The parents of four-year-old Osal Pokhrel have asked the court to impose the lightest possible sentence on Maureen Brew, the 80-year-old driver whose car struck their son. Osal was riding on a shopping trolley pushed by his parents when the car hit him at Southlands Shopping Centre in Mawson in January. He died in hospital. Brew has pleaded guilty to culpable driving causing death. The court heard she pressed the accelerator instead of the brake after the car mounted a kerb. Prosecutors argued a prison term was needed. Justice Belinda Baker reserved her decision for a later date.
Carol Micallef is campaigning for Bailey's Law after her 18-year-old son, Bailey, was fatally stabbed in November 2022. His cousin, Dominic Saliba, was found not guilty of murder but guilty of manslaughter. In April 2025 he was sentenced to seven years and nine months in prison. Micallef says he was on home detention for armed robbery and was in breach of his conditions. She is calling for 10 reforms, including random compliance checks and random drug and weapons searches.
The parents of four-year-old Osal Mayur Pokhrel have asked the ACT Supreme Court for the lightest possible sentence for the elderly driver who killed him. Police believe Maureen Brew, 80, pressed the accelerator instead of the brake when her car drove along a footpath at Southlands Shopping Centre in Mawson in January. Brew pleaded guilty to culpable driving causing death. Her lawyer sought a fully suspended sentence, while the prosecution argued that would not reflect the seriousness of the offence. Justice Belinda Baker reserved her decision and will sentence Brew at a later date.
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Fears are growing that Australian produce could rot in fields if backpacker visa cuts go ahead. A federal agriculture department official told a Senate estimates hearing that no modelling had been done on the likely effect on harvests. Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke announced that second-year visa places will fall from 57,000 to 45,000, and third-year places from 31,000 to 5000. The Northern Territory government has warned that the Top End mango harvest could lose 1000 workers. The National Farmers Federation has urged the government to return to regular visa processing.
Rapper Jay-Z has been selected to headline the 2027 Super Bowl LXI half-time show, his first time performing at the event. The announcement was made by Roc Nation, alongside the NFL and Apple Music, after weeks of rumours. Roc Nation has been involved in producing the show since a 2019 deal with the NFL, which was extended in 2024. Jay-Z said the appearance was a dream come true, marking 30 years since his debut album Reasonable Doubt. The game will be played at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood on Sunday, 14 February.
Joshua Hinton's play A Place in the Sultan's Kitchen blends live cooking, music and storytelling into an exploration of identity and belonging. Staged at the Sydney Opera House, the production follows Hinton's family across countries and faiths as he prepares his grandmother's chicken curry on stage. The play explores migration, grief and the pressure to fit in. Hinton's brother Dominic contributes technical work and occasional performance. The show ends with Hinton's answer to where he is from: "I come from the 'Gong."
South Gippsland Shire Mayor Nathan Hersey led a One Gippsland delegation to Parliament House to press federal MP Darren Chester for regional investment. Priorities included roads and freight, housing, health services, disaster resilience and growth in food, tourism and new energy industries. Chester said a united regional approach helped ensure Gippsland's priorities reached decision-makers. One Gippsland earlier said the federal budget had missed the mark for the region, and welcomed a $500 million regional share of a $2 billion housing-enabling infrastructure fund.
Cost savings are not the only reason some New Zealanders buy illicit tobacco. Research with 20 users found many saw purchases as defiance of a government they felt treated them unfairly. Participants said excise tax revenue had not gone to healthcare, housing or other areas that would benefit them. Many also avoided asking where tobacco came from, a practice the researchers call convenient unknowing. The researchers say a broader response is needed, including tighter supply controls and measures to address poverty and unemployment.
Anangu Traditional Owners and plant scientists have identified physiological traits that helped some desert plant species survive a mass dieback at Uluru. The dieback followed a record-breaking hot drought from 2018 to 2019 in Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park. Researchers found that plants relying on drought-avoidance kept leaf water content better, which was the trait most closely linked to dieback severity. Neither strategy guaranteed survival under extreme heat and drought. Study author Jay Nicholson said the findings show that desert plants can be vulnerable, and that community nurseries and Anangu cultural burning could help reduce drought impacts.
A free family event in Canberra will hold inflatable unicorn and dinosaur races at Glebe Park instead of horse racing. The Compassionate Stakes, now the Festival of Kind Living, will run on Sunday 1 November from 10am to 3pm, ahead of the Melbourne Cup. Organiser Kate Luke, who runs Little Oak Sanctuary near Braidwood, says the event aims to promote animal welfare through fun. The day includes costume hire, vegan food stalls, workshops and a grand final at 2:30 pm.
Deakin University's Waurn Ponds campus in Geelong will host its annual Diwali festival on Friday 6 November, with fireworks at 9pm. The free, family-friendly event runs from 6pm to 9pm and includes cultural performances, food, market stalls and henna art. The City of Greater Geelong supports the festival, which marks Diwali, the festival of lights. Mayor Stretch Kontelj said the celebration matters to many local community members. Registration is required to attend, and free parking is available on site.
New trains due to replace the Xplorer on the Canberra-Sydney line in 2028 will have 20 per cent fewer seats. Transport for NSW is investigating fleet deployment and service planning options to address the capacity shortfall. Currently, three mostly fully booked services run daily. ACT Chief Minister Andrew Barr said adding two services would lift daily capacity by about 35 per cent. A $100 million funding package aims to cut journey times to under four hours.
A plastic-free takeaway cup made by The Good Cup has drawn mixed reaction online after appearing in a Sydney cafe. The single-piece compostable paper design has a folding flap in place of a separate lid. Many social media users mocked it, while others said similar cups were already used in Western Australia. Separately, NSW Environment Minister Penny Sharpe said proposed Plastics 2.0 reforms would not ban single-use coffee cups. Instead, they would require takeaway cups to be recyclable by 2028 and cafes to offer reusable cups.
Greg Lynn will remain in custody after the Victorian Supreme Court refused him bail. Lynn, 60, is charged with murdering Carol Clay, 73, who went missing while camping in Victoria's High Country in March 2020. The former Jetstar pilot was granted a retrial in December after the appeal court found a substantial miscarriage of justice in his first trial. In his bail bid, Lynn told the court he had been assaulted with faeces and held in solitary confinement. Chief Justice Richard Niall ruled that these conditions and five years on remand were not exceptional.
Former airline pilot Greg Lynn has told the Victorian Supreme Court he was attacked twice in prison, including once with a jug of faeces thrown at him. Lynn, 60, is seeking bail before his retrial in May next year over the alleged murder of Carol Clay, 73, who vanished in March 2020 during a camping trip to the Wonnangatta Valley. Lynn maintains he is innocent. Crown prosecutor Mark Gibson KC argued that Lynn had not met the high threshold needed for bail. Chief Justice Richard Niall reserved his decision.
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A new Nepali food truck, The Sekuwa Shack, is parked at the Harrison District Playing Fields in Canberra. Owner Rajesh Chaudhary, who previously worked as a courier, opened it a few months ago. He says trade is busiest after sports games at the oval. The menu includes chicken sekuwa, a grilled meat skewer marinated in spices, and steamed vegetable momos served with a tomato and chilli dipping sauce. The truck is open from 2 pm to 7 pm, seven days a week.
Medical leader Bill Glasson says the Queensland government is breaking state law by leaving mandatory Indigenous positions unfilled on two Brisbane hospital boards. The seats at Metro North and Metro South have been vacant since March 31. Glasson has called on Health Minister Tim Nicholls to make urgent temporary appointments. Nicholls said recruitment is underway to fill the First Nations vacancies in South East Queensland. Professor Tom Calma said the roles are critical given the large Indigenous population in the region.
Greg Lynn will remain in custody after the Victorian Supreme Court refused him bail. Lynn, 60, is charged with murdering Carol Clay, 73, who went missing while camping in Victoria's High Country in March 2020. The former Jetstar pilot was granted a retrial in December after the appeal court found a substantial miscarriage of justice in his first trial. In his bail bid, Lynn told the court he had been assaulted with faeces and held in solitary confinement. Chief Justice Richard Niall ruled that these conditions and five years on remand were not exceptional.
Former Jetstar pilot Greg Lynn has been refused bail while he awaits a retrial over the alleged murder of Victorian retiree Carol Clay. Supreme Court Chief Justice Richard Niall said Mr Lynn's time on remand did not amount to exceptional circumstances. Mr Lynn, 60, is charged with murdering Ms Clay at a remote Victorian campsite in March 2020. He was acquitted over the death of her companion, Russell Hill, and he maintains his innocence. The trial is set for May 2027.
