A day after authorities said the coronavirus outbreak in Tasmania may be "trailing off", the tally jumps to 205 with four new cases detected in the past 24 hours — all in the state's north-west.

The COVID-19 pandemic has made life on the streets more difficult than ever and despite government promises to help, Lionel says he has been "hearing that for a long time and nothing happens".

Tasmania has four new cases of coronavirus to add to its tally, with three being health workers from the state's disease hotspot of the north-west.

A CSIRO reconstruction of the Federation drought of 1891 to 1903 finds that if it were to occur again today, its effects would likely be even more devastating.

The green vista that now stretches to the horizon is in stark contrast to the dust wall that shrouded paddocks not too long ago on this western NSW sheep station.

The NSW Government has announced a $10 million initiative to combat what the Agriculture Minister has described as a looming "fish Armageddon".

One of Australia's largest food exporters, SunRice, cuts more than 30 regional staff after producing its second-lowest rice crop.

New Zealand man Cody Frost is sentenced to 10-and-a-half years in jail for manslaughter after he gave a stranger his last cigarette, called him mate and then stabbed him outside a Melbourne train station in 2017.

When Lily Yan first walked into an Australian pub, locals stopped and stared. But she hasn't let a few odd looks deter her.

More overnight falls across the New England North West

Natalie Holt has built a 'she shed' in the backyard of her Bangalow home.

The athletes do get a little competitive with each other from time to time but at the Barcaldine Elder Olympics the main aim of the game is socialising. The small outback Queensland town has held the event for 21 years with dozens of older residents travelling from nearby towns to compete.

The shearers' quarters on Barenya Station, between Hughenden and Muttaburra in north west Queensland, was filled with talk and laughter recently, when local grazing families took some time out to have health checks, de-stress and socialise for a Royal Flying Doctor Service (RFDS) field day.

Scones, tea, and craft are synonymous with the CWA, but the organisation also provides vital community support. In drought- and flood-ravaged Julia Creek, it's all about keeping things low-key.

A rise in the number of assaults against local government employees prompts Victorian councils to call for a change in sentencing laws to better protect their staff.

A judge says Victorian paedophile priest Robert Claffey "mocked" his priestly authority to access and abuse children, while sentencing him to more jail time.

A ratepayers advocacy group says a damning report into the risk of corruption within local government in Victoria highlights the need for greater scrutiny of regional councils.

Backyard beekeeping is abuzz with popularity with long waitlists to own a hive in some parts of Victoria.

John Clarke

Police seize more than $140 million worth of cocaine stashed in the arm of an excavator that was destined for a business in a small NSW town.

The rise of drag culture driven by RuPaul's Drag Race is giving a new generation of 'queens' a valuable sense of identity and an exponential rise in paid work.

The number of Australians to have recovered from COVID-19 has surpassed 6,000, Health Minister Greg Hunt has announced, leaving fewer than 800 active cases of the virus around the country.

A gonorrhoea expert says people will be keen to get "out and about" as social restrictions ease, which could worsen an already higher-than-usual number of cases on the Gold Coast.

Christopher Turner, the contractor responsible for a gas mix-up that poisoned two newborns with nitrous oxide at a Sydney hospital, is convicted and fined $100,000.

While the cash economy is dwindling, small businesses still need somewhere to deposit their coins but where do you take them when your local bank branch closes?

A former finance officer for the Summernats car festival, who stole thousands of dollars from the business to fuel a drug habit, avoids prison time.

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.

When it comes to selecting a coach, there are a range of factors to consider: experience, originality, personality, track record and fresh ideas. But one expert says more emphasis should be placed on skills away from the game.

Police are investigating whether there are links between a neighbourhood fight and damage caused to more than 50 cars in two streets in Adelaide's inner-south.

Major and smaller supermarkets are upping the price of eggs as chicken farmers become the latest casualties in the ongoing drought.

Social media footage showed a family being removed from Jubilee Stadium during an A-League semi-final. Police say the man was trying to gain access to a restricted area that had a greater variety of beer.

The future of one of Australia's most profitable gold mines appears to be on shaky ground after more than 100 seismic events were recorded in a single day.

The number of new coronavirus cases recorded in Victoria remains low, but authorities are still concerned about a growing cluster at a private psychiatric clinic.

A 95-year-old celebrates a win after a decades-long fight for an apology from the Catholic Church in Melbourne for the abuse of her daughter by priest Gerard Mulvale.

The Federal Government is ordered to pay $206,000 in legal fees for a two-year-old Tamil girl who has been embroiled in a high-profile legal battle to stay in Australia with her family.

Australia is significantly expanding testing for COVID-19 across the country in order to stay on top of the virus and provide a path to re-open large portions of public life, but experts believe some tests are not up to scratch.

Two more Victorian police officers are suspended over the leak of unauthorised photos of former AFL coach and player Dean Laidley in a police station, as the state's corruption watchdog says it will oversee the investigation into the leak.

A sighting of a sea creature not usually found in Tasmanian waters has surprised onlookers, but could become more frequent, experts say.

An Adelaide magistrate calls for police to allocate sufficient resources to a criminal neglect investigation into the mistreatment of a baby that left the infant "near death".

A motorcyclist dies in a crash near Port Pirie, another man dies following a crash in Finniss, while the Sturt Highway is closed after a collision near Waikerie.

South Australian police say they have discovered the bones of murdered man Martin Meffert during a dig at a property in the state's Mid North today.

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.

Arrernte man Scott Rathman wants to see more Aboriginal artists teaching in schools to hopefully stamp out racism and stereotypical beliefs.

Farmers in the NSW Great Lakes area band together to titillate taste buds.

The winds are not giving firefighters any breaks as a fire in the Clarence Valley moves in on properties and blazes near Armidale and Tenterfield remain "absolutely enormous", according to the Rural Fire Service.

In today's busy and technology-driven world, children are increasingly suffering from anxiety, and there's often little time to reflect, or play outside. Two NSW women are hoping to change that.

More than 40 sawfish die in the Fitzroy River catchment, known to be the world's last stronghold for the species.

A review of WA's cattle stations finds at least a dozen are at risk of animal welfare issues in coming months because of a lack of food and water.

The 6.6 magnitude earthquake that rattled Broome was 100 times more powerful than the one which claimed 13 lives in Newcastle in 1989 but there were no deaths and very little damage.