The economic impact of the pandemic on Australia's regional towns and cities is varied, but with a smaller population base, the path back to recovery is likely to be longer and harder for many.

National Cabinet will meet on Friday to start lifting restrictions in a three stage process to lock in what the Prime Minister is calling "a sustainable COVID safe economy".

With the focus now firmly on rebooting Australia's economy, the Morrison Government intends to cut green tape and speed up nation building projects such as major roads, dams and mines.

The Woorabinda Aboriginal Shire Council in central Queensland gives its government-owned supermarket contractor the flick after years of battling inflated prices.

The Federal Government says it has set a record for the fastest app to reach 5 million downloads in Australia with COVIDSafe, but acknowledges it might never work for 10 per cent of smartphone users.

Two of the state's most powerful unions, which represent professions at the forefront of the coronavirus pandemic in Queensland, are fighting the Labor State Government's plans to freeze all public servant pay rises in the coming financial year.

Israel's Supreme Court rules that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu may form a new government while under indictment for corruption charges clearing the way for a controversial power-sharing deal.

A defamation lawsuit launched by one of Australia's most decorated soldiers could be delayed until next year because of coronavirus and a decision by the Attorney-General to invoke special secrecy laws to protect sensitive military information.

Deputy Chief Medical Officer Paul Kelly says it is too far in the future to speculate on when life will get close to normal in Australia as the country looks to lift restrictions in stages.

Christmas Island tourists and locals can no longer call for a cab with its sole taxi operator, Chris Carr, saying he was forced to shut shop at the end of June because of a "logistical nightmare".

The Himalayas are sometime called the earth’s “third pole”. They’re a vital source of water for a large chunk of the world’s population. But the local, national and international systems put in place to protect and manage human development in this vital ecosystem are failing. In this episode, Matt Smith travels to the Himalayas for Future Tense to gauge the size of the problem and possible solutions for safeguarding its future.

In a shock announcement, former minister Philip Dalidakis resigns from the Victorian Parliament, effective immediately, to take a senior position at Australia Post.

Uyghurs living in Australia are urging the Federal Government to offer them protection after more than 30 countries, including the USA, condemned China over its "horrific campaign of repression" against its Uyghur minority.

Letters released by the Independent Commissioner Against Corruption show he was refused $2 million to fund an evaluation of the Central Adelaide Local Health Network.

A crime spree allegedly committed by a high-risk fugitive has prompted the SA Government to "clean up" the laws that govern the supervision of former prisoners.

Public transport policies are discouraging patronage in Adelaide, lobbyists say, after Freedom of Information figures uncover a significant decline in bus patronage in the first six months of the year.

Victorian Treasurer Tim Pallas says his Government believes the 2019-20 State Budget is $2.6 billion worse off as a result of the election of a Coalition Federal Government, but plans to work constructively with Prime Minister Scott Morrison.

Premier Daniel Andrews says more than 100 doctors have already undertaken intensive specialist training ahead of Victoria's voluntary assisted dying laws taking effect on June 19.

Anthony Albanese says the Government must explain how the contract for Paladin to operate Manus Island was awarded.

Remote WA Aboriginal communities are suing the Federal Government in a landmark action over its controversial work-for-the-dole scheme which they argue is unlawful.

Meredith Thompson and Adrian Brown fight to see their beloved relative, after his nursing home denied visits even though he only has weeks to live.

Victorian Jobs Minister Martin Pakula and Education Minister James Merlino provide an update on the coronavirus outbreak on April 29, 2020. There has been one death, taking the state's death toll to 18.

Meadowglen Primary School in Epping was closed after a teacher tested positive to coronavirus.

Victorian Treasurer Tim Pallas says casual public sector workers who have lost their jobs due to coronavirus will receive fortnightly payments if $1500, May 6, 2020.

Shadow Local Government Minister Tim Smith and Ratepayers Victoria president Dean Hurlston are calling for rates to be frozen and for the State Government to do more to help council staff, May 6, 2020.

A new respiratory clinic is expected to open in Wodonga next week to assess patients with fever and respiratory symptoms who meet the government criteria for COVID-19 testing.

A community weeks away from being evicted has launched legal action against the South Australian Government in a bid to stop their town's closure.

Two Labor MPs are still waiting to get offices within their electorates more than a year after the state election, with one labelling the delay as a "clamp down on democracy".

A contentious ecotourism project on Kangaroo Island has been approved and could lead the way for similar projects that will open up South Australian national parks currently "under lock and key".

Adelaide councils are considering a range of options to address the problem of abandoned shopping trolleys including GPS tracking, locking systems and a bounty for returned trolleys.

When new laws were introduced following the murder of remote area nurse Gayle Woodford in outback SA in 2016, her family and friends were strongly supportive but they now believe a crucial loophole remains.

The SA Government says a three-year statewide ban on snapper fishing will come into effect within weeks, despite a backlash from fishers and charter boat operators.

A controversial teddy bear fence, which stretches for more than a kilometre on South Australia's Copper Coast Highway, is being deliberately hacked apart by knife-wielding "haters", its creator claims.

The SA Government has ordered a review into the Environmental Protection Authority's policies over notification of environmental incidents, following an ABC investigation into two chemical spills at Port Pirie's Nyrstar smelter.

The National Party wants urgent changes to the NSW Independent Planning Commission, fearing there is little certainty for investors following the rejection of the proposed Bylong Valley coal mine.

A transport company seeking lucrative contracts to run Adelaide's public transport networks has shared fake quotes of former Labor ministers in an apparent bid to assist the South Australian Liberal Government press its case for rail privatisation.

The NSW Education Department investigates after a video emerges online of a teacher telling her class that if a woman is raped, her clothing should be held partly accountable.

NSW Deputy Premier says asking mining companies to consider greenhouse gas emissions from Australian coal exports "doesn't pass the pub test"

The WA Government has ordered Zenith Australia Investment Holding to stop clearing land at Yakka Munga station after a blockade by the area's native title holders.

Schools and remote communities across the north of Western Australia fear for their future as vital funding dries up, leaving highly-valued employees jobless.

Voting rights based on owning property were last seen in many democracies in the late 19th century, but they live on in most Australian local government elections.

WA's Child Protection Minister orders an urgent review into her department's management of five-year-old Symerien Brooking, who has one of the rarest medical conditions on the planet.

The Western Australia State Government will now supply water to affected farms where, in some cases, record-low rainfall has persisted, and damaging floods in early 2017 were the last significant rainfall event.

Dog owners whose animals kill sensitive wildlife, including penguins, now face fines of up to $5,040, after more than 170 little penguins die in dog attacks since June 2018.

Human rights advocates fear the Tasmanian Government's failure to make a submission against the Federal Government's religious freedom draft bill would severely undermine the state's anti-discrimination laws.

The 24-year-old believes a move to change laws in Tasmania allowing survivors of sexual crimes to share their stories will give greater insights into how perpetrators operate.