David is a senior cross media news reporter in Perth with more than 20 years experience. He first started working with the ABC in the Illawarra region in the early 1990s. Since then David has reported on all of the major stories in WA while working with radio current affairs at AM, PM and The World Today. He has also reported for ABC TV News, Stateline and The 7:30 Report. David has won numerous reporting awards, including a United Nations Peace Prize in 2005.
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| UpdatedWith the WA election just six weeks away, the major parties have been out on the road spruiking funding commitments in the areas of surfing, education and multiculturalism.
Topics: government-and-politics, education, wa
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Three judges of the Federal Court are likely to rule next week on whether to set aside a bankruptcy ruling against former West Australian senator Rod Culleton.
Topics: courts-and-trials, government-and-politics, perth-6000
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Western Australia is seeking to have the tiny and remote Cocos Islands, which are closer to Indonesia than Australia, become a part of the state, with the Premier spruiking the move as WA gaining its "own tropical paradise".
Topics: government-and-politics, local-government, wa
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| UpdatedHealth authorities confirm lead levels in the water at Perth's Queen Elizabeth II Medical Centre (QEII) were above the Australian drinking standard in early January, but insist there is no risk to public safety.
Topics: government-and-politics, health, wa, perth-6000
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| UpdatedThe WA Government's announcement of a rail line linking Thornlie and Cockburn is a last-minute stunt to secure seats at the March election, Labor says.
Topics: government-and-politics, elections, thornlie-6108, wa
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| UpdatedChildren who are younger than their school peers are "twice as likely" to be on medication for attention deficit hyperactivity disorder than their older classmates, a new study finds, raising concerns the younger children may have been misdiagnosed.
Topics: adhd, medical-research, diseases-and-disorders, health, education, children, australia
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| UpdatedAs "The Boss" launches his latest Australian tour in Perth, he says his band will form part of the "resistance" against new US President Donald Trump.
Topics: arts-and-entertainment, music, bands-and-artists, human-interest, perth-6000, australia
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Skippers planning to see the Australia Day Skyworks from their boats should do a full safety check before going on the water, says the WA Department of Transport.
Topics: australia-day, perth-6000
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| UpdatedWith Donald Trump on the cusp of becoming US president, it seems fair to ask: "How did we get here?" Forget the overvalued analysis, the simple reason he's president is that more than enough people voted for him in the right places, writes David Weber.
Topics: world-politics, us-elections, united-states
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| UpdatedFormer One Nation senator Rod Culleton is granted a one week extension of a bankruptcy case, which has forced him to lose his seat in Federal Parliament.
Topics: government-and-politics, courts-and-trials, perth-6000, wa
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| UpdatedFormer One Nation turned independent WA senator Rod Culleton loses his seat after the President of the Senate determines it is a "necessary and automatic consequence" of being declared bankrupt.
Topics: government-and-politics, wa, perth-6000
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| UpdatedA Senate vacancy is set to be formally notified within days following the Federal Court's declaration last month that Senator Rod Culleton is an undischarged bankrupt.
Topics: government-and-politics, wa
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| UpdatedAhead of the March election, both Labor and Liberal are focusing on policies supporting domestic violence victims.
Topics: domestic-violence, crime, states-and-territories, alp, perth-6000, wa
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| UpdatedOne of the major roads used to access the Perth airport and the city's east is due to be significantly widened, triggering concerns from residents and businesses that have been told their properties will be partially demolished.
Topics: urban-development-and-planning, maylands-6051, wa, bayswater-6053, perth-6000
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Perth had its coolest winter for decades and WA's South West was one of the few areas in the world that experienced below-average temperatures in 2016, according the weather bureau's annual report.
Topics: weather, bushfire, cyclone, perth-6000, wa
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| UpdatedRod Culleton defends his actions during a fracas outside a Perth court yesterday, with the former One Nation senator saying he was "hit full on" in an ambush by a party member and was left to "lick my wounds".
Topics: government-and-politics, federal-parliament, parliament, federal-government, courts-and-trials, law-crime-and-justice, perth-6000
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While it is tempting to include pets in family Christmas celebrations, feeding a pet the wrong food — such as ham bones or cake — can cause more harm than good, a Perth animal hospital warns.
Topics: community-and-society, human-interest, animals, veterinary-medicine, perth-6000, australia
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West Australian farmer Greg Kenney is fined for contempt of court after refusing to leave his Salmon Gums property to allow the CBA to take possession, with former One Nation senator Rod Culleton describing commercial bank loans as "like sleeping with a wild animal".
Topics: farm-labour, courts-and-trials, rural, salmon-gums-6445, esperance-6450, perth-6000
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| UpdatedThe WA Government bans portable decorative ethanol burners in the wake of a woman suffering serious burns in the backyard of her Perth home.
Topics: emergency-incidents, consumer-protection, wa
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A new helipad is to be built at Royal Perth Hospital, after concerns were raised over the current facility's capacity to handle new, heavier emergency helicopters.
Topics: health, government-and-politics, perth-6000, wa
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Four boats are seized after their owners interfered with lobster pots, as Western Australia's Department of Fisheries cracks down on crayfish theft in the lead up to Christmas.
Topics: illegal-fishing, fishing-aquaculture, hillarys-6025
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| UpdatedAustralia will become the first country in the world to voluntarily ban the use of whips in harness racing, with the industry's body saying the move aligns with the "high expectations of the community".
Topics: horse-racing, animal-welfare, sport, australia
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Supporters of assisted dying in Western Australia welcomes moves to introduce legislation in Victoria and say there are plans to introduce their own "mirrored" bills into State Parliament.
Topics: euthanasia, aged-care, death, states-and-territories, state-parliament, perth-6000, wa, vic
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| UpdatedA woman is charged with attempting to kill two men in a house fire in Ballajura last month, with police alleging she tried to drug the pair first.
Topics: arson, crime, police, ballajura-6066, perth-6000
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The CFMEU says it has little confidence in proposed arrangements to protect payments to subcontractors under a renewed Australian Building and Construction Commission.
Topics: unions, building-and-construction, wa, perth-6000