Treasurer Jim Chalmers has defended negative gearing and capital gains tax changes unveiled in his fifth federal budget last night. Follow live.
A NSW man missing for 13 years off Mullaloo Beach, Perth, is likely dead, with a shark attack a strong possibility, a coroner ruled. Martyn Edward Tann, 24, disappeared in April 2013. Evidence includes a damaged shirt and witness accounts of unusual activity in the water.
An Edge Early Learning centre in Gawler East, South Australia, has been closed for two weeks by the Education Standards Board after a child with a known soy allergy was served meatballs containing the allergen. This is the second closure for the centre this year due to procedural errors.
China's navy confirmed a "strategic missile" test-fire with a dummy warhead in the Pacific Ocean. Australia's government labelled the move "destabilising" and inconsistent with regional calls for peace, citing China's military build-up. New Zealand also expressed deep concern.
Former UOW chancellor Michael Still testified at ICAC regarding allegations of favouritism and governance failures. He was questioned about a proposed $388,000 role for Alyssa White, denying conflict of interest claims and stating the proposal originated with the incoming vice-chancellor.
Tasmania has recorded the highest air pressure ever in Australia, reaching 1044.5 hectopascals in Ouse. This record is attributed to an intense, slow-moving high-pressure system combined with winter cold, causing icy nights and a significant drop in sea level.
China has conducted a long-range missile test in the Pacific, which Australia's foreign minister Penny Wong has condemned as "destabilising to the region" and "lacking in transparency". The test missile, carrying a dummy warhead, landed in designated waters and was described by China as a "routine arrangement" of military training.
