spill over into submarine builder.

Union pledges four days of disruption in December.

A stoush between a Queensland law student and Labor frontbencher Terri Butler over claims of a "racist smear" is bound for court after he bluntly rejected her apology as a "sham" and vowed to press ahead with a $150,000 defamation lawsuit.

• ANALYSIS

This is the disparity that explains why Pauline Hanson chose to snorkel where she did last week, while giving the Great Barrier Reef a clean bill of health.

• EXCLUSIVE

An imminent tightening of security arrangements at Parliament House threatens to deny public access to the iconic building's signature sloping lawns.