Australia's island state is known for its rich history and pristine environment it also provides 50 per cent of the raw materials that go into the powerful painkillers at the centre of the United States' opioid crisis.

A tent in his sister-in-law's back yard has been Paul's home for the past year, and despite government plans to build hundreds of affordable homes he is not optimistic of getting a roof over his head.

FOI documents also reveal the Federal Government knows the process is creating division in small towns and causing some businesses to be boycotted.

Plans to relaunch a South Australian ferry service hit a snag with the vessel the Aurora V caught up in political turmoil in South America.

When the Foster family bought their new family home, they had no idea they would become lavender farmers and the work it would involve.

Last year, Edie Rayner wrote an open letter addressed to all the doctors of Australia. Like many regional towns, her Kimba does not have a permanent doctor but she's looking to change that.

A local council warns Victoria's "culture of recycling" is at risk as the state's waste crisis deepens and an estimated 780 rubbish trucks' worth of recyclable material is sent to landfill in a week.

The Victorian Opposition says the Government needs to release reports into how Steelvision got a grant to set up in the Latrobe Valley months before it went into administration, leaving millions in debt.

The Australian Dancing Institute is encouraging more boys to take up dancing, to break down the stigma attached to male dancers.

The Victorian Government has passed legislation to phase out the 10 remaining commercial fishing licences in the Gippsland Lakes over the next two years.

A report on the workplace culture at a major hospital in Victoria uncovers limited supervision of junior mental health staff, as well as allegations of bullying and sexual harassment.

Allegations of treachery and collusion have dominated Question Time in Parliament, as the Government's citizenship crisis deepens. Deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce revealed yesterday he was a dual New Zealand citizen, but is arguing he should retain his ministerial duties and vote, while the High Court makes a ruling. Mr Joyce's citizenship status emerged in the same week a New Zealand Labour MP asked about the issue, and the Government is now accusing the Opposition of trying to use a foreign parliament to bring down the Government.

A fresh stoush has broken out between the Federal Government and a Melbourne council over its decision to cancel Australia Day celebrations. The Yarra Council in Melbourne's inner north last night became the first in the country to abandon Australia Day in solidarity with Indigenous people. The Prime Minister says he is deeply disappointed by the decision, and is accusing the council of breaching its duties.

Leaks from one of Adani's most significant contractors for its Carmichael coal mine, engineering firm GHD, show it has been rocked by internal dissent and management has been bombarded with complaints and questions about its work on the mine.

Questions are being asked about what will be done to keep visitor numbers up once the option of ascending the ancient monolith is axed.

During the past 15 years, the Northern Territory's public service numbers have been closely tied to programs targeting Aboriginal advancement, with any major surges driven almost exclusively by these strategies. Yet many are quick to point out these programs have largely failed.

Closing the climb at Uluru won't have a dramatic effect on tourist numbers, according to Parks Australia, who say visitor figures have been steadily increasing over the last six years.

The nation's vast network of outback tracks may hold a special place in the hearts and minds of intrepid Australians, but many are shocked by the litter.

A proposed merger between two of Australia's biggest rural retailers is a step closer to reality after the competition regulator said it would not oppose the plan.

Despite the Earl of Wessex's decades of royal training, nothing could prepare him for a crash course in Aussie Rules football in the sizzling Top End sun.

More than 700,000 people could lose their primary connection to the outside world as the NDIS rollout leaves Vision Australia Radio without essential government funding to stay on air.

Wodonga grandmother Janice Marcuzzi is among those residents crossing state borders to take advantage of container deposit schemes.

The Government believes the projects will create more than 600 jobs and generate enough clean energy to power more than 80,000 homes, while farmers have labelled the decision as "gutless".

Eighteen months after being diagnosed with breast cancer, Regan Lions is fundraising as a way of saying thanks to the centre where she had some of her treatment.

Northern Territory politicians are calling for the auditor-general to look into the Darwin Turf Club's decision to award a $12 million government-funded tender to a company run by the club's chairman.

Pregnant Aboriginal women in the Northern Territory are three times less likely to go to a clinic for their first antenatal visit, and the consequences can be devastating. But these healthcare workers are making a difference.

You'll need a week's worth of supplies, plenty of spare tyres, and a sturdy four-wheel drive would you take on this epic, ancient journey?

Disability advocate Christina Ryan says she was subjected to a "dehumanising" and excessive security check at Parliament House, where she has been hundreds of times before.

The Commonwealth is investigating how to respond to the ACT's decision to allow personal cannabis use, and may opt to overturn the new law, which allows Canberrans to possess up to 50 grams of marijuana.

One email was all it took for hackers to steal some of the most personal information from people potentially now in high-ranking roles across the globe. The cyber attack was so sophisticated it didn't even need the person to click on a link or open a document for the hackers to get in.

Health Minister Greg Hunt says he has "serious concerns" and demands to see the "evidence" the ACT considered before deciding to legalise cannabis in Canberra from next year.

Can you use simple maths to figure out your best online dating profile match? Or choose the shortest line in the supermarket? According to mathematician Lily Serna, yes you can.

The ACT Government is hitting back at warnings from the United Nations that legalising cannabis will breach international law, telling the body to instead focus on the United States and Canada.

Up to one in three Australian women have experienced birth trauma and one in 10 women emerge from childbirth with post-traumatic stress disorder, prompting calls for a major shake-up of the maternity system.

More than a dozen live venues and nightclubs across Canberra shut down in the 2018 financial year, but the Government hopes a new plan to make a racket will turn that trend around.

They travelled across the world in the 1950s and '60s to build a new life cutting cane in the steamy paddocks of north Queensland. Now Basques return to learn the story of their ancestors.

Stakeholders call for an overhaul of the government's $5 billion fund that promised to turn northern Australia into an economic powerhouse.

Queenslanders who are visually impaired say they're at risk of serious injury in busy carparks and on roads because they don't have the right to use disability parking spaces.

When photos of the wrong destination appear in tourism ads, is it humorous or a ploy? Esperance in WA has become Hawaii and Melbourne the Gold Coast, but false advertising is being exposed.

Criminologist and former detective Terry Goldsworthy says the move to reduce Queensland's police zones is a key factor behind a rise in the state's crime rates over the past 12 months.

A jockey who rode War Ends for a year and made numerous attempts to rehome him says she recognised the horse being slaughtered in an abattoir on the ABC's 7.30 program and laments she "failed" him.

A Queensland community was hit hard when seven young people took their own lives in the space of six months. It's now striving to get more support to those in need.