The father of a missing Belgian backpacker has appealed for access to his son's encrypted messages, saying they are needed urgently to locate him.

Victoria Police has re-released footage of a man investigators wish to speak to about the assault on June 9, 2018.

Police have located a car belonging to Zixi Wang, who police say may be able to help with their inquiries into the death of a woman who fell from a high-rise complex in the Sydney suburb of Zetland.

King Midas has left his mark again on the same Western Australian gold mine which made global headlines last year after producing some of the biggest gold specimens ever seen.

According to medical experts, a condition that requires coloured glasses does not exist, yet WA and NSW teachers have attended training sessions on it.

When Kalgoorlie's Super Pit gold mine started 30 years ago, there was not a single female employee. Today, the workforce is 30 per cent women, nearly double the mining industry average.

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.

Unperturbed by the region's infamous sharks and 13-degree Celsius sea temperature, Lisa Julian is among a group that swims off the state's south coast each week without wearing a wetsuit.

Hidden in outback scrubland lies a once legendary racetrack, where speed records were broken, sometimes even in the nude.

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.

Chinese interest returns to the Ballarat goldfields, which may provide job security for more than 200 people in the town, but there is concern about how new royalties will affect businesses.

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.

Victorian health authorities are investigating a coronavirus outbreak at a private psychiatric facility which has resulted in at least 14 confirmed cases of the virus so far.

Joining Virginia is Mornings regular and Insiders ABC presenter David Speers, summarizing the top stories of the week and previewing this Sunday's episode of Insiders.

A Victoria Police officer, who was killed along with three of his colleagues when they were struck by a truck, is remembered as a "bright light" by his devastated family, who have been left "with a pain that has taken our breath away".

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

A single charge of attempted indecent assault is dropped against television star Craig McLachlan, but the actor still faces 13 accusations.

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.

As people look for new ways to cope with the isolation of the coronavirus lockdown, business is booming at adult retail stores around the country.

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.

The Gold Coast property market may avoid a significant downturn amid the coronavirus pandemic, with predictions of an increase in the number of interstate buyers chasing a sea change.

For the first time in its 24-year history, Koroit Irish Festival's search for the region's 'best flaming folk' is to take on a new life online.

It's been called a bribe and a wedge — a $3 billion cheque for Catholic and independent schools to ignore the edict from the Andrews Government to teach kids from home, writes Richard Willingham.

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.

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.

The Federal Government is being urged to introduce a housing construction stimulus to prevent dire predictions for the timber industry being realised.

A health industry expert is calling on federal authorities to oversee the return of windfall profits, as customers negotiate with insurers to save money.

A magistrate has apologised to a man who spent months behind bars waiting to be dealt with by the courts for minor theft charges.