Sniffer dogs are being urgently flown to northern Australia to try and stop a disease that has wiped out around 20 per cent of the world's pig population from coming onto Australian shores.

It has been 31 years since Anne-Marie Culleton was raped and murdered while she slept in her Darwin home. Her sister Eileen is now urging South Australia's Parole Board to keep killer Jonathan Bakewell behind bars.

Figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistics show almost 78 per cent of Katherine residents are now either overweight or obese, the highest proportion in the country. But the town's Mayor is not quite convinced.

In the remote Aboriginal communities of central Australia, a musician many of us have never heard of is "bigger than The Beatles". And he gave rise to a unique new sound.

Aboriginal people who bury their loved ones in traditional ceremonies without bureaucratic approval could end up facing fines of up to $31,000 or two years' imprisonment.

Resources giant Santos is strengthening its grip on the north Australian gas sector, as it moves to secure billions of dollars worth of exploration and production investments in the Top End.

An Aboriginal corporation in the Kimberley is set to become the first to commercialise the breeding of native freshwater prawns.

A tourist dies after being bitten by a venomous snake while camping in the Northern Territory's Garig Gunak Barlu National Park.

With 11 voyages and 300,000 recorded observations under his belt, population ecologist Eric Woehler has dedicated his life to building a dataset to help monitor and track bird populations in a changing world.

Emma Sharp had already used up 14 weeks of leave before her newborn son was healthy enough to come home. Now, she's calling on the Commonwealth to allow mums with premature babies to delay when their leave starts.

The first Territory patient to ever fill a script for medical cannabis in the NT has now been approved, NT Health has confirmed.

The Supreme Court of Victoria dismisses a bid by union boss John Setka to stop a vote to have him expelled from the Australian Labor Party, with the court ruling it does not have the jurisdiction to decide the matter.

The lithium industry is facing its own war on waste as a farming community asks questions about the storage of tonnes of tailings and its safety.

Fishos are renowned for not letting much get in the way of their passion for wetting a line, and the Kerec family is no exception.

The artist behind a controversial mural vandalised at Bondi Beach says he hopes his new exhibition makes people think critically, and question what is happening around them.

Australia's chief vet says a highly contagious disease that's led to millions of pig deaths is set to spread, but a new biosecurity levy is beset by costly delays.

The new energy storage will help the ACT avoid blackouts and meet its commitment to renewable electricity.

Five young detainees used makeshift weapons, including a computer, in an assault last month that left multiple staff members at the Canberra facility injured, a new report finds.

Treasurer Josh Frydenberg is asking Parliament for a "big stick" to threaten energy companies with. Here's how it could work.

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.

A decade ago Canberra hosted the World Mountain Bike Championships on tracks considered "the standard and the best". But the quality of the city's trails has gone downhill, and millions of dollars need to be spent to keep up.

The ACT becomes the first Australian jurisdiction to legalise the possession, use and cultivation of small amounts of cannabis.

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.

The Raiders withstood a tremendous South Sydney Rabbitohs onslaught to reach its first grand final since 1994 with a 16-10 victory at a sold-out Canberra Stadium.

They completed less than two in three peak services, but electric buses are still a "viable alternative" for Canberra according to the ACT's Transport Minister.

The NRL has been revolutionised by an Englishman, his Canberra Raiders teammates and their secret code and it could hold the key to the NRL grand final.

An early tackle by Cooper Cronk is deemed a professional foul, resulting in a penalty for the Raiders and a controversial sin bin for Cronk.

Victorian prosecutors say there is no justification for the High Court to grant special leave for Cardinal George Pell to appeal against his child sexual abuse convictions.

Quad bike manufacturer Honda has described the Government's new roll bar rules as a "ban by stealth" and says that today is a "disappointing day for farm safety".

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.

The ACT's top law officer says federal police should not waste their time chasing Canberrans who use small amounts of cannabis as he urges Christian Porter not to interfere with new laws.

Canberra's youth detention centre issues an apology and an undisclosed financial settlement after an Indigenous teenager filed a lawsuit alleging her human rights had been violated when she was separated from her peers and her belongings for two months.

It will take a test case a Canberra smoker who police decide to arrest and charge to determine what the law actually is.

A week ahead of the first hearings of the Disability Royal Commission in Townsville, a new survey of families of children with disability finds nearly no progress has been made on improving access to inclusive education.

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.

The Australian Bureau of Statistics won't ask you about your sexual orientation in the 2021 census. But that won't stop it from trying to figure it out anyway.

Disability royal commission chair Ronald Sackville said commentators were discouraging people from telling their stories to the commission, but critics say the real discouragement is the absence of appropriate supports.

Three accused Rebels bikies who appealed to the High Court to overturn an order preventing them from associating with one another have lost their bid, clearing the way for the NSW Police Commissioner to impose strict restraints on them, including a curfew and restricted mobile phone possession.

New research finds each feral cat in Australia will kill 740 animals a year. Together with their domesticated cousins, cats are killing about three million animals a day.

Australias largest barramundi farm is calling for a halt in whole-fish imports from Asia not because around 60 per cent is imported, but for biosecurity reasons.

Matthew Ross White pleads not guilty to the murder of Donna Steele, as the Supreme Court in Cairns hears her killing occurred when she fought back during a botched extortion bid.

A court releases the video of a police interview that shows the murder confession of Matthew White, who strangled Cooktown woman Donna Steele in a botched extortion bid and has been sentenced to life in jail.

More dead wallabies have been found on a Cairns sporting field, taking the total number of carcasses in the past week to more than 30.