DAILY BRIEFING: The prisons watchdog says he was pressured to redact a report on the Ashley youth detention centre and he will strongly resist requests to do so in the future.

A public servant improperly awarded, or attempted to influence, millions of dollars' worth of government contracts for the benefit of a close friend, an inquiry finds.

South Australia's fishing industry is "banding together" to make sure the WA Government's plan to take control of a portion of the rock lobster catch does not also happen in its state.

The South Australian Government announces increases to a raft of fees, fines and charges ahead of next month's state budget.

Hieu Van Le will serve for another two years as the Queen's South Australian representative, which the Premier says adds up to an "unprecedented" vice-regal term.

Foster carers have historically been able to apply for house and car upgrades to enable them to care for extra children, but the ABC can reveal the category of support was suspended in September 2018.

After a furious backlash from supporters, donors and some of its own MPs, SA's Liberal Government could rethink aspects of its controversial land tax measures flagged in last month's budget but what is the dispute all about?

For 17 years Ray Cook, also known as 'Captain Cook', has built a livelihood around helping others to catch a prized snapper but a proposed ban in SA waters could force his business under.

Aboriginal children will be excluded from a plan to boost adoptions of children in state care in South Australia because of cultural sensitivities around the Stolen Generation, the State Government says.

South Australia's Treasurer announces the Government will lower the land tax rate by more than planned but will continue with its controversial plan to raise more money from large property owners.

A planned $17-million hi-tech education precinct in Victoria's Latrobe Valley, a centrepiece of the Hazelwood transition program, is in jeopardy after the project's major partner pulls out.

Whistleblower doctors in New South Wales say their pleas for a serious inquiry into regional healthcare by the NSW State Government are being ignored since a damning Four Corners expose last month.

The Victorian Government announces an immediate ban on all old growth logging and the phasing out of native timber logging in a transition plan that will cost $120 million over the next ten years.

The Federal Government has been rocked by revelations Deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce may not have been validly elected. Barnaby Joyce is the latest to be caught by uncertainty over his citizenship - telling Parliament he may be a dual citizen of New Zealand because his father was born there. Mr Joyce is staying on as Deputy PM while the High Court determines his eligibility, but the Opposition believes he should stand aside immediately. The case could have huge implications for the Coalition, which holds the Lower House with a slim one seat majority.

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.

Dot paintings swapped for a government four-wheel drive in 1986 are now prized in a Canberra collection.

A Townsville woman says she was hit with a $2,000 "robodebt" notice despite a Federal Minister's claim the debt recovery program was suspended in the wake of February's floods.

For the first time, the long-term outlook for the Great Barrier Reef is downgraded to "very poor", with the impacts of climate change, including coral bleaching and record-breaking warm water, deteriorating its overall health.

Time has run out for the owners of 14 holiday shacks near Ingham in north Queensland with the State Government ordering their removal by the end of the month.

A key element of the NT Government's budget repair plan is in limbo, with a union saying it has received legal advice that public service executives cannot be forced to sign pay freeze agreements.

One of Australia's biggest table grape companies is threatening to rip up vines and scrap its million-dollar plan to expand in the Northern Territory.

The NT Government gives the green light for famers to grow industrial hemp, with an outback cattle station expected to be the first one to start planting.

Once touted as Australia's next great cultural precinct, the National Indigenous Art Gallery planned for Alice Springs has hit another hurdle with the town's council rejecting the NT Government's $20-million land-swap deal.

The family of brutally murdered woman Karen Chetcuti, whose killer was a rapist on parole, is suing the Victorian Government for her wrongful death.

The newly sworn-in Water Minister David Littleproud is to order ACCC inquiry into water trading in southern basin.

Australia's largest renewable biodiesel producer restarts operations at Barnawartha, in north-east Victoria, just three years after it was driven to closure.

A small rural shire in northern Victoria that missed out on a Federal Government drought grant is rejoicing after the decision was reversed.

The group representing Victoria's councils calls for organisations like independent schools, pokies clubs and churches to pay their fair share of rates because "mum and dad homeowners" are unfairly cross-subsidising private and commercial enterprises.

The chief executive of the Nhulunbuy Corporation has been connected to a series of serious governance issues during her time as the CEO of a remote WA shire.

Tenancy advocates say tenancy act reform in the Northern Territory has fallen behind the rest of the country but a real estate peak body says proposed "socialist" legislation could drive out property investors.

One of the nation's most powerful trade unions lashes the Northern Territory Government for its "unacceptable" lack of a policy platform in the lead up to the 2020 Territory election.

An inquest into the death of murdered child Bradyn Dillon hears his father lied to school authorities in a deliberate attempt to hide his son from the public.

The ACT Government has told grocers to display signs supporting 'genuinely free-range' egg farmers, based on a much stricter definition than the national standard.

The second stage of the ACT's light rail project will see a centrepiece of Canberra's city transformed, with the southern end of London Circuit raised in order to accommodate a tram line traversing down to Lake Burley Griffin.

The measurable economic benefits might not amount to much and the construction could be a nightmare for commuters, but it's what can't be measured that counts.

Leaked forms show the besieged Liberal MP did not disclose her membership of organisations linked to the Chinese Government's foreign interference operations when she ran for preselection for her federal seat.

Residents of Australia's most affluent city face the longest waits for emergency care, despite significant investments in hospitals. How bad is it? That depends on how sick you are, Markus Mannheim writes.

An advertisement about the ACT Climate Change Strategy 2019-2025, dubs Canberra "so freakin' liveable".

Political pressure is mounting on the Member for Chisholm about her alleged links to the Chinese Government.

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

In a bid to bring down costs and ease the burden during an already difficult time, the ACT Government may establish a dedicated fertility-preservation clinic for women undergoing cancer treatment.

Farmers say they should be able to make enough money to look after themselves. But as they contend with one of Australia's worst droughts, it's set to produce a billion-dollar welfare bill as taxpayers help keep them afloat.

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.

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.

If Morrison had a message for farmers, announcing it on a Friday afternoon amid football finals, school holidays and long weekends is not how you'd typically deliver it, writes Kath Sullivan.