Labor is intent on pushing the so-called "watergate scandal". What exactly it is alleging is about as clear as the water flowing through the Menindee Lakes, writes Kath Sullivan.

Rural independents are proving a difficult test for the Coalition in this election. But the pathway to parliament is harder than it might seem.

A hailstorm blankets Gippsland beaches in white as a cold front sweeps across Victoria, downing trees and causing flash flooding as it dumps 50 millimetres of rain west of Melbourne.

Aged care advocates say policy, regulatory and funding systems have not kept pace with the changing needs and expectations of the growing number of older Australians.

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

A program supporting the homeless with a mentor once they're housed is being hailed as a way to reduce the number of people sleeping rough.

Wangaratta Council has issued the pig's owner with a cease and desist notice, stating he has broken a local law by walking Grunt the pig in public and will be fined $806 if he continues.

The brothers shot by police in Barnawartha North yesterday were radicalised before going to jail last year, NSW Corrective Services allege, as counterterrorism police say one of the men had been on their radar for at least two years.

There has been a second milk recall affecting stores in Victoria and southern New South Wales over fears about possible E.coli contamination.

More than 1,000 pipes from Albury's St Matthew's Church's renowned Letourneau organ will be removed and restored after being damaged by fire three years ago.

Wangaratta's Grunt the pig is back walking on council land after a public campaign led council to reverse the ban with strict conditions.

Taxpayer investments and the water market are making irrigation more efficient and reducing Murray-Darling's base flow. Here's what needs to happen next, write Q J Wang and Avril Horne.

As Australia's competition watchdog prepares to study the Murray-Darling Basin's $2 billion water trade, a trip up the river finds irrigators are worried about the market's "unintended" consequences.

High water prices in the Murray-Darling Basin are blamed on foreign investors and corporate speculators. The simple truth is they are caused mostly by lack of rain.

More than 700,000 people could lose their primary connection to the outside world as the NDIS rollout leaves Vision Australia Radio without essential government funding to stay on air.

A Murray-Darling Basin inspector-general will focus of water efficiency, compliance and theft under a proposal by Water Minister David Littleproud.

Only containers purchased or collected in NSW are supposed to be retuned under the state's scheme.

Albury supermarket owner Bob Mathews says the scheme has cost his business.

Emergency services are warning Victorians to brace for a cold snap and wind gusts of up to 130kph in parts of the south-east, while alpine areas may enjoy heavier snowfall.

Heavy snow, freezing temperatures and "treacherous driving conditions" close access to a popular snow resort as Victoria shivers through its third day of an extreme cold snap that's blanketing towns in snow.

New analysis of water prices in the southern Murray-Darling Basin finds water prices sitting at levels only previously seen during the Millennium Drought.

Commemorating his love for trains, Tim Fischer's coffin was transported by rail to Albury where a state funeral will be held.

Authorities discover more than 120 dead native birds, believed to have been poisoned, on a rural property in northern Victoria.

The humble haberdashery shop was once a mainstay of many a town centre, but is browsing the colourful bits and bobs in these stores in danger of becoming a thing of the past?

A significant move by the Anglican Church to bless the marriage of two gay priests at a ceremony this week has been postponed due to a legal challenge.

A $30 million proposal for a sheep abattoir that would employ 150 full-time workers is opposed by a group of residents, who are concerned about potential health impacts and devaluation of their properties.

Beloved Australian songwriter Garry Koehler, who rose to fame with his band The Bobkatz after penning The Man in the Picture, has died in his Queensland home.

Daisy the school dog is the latest staff member at Melrose Primary School, helping students with her calming influence and improving attendance rates.

Australia's largest cotton farm Cubbie Station has opened its gates to local government councillors from across the Murray-Darling Basin.

Ahead of a fierce fire season, a cadet program for volunteer firefighting prompts school students to join their local Rural Fire Service brigade.

DNA testing has confirmed that a "seriously cute" little dog that crash-landed into a Victorian backyard is an endangered breed of dingo.

Victoria should brace itself for extreme weather over the next few days, with the bureau forecasting damaging winds, flooding rains and snow before conditions clear up for Melbourne Cup day.