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| UpdatedOne of Australia's longest serving chief executives - Richard Goyder from Wesfarmers - has announced his retirement after more than twelve years in the role. He'll be replaced by insider Rob Scott later this year. Mr Goyder's decision to step down is significant given his national profile and commentary in major business issues such as the productivity debate and tax reform.
Topics: company-news, australia
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| UpdatedThe Federal Government is facing a tough period of negotiations with several cross bench Senators to try to secure passage of its package of welfare cuts, child care spending and paid parental leave changes. The Nick Xenophon team, the Greens and Labor have all declared they won't support the bill in its current form.
Topics: federal-government, welfare, australia
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| UpdatedSNAICC is the national non government peak body representing the interests of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander children. Its CEO is Gerry Moore.
Topics: indigenous-aboriginal-and-torres-strait-islander, indigenous-policy, australia
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| UpdatedIn Canberra, Indigenous leaders have expressed frustration over the latest confronting report card on Indigenous disadvantage. In the National Parliament, the Prime Minister tabled this year's Closing the Gap report which again shows slow progress to improve the health and wealth of Indigenous Australians. Of particular concern, some of the targets are actually going backwards. These include school attendance and literacy and numeracy levels. The report does note the importance of working together with Aboriginal and Torres Strait islander experts in the fields of health and education and the leaders of Indigenous peak bodies are pleading with the government to support their work.
Topics: indigenous-aboriginal-and-torres-strait-islander, federal-government, indigenous-policy, australia
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| UpdatedThe number of Australians installing batteries to store power from their rooftop solar panels is expected to triple this year. New figures show almost 7000 people installed batteries last year, and the industry says batteries could be a game changer.
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| UpdatedCommunity members from Mornington Island are working with researchers to preserve the native Kayardild tongue, which only a handful of elders still speak. Researchers have used sound recordings from the 1960s to develop a language mobile phone app to document the language.
Topics: aboriginal-language, australia
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The Government's bid to combine its proposed increase to childcare funding, with a range of welfare cuts appears doomed in the Senate. The Nick Xenophon team says it will oppose the bill in its current form. The Greens are also opposed to the omnibus bill, so the Government will have to split the measures if it wants them to pass the Senate.
Topics: federal-government, family-and-children, child-care, australia
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| UpdatedSome of the world's best online investigators have found evidence that civilian were targeted by Russian airstrikes as Syrian forces closed on the rebel-held East of the city. The Russian military had vehemently denied bombing hospitals and desperate rescues.
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| UpdatedThe opposition spokesman for climate change and energy says all stakeholders can agree an energy intensity scheme is needed in Australia. Mark Butler told AM a mature debate is needed between the political parties to give a long-term investment signal to the industry so it can start planning.
Topics: electricity-energy-and-utilities, federal-government, australia
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| UpdatedResidents of Melbourne's western suburbs are furious about the State Government's plans to build a new high security youth detention centre in Werribee South. They say the site is inappropriate and they haven't been properly consulted. The plans first emerged in a newspaper article before they were officially announced last week as part of a raft of reforms to tackle Victoria's embattled youth justice system.
Topics: prisons-and-punishment, crime, werribee-3030, vic
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| UpdatedAsylum seekers on Manus Island who have been given a 'negative' refugee status determination are expecting to be deported. They have reportedly been told they could be flown to their countries in the coming days.
Topics: immigration, australia
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| UpdatedThe ninth 'Closing the Gap' report - a report card on indigenous disadvantage - will be released by the Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull today. It will find, yet again, that while there's been some progress, it's not enough.
Topics: indigenous-aboriginal-and-torres-strait-islander, indigenous-policy, australia
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| UpdatedThere are concerns that a campaign to scrap state-based renewable energy targets will seriously hinder investment opportunities in South Australia. Liberal opposition parties in three states have proposed dumping the target and leaving it to the federal government to set renewable energy goals. But lobby groups say it would drive away business and the potential for jobs growth in the future.
Topics: alternative-energy, government-and-politics, federal---state-issues, sa, australia
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An Indigenous politician from Arnhem Land is leading a call for child protection workers to stop taking children away from remote communities. It's been nine years since former Prime Minister Kevin Rudd apologised to the Stolen Generations, but the Arnhem Land group says the removal of children hasn't stopped. They say a legal obligation to keep Aboriginal children in their communities where possible is not being followed.
Topics: indigenous-aboriginal-and-torres-strait-islander, community-and-society, family-and-children, government-and-politics, indigenous-policy, australia
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Bushfires in New South Wales have claimed almost 20 homes near Dunedoo in the state's central west, but the full extent of the loss to property remains unclear. Hundreds of people gathered in a sports club at the tiny hamlet of Coolah, where they were told about unprecedented stock losses.
Topics: bushfire, fires, dunedoo-2844, australia, nsw
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An auxiliary bishop has told the child sexual abuse Royal Commission the Catholic Church probably hasn't done enough to ensure priests trained overseas are suited to work in Australia given that many of them are coming here with different attitudes to the rights of the child.
Topics: child-abuse, community-and-society, catholic, law-crime-and-justice, royal-commissions, australia
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| UpdatedThe Catholic Archbishop of Brisbane is in damage control, after a public stoush with the Queensland Government over its moves to legalise abortion. Archbishop Mark Coleridge has declined interviews, but released a video saying he was taken out of context in a report linking the issue to Nazi Germany. He's also accused the catholic Deputy Premier, Jackie Trad, of using slippery language after she rejected his offers to counsel the Government.
Topics: abortion, community-and-society, religion-and-beliefs, government-and-politics, states-and-territories, health, reproduction-and-contraception, qld, australia
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| UpdatedThe Government and the Opposition have ignored calls for a truce on energy policy, and are continuing to blame each other for unreliable supply and higher prices. The Prime Minister took the opportunity in Question Time today to again point the finger at Labor governments for the country's energy problems. While Labor is pointing to new information that suggests renewable energy didn't contribute to recent blackouts. In the meantime, the Government has given an ultimatum to the Opposition and Senate crossbench on its cuts to welfare, saying that if they don't pass them it'll be those dependent on the National Disability Insurance Scheme who will suffer.
Topics: electricity-energy-and-utilities, community-and-society, welfare, government-and-politics, health, disabilities, parliament-house-2600, australia
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| UpdatedThe WA Liberals preference deal with One Nation has sucked up a lot of the oxygen in Canberra today. It's incensed the Nationals, the Liberals have had to defend it and Labor has had a field day mocking it. But One Nation's leader Pauline Hanson has told the Senate Queensland Labor approached her staff for a preference deal just last month. Labor's Queensland State Secretary Evan Moorehead denies the claim, saying One Nation called him.
Topics: government-and-politics, parliament-house-2600, australia, act, wa
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| UpdatedThere's been more evidence today that the big four banks are protecting themselves against a major property downturn. Bank West, owned by the Commonwealth Bank, has decided it will no longer accept gains from negative tax breaks as part of new loan applications. At least one fund manager has told PM the banks are getting nervous about their exposure to the property market.
Topics: banking, business-economics-and-finance, housing-industry, australia
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The White House has launched a scathing attack on the appeals court judges who've blocked president Donald Trump's immigration ban - accusing them of trying to wrest power for themselves. The US President has said he may issue a new executive order to replace the original ban - rather than pursue a lengthy challenge in the courts. The latest development comes as thousands of people protest against the ban in Mexico - which faces the likely return of migrants living illegally in the US.
Topics: world-politics, immigration, law-crime-and-justice, international-law, judges-and-legal-profession, united-states, mexico
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Tens of millions of people are in urgent need of food as famine looms in Yemen, South Sudan, Nigeria and Somalia. But humanitarian aid experts are warning that the international aid system is ill-equipped to cope with the crisis, and part of the blame lies with international aid organisations, including the UN, who are unwilling to give up power and change the way they operate, says Sara Pantuliano, Managing Director of the Overseas Development Institute.
Topics: international-aid-and-trade, famine, relief-and-aid-organisations, nigeria, somalia, yemen, south-sudan
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| UpdatedGreater competition and an uncertain economic outlook is making life more difficult for Australia's banks. This morning the second tier Bendigo and Adelaide Bank reported a 209-million dollar half year profit - but that was up by just a tenth of one per cent. Things are getting tighter for borrowers as well, with chief executive Mike Hirst predicting there will be no more interest rate cuts.
Topics: banking, business-economics-and-finance, australia
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As age increases, figures for immunisation fall. And with consent forms getting lost in school backpacks, Australian teenagers aren't getting immunised against cancer and other diseases. A paper published by the Immunisation Coalition suggests text message reminders and digital consent forms can improve vaccination rates.
Topics: vaccines-and-immunity, family-and-children, health, australia
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| UpdatedIt's estimated that driver fatigue plays a role in up to a third of all fatal accidents on Australian roads. Now Victorian researchers are developing a roadside test to identify tired drivers and take them off the road.
Topics: road, science-and-technology, australia