The Australian Tax Office reports a "small amount of fraudulent activity" related to its early superannuation access scheme, which was designed to provide financial relief to people left without income due to coronavirus.

A magnitude-6.9 earthquake in the Banda Sea is felt in Darwin but there have been no reports of damage, the quake is also felt in Indonesia.

Black holes usually cannot be seen but astronomers have now discovered one closer to Earth than any that have ever been located before.

It's been 50 years since the Beatles released their final album, Let It Be. Now, a new film will look back on its making, and the deep divisions that led to the band's breakup. But just how accurately will it portray what really went on?

Imagine trying to eradicate COVID-19 without knowing how many cases there are in Australia. That is the situation mental health advocates say is hampering the fight against suicide.

Coronavirus has crippled the global tourism industry and in Thailand that means it includes elephants. As a result of the pandemic many elephants are heading back to their natural habitats.

Celebrities, cooks and internationally renowned performers offer online masterclasses, as those in coronavirus isolation look to upskill.

The State Government is preparing its plans to rebuild the Tasmanian economy and some of the hardest-hit sectors are keen to return soon, but they say safety comes first.

MORNING BRIEFING: The proposed changes allow councils to apply the rate cap more flexibly and comes as local governments suffer financial hardship from the coronavirus pandemic.

After watching turtles overcome horrific injuries, five-year-old Queenslander, Owen Harris, is urging everyone not to litter and to do the "right thing" when fishing.

A remote Central Australian community will trial a technology that boosts supplies of drinking water using solar power and air, after battling water security issues for several years.

When the coronavirus pandemic began, London-based events planner Ali Lord decided the best place to be was at her parents' cattle station, so she packed up her laptop and reconnected it 17 days later, after an epic commute.

The International Transport Workers Federation says contacts on the ship told them there are six people in isolation on board due to COVID-19.

A southern Tasmanian man in his 60s is the latest to test positive for COVID-19 as the Premier prepares to release details on Friday afternoon of a slow easing of coronavirus restrictions.

New legislation in the ACT will criminalise elder abuse, but some lawyers are worried about how effective the laws will be.

The prosecution in the Claremont serial killings trial withdraws its case that Bradley Edwards was so emotionally upset about the breakdown of his relationship with his wife that he murdered three young women.

The WA Government drills down on its decision to reject a home and away AFL season, saying the state's borders "would not and should not" be compromised to accommodate players.

SA legal reforms that will allow alleged sex offenders to be named earlier in proceedings are being hailed as an important safety measure, but the Law Society is concerned about vigilantism.

South Australia records its first new COVID-19 case in a fortnight, with a man who returned from the UK in March testing positive weeks after he is believed to have contracted the virus.

The pub in South Australia's south-east allegedly served drinks to a number of customers in its front bar on Tuesday night.

The Federal Government will name and shame organisations which do not sign up to the National Redress Scheme for victims of child abuse, but a parliamentary committee wants it to go much further.

Australia's attempts to appeal to reason and have a truly non-partisan coronavirus inquiry appear to have sparked a nationalistic debate between the United States and China, writes Philip Williams.

Research from multiple studies across the world points to evidence that being overweight or obese might also make the impacts of COVID-19 more severe, particularly for those aged under 60.

A council on Sydney's southern outskirts calls for changes to bushfire evacuation planning after thousands of people were left like "sitting ducks" in a 15-kilometre traffic jam, as a major blaze threatened the area.

Queensland, South Australia and Tasmania are the first states to announce the easing of coronavirus restrictions under the National Cabinet's plan to reopen Australia, but Victorians will have to wait until Monday to learn what rules will change for them. As it happened.

A lucrative but illegal trade in alcohol known as sly-grogging has developed in remote towns and there are allegations it is being facilitated by rogue taxi drivers.

After years of failed self-regulation, the Federal Government has imposed a watchdog on the financial planning sector. But will FASEA be able to stop conflicted payments and poor advice where many others have tried and failed?

Recently, there's been a surge in withdrawals, with people scared of selling in an unstable market as a recession looms and job losses hit. Agents like Rufina have never seen anything like it.

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.

MORNING BRIEFING: The NSW Transport Minister will no longer serve as Leader of the House, the latest episode in a tumultuous week for Mr Constance in which he announced his bid for the federal seat of Eden-Monaro before withdrawing from the race 24 hours later.

Some think Australia is spending billions in a "wasteful splurge on old-timers who were going to die sometime soon anyway". But it has Australia well placed to cautiously remove coronavirus restrictions while protecting lives, writes political editor Andrew Probyn.

After five months of evidence from more than 200 witnesses, the Claremont serial killings trial is nearing an end. Here is the state's case against Bradley Edwards for the murders of three young women in Perth.

Bright, bold and ethereal — the sight of May's supermoon rising behind world landmarks will take your breath away.

SA Police officer Joanne Shanahan, who was killed in an horrific road crash last month, has been farewelled by friends, family and colleagues at an emotional funeral service in Adelaide.

Convicted killer Wendie-Sue Dent will ask South Australia's highest court to acquit her of murder after a jury found she poisoned her partner with a lethal dose of prescription medication to inherit his $300,000 estate.

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.

The mother of a young boy who was killed when a truck driver with sleep apnoea crashed into their car says she won't get to hear "Happy Mother's Day" from her son on Sunday or ever again.

Tasmanian students can return to classrooms by the end of May under the Premier's plan to roll back coronavirus restrictions. Rules around national parks, funerals and aged care visits will ease from Monday, with two consecutive days without new cases.

The NSW Police watchdog finds the strip searches of four teenagers at two separate music festivals were unlawful, but stops short of findings of misconduct against the officers involved.

James Stuart Logue, a 29-year-old kitchenhand, also pleaded guilty to watching videos of young children being sexually abused in "depraved" ways.

A defamation lawsuit launched by one of Australia's most decorated soldiers could be delayed until next year because of coronavirus and a decision by the Attorney-General to invoke special secrecy laws to protect sensitive military information.

Although anecdotal evidence and media reports suggest COVID-19 has prompted a spike in racism, there is very little data available that can provide a more detailed picture of what is happening, writes Chin Tan.

Why are there so few antivirals? The answer boils down to biology, and specifically the fact viruses use our own cells to multiply. This makes it hard to kill viruses without killing our own cells in the process.

Nicole Alexander grew up in a generational grazing family where the custom of handing a rural business on to the eldest son was an unwritten rule — one that tested the bonds of her relationship with her father.

The UK Government will reveal the next "very cautious" phase of its plan to deal with the fallout from coronavirus, Brazil registers 10,222 new cases in one day, and Donald Trump says he isn't worried about a spread of the virus in the White House after a Mike Pence aide tests positive.

The recurring political debate about immigration tends to ignore the demand and employment that new communities create, writes Daniel Ziffer.

As lockdown begins to ease the lesson is to take it gently and recognise we may have entered a new epoch of rolling pandemics, writes Virginia Trioli.

Some aged care homes will allow staggered visits over the Mother's Day weekend to abide by social distancing requirements.

The parents of young children in Queensland will be fighting back the urge to jump for joy this weekend, but the little ones might be feeling a bit anxious about returning to school.

A 92-year-old resident of Newmarch House aged care home in western Sydney dies after contracting coronavirus, as NSW reaches a record high in testing rates.