The Youth Advocacy Centre says its funding has been cut after it criticised the Queensland government's youth justice measures. Chief executive Katherine Hayes said the organisation applied for several tenders but was awarded none, with its contract ending early. She said the cut affects $3 million and 19 frontline workers. Hayes believes the cut was retaliation for her criticism. Youth Justice Minister Laura Gerber says the program was not renewed because it did not meet government performance targets on reoffending while on bail.
Seventeen people from the Northern Territory have been named as nominees for the 2027 Australian of the Year Awards. Nominees were recognised in four categories: Australian of the Year, Senior Australian of the Year, Young Australian of the Year and Local Hero. Their work covers youth mentorship, education, First Nations culture, volunteering, community advocacy and healthcare. National Australia Day Council CEO Carrie Leeson said the nominees share a commitment to caring for others. The Northern Territory award recipients will be announced on November 9 in Darwin, with the ceremony livestreamed online.
A 55-year-old man has been arrested and charged in Katherine over drug offences. Police say he left about 5 grams of methamphetamine under a pillow at a Katherine hotel he had checked out of on Thursday, 15 October. Detectives from the Northern Investigations Section seized the drugs and began an investigation. On Friday, police stopped his vehicle near the Katherine Weighbridge and found a less than traffickable quantity of cannabis inside. He faces charges of possessing a dangerous drug in both traffickable and less than traffickable quantities, and driving with a prohibited drug in his body.
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Critics fear Australia could miss its chance to send its first nationally flagged astronaut into space. Katherine Bennell-Pegg was offered a seat on a 2028 European Space Agency mission. The federal government has made a funding offer, but its value has not been disclosed. It is understood the offer falls well short of the estimated $100 million needed. Science Minister Tim Ayres said the offer balances budget pressures. South Australia was among a small number of states to contribute funding.
Darwin's Jim Beam House at 94 East Point Rd, Fannie Bay, has sold for $10 million to mango growers Nino and Tina Niceforo. The price beat the Northern Territory residential sales record of $8.5 million, set in 2022. The seller, John Robinson, is a tourism and hospitality entrepreneur. Selling agent Seth Chin said the sale reflected confidence in the Territory economy and property market, and that Darwin's top end was performing strongly while southern markets slowed. The home was built in the 1980s for bourbon importer Norm Forster.
The federal government has submitted a final bid to the European Space Agency to send Australian of the Year Katherine Bennell-Pegg to the International Space Station. If the agency accepts, she would become the first person to formally represent Australia on a space agency mission. Science Minister Tim Ayres said the government was grateful for the opportunity but must manage costs carefully. Philanthropists have committed over $6 million in cash and in-kind support, and the industry-led flyKatherine campaign has reportedly reached $25 million. South Australia is the only state to publicly confirm financial support.
Kate Day and Nina Stocker are sisters-in-law who started Seeing Double Wine Co about ten years ago. Neither came from a winemaking family, and they had no winery, vineyard or bank loan when they began. They made wine by renting space at other wineries and sourcing fruit from growers they knew. Their partnership with wine club Naked Wines provided funding and a ready market. The pair says they work well together despite very different working styles, and that they settle disagreements by talking things through or asking their backer to decide.
Preliminary police data shows property offences in Darwin have risen since October last year, returning to 2024 levels in July and August 2026. Across the Northern Territory, property offences fell 15 per cent and offences against the person fell 6 per cent in the government's second year. Alice Springs has seen significant reductions in both crime types, while Katherine's crime levels are similar to or worse than two years ago. Rural areas have not shown the drops the government's measures targeted. The government did not respond to a request for comment.
Ahead of New Zealand's November 7 election, voters say the promise of a better life is getting harder to keep. About 350,000 people are estimated to have left over three years, almost half moving to Australia. In Wellington, hundreds protested in August against soaring water bills. One family of three lives in a campervan while the mother undergoes cancer treatment, and housing assistance was reportedly refused. Māori and Pacific communities, hit hardest by unemployment and homelessness, are asking whether politicians will give them a reason to stay.
Calls are growing for improved safety and domestic, family and sexual violence services in remote Northern Territory Aboriginal communities. A 26-year-old man has faced court over the alleged murder of a 16-year-old girl in a domestic violence attack in Alpurrurulum. Special Envoy Marion Scrymgour has asked governments to reopen the police station there, which closed in 2018. She says violence is also affecting women and children in Wadeye and Katherine. The Aboriginal Medical Services Alliance Northern Territory has called for urgent investment in specialist support, safe accommodation and permanent police presence.
South Australia will support a proposed mission to send Australian of the Year Katherine Bennell-Pegg to the International Space Station, despite most other states and territories declining to fund the venture. South Australian Premier Peter Malinauskas said his government would make a contribution to the national endeavour. The federal government has asked states and territories to help fund Ms Bennell-Pegg joining a European Space Agency mission before the end of the decade, which includes specialised training in Germany and the United States.
Former Labor Attorney-General Robert McClelland has been recommended as the next National Anti-Corruption Commissioner. He will replace Paul Brereton, who resigned in May amid conflicts-of-interest concerns. Christopher Savundra has been recommended as deputy commissioner. Attorney-General Michelle Rowland said both were chosen through a merit-based selection process. The parliamentary committee unanimously approved the appointments. The five-year terms are proposed to begin on 11 January 2027.
Progress on ethical and sustainable practice in Australia's fashion industry has stalled, according to Baptist World Aid's Ethical Fashion Report, which assessed 500 brands across 48 measures. Brands averaged 31.5 out of 100, a marginal rise from 2024. Katherine Halliday said companies were writing sound policies but failing to put them into practice for garment workers, particularly on living wages and access to grievance mechanisms. Luxury and fast fashion brands scored similarly, while outdoor brand Patagonia ranked highly.
Most Australian fashion brands cannot show that workers in their overseas supply chains are paid a living wage, a new report has found. Baptist World Aid Australia analysed more than 500 local fashion houses, and 87 per cent could not provide evidence of living wage payments. In final-stage factories, a living wage was paid in only 3 per cent of cases. Report author Katherine Halliday said brands are talking about sustainability but not delivering real change for workers. She said cheap clothing demand is adding to the problem, and that paying workers fairly would raise consumer prices only slightly.
Former Labor attorney-general Robert McClelland has been chosen as the new head of the National Anti-Corruption Commission. He replaces inaugural chief Paul Brereton, who resigned earlier this year, two years before his five-year term ended. McClelland, 68, currently serves as Deputy Chief Justice of the Federal Circuit and Family Court and takes up the role on January 11. Attorney-General Michelle Rowland announced the appointment, which was approved by the parliamentary committee overseeing the commission. Rowland also named Christopher Savundra as deputy commissioner.
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A tribunal has overturned a Clarence Valley Council rule that would have banned anyone under 55 from living in permanent vans at the Brooms Head Holiday Park on the NSW North Coast. The NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal found the rule was not fair and reasonable and could hurt the saleability of permanent sites. The tribunal said it could not identify a clear purpose for the rule. The rule was introduced as eviction notices were issued across caravan parks last year. Around 80 cases remain before the tribunal, and seven have been resolved so far.
Former Labor attorney general and federal court judge Robert McClelland has been named the new boss of the National Anti-Corruption Commission. Attorney General Michelle Rowland said he was chosen through an open, merit-based selection process. Christopher Savundra has been appointed deputy commissioner. Both will begin five-year terms on 11 January next year, subject to approval by the governor general. The appointments follow the resignation of Paul Brereton, who quit in May amid criticism of his performance. Independent MP Helen Haines said the appointments offer a chance to rebuild public confidence.
A filmmaking program between Indonesian and regional Queensland universities is using horror to bring creators together. University of Southern Queensland lecturer Katherine Putnam says a shared language of fear has helped break down language barriers. The team filmed short horror movies in Indonesia before finishing in Toowoomba. The $60,000 program is funded by the university and the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade. Regional filmmaker Amy Parry says concern is growing about state government cuts to Screen Queensland funding.
A team led by a police museum curator and an archaeologist dug in the yard of the Mount Larcom police station, in central Queensland, to look for documents a constable allegedly buried rather than destroy. The constable, Edward Robb, had reportedly been ordered to destroy papers older than 10 years. The search relied on an old story and a missing tin roof marker, and the team found no documents. Its members said the papers may still be there and that a further search would need ground-penetrating radar or machine excavation.
