Business is booming for the gold mining industry as the price of the precious metal sets new benchmarks almost every day, but not everyone in mining towns like Kalgoorlie is taking a shine to the recent "mini gold rush".

A police investigation is underway in a quiet corner of WA's south-west, after more than 150 people brawled with baseball bats and poles near a local football club's post-grand final celebration.

Police say half a tonne of gold concentrate found in a Kalgoorlie man's backyard came from a commercial mine. The 48-year-old says he found it at the local rubbish tip.

A cold case investigation into the death of a baby in a caravan park in WA's Goldfields 24 years ago takes another twist, with a 55-year-old Queensland man charged with historic child sex offences.

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.

A 60-year-old man living in a caravan in outback WA faces legal action and fines of up to $50,000 from his local council after erecting a shade structure without a building permit.

A Chinese-Australian family whose home was targeted in a coronavirus-related act of vandalism receives an outpouring of support from neighbours, celebrities and fellow Australians online.

The Pyrenees Advocate will release a new weekly paper from May 1 to fill the void left in Ararat by the closure of the 163-year-old Advertiser.

When Kerry and Troy Allard sold their house and packed three kids into a caravan to travel Australia, they didn't expect to be threatened while they searched for a place to stay.

"Emotional, narcissistic and untrustworthy": Former Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull joins Raf to discuss his new book 'A Bigger Picture' which provides a no-holds-barred assessment of his former political colleagues.

An 82-year-old Australian scientist said it seemed appropriate to name a newly discovered species after climate activist Greta Thunberg, given its habitat.

Todd Robinson addresses the media after his partner, Constable Glen Humphris, was one of four police officers killed in a crash on Melbourne's Eastern Freeway.

Constable Glen Humphris and three other officers were hit by a truck while standing in the emergency lane of the Eastern Freeway in Melbourne.

Max Hill spent his police career hunting cannabis suppliers. Now he's seeking drug dealers out again, but this time as a customer — to help his son David ease his post-traumatic stress disorder symptoms.

Some regional Australians argue they should see social-distancing measures wound back first because there is less risk of COVID-19 spreading, but a leading health expert is not a fan of the idea.

Only a few weeks ago Karon Baker was in tears when her local Anzac Day service was called off, but by 6:30am this morning, she couldn't wipe a proud smile off her face.

RAAF veteran Frank Sims was disappointed to not be able to walk with remaining men in the Odd Bods Association but was grateful to have his family around him on Anzac Day in 2020. Brighton East, Melbourne.

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.

The Chief Health Officer encourages more school-aged children to be tested for coronavirus to see if the advice around schools need to change. The call comes as a man aged in his 90s dies in a Victorian hospital, bringing the state's COVID-19 death toll to 17.

The lawyer for truck driver Mohinder Singh tells a Melbourne court his client is deeply distressed by the "tragic consequences" of last week's crash, when the truck he was driving hit and killed four police officers on Melbourne's Eastern Freeway.

Disability advocates say they are concerned about an increase in anxiety among children whose support services have been stripped back during the coronavirus pandemic.

Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews says plans are underway to test 100,000 people over the next fortnight for COVID-19 in order to make an informed decision on which restrictions could be rolled back after the state of emergency ends on May 11.

Federal Attorney-General Christian Porter says he has sought final advice from his department on the release of unpublished documents relating to Cardinal George Pell's handling of child sexual abuse complaints.

Creswick's famous woollen mills reopen to the public in time for winter after closing amid the COVID-19 pandemic, but they remain closed to tourism for now.

Retired naval officer Tony Pincott thought he lost his service medal in 1996, but a metal detectorist located it on a Queensland beach buried in the sand — 300km from where Mr Pincott left it.

Coronavirus sees many housebound Australians revisit instruments they haven't played since they were kids — rediscovering the trials and tribulations of learning along the way.

Victorian Jobs Minister Martin Pakula and Education Minister James Merlino provide an update on the coronavirus outbreak on April 29, 2020. There has been one death, taking the state's death toll to 18.

The lawyer for asthmatic prisoner Mark Rowson tells a court his client should be immediately released from Port Phillip Prison, if authorities cannot mitigate the risk of a coronavirus outbreak in the prison system.

One day, future generations will look back at the history we're living right now, captured in these photos of a nation in shutdown.

The coronavirus pandemic has made life harder for most people, but spare a thought for 66-year-old Isabel McLeary, who is looking after three teenagers with disability who can now only access vital support online.

The Royal Melbourne Show is cancelled this year for only the third time in its 165-year history, but what does this mean for regional shows and trials?

For years, questions have been asked about what Cardinal George Pell might have known about clerical abuse within the Catholic Church. A report that could be released within days may give us the best answer we will ever get.

Victoria's state political reporter Richard Willingham tells of a dramatic week during the COVID-19 pandemic when everything changed, and the particular challenges of reporting a story unlike any other he's covered.

Internet search giant Google is ordered to pay $40,000 in damages to Melbourne lawyer George Defteros after a Supreme Court of Victoria ruling found the internet giant was a publisher, and had defamed the man.

The curve is flattening, the growth factor is below one, but is it still too early to ease coronavirus restrictions? We asked four health experts what Australia should be doing next.

Fire season is officially over in southern Australia, but the work is only just beginning for the royal commission into the deadly crisis.

Across many states and territories, the coronavirus restrictions keeping people at home are finally being relaxed. Here are the things allowed as the country slowly opens back up.

To really understand how this pandemic is impacting all of us, and what we can do about it, we should look to social sciences and the humanities. They have a lot to offer — in ways that might surprise you.

The Prime Minister weighs into the debate on a tweet by Victoria's Deputy Chief Health Officer while the state's Premier says there are "far more important matters to talk about".

Supreme Court Justice Timothy Ginnane orders a COVID-19 risk assessment be undertaken at Port Phillip Prison after finding there was a prima facie case prison authorities breached their duty of care.

As the south and east remain gripped in a cold snap, it might be hard to believe that Australia just had its fifth warmest April on record.

Regional children with congenital heart disease must move to Brisbane to be closely monitored after critical heart surgery. One mum is petitioning for change.

For babies born during the coronavirus pandemic, introductions to extended family members have been a little different. Parents have had to use technology to allow grandparents, aunts and uncles to meet their latest family member.

A comet discovered by a man in regional Victoria is becoming brighter in Australian skies and is being closely watched by amateur astronomers around the world.

The number of coronavirus cases in Victoria continues to inch up as a paramedic tests positive to the virus and health authorities investigate a cluster at a meat processing plant.

Federal Education Minister Dan Tehan accused the Victorian Premier of jeopardising the national consensus on Australia's coronavirus response be refusing to reopen classrooms.