Australia
Commonwealth of Australia
Popular Foods in Australia
One can come across a wide variety of interesting and delectable foodstuffs in Australian cuisine. Here are some popular foods in Australia, which are in demand from the olden days till date.
Australia Seeks Future More Peaceful Than Its Past
News article discussing the newly forged security alliance between Japan and Australia.
McCartney Hysteria Sweeps Australia Once Again
News article about the chaos and hysteria surrounding the launch of Stella McCartney's budget range in Target stores across Australia.
The Future of Australia is Drugs
News article on the mass of drug busts at Melbourne's recent Future Music Festival...
"Crocodile Hunter" Steve Irwin Killed by Stingray in Australia
One of Australia’s favorite sons, Steve Irwin, was killed by the barb of a stingray Monday while filming an underwater documentary on the Great Barrier Reef.
Australia: The Slang Down Under
The slang language from Australia. Slang is usually the poetry of the common lot and the Aussies are an uncommonly poetic lot!
A Civilized Savagery: The Story of Stolen Generations
The story of Australia's stolen generations, is the story of cultural bigotry. Thousands of aboriginal children were forcibly taken away from their families, by government policy. It is a story that raises questions about the very notions of civilization that we hold dear.
Survivor: Love in the Australian Outback
Surprisingly enough, the most intriguing romance of Survivor 2: The Australian Outback only involved one of the show's cast members.
From The Land Down Under: Australian Government Questions 'Survivor' Flight
The Land Down Under is now questioning whether the expensive lift its military provided to 'Survivor' contestants was justified.
Australia Rethinks Migrant Support
As diverse demand from new arrivals forces a reappraisal of 'one-size-fits-all' language training, one volunteer group is experimenting with varied approaches to teaching, reports Rob Burgess
Australia Swears in First Female Governor General
Quentin Bryce, thought to be a republican, becomes Queen's representative in Australia
HD TV Channels in Australia
If you are thinking about experiencing the latest in HD TV technology, there are a few important areas to take into consideration. Firstly, what do you intend to watch? There has been a lot of buzz around High Definition TV lately and it is important to consider the HD TV channels being offered in Australia. Secondly, not all HD technology is the same, so it is important to know what equipment is best.
Return of Aboriginal Remains
A museum yesterday said sorry and handed back four skulls collected from Australia's Aborigine people by colonial explorers more than a century ago.
Pope Apologises for Sexual Abuse By Clergy in Australia
Benedict XVI 'deeply sorry' for pain and suffering and calls for perpetrators to be brought to justice
The Future of Australian Financial Credit
What does the future of the Australian Financial Market hold? Economists are in heated discussion over the possibilities. Read and find out the projections and educated guesses for what the near and distant future have in store for Australian consumers.
Pope to Apologise for Clergy Abuse in Australia
Pontiff arrives for nine-day tour, with 200,000 Catholics expected at youth festival
Sydney's Voice of Tradition
Profile: Peter Jensen, Anglican archbishop of Sydney
BG Launches £6.7bn Bid for Australian Energy Company
British firm launches hostile bid for coal seam gas producer Origin Energy
Barrier Reef Divers Rescued After 20 Hours Stranded in Ocean
British man and American woman winched to safety after big air and sea search operation
Sydney Youth Hostels
Australia has long been a backpacker's favorite, with its vast and visually stunning landscape broken up by modern and bustling cities around its edges. Undoubtedly the most famous of these is Sydney, not least because of its instantly recognizable landmarks, the Harbour Bridge and the Sydney Opera House.
UK Tourist Dies As Jetski Hits Anchor Chain in Australia
British doctor holidaying in Australia is killed on the country's Gold Coast after jetski accident
Paedophile Who Lived in Australia for 56 Years Sent to Uk
Deportee will have to sign sex offenders register and tell authorities where he is living
Whalers Accuse Australia of Helping Activists' 'illegal Actions'
Japanese whaling authorities have accused Australia of offering 'limousine service' to the environmental activists who leaped aboard a harpoon vessel last week in a dramatic encounter in the Antarctic
Granddaughter of Churchill Dies As Australia Jails Her Son
Arabella Churchill, charity worker, co-founder of the Glastonbury festival and granddaughter of Sir Winston, died of cancer early yesterday - the same day that her son was jailed in Australia for his part in a multi-million pound drug racket
Australia Signs Up to Kyoto Deal to End 10-year Exile
Australia yesterday joined the fold of rich countries committed to tackling climate change by signing the Kyoto agreement to limit CO2 emissions, at once distancing itself from the US and ending a 10-year diplomatic exile on the issue
Ausra Solar Heat and Power Information
It's difficult to stand out in the competitive solar energy market, but Ausra, an Australian-American company, seems to be successful at setting itself apart from the competition.
Rudd Pledges to Withdraw Australian Troops From Iraq
Incoming Australian PM pledges to withdraw troops from Iraq
Australian Poll Holds Lessons for Labour, Warns Milburn
Gordon Brown needs to learn lessons from Australia's recent general election or face possible defeat, the former cabinet minister Alan Milburn has warned
Australians Named As World's Worst Polluters
Countries ranked by power station output· Americans in second place and Britons come ninth
Couple Were Moving to Live in Australia
A couple preparing to emigrate to Australia to be with their newly born grandson were feared to be among the Britons who died in the crash at Phuket airport.
Australian Minister Warns Against Iraq Pullout
A precipitous withdrawal from Iraq could spark a wider conflict, the Australian foreign minister warned today, amid White House fears that Republican support for George Bush's "surge" strategy is crumbling.
Grown in Italy, Pressed in Sweden, Sold As Chianti. Europlonk Nouveau Has Arrived
Commission to take on US and Australian producers - Traditionalists outraged at plans for blended wines
Australian Police Arrest Man Over Uk Car Bombs
Doctor arrested at Brisbane airport - Controlled explosion of car at Glasgow mosque - US 'had prior warnings of Glasgow attack'
Tiny, Blind Creatures Halt £5bn Australian Mining Project
Five new species of troglobite unearthed - Rio Tinto subsidiary to appeal against decision
Australian Detainee Could Be Home in Months
David Hicks, the Australian detainee who pleaded guilty last night to war crimes charges after five years in Guantanamo Bay, could be sent home within months, according to US prosecution lawyers.
Australian First to Face Guantanamo Tribunal
David Hicks case will test new military hearings - Plea may change to guilty in bid to end confinement
Muslim Clerics in Australia Gagged for 'double-speak'
A Muslim association in Australia has banned five clerics from talking to the media for what it said were "anti-Australian" comments.
Australia Switches on to Light Bulb Change
Australia will ban incandescent light bulbs to help cut greenhouse gas emissions, its government announced today.
Country Diary: The Otway Ranges, Australia
We had planned to travel some 300km north-east of Melbourne to Mount Buffalo, but the...
Mazda CX-9 Goes to Australia
Mazda will include the CX-9 to its 2008 lineup in Australia. The inclusion is aimed at empowering the automaker's lineup to encourage a bigger market.
Australia Suffers Worst Drought in 1,000 Years
Depleted reservoirs, failed crops and arid farmland spark global warming tussle.
Australian Muslim Leader Compares Uncovered Women to Exposed Meat
A senior Muslim cleric in Australia has sparked a furore after comparing women who do not wear a headscarf to "uncovered meat", implying that they invited sexual assault.
Australia Gets Ready For Summer With BMW M6 Convertible
In the land Down Under, the Aussies would be able to take their very first peek at one of the fastest and also the most expensive vehicles from the BMW range. This new vehicle has got the capacity to put its top down and keep it out of sight. And it is called the BMW M6 convertible.
Australians Fight Fear of Power Crisis With Giant Solar Site
· Shortfalls lead to search for alternative sources · 154MW project to provide power for 45,000 homes
Aboriginal Groups Deny Australian Land Grab
Aboriginal groups have hit back at claims that a controversial court ruling granting traditional land rights to metropolitan Perth, could lead to a "land grab" across Australia.
Australian Press Giants Oppose Media Shakeup
Australian newspaper publisher John Fairfax Holdings has joined News Corp in refusing to support planned changes to the country's media ownership laws. By Julia Day.
Australian Drug Smugglers Get Death Sentence
Indonesia's supreme court has imposed the death penalty on four members of a nine-person Australian drug-running gang who were appealing against lengthy prison sentences for smuggling heroin out of Bali, officials said yesterday.
Death Penalty Shock for Australians
Indonesia's supreme court has imposed the death penalty on four members of a nine-person Australian drug-running gang who were appealing against lengthy prison sentences for smuggling heroin out of Bali, officials said today.
Caring For Your Australian Uggs and Winter Sheepskin Boots
So you've invested in a great pair of genuine Australian uggs, and your feet are looking and feeling great in their new trendy winter sheepskin boots. Now you want your Aussie winter sheepskin boots to last as long as your trusty denims. Here are a few tips for looking after your Australian uggs.
The Australian Ugg Boots Fashion Phenomenon
Ugg boots. Aussie souvenir gifts, winter sheepskin boots, fashionable Australian sheepskin footwear. Call them what you will, they're the fashion accessory that you will never grow out of, that you'll wear more than your trusty faded denim jeans, and that your feet will love you for.
Australia Opens Up Media Sector
Australia has today scrapped its foreign media ownership and cross-media restrictions. By Stephen Brook.
Australian Troops Try to Halt Timor Battles
· Military, rebels, police and militia fight for control · Civilians cheer as foreign commandos seal airport
Australian Troops Arrive in East Timor
More than 100 Australian commandoes arrived in the troubled capital of East Timor today in an attempt to calm a mutiny that has seen almost half the army fighting their former colleagues.
Australian Miners Tell of Two-week Ordeal
· First TV interview reveals desperation before rescue · Huge media interest likely to earn pair up to £1m
After 14 Days Trapped Underground, Australian Miners Walk to Safety
Public was gripped by fate of men who had been feared dead.
Australia Holds Its Breath As Two Heroes of the Deep Near Rescue
The church bells of Beaconsfield, a small town in north Tasmania, have not rung since the end of the Second World War. But last night the bellringers were preparing to go to work again as two mates who have been buried alive for 12 days half a mile deep after the collapse of the town's goldmine on 25 April were being dug free of their nightmare.
Australians Face Death for Drug Smuggling
· Leader and henchman of heroin gang to appeal · Stop taking terrible risks, Howard warns young
Australia Battles Wildfires As New Year Brings Record Heatwave
· Sydney records highest temperature since 1939 · Buildings destroyed as fires burn out of control
Widow Wins Right to Have Dead Husband's Baby
In the first ruling of its kind in Australia, a Melbourne woman has won a seven-year battle to have her dead husband's baby.
Skippy Keeps Kangaroo Meat Off the Barbie
When it comes to kangaroos, it seems Australians prefer to see Skippy on television rather than flame-grilled on the barbecue.
Australia Terror Suspects 'were Stopped Near Nuclear Plant'
Three of the 18 terror suspects arrested in Sydney and Melbourne last week were stopped and questioned by police near Australia's only nuclear power station, it was claimed today.
Parking Ticket Put on Car As Man Sat Dead Inside
A man who had died was given a parking ticket as he sat slumped in his car outside a busy shopping centre in Melbourne, Australia.
Next G-20 Meeting Of Foreign Ministers In Australia
Since its inception, the G-20 gathering has become a key forum to address international economic matters.
Study reveals key to long life: stones and shells
Australian scientists have discovered why ancient plesiosaurs lived for so long: they had a varied diet.
Scientist Who Braved Ulcer Wins Nobel
An Australian microbiologist who swallowed mouthfuls of bacteria to prove they cause stomach ulcers was awarded the 2005 Nobel prize in physiology or medicine for his pioneering research yesterday.
Clothes Line Offer for Queen's Dirty Washing Hung Out to Dry By Australian Governor
They are an indispensable part of every great Australian back yard, situated between the barbecue and vegetable patch.
Australia Abandons Gmt and Goes Nuclear
Another link with Britain is severed as country consigns Greenwich Mean Time to history and adopts Parisian pacemaker.
Case of Missing Pm to Be Reopened
It remains the greatest mystery in Australian political history: did the then prime minister Harold Holt drown while swimming at his favourite beach or was he spirited away in a Chinese submarine? Almost four decades after Holt vanished at Cheviot Beach, south-east of Melbourne, an...
Australian Ban on Mate Wins Few Friends
In an edict from a senior civil servant, security staff at Australia's national parliament in Canberra were told not to use the greeting "G'day mate" when admitting visitors and politicians in case they caused offence.
Australia Looks Abroad for Skilled Workers
Australia is planning its biggest global recruitment drive since the "£10 pom" campaign of the 1950s by trying to lure 20,000 skilled workers to the country to cover key shortages.
Australian Bank Stirs Hopes of Lse Fight
Euronext may be forced to bid more for London exchange as ambitious Macquarie hints at a consortium.
Australia Deports Paedophile to Uk
A British paedophile who has spent 37 years in jail in Australia is being been deported back to the UK. Robert Excell, 66, has a string of child sex convictions dating back to the 1960s.
Australian Smokers Will Be Extinct By 2030, Researchers Say
Smoking will be virtually extinct in Australia within 25 years and more frowned upon than spitting in the street, according to researchers who have scientifically mapped the end of the smoking epidemic.
Australia Recruits British Squaddies While Army Remains Short-staffed
British squaddies are being offered a new life as Australian "diggers" under a recruitment drive aimed at tackling a shortage of young soldiers in the Antipodes.
Australia to Send Troops to Afghanistan
Australia is to send 150 troops into Afghanistan to fight the insurgency threatening to derail parliamentary elections due to take place in September, it was announced today.
Sewage Could Solve Australia's Drought
A severe drought is drying up drinking water across Australia, threatening to shut down big population centres but also creating the conditions for a revolution in water use.
Australian Hostage Freed in Iraq
Iraqi and American troops freed an Australian hostage yesterday after storming a kidnap gang's hideout in Baghdad, officials said.
20-year Sentence for Tourist in Drug Case That Gripped Australia
An Australian tourist was sentenced to 20 years in jail yesterday for attempting to smuggle more than 4kg (9lb) of marijuana into the Indonesian holiday island of Bali, concluding a trial that has gripped her country.
British Paedophile to Be Deported From Australia
A British paedophile who has spent 37 years in an Australian jail is to be deported to the UK, officials said today.
Press Review: Australia
... Australia's opposition. Australian commentators weren't impressed with Kim Beazley's accession to the leadership of the Australian Labor party last Friday.
Explosives Fear in Australian Siege
Police were last night surrounding a hotel on Australia's Gold Coast after a man barricaded himself in one of the rooms and was said to have explosives and possibly hostages inside with him.
Australian Ministry Vilified Muslims, Court Rules
An Australian court ruled today that a fundamentalist Christian ministry had vilified Muslims in a test case that could have repercussions for a proposed British law on incitement to religious hatred.
Why Everyone Wants to Be Australian
The Observer's Peter Conrad, currently giving Australia's equivalent of the Reith lectures, says his country has shed its uncultured image and is conquering the world with its new brand of Utopianism.
Australians to Make Suicide Pill
The controversial Australian euthanasia advocate Philip Nitschke has announced plans for a suicide pill which could be manufactured at home from easily available ingredients. The proposed "peaceful pill" would consist of a small dose of liquid barbiturates which could be kept until its...
One Metre-tall Human Challenges History of Evolution
Australian and Indonesian scientists identify a new and completely unexpected species of human.
Sinking Feeling to Ft's Australian Launch
Staff at the Financial Times are used to stocks plunging but ended up taking something of a dive themselves yesterday when a yacht promoting the new Australian edition of the newspaper struck rocks and capsized in Sydney harbour. Some of the four crew and 10 passengers, including senior...
Social Problems Belie Commercial Success of Australian Gambling
Australians spend nearly 4% of their annual household income on gambling. For many it is a way of life, whether they drop in to play the pokies at lunchtime or 9am.
Australia Says Text Message Warned of Jakarta Bombing
An Indonesian police officer received a mobile phone text message warning of an attack against western embassies in Jakarta 45 minutes before Thursday's deadly car bomb outside the Australian mission but did not pass it on, the Australian government said yesterday. The allegation caused...
Australian Embassy Bomb Kills Nine
Nine people were killed and another 160 injured in a suicide car bomb attack on the Australian embassy in Jakarta today. The blast flattened the gate of the fortress-like embassy, mangled cars and motorbikes on the street outside, and blew off the glass fronts of office towers nearby....
Australian Embassy Bomb Kills Eight
At least eight people were today killed in a suicide car bomb attack on the Australian embassy in Jakarta. The blast, which came during election campaigns in both Indonesia and Australia, happened outside the building at 10.15am local time (0415 BST), wounding up to 100 people...
Australian Embassy Bomb Kills Seven
Seven people were killed today in a car bomb attack on the Australian embassy in Jakarta. The blast, which came during election campaigns in both Indonesia and Australia, hit the outside of the building at 10.15am local time (04.15 BST) and left up to 100 people wounded. The...
Australian Missile Bid Makes Region Uneasy
Australia risks starting a regional arms race with its plans to buy a A$450m (£176m) cruise missile system for its fighter aircraft, the Indonesian government warned yesterday. The missiles, which could carry an air-launched one-tonne bomb 250 miles, will make the Australian air...
Dusty Death: How Asbestos Hit Australia
Post-war housing boom planted seeds of deadly illnesses. Travellers know they are approaching Wittenoom from the health warnings posted every few miles along the roadside.
60-mile Ant Colony Hits Melbourne
Melbourne is under threat from an invader straight out of a horror film: a giant column of ants 60 miles across. The supercolony of Argentine ants - a species that arrived in the country from South America in the 1930s - has swamped the city. The insects do not harm humans but...
Australia's War Policy Criticised
A roll call of Australia's military and diplomatic establishment yesterday attacked the country's foreign policy on Iraq and on terrorism, labelling it deceptive and dangerous. The group of 43 former officials warned that the policies of John Howard's government had undermined democracy,...
Australia Went to War on Back of 'thin' Intelligence
The Australian government did not manipulate the pre-war intelligence on Iraq but relied on information which was "thin, ambiguous and incomplete", a report published yesterday concluded. The report, by Canberra's former high commissioner in London Philip Flood, found that there had been...
Report Clears Australian Government on Wmds
It is becoming a familiar refrain: a report out today has identified a failure by the Australian intelligence services to assess Iraq's WMD capability in the run-up to war but absolved politicians of interfering in intelligence assessments. The former intelligence chief Philip Flood said...
Culprits Hunted After Death of Australian Surfer
A surfer has been killed by sharks off the coast of Western Australia, sparking a hunt for the animals suspected of mauling the man to death at the weekend. Bradley Smith, 29, was killed on Saturday off Left Handers beach, a popular surfing spot in the Margaret River wine-growing region...
Plan to Halt Wind in the Woolies
Australia has some inventive solutions to greenhouse emissions, from burying carbon dioxide to building a half-mile-high tower to generate solar energy. But government researchers yesterday announced the strangest proposal yet - plans to vaccinate livestock to prevent them letting off...
Twisted Tail of a Bar Snack Too Far
An Australian pub has apologised over a game in which contestants were egged on to eat live mice to win a A$500 (£200) beach holiday. Brisbane is no stranger to bizarre pub games, hosting the annual cockroach-racing world championships and numerous suburban cane toad races. But the...
Australian Rock Star Goes From Green to Mp
The former lead singer of one of Australia's most popular bands has been handed a safe seat by the opposition Labor party for the forthcoming parliamentary elections, a move which has infuriated some party members and sparked claims of political opportunism. The offer to Peter Garrett,...
Australian Rock Star's Trip From Green to Mp
The former lead singer of one of Australia's most popular bands has been handed a safe seat by the opposition Labor party for the forthcoming parliamentary elections, a move which has infuriated some party members and sparked claims of political opportunism.
Australia to Ban Gay Marriages
Australia is introducing legislation to ban gay marriage, in a move which puts the prime minister, John Howard, squarely alongside President Bush on the issue that may prove crucial to their respective attempts to gain re-election. "The commonly accepted definition of a marriage is a...
Radio Kings Row About Pulling Australia's Strings
Talkback host says rival boasted of job-fixing influence on PM.
Australia May Get Vote on Republic
Australia's opposition has promised a referendum on a republic within 12 months if it wins a general election expected in October. The Labor leader, Mark Latham, said that a yes vote would result in Australia dissolving its links with the monarchy by the end of 2007. With Labor having...
Australian Defence Adviser 'sacked Over Wmd Reports'
A former senior Australian defence adviser claimed yesterday she was edged out of her job because she refused to lie about the case for war in Iraq. Jane Errey, a former adviser to Australia's chief defence scientist working in the department's science and technology organisation, said...
Trial spotlights Australia's migrant policy
A man accused of organising a people-smuggling voyage which led to the deaths of more than 350 asylum seekers is to go on trial in Brisbane this week in a case which will raise questions about Australia's hardline immigration policy.
Gangland Killing Shakes Chic Melbourne
Drugs fuel rivalries in city's underworld. Tattooed, muscled and driving a A$200,000 silver Mercedes sports car, Andrew "Benji" Veniamin fancied himself as the archetypal gangland heavy. The unofficial bodyguard to Carl Williams, one of Australia's crime bosses, he was the chief suspect in five recent murders and had a reputation as a ladies' man.
Doctors Alert Australia to Perils of Barbie Pill
It was developed and will be promoted as a way of preventing skin cancer but the side-effects of Melanotan include an artificial tan, increased libido and weight loss.
Australia Plans to Double Defence Spending
Australia will more than double its defence budget over the next three years under plans that will turn the country into one of the world's major military powers. The government has revealed it intends to increase overall spending by £21bn over the next 10 years. The proposal...
Australian Favourite Could Become Old Hat
The Akubra hat, one of the icons of the Australian outback, could be forced out of fashion by health and safety rules.
Pubs With No Beer Loom in Australia
Australian pub-goers are facing their worst nightmare: a beer drought that is threatening to bite at the start of the thirsty summer season. The country's third-biggest brewer is struggling to produce limited supplies after a gas plant fire on New Year's Day threatened energy supplies to...
Australia 'as Bad As Taliban,' Say Hunger Strikers
Afghan refugees rejected by Canberra vow to die of starvation at Pacific island detention camp as protest enters third week.
Vineyards See Red As Seven Million Bottles Go to Waste
Australian wine growers, grappling with a hangover of monumental proportions, plan to dump 7m bottles of plonk after bingeing on red grapes. A surfeit of grapes causing a glut in the local market has left producers with an estimated 5m litres of red wine stored in tanks that need to be...
Ned Kelly, the Legend That Still Torments Australia
Ned Kelly has divided opinion in Australia for over a century, some seeing him as a loyal son and defender of his people, others as a criminal and a murderer. The long-running debate has been reignited once more with the opening of an exhibition at the National Museum in Canberra which...
Police on the Beach Poop Schoolies Party
Nearly 50,000 school leavers have gone to Surfers Paradise to celebrate schoolies week, a rite of passage in Australia since the 1980s.
Australia Revisits the Trials of a Conductor
New play exploring Sir Eugene Goossens' scandalous downfall is threatened by legal action. The controversy surrounding the private life of one of the 20th century's leading conductors, Sir Eugene Goossens, has resurfaced in Australia as legal action is threatened to stop the performance of a play about his life.
Child Asylum Seeker Sues Australian Government
An eight-year-old Iranian refugee whose plight ignited a bitter immigration row in Australia launched a civil suit yesterday against the government, claiming that he suffered severe mental health problems caused by his time in detention. Shayan Badraie, who arrived with his parents and...
Rejected Australian Sheep Bound for Atoll
An isolated coral atoll in the Indian Ocean will be the destination of 52,000 Australian sheep stranded in the Gulf for two months. The Cormo Express set sail from Kuwait yesterday bound for the Cocos Islands, a ring of 27 islands 1,680 miles north of Perth with a population of just 640...
Anger in East Timor As Australia Plays Tough Over Gas Reserves
Australia, which led an international peace force to help East Timor become independent last year, has become the greatest barrier to the country's hopes of breaking free from reliance on foreign aid, according to stark budget figures released yesterday. Despite starting out as one of the...
Australians Couldn't Give a Xxxx for Harry
The arrival of a British royal in Australia is normally guaranteed to be a source of controversy but no one, apart from a few journalists, seems very excited about Prince Harry's visit, writes David Fickling.
AMP's British Sell-off Delayed
AMP's plans to float off its British operations have been delayed by new regulatory requirements from the financial services authority. The loss-making Australian financial group had been expected to publish details of the flotation by Friday but announced yesterday that it would not now...
Booze Culture Gets a Bashing
Australia's image as a land of alcohol-fuelled hedonism is under attack this week at a conference sponsored by the government in Sydney. Measures proposed at the five-day conference include assaults on such traditions as happy hour, half-price drinks, and knocking back a beer while...
Australian Icon of Far Right Jailed for Fraud
Three years for Hanson and One Nation co-founder.
Qantas Splits Into Three
Australia's national airline, Qantas, is carving itself into three units in an attempt to tackle a plunge in profits and increasingly vocal criticism of its performance. The carrier, which has been attacked for its bloated cost structure, is hoping the radical reorganisation will save...
Return of Aboriginal Remains
A museum yesterday said sorry and handed back four skulls collected from Australia's Aborigine people by colonial explorers more than a century ago. The skulls, which have been stored at Manchester museum, were handed over in a ceremony which included an antidote to any curses Manchester...
Australia tries to can spam
Australia is attempting to outlaw what its minister for communications calls "the mosquitoes of the internet" - spam.
Australian Soap Stars Strike
Australian soap stars went on strike yesterday in protest at poor pay and conditions in the country's A$1.2bn (£480m) film and television industry. The actors' strike was called this month to highlight low pay rates, uncertain contracts and limits placed on actors' royalties for...
Race Hatred Polarises Australian Town
Aboriginal leaders say skinhead attacks on homeless are fuelled by official crackdown on park dwellers
Australian farmers fear future without GM food ban
From the middle of Julie Newman's canola fields, the yellow flowers stretch across the Western Australian countryside for miles in every direction.
Australians Overworked, Underpaid and Unequal
To outsiders Australia has always been an egalitarian paradise of decent living standards, easy work and time off at the beach. But according to a new survey, Australians are among the most overworked people in the developed world. The report, by the Australian Council of Trade...
Australian Navy Saves Storm-hit Rowers
Two British rowers stranded in the Indian ocean were rescued last night by an Australian navy frigate after their boat was battered by 25ft waves during severe storms at the weekend. HMAS Newcastle edged near the badly damaged vessel in darkness before sending out two dinghies to collect...
Briton charged after violent hijack bid on Australian jet
A man has been charged after a hijack attempt on a packed passenger jet in which two flight attendants were stabbed.
Aborigines Clash With Scientists Over Bones
Vital evidence 'will be lost for ever' if ancestral remains are returned. A furious row has broken out between British scientists and Australian Aboriginal rights activists over human remains being used as research specimens.
Australian Pm Defends £15,000 Hotel Bill
Prime minister John Howard has always identified himself with the "Aussie battler", the hard-working suburban voters who form the bedrock of the Australian working class. Details of his personal expenses suggest that his lifestyle might be more lavish: hotel rooms at £4,000 a night, an...
Australia Needs More Than Law of Averages
As Peter Hollingworth steps aside as Australia's governor general, David Fickling argues that the role's future should come under scrutiny.
Australians Held at Guantanamo Helpless As Days Turn Into Years
Families despair over relatives in legal limbo while Washington and Canberra maintain diplomatic silence.
How role seen as a relic became relevant
Long seen as an irrelevant relic of colonialism, the role of governor general has in recent years become an increasingly controversial one. Appointed directly by the prime minister, governors general are traditionally regarded as the monarch's direct representatives in Australia.
Rape Claim From Grave Haunts Queen's Man in Australia
The Queen's representative in Australia was clinging doggedly to his job last night amid a storm of calls for his resignation, as an accusation of rape was added to the mounting grievances against him. The governor general, Peter Hollingworth, is already embroiled in a child abuse scandal...
Australia Governor General Denies Rape Claims
The governor general of Australia, the Rt Rev Peter Hollingworth, today denied allegations that he had a raped a woman at a youth camp in the 60s. The claims have been made by the family of the alleged victim, who has since died. They centre on a youth camp in Bendigo, Victoria, where the...
Australian Newspaper Handed 'saddam Tape'
An Australian newspaper claims it has been handed a two-day-old tape recording of Saddam Hussein calling on Iraqis to launch a "secret war" against US and British forces in the country. The Sydney Morning Herald said the tape was handed to its correspondent in Baghdad on Monday and that...
Australia's First Nuclear Dump - and It's Welcomed By Site's Neighbours
The Australian government is completing its examination of two outback sites, 25 miles apart, for its first nuclear waste repository. The news, released this week, has dismayed politicians, environmentalists and Aboriginal groups. Oddly, however, the people of the South...
Notorious Australian refugee camp shut
Protests at new 'more humane' detention centre as boatload of asylum-seekers heads in. The departure of its last six refugees may have passed almost unnoticed, but the closure of the notorious Woomera detention camp - synonymous with Australia's hardline immigration policy since opening in 1999 - marks a rite of passage for the country.
Australia Criticised for Troops Pullout
Australia is to pull the bulk of its troops out of Iraq within two months and has no plans for a substantial peacekeeping commitment, John Howard, the prime minister, announced yesterday. More than half of the 2,000-strong force are expected to be home by mid-June, including one squadron...
Forgotten Town Back on the Map
For seven years, it has been the town that bureaucracy forgot. Wiped from government records by a clerical error, the remote Australian township of Gununa has been invisible to Canberra since it was missed off the 1996 census. The existence of the township - the main settlement on...
Plundered Aboriginal Remains Go Home to Australia
The bodies of 75 Aboriginal men and women were returned to Australia yesterday after spending decades in the collection of the Royal College of Surgeons in London. It is one of the biggest repatriations of Aboriginal remains from Britain where museums are believed to hold the body parts...
Australia Switches on £470m Spy Radar
Australia's defence minister, Robert Hill, launched a £470m radar system yesterday which will allow surveillance of neighbouring countries. The Jindalee operational radar network (Jorn) was completed five years behind schedule and £50m over budget.
Storm in a New World Wine Glass
The EU is risking another trade war over the way some Australian wines are flavoured with an oaky undertone. Traditionally such flavouring is done by ageing the wine in oak barrels. But some Australian winemakers use a short cut: oak chips are simply tossed into a vat of wine and allowed...
Global Malaise Forces Qantas to Cut Deep
War and pestilence have brought misery for Qantas, the Australian airline, which yesterday slashed its route network by a fifth and put 500 staff on enforced leave. Qantas's cutbacks were the most severe by a big carrier since the outbreak of hostilities in the Gulf. The airline said...
Lycra and lucre at Mardi Gras
The floats were out in force. There was the opening motorcade of 'dykes on bikes', the caricatures of political figures, and, of course, the flesh, the sequins, the Lycra.
Australia Switches Defence Priorities
Australia must dedicate itself to assisting in US-led wars around the world rather than regional conflicts, a major shift in defence policy suggested yesterday. For the first time, the white paper on defence admitted that the risk of another country invading Australia was negligible. But...
Victims tell of Australian police torture
Public inquiries into police corruption in Australia in recent years have heard evidence of kickbacks, brutality and involvement in the drug trade that would do credit to any crime novel.
A Cooling Dip for Australia's Hothouse Coâ²
Scientists say power station carbon dioxide could be safely locked up in undersea rocks. Australian researchers are suggesting that the country should get rid of some of its climate-changing carbon dioxide produced from burning fossil fuels by burying it. Staff at the government-funded CO² Cooperative Research Centre say that 150m tonnes a year could be safely put away - about a quarter of the national output - using current technology.
Australian star enters US wine universe
The largest wine company in the world was created yesterday when Constellation Brands of America unveiled a $1.4bn (£870m) takeover of Australian rival BRL Hardy.
One Country, Two Histories
Conservative Australian historians rewrite accepted view that colonists massacred Aborigines.
Australian Arrested on Al-qaida Suspicion
An Australian arrested by Pakistani authorities on suspicion that he trained at an al-Qaida camp in neighboring Afghanistan was stopped at Karachi airport before he could get on a flight to Hong Kong, a Pakistani official said today. Confirming the arrest, the Pakistani interior minister,...
Australian Dr Death to Unveil Suicide Machine
A suicide machine which produces up to a litre of carbon monoxide a minute will be demonstrated on Sunday by the controversial Australian euthanasia doctor Philip Nitschke. Dr Nitschke, head of the assisted suicide group Exit Australia, will show the machine to the national conference of...
Australia Imprisons Refugees After Riots at Camps
More than 30 inmates of Australian immigration centres were in jail without charge yesterday after the unrest in five camps this week. The Acting immigration minister, Daryl Williams, said the government was within its rights to jail them without legal process, saying they were a threat...
Australian police question asylum camp detainees
Politicians and refugee advocates appealed for calm yesterday after violence and arson attacks swept through Australian migrant detention centres.
One man's stand against Australia's war on terror
The Australian government is having a rough time at the moment. The newspapers are full of calamitous bush fires, a crippling drought which has reduced the crop yield by 40% this year and giant jellyfish a metre in diameter lurking just offshore, with poisonous mischief on their monocellular minds.
Australia's Return Ticket to the Railway Age
North-South line picking through harsh outback nears completion.
Southern Eclipse Enchants Onlookers
A total solar eclipse enchanted tourists and astronomers in parts of the southern hemisphere today, starting in Africa before racing across the continent to Australia. The "path of totality", the moment the glow of the completely covered sun radiates from behind the moon, started in...
Australia's New 'hairy-chested' Attitude Riles Its East Asian Neighbours
This week's public row between Australia and south-east Asia has thrown into sharp focus a truth that many in the region have realised for some time: after years of living as a peaceable power a new, more aggressive Australia is emerging. The dispute was prompted by a television interview...
Australia forecast Kenya attacks
The Australian government gave out a specific warning to its citizens over possible attacks on "western interests" in Kenya it was revealed last night.
Message found from missing backpacker
Trackers searching for a British backpacker who disappeared in north Queensland have found a message written on a tree to the 19-year-old's boyfriend, it emerged yesterday.
Australia Split on Helping Healthy to Die
Australia's bitter debate on euthanasia has been reignited following the suicide of a healthy 79-year-old former academic who decided that she had enjoyed "a happy life, but enough of it". Lisette Nigot had attended workshops organised by the Exit Australia group, at which painless...
Poisonous Cane Toads Threaten to Ravage Australian National Park's Ecosystem
Poisonous cane toads threaten to ravage national park's ecosystem.
Two die in attack at Australian university
Two students were killed and five wounded after a gunman went on the rampage in a Melbourne university yesterday.
Two Dead in Australian University Shooting
A man armed with several handguns opened fire at a university in Melbourne, Australia this morning, killing two people and wounding eight more.
Leave Indonesia, Australians Warned
Australia this morning urged its citizens to leave Indonesia, saying it has uncovered "disturbing new information" about further terrorist threats against its people and interests there. The government had advised its citizens to defer non-essential travel to the country, in the aftermath...
Australians Fear Bush Link Backlash
Unlike the reaction in the US after September 11, when people rallied round the president, Australia seems divided on how to interpret the bombing.
Australian Tourists Bear Brunt of Attack
Many casualties were sports players and fans.
Daughter of asylum minister quits Australia
The daughter of the Australian immigration minister Philip Ruddock has left the country because of her father's policies, she said in a television interview broadcast last night.
Australia Sees Light on Kyoto
The Australian government's opposition to the Kyoto protocol on reducing greenouse gases was undermined last night by two official reports which said the economy would benefit from its ratification. The government has refused to do so on the grounds that it would harm jobs and industry....
Australia to Put Reactor on Fault Line
The Australian government has approved the building of a research reactor on an existing nuclear site in suburban Sydney, even though it lies on two seismic fault lines. The country's nuclear safety body, Ansto, reported yesterday that the fault lines posed no risks. The last serious...
Australian sugar cane under threat
A number of solutions are being mooted to save Queensland's sugar cane industry but it's still not regarded as a crisis, writes David Fickling
Australia Navigates Stormy Pacific Waters
Sydney's influence over the Pacific Forum is straining relations with the island economies that rely on its aid, writes David Fickling.
Australian Vigilantes Picket Homes and Call for Death to Adulterers
They dress in black and disguise their identities with bandannas and sunglasses. Their logo is an image of the Southern Cross constellation, superimposed with a pair of crossed boomerangs, which resembles a swastika. The Blackshirts are former husbands aggrieved by their treatment at the...
BA Bows Out As Qantas Spreads Its Wings
British Airways is prepared to dilute its 21% stake in Qantas if Australia's biggest airline goes ahead with a A$1bn-plus (£354m) rights issue to fund its ambitious expansion plans.
Real Power From Nothing But Hot Air
Australia plans 1km-high convection tower to supply 200,000 houses.
Australia and Brazil Attack Eu Sugar Subsidy
Australia and Brazil are planning to challenge the European Union's subsidies for sugar farmers at the World Trade Organisation in a case that will strike at the foundations of Europe's common agricultural policy. Australian trade minister Mark Vaile said EU subsidies had allowed...
Giant Gander Found in Australia
Scientists in central Australia have discovered fossils of a giant prehistoric goose which stood as tall as an elephant and weighed up to half a tonne. The flightless birds are thought to have browsed on leaves, fruit and seed pods, although some scientists say their powerful beaks could have been used to eat meat.
Asylum Boys 'at Risk' in Woomera Camp
Two boys who were refused asylum by a British consulate in Melbourne last month are at risk of committing suicide and should be reunited with their father, according to a report released yesterday. The report, which was presented to a judge during a hearing on Monbday into the brothers'...
Inquiry As British Destroyer Holed Off Australia
Divers were today assessing the damage to a Royal Navy destroyer which ran aground off the south-east of Australia. HMS Nottingham, a Type 24 destroyer, was holed below the waterline and took on water after hitting a rock near Lord Howe Island, 200 miles north-east of Sydney...
Towards the Final Frontier: Thanks to Particles in a Laser Beam
Two Australian scientists have brought the world of Star Trek just a step nearer. They have "teleported" information between two laser beams a metre apart.
Physicists beaming with teleport success
A team of physicists in Australia have successfully teleported a laser beam of light from one spot to another in a split second, it emerged today.
Australians Shun Jubilee Celebrations
There will be no dancing on the streets of Sydney on the Queen's golden jubilee, writes Patrick Barkham.
Far-right Founder of Australian Party Charged With Fraud
Pauline Hanson, the flamboyant former leader of Australia's far right One Nation party, was yesterday ordered to stand trial on fraud charges that could lead to a 10-year prison sentence. A Brisbane court ruled that there was enough evidence for a full trial for Ms Hanson and the...
Former Leader of Australia's Far Right to Stand Trial
Pauline Hanson, the flamboyant former leader of Australia's far-right One Nation party, was today ordered to stand trial on fraud charges that could lead to a 10-year prison sentence. A Brisbane court ruled there was enough evidence for a full trial for Ms Hanson and her co-founder of the...
Australia Offers Afghan Asylum Seekers £3,800 to Go Home
The Australian government yesterday announced that it would pay Afghan families up to $10,000 (£3,800) to return home in an effort to keep asylum seekers out of the country.
Immigrant Self-harm 'covered Up' in Australia
A Catholic human rights group today accused the Australian government of attempting to cover up incidents of self-abuse among asylum seekers being held in detention centres in the outback. A report from the Catholic Commission for Justice, Development and Peace said approximately one...
Painter tags work with own DNA to stop fakes
Australian painter Pro Hart has become the first artist to mark his work with his DNA.
Afghans Rejected By Australia Lose Fight for Asylum
The United Nations refugee agency has rejected claims for refugee status from all but seven of the nearly 300 Afghans turned away from Australia in the Norwegian freighter Tampa last year. The fall of the Taliban in Afghanistan means that the fears of persecution of the 285 whose...
Fears for Refugees on Run in Australian Desert
The lives of 12 refugees who escaped from Woomera Detention Centre during a mass breakout on Friday could be in danger in the South Australian desert, police said yesterday. The escapers, one of them a 14-year-old boy, are at risk of dehydration in the inhospitable terrain around Woomera,...
Refugees Dig Their Own Graves in Australian Detention Protest
A group of refugees dug their own graves yesterday in a protest against their indefinite imprisonment at Australia's Woomera detention centre.
Australian Cabinet Supports Hollingworth
The Australian cabinet yesterday emerged after a day locked in debate to back the Queen's representative in Australia, who has defied calls to resign over allegations he covered up child abuse.
Queen Faces Political Minefield in Australia
Howard tries to defuse crisis as governor general is accused of covering up child abuse scandal.
Film Forces Australia to Face Its Cruel Past
A story of Aboriginal girls penned in camps and sent into domestic service echoes present injustices. By Patrick Barkham in Sydney.
Afghan Refugees Paid to Leave Australia
The Australian government yesterday underlined its determination to stop migrants seeking asylum in the country, when it unveiled a plan to pay Afghan refugees to return to their homeland. John Howard, the prime minister, announced the repatriation scheme after a meeting in New York with...
Australia's Immigration Policy
Australia's miracle was to turn criminals into useful citizens. Now it treats future citizens as criminals.
Muted cries of Australia's refugees
The hunger-striking inmates of Australia's most notorious detention centre finally made headlines around the world last week when news broke of how a number had sewn their lips together. Similarly desperate protests have been going on for the last three years in the six secure camps...
Hanson leaves Australian politics to clear her name - and raise cattle
Pauline Hanson, the fiery rightwing maverick dubbed "Australia's iron lady", resigned yesterday as leader of One Nation, the party she founded. The former chip shop owner, who defied Australia's established parties with her unique blend of anti-immigration and anti-globalisation policies...
Australia in shock after 'black Christmas'
Plumes of grey smoke continued to rise above Sydney from the bush fires that have burnt out of control across eastern Australia for two weeks. But 4cm of rain last night in the Blue Mountains, 50 miles west of the city, wiped out the most threatening fires as temperatures once more rose into the...
Living on the edge in Australia's tinderbox
Choking, frightened communities in the suburbs of Sydney and in the Blue Mountains to the west were bracing themselves yesterday for what forecasters say could be the worst few days of the bushfire outbreak which has already destroyed more than 500,000 hectares (1.25m acres) of vegetation and 170...
Arson suspected in many of Australia's blazes
The Australian government set up a taskforce yesterday to investigate claims that 40 of more than 100 bush fires ravaging the outskirts of Sydney were started by arsonists. Meteorologists warned that the fires might get worse during the weekend. They forecast an incendiary mixture...
The alternative Australian year
January From Crowded House to Russell Crowe, famous New Zealanders have long been stolen by Australia and rebranded fair dinkum Aussies. But in the biggest blow yet to New Zealand's nation pride, research revealed that their national emblem and icon, the kiwi bird,...
As diverse demand from new arrivals forces a reappraisal of 'one-size-fits-all' language training, one volunteer group is experimenting with varied approaches to teaching, reports Rob Burgess
Australia Swears in First Female Governor General
Quentin Bryce, thought to be a republican, becomes Queen's representative in Australia
HD TV Channels in Australia
If you are thinking about experiencing the latest in HD TV technology, there are a few important areas to take into consideration. Firstly, what do you intend to watch? There has been a lot of buzz around High Definition TV lately and it is important to consider the HD TV channels being offered in Australia. Secondly, not all HD technology is the same, so it is important to know what equipment is best.
Return of Aboriginal Remains
A museum yesterday said sorry and handed back four skulls collected from Australia's Aborigine people by colonial explorers more than a century ago.
Pope Apologises for Sexual Abuse By Clergy in Australia
Benedict XVI 'deeply sorry' for pain and suffering and calls for perpetrators to be brought to justice
The Future of Australian Financial Credit
What does the future of the Australian Financial Market hold? Economists are in heated discussion over the possibilities. Read and find out the projections and educated guesses for what the near and distant future have in store for Australian consumers.
Pope to Apologise for Clergy Abuse in Australia
Pontiff arrives for nine-day tour, with 200,000 Catholics expected at youth festival
Sydney's Voice of Tradition
Profile: Peter Jensen, Anglican archbishop of Sydney
BG Launches £6.7bn Bid for Australian Energy Company
British firm launches hostile bid for coal seam gas producer Origin Energy
Barrier Reef Divers Rescued After 20 Hours Stranded in Ocean
British man and American woman winched to safety after big air and sea search operation
Sydney Youth Hostels
Australia has long been a backpacker's favorite, with its vast and visually stunning landscape broken up by modern and bustling cities around its edges. Undoubtedly the most famous of these is Sydney, not least because of its instantly recognizable landmarks, the Harbour Bridge and the Sydney Opera House.
UK Tourist Dies As Jetski Hits Anchor Chain in Australia
British doctor holidaying in Australia is killed on the country's Gold Coast after jetski accident
Paedophile Who Lived in Australia for 56 Years Sent to Uk
Deportee will have to sign sex offenders register and tell authorities where he is living
Whalers Accuse Australia of Helping Activists' 'illegal Actions'
Japanese whaling authorities have accused Australia of offering 'limousine service' to the environmental activists who leaped aboard a harpoon vessel last week in a dramatic encounter in the Antarctic
Granddaughter of Churchill Dies As Australia Jails Her Son
Arabella Churchill, charity worker, co-founder of the Glastonbury festival and granddaughter of Sir Winston, died of cancer early yesterday - the same day that her son was jailed in Australia for his part in a multi-million pound drug racket
Australia Signs Up to Kyoto Deal to End 10-year Exile
Australia yesterday joined the fold of rich countries committed to tackling climate change by signing the Kyoto agreement to limit CO2 emissions, at once distancing itself from the US and ending a 10-year diplomatic exile on the issue
Ausra Solar Heat and Power Information
It's difficult to stand out in the competitive solar energy market, but Ausra, an Australian-American company, seems to be successful at setting itself apart from the competition.
Rudd Pledges to Withdraw Australian Troops From Iraq
Incoming Australian PM pledges to withdraw troops from Iraq
Australian Poll Holds Lessons for Labour, Warns Milburn
Gordon Brown needs to learn lessons from Australia's recent general election or face possible defeat, the former cabinet minister Alan Milburn has warned
Australians Named As World's Worst Polluters
Countries ranked by power station output· Americans in second place and Britons come ninth
Couple Were Moving to Live in Australia
A couple preparing to emigrate to Australia to be with their newly born grandson were feared to be among the Britons who died in the crash at Phuket airport.
Australian Minister Warns Against Iraq Pullout
A precipitous withdrawal from Iraq could spark a wider conflict, the Australian foreign minister warned today, amid White House fears that Republican support for George Bush's "surge" strategy is crumbling.
Grown in Italy, Pressed in Sweden, Sold As Chianti. Europlonk Nouveau Has Arrived
Commission to take on US and Australian producers - Traditionalists outraged at plans for blended wines
Australian Police Arrest Man Over Uk Car Bombs
Doctor arrested at Brisbane airport - Controlled explosion of car at Glasgow mosque - US 'had prior warnings of Glasgow attack'
Tiny, Blind Creatures Halt £5bn Australian Mining Project
Five new species of troglobite unearthed - Rio Tinto subsidiary to appeal against decision
Australian Detainee Could Be Home in Months
David Hicks, the Australian detainee who pleaded guilty last night to war crimes charges after five years in Guantanamo Bay, could be sent home within months, according to US prosecution lawyers.
Australian First to Face Guantanamo Tribunal
David Hicks case will test new military hearings - Plea may change to guilty in bid to end confinement
Muslim Clerics in Australia Gagged for 'double-speak'
A Muslim association in Australia has banned five clerics from talking to the media for what it said were "anti-Australian" comments.
Australia Switches on to Light Bulb Change
Australia will ban incandescent light bulbs to help cut greenhouse gas emissions, its government announced today.
Country Diary: The Otway Ranges, Australia
We had planned to travel some 300km north-east of Melbourne to Mount Buffalo, but the...
Mazda CX-9 Goes to Australia
Mazda will include the CX-9 to its 2008 lineup in Australia. The inclusion is aimed at empowering the automaker's lineup to encourage a bigger market.
Australia Suffers Worst Drought in 1,000 Years
Depleted reservoirs, failed crops and arid farmland spark global warming tussle.
Australian Muslim Leader Compares Uncovered Women to Exposed Meat
A senior Muslim cleric in Australia has sparked a furore after comparing women who do not wear a headscarf to "uncovered meat", implying that they invited sexual assault.
Australia Gets Ready For Summer With BMW M6 Convertible
In the land Down Under, the Aussies would be able to take their very first peek at one of the fastest and also the most expensive vehicles from the BMW range. This new vehicle has got the capacity to put its top down and keep it out of sight. And it is called the BMW M6 convertible.
Australians Fight Fear of Power Crisis With Giant Solar Site
· Shortfalls lead to search for alternative sources · 154MW project to provide power for 45,000 homes
Aboriginal Groups Deny Australian Land Grab
Aboriginal groups have hit back at claims that a controversial court ruling granting traditional land rights to metropolitan Perth, could lead to a "land grab" across Australia.
Australian Press Giants Oppose Media Shakeup
Australian newspaper publisher John Fairfax Holdings has joined News Corp in refusing to support planned changes to the country's media ownership laws. By Julia Day.
Australian Drug Smugglers Get Death Sentence
Indonesia's supreme court has imposed the death penalty on four members of a nine-person Australian drug-running gang who were appealing against lengthy prison sentences for smuggling heroin out of Bali, officials said yesterday.
Death Penalty Shock for Australians
Indonesia's supreme court has imposed the death penalty on four members of a nine-person Australian drug-running gang who were appealing against lengthy prison sentences for smuggling heroin out of Bali, officials said today.
Caring For Your Australian Uggs and Winter Sheepskin Boots
So you've invested in a great pair of genuine Australian uggs, and your feet are looking and feeling great in their new trendy winter sheepskin boots. Now you want your Aussie winter sheepskin boots to last as long as your trusty denims. Here are a few tips for looking after your Australian uggs.
The Australian Ugg Boots Fashion Phenomenon
Ugg boots. Aussie souvenir gifts, winter sheepskin boots, fashionable Australian sheepskin footwear. Call them what you will, they're the fashion accessory that you will never grow out of, that you'll wear more than your trusty faded denim jeans, and that your feet will love you for.
Australia Opens Up Media Sector
Australia has today scrapped its foreign media ownership and cross-media restrictions. By Stephen Brook.
Australian Troops Try to Halt Timor Battles
· Military, rebels, police and militia fight for control · Civilians cheer as foreign commandos seal airport
Australian Troops Arrive in East Timor
More than 100 Australian commandoes arrived in the troubled capital of East Timor today in an attempt to calm a mutiny that has seen almost half the army fighting their former colleagues.
Australian Miners Tell of Two-week Ordeal
· First TV interview reveals desperation before rescue · Huge media interest likely to earn pair up to £1m
After 14 Days Trapped Underground, Australian Miners Walk to Safety
Public was gripped by fate of men who had been feared dead.
Australia Holds Its Breath As Two Heroes of the Deep Near Rescue
The church bells of Beaconsfield, a small town in north Tasmania, have not rung since the end of the Second World War. But last night the bellringers were preparing to go to work again as two mates who have been buried alive for 12 days half a mile deep after the collapse of the town's goldmine on 25 April were being dug free of their nightmare.
Australians Face Death for Drug Smuggling
· Leader and henchman of heroin gang to appeal · Stop taking terrible risks, Howard warns young
Australia Battles Wildfires As New Year Brings Record Heatwave
· Sydney records highest temperature since 1939 · Buildings destroyed as fires burn out of control
Widow Wins Right to Have Dead Husband's Baby
In the first ruling of its kind in Australia, a Melbourne woman has won a seven-year battle to have her dead husband's baby.
Skippy Keeps Kangaroo Meat Off the Barbie
When it comes to kangaroos, it seems Australians prefer to see Skippy on television rather than flame-grilled on the barbecue.
Australia Terror Suspects 'were Stopped Near Nuclear Plant'
Three of the 18 terror suspects arrested in Sydney and Melbourne last week were stopped and questioned by police near Australia's only nuclear power station, it was claimed today.
Parking Ticket Put on Car As Man Sat Dead Inside
A man who had died was given a parking ticket as he sat slumped in his car outside a busy shopping centre in Melbourne, Australia.
Next G-20 Meeting Of Foreign Ministers In Australia
Since its inception, the G-20 gathering has become a key forum to address international economic matters.
Study reveals key to long life: stones and shells
Australian scientists have discovered why ancient plesiosaurs lived for so long: they had a varied diet.
Scientist Who Braved Ulcer Wins Nobel
An Australian microbiologist who swallowed mouthfuls of bacteria to prove they cause stomach ulcers was awarded the 2005 Nobel prize in physiology or medicine for his pioneering research yesterday.
Clothes Line Offer for Queen's Dirty Washing Hung Out to Dry By Australian Governor
They are an indispensable part of every great Australian back yard, situated between the barbecue and vegetable patch.
Australia Abandons Gmt and Goes Nuclear
Another link with Britain is severed as country consigns Greenwich Mean Time to history and adopts Parisian pacemaker.
Case of Missing Pm to Be Reopened
It remains the greatest mystery in Australian political history: did the then prime minister Harold Holt drown while swimming at his favourite beach or was he spirited away in a Chinese submarine? Almost four decades after Holt vanished at Cheviot Beach, south-east of Melbourne, an...
Australian Ban on Mate Wins Few Friends
In an edict from a senior civil servant, security staff at Australia's national parliament in Canberra were told not to use the greeting "G'day mate" when admitting visitors and politicians in case they caused offence.
Australia Looks Abroad for Skilled Workers
Australia is planning its biggest global recruitment drive since the "£10 pom" campaign of the 1950s by trying to lure 20,000 skilled workers to the country to cover key shortages.
Australian Bank Stirs Hopes of Lse Fight
Euronext may be forced to bid more for London exchange as ambitious Macquarie hints at a consortium.
Australia Deports Paedophile to Uk
A British paedophile who has spent 37 years in jail in Australia is being been deported back to the UK. Robert Excell, 66, has a string of child sex convictions dating back to the 1960s.
Australian Smokers Will Be Extinct By 2030, Researchers Say
Smoking will be virtually extinct in Australia within 25 years and more frowned upon than spitting in the street, according to researchers who have scientifically mapped the end of the smoking epidemic.
Australia Recruits British Squaddies While Army Remains Short-staffed
British squaddies are being offered a new life as Australian "diggers" under a recruitment drive aimed at tackling a shortage of young soldiers in the Antipodes.
Australia to Send Troops to Afghanistan
Australia is to send 150 troops into Afghanistan to fight the insurgency threatening to derail parliamentary elections due to take place in September, it was announced today.
Sewage Could Solve Australia's Drought
A severe drought is drying up drinking water across Australia, threatening to shut down big population centres but also creating the conditions for a revolution in water use.
Australian Hostage Freed in Iraq
Iraqi and American troops freed an Australian hostage yesterday after storming a kidnap gang's hideout in Baghdad, officials said.
20-year Sentence for Tourist in Drug Case That Gripped Australia
An Australian tourist was sentenced to 20 years in jail yesterday for attempting to smuggle more than 4kg (9lb) of marijuana into the Indonesian holiday island of Bali, concluding a trial that has gripped her country.
British Paedophile to Be Deported From Australia
A British paedophile who has spent 37 years in an Australian jail is to be deported to the UK, officials said today.
Press Review: Australia
... Australia's opposition. Australian commentators weren't impressed with Kim Beazley's accession to the leadership of the Australian Labor party last Friday.
Explosives Fear in Australian Siege
Police were last night surrounding a hotel on Australia's Gold Coast after a man barricaded himself in one of the rooms and was said to have explosives and possibly hostages inside with him.
Australian Ministry Vilified Muslims, Court Rules
An Australian court ruled today that a fundamentalist Christian ministry had vilified Muslims in a test case that could have repercussions for a proposed British law on incitement to religious hatred.
Why Everyone Wants to Be Australian
The Observer's Peter Conrad, currently giving Australia's equivalent of the Reith lectures, says his country has shed its uncultured image and is conquering the world with its new brand of Utopianism.
Australians to Make Suicide Pill
The controversial Australian euthanasia advocate Philip Nitschke has announced plans for a suicide pill which could be manufactured at home from easily available ingredients. The proposed "peaceful pill" would consist of a small dose of liquid barbiturates which could be kept until its...
One Metre-tall Human Challenges History of Evolution
Australian and Indonesian scientists identify a new and completely unexpected species of human.
Sinking Feeling to Ft's Australian Launch
Staff at the Financial Times are used to stocks plunging but ended up taking something of a dive themselves yesterday when a yacht promoting the new Australian edition of the newspaper struck rocks and capsized in Sydney harbour. Some of the four crew and 10 passengers, including senior...
Social Problems Belie Commercial Success of Australian Gambling
Australians spend nearly 4% of their annual household income on gambling. For many it is a way of life, whether they drop in to play the pokies at lunchtime or 9am.
Australia Says Text Message Warned of Jakarta Bombing
An Indonesian police officer received a mobile phone text message warning of an attack against western embassies in Jakarta 45 minutes before Thursday's deadly car bomb outside the Australian mission but did not pass it on, the Australian government said yesterday. The allegation caused...
Australian Embassy Bomb Kills Nine
Nine people were killed and another 160 injured in a suicide car bomb attack on the Australian embassy in Jakarta today. The blast flattened the gate of the fortress-like embassy, mangled cars and motorbikes on the street outside, and blew off the glass fronts of office towers nearby....
Australian Embassy Bomb Kills Eight
At least eight people were today killed in a suicide car bomb attack on the Australian embassy in Jakarta. The blast, which came during election campaigns in both Indonesia and Australia, happened outside the building at 10.15am local time (0415 BST), wounding up to 100 people...
Australian Embassy Bomb Kills Seven
Seven people were killed today in a car bomb attack on the Australian embassy in Jakarta. The blast, which came during election campaigns in both Indonesia and Australia, hit the outside of the building at 10.15am local time (04.15 BST) and left up to 100 people wounded. The...
Australian Missile Bid Makes Region Uneasy
Australia risks starting a regional arms race with its plans to buy a A$450m (£176m) cruise missile system for its fighter aircraft, the Indonesian government warned yesterday. The missiles, which could carry an air-launched one-tonne bomb 250 miles, will make the Australian air...
Dusty Death: How Asbestos Hit Australia
Post-war housing boom planted seeds of deadly illnesses. Travellers know they are approaching Wittenoom from the health warnings posted every few miles along the roadside.
60-mile Ant Colony Hits Melbourne
Melbourne is under threat from an invader straight out of a horror film: a giant column of ants 60 miles across. The supercolony of Argentine ants - a species that arrived in the country from South America in the 1930s - has swamped the city. The insects do not harm humans but...
Australia's War Policy Criticised
A roll call of Australia's military and diplomatic establishment yesterday attacked the country's foreign policy on Iraq and on terrorism, labelling it deceptive and dangerous. The group of 43 former officials warned that the policies of John Howard's government had undermined democracy,...
Australia Went to War on Back of 'thin' Intelligence
The Australian government did not manipulate the pre-war intelligence on Iraq but relied on information which was "thin, ambiguous and incomplete", a report published yesterday concluded. The report, by Canberra's former high commissioner in London Philip Flood, found that there had been...
Report Clears Australian Government on Wmds
It is becoming a familiar refrain: a report out today has identified a failure by the Australian intelligence services to assess Iraq's WMD capability in the run-up to war but absolved politicians of interfering in intelligence assessments. The former intelligence chief Philip Flood said...
Culprits Hunted After Death of Australian Surfer
A surfer has been killed by sharks off the coast of Western Australia, sparking a hunt for the animals suspected of mauling the man to death at the weekend. Bradley Smith, 29, was killed on Saturday off Left Handers beach, a popular surfing spot in the Margaret River wine-growing region...
Plan to Halt Wind in the Woolies
Australia has some inventive solutions to greenhouse emissions, from burying carbon dioxide to building a half-mile-high tower to generate solar energy. But government researchers yesterday announced the strangest proposal yet - plans to vaccinate livestock to prevent them letting off...
Twisted Tail of a Bar Snack Too Far
An Australian pub has apologised over a game in which contestants were egged on to eat live mice to win a A$500 (£200) beach holiday. Brisbane is no stranger to bizarre pub games, hosting the annual cockroach-racing world championships and numerous suburban cane toad races. But the...
Australian Rock Star Goes From Green to Mp
The former lead singer of one of Australia's most popular bands has been handed a safe seat by the opposition Labor party for the forthcoming parliamentary elections, a move which has infuriated some party members and sparked claims of political opportunism. The offer to Peter Garrett,...
Australian Rock Star's Trip From Green to Mp
The former lead singer of one of Australia's most popular bands has been handed a safe seat by the opposition Labor party for the forthcoming parliamentary elections, a move which has infuriated some party members and sparked claims of political opportunism.
Australia to Ban Gay Marriages
Australia is introducing legislation to ban gay marriage, in a move which puts the prime minister, John Howard, squarely alongside President Bush on the issue that may prove crucial to their respective attempts to gain re-election. "The commonly accepted definition of a marriage is a...
Radio Kings Row About Pulling Australia's Strings
Talkback host says rival boasted of job-fixing influence on PM.
Australia May Get Vote on Republic
Australia's opposition has promised a referendum on a republic within 12 months if it wins a general election expected in October. The Labor leader, Mark Latham, said that a yes vote would result in Australia dissolving its links with the monarchy by the end of 2007. With Labor having...
Australian Defence Adviser 'sacked Over Wmd Reports'
A former senior Australian defence adviser claimed yesterday she was edged out of her job because she refused to lie about the case for war in Iraq. Jane Errey, a former adviser to Australia's chief defence scientist working in the department's science and technology organisation, said...
Trial spotlights Australia's migrant policy
A man accused of organising a people-smuggling voyage which led to the deaths of more than 350 asylum seekers is to go on trial in Brisbane this week in a case which will raise questions about Australia's hardline immigration policy.
Gangland Killing Shakes Chic Melbourne
Drugs fuel rivalries in city's underworld. Tattooed, muscled and driving a A$200,000 silver Mercedes sports car, Andrew "Benji" Veniamin fancied himself as the archetypal gangland heavy. The unofficial bodyguard to Carl Williams, one of Australia's crime bosses, he was the chief suspect in five recent murders and had a reputation as a ladies' man.
Doctors Alert Australia to Perils of Barbie Pill
It was developed and will be promoted as a way of preventing skin cancer but the side-effects of Melanotan include an artificial tan, increased libido and weight loss.
Australia Plans to Double Defence Spending
Australia will more than double its defence budget over the next three years under plans that will turn the country into one of the world's major military powers. The government has revealed it intends to increase overall spending by £21bn over the next 10 years. The proposal...
Australian Favourite Could Become Old Hat
The Akubra hat, one of the icons of the Australian outback, could be forced out of fashion by health and safety rules.
Pubs With No Beer Loom in Australia
Australian pub-goers are facing their worst nightmare: a beer drought that is threatening to bite at the start of the thirsty summer season. The country's third-biggest brewer is struggling to produce limited supplies after a gas plant fire on New Year's Day threatened energy supplies to...
Australia 'as Bad As Taliban,' Say Hunger Strikers
Afghan refugees rejected by Canberra vow to die of starvation at Pacific island detention camp as protest enters third week.
Vineyards See Red As Seven Million Bottles Go to Waste
Australian wine growers, grappling with a hangover of monumental proportions, plan to dump 7m bottles of plonk after bingeing on red grapes. A surfeit of grapes causing a glut in the local market has left producers with an estimated 5m litres of red wine stored in tanks that need to be...
Ned Kelly, the Legend That Still Torments Australia
Ned Kelly has divided opinion in Australia for over a century, some seeing him as a loyal son and defender of his people, others as a criminal and a murderer. The long-running debate has been reignited once more with the opening of an exhibition at the National Museum in Canberra which...
Police on the Beach Poop Schoolies Party
Nearly 50,000 school leavers have gone to Surfers Paradise to celebrate schoolies week, a rite of passage in Australia since the 1980s.
Australia Revisits the Trials of a Conductor
New play exploring Sir Eugene Goossens' scandalous downfall is threatened by legal action. The controversy surrounding the private life of one of the 20th century's leading conductors, Sir Eugene Goossens, has resurfaced in Australia as legal action is threatened to stop the performance of a play about his life.
Child Asylum Seeker Sues Australian Government
An eight-year-old Iranian refugee whose plight ignited a bitter immigration row in Australia launched a civil suit yesterday against the government, claiming that he suffered severe mental health problems caused by his time in detention. Shayan Badraie, who arrived with his parents and...
Rejected Australian Sheep Bound for Atoll
An isolated coral atoll in the Indian Ocean will be the destination of 52,000 Australian sheep stranded in the Gulf for two months. The Cormo Express set sail from Kuwait yesterday bound for the Cocos Islands, a ring of 27 islands 1,680 miles north of Perth with a population of just 640...
Anger in East Timor As Australia Plays Tough Over Gas Reserves
Australia, which led an international peace force to help East Timor become independent last year, has become the greatest barrier to the country's hopes of breaking free from reliance on foreign aid, according to stark budget figures released yesterday. Despite starting out as one of the...
Australians Couldn't Give a Xxxx for Harry
The arrival of a British royal in Australia is normally guaranteed to be a source of controversy but no one, apart from a few journalists, seems very excited about Prince Harry's visit, writes David Fickling.
AMP's British Sell-off Delayed
AMP's plans to float off its British operations have been delayed by new regulatory requirements from the financial services authority. The loss-making Australian financial group had been expected to publish details of the flotation by Friday but announced yesterday that it would not now...
Booze Culture Gets a Bashing
Australia's image as a land of alcohol-fuelled hedonism is under attack this week at a conference sponsored by the government in Sydney. Measures proposed at the five-day conference include assaults on such traditions as happy hour, half-price drinks, and knocking back a beer while...
Australian Icon of Far Right Jailed for Fraud
Three years for Hanson and One Nation co-founder.
Qantas Splits Into Three
Australia's national airline, Qantas, is carving itself into three units in an attempt to tackle a plunge in profits and increasingly vocal criticism of its performance. The carrier, which has been attacked for its bloated cost structure, is hoping the radical reorganisation will save...
Return of Aboriginal Remains
A museum yesterday said sorry and handed back four skulls collected from Australia's Aborigine people by colonial explorers more than a century ago. The skulls, which have been stored at Manchester museum, were handed over in a ceremony which included an antidote to any curses Manchester...
Australia tries to can spam
Australia is attempting to outlaw what its minister for communications calls "the mosquitoes of the internet" - spam.
Australian Soap Stars Strike
Australian soap stars went on strike yesterday in protest at poor pay and conditions in the country's A$1.2bn (£480m) film and television industry. The actors' strike was called this month to highlight low pay rates, uncertain contracts and limits placed on actors' royalties for...
Race Hatred Polarises Australian Town
Aboriginal leaders say skinhead attacks on homeless are fuelled by official crackdown on park dwellers
Australian farmers fear future without GM food ban
From the middle of Julie Newman's canola fields, the yellow flowers stretch across the Western Australian countryside for miles in every direction.
Australians Overworked, Underpaid and Unequal
To outsiders Australia has always been an egalitarian paradise of decent living standards, easy work and time off at the beach. But according to a new survey, Australians are among the most overworked people in the developed world. The report, by the Australian Council of Trade...
Australian Navy Saves Storm-hit Rowers
Two British rowers stranded in the Indian ocean were rescued last night by an Australian navy frigate after their boat was battered by 25ft waves during severe storms at the weekend. HMAS Newcastle edged near the badly damaged vessel in darkness before sending out two dinghies to collect...
Briton charged after violent hijack bid on Australian jet
A man has been charged after a hijack attempt on a packed passenger jet in which two flight attendants were stabbed.
Aborigines Clash With Scientists Over Bones
Vital evidence 'will be lost for ever' if ancestral remains are returned. A furious row has broken out between British scientists and Australian Aboriginal rights activists over human remains being used as research specimens.
Australian Pm Defends £15,000 Hotel Bill
Prime minister John Howard has always identified himself with the "Aussie battler", the hard-working suburban voters who form the bedrock of the Australian working class. Details of his personal expenses suggest that his lifestyle might be more lavish: hotel rooms at £4,000 a night, an...
Australia Needs More Than Law of Averages
As Peter Hollingworth steps aside as Australia's governor general, David Fickling argues that the role's future should come under scrutiny.
Australians Held at Guantanamo Helpless As Days Turn Into Years
Families despair over relatives in legal limbo while Washington and Canberra maintain diplomatic silence.
How role seen as a relic became relevant
Long seen as an irrelevant relic of colonialism, the role of governor general has in recent years become an increasingly controversial one. Appointed directly by the prime minister, governors general are traditionally regarded as the monarch's direct representatives in Australia.
Rape Claim From Grave Haunts Queen's Man in Australia
The Queen's representative in Australia was clinging doggedly to his job last night amid a storm of calls for his resignation, as an accusation of rape was added to the mounting grievances against him. The governor general, Peter Hollingworth, is already embroiled in a child abuse scandal...
Australia Governor General Denies Rape Claims
The governor general of Australia, the Rt Rev Peter Hollingworth, today denied allegations that he had a raped a woman at a youth camp in the 60s. The claims have been made by the family of the alleged victim, who has since died. They centre on a youth camp in Bendigo, Victoria, where the...
Australian Newspaper Handed 'saddam Tape'
An Australian newspaper claims it has been handed a two-day-old tape recording of Saddam Hussein calling on Iraqis to launch a "secret war" against US and British forces in the country. The Sydney Morning Herald said the tape was handed to its correspondent in Baghdad on Monday and that...
Australia's First Nuclear Dump - and It's Welcomed By Site's Neighbours
The Australian government is completing its examination of two outback sites, 25 miles apart, for its first nuclear waste repository. The news, released this week, has dismayed politicians, environmentalists and Aboriginal groups. Oddly, however, the people of the South...
Notorious Australian refugee camp shut
Protests at new 'more humane' detention centre as boatload of asylum-seekers heads in. The departure of its last six refugees may have passed almost unnoticed, but the closure of the notorious Woomera detention camp - synonymous with Australia's hardline immigration policy since opening in 1999 - marks a rite of passage for the country.
Australia Criticised for Troops Pullout
Australia is to pull the bulk of its troops out of Iraq within two months and has no plans for a substantial peacekeeping commitment, John Howard, the prime minister, announced yesterday. More than half of the 2,000-strong force are expected to be home by mid-June, including one squadron...
Forgotten Town Back on the Map
For seven years, it has been the town that bureaucracy forgot. Wiped from government records by a clerical error, the remote Australian township of Gununa has been invisible to Canberra since it was missed off the 1996 census. The existence of the township - the main settlement on...
Plundered Aboriginal Remains Go Home to Australia
The bodies of 75 Aboriginal men and women were returned to Australia yesterday after spending decades in the collection of the Royal College of Surgeons in London. It is one of the biggest repatriations of Aboriginal remains from Britain where museums are believed to hold the body parts...
Australia Switches on £470m Spy Radar
Australia's defence minister, Robert Hill, launched a £470m radar system yesterday which will allow surveillance of neighbouring countries. The Jindalee operational radar network (Jorn) was completed five years behind schedule and £50m over budget.
Storm in a New World Wine Glass
The EU is risking another trade war over the way some Australian wines are flavoured with an oaky undertone. Traditionally such flavouring is done by ageing the wine in oak barrels. But some Australian winemakers use a short cut: oak chips are simply tossed into a vat of wine and allowed...
Global Malaise Forces Qantas to Cut Deep
War and pestilence have brought misery for Qantas, the Australian airline, which yesterday slashed its route network by a fifth and put 500 staff on enforced leave. Qantas's cutbacks were the most severe by a big carrier since the outbreak of hostilities in the Gulf. The airline said...
Lycra and lucre at Mardi Gras
The floats were out in force. There was the opening motorcade of 'dykes on bikes', the caricatures of political figures, and, of course, the flesh, the sequins, the Lycra.
Australia Switches Defence Priorities
Australia must dedicate itself to assisting in US-led wars around the world rather than regional conflicts, a major shift in defence policy suggested yesterday. For the first time, the white paper on defence admitted that the risk of another country invading Australia was negligible. But...
Victims tell of Australian police torture
Public inquiries into police corruption in Australia in recent years have heard evidence of kickbacks, brutality and involvement in the drug trade that would do credit to any crime novel.
A Cooling Dip for Australia's Hothouse Coâ²
Scientists say power station carbon dioxide could be safely locked up in undersea rocks. Australian researchers are suggesting that the country should get rid of some of its climate-changing carbon dioxide produced from burning fossil fuels by burying it. Staff at the government-funded CO² Cooperative Research Centre say that 150m tonnes a year could be safely put away - about a quarter of the national output - using current technology.
Australian star enters US wine universe
The largest wine company in the world was created yesterday when Constellation Brands of America unveiled a $1.4bn (£870m) takeover of Australian rival BRL Hardy.
One Country, Two Histories
Conservative Australian historians rewrite accepted view that colonists massacred Aborigines.
Australian Arrested on Al-qaida Suspicion
An Australian arrested by Pakistani authorities on suspicion that he trained at an al-Qaida camp in neighboring Afghanistan was stopped at Karachi airport before he could get on a flight to Hong Kong, a Pakistani official said today. Confirming the arrest, the Pakistani interior minister,...
Australian Dr Death to Unveil Suicide Machine
A suicide machine which produces up to a litre of carbon monoxide a minute will be demonstrated on Sunday by the controversial Australian euthanasia doctor Philip Nitschke. Dr Nitschke, head of the assisted suicide group Exit Australia, will show the machine to the national conference of...
Australia Imprisons Refugees After Riots at Camps
More than 30 inmates of Australian immigration centres were in jail without charge yesterday after the unrest in five camps this week. The Acting immigration minister, Daryl Williams, said the government was within its rights to jail them without legal process, saying they were a threat...
Australian police question asylum camp detainees
Politicians and refugee advocates appealed for calm yesterday after violence and arson attacks swept through Australian migrant detention centres.
One man's stand against Australia's war on terror
The Australian government is having a rough time at the moment. The newspapers are full of calamitous bush fires, a crippling drought which has reduced the crop yield by 40% this year and giant jellyfish a metre in diameter lurking just offshore, with poisonous mischief on their monocellular minds.
Australia's Return Ticket to the Railway Age
North-South line picking through harsh outback nears completion.
Southern Eclipse Enchants Onlookers
A total solar eclipse enchanted tourists and astronomers in parts of the southern hemisphere today, starting in Africa before racing across the continent to Australia. The "path of totality", the moment the glow of the completely covered sun radiates from behind the moon, started in...
Australia's New 'hairy-chested' Attitude Riles Its East Asian Neighbours
This week's public row between Australia and south-east Asia has thrown into sharp focus a truth that many in the region have realised for some time: after years of living as a peaceable power a new, more aggressive Australia is emerging. The dispute was prompted by a television interview...
Australia forecast Kenya attacks
The Australian government gave out a specific warning to its citizens over possible attacks on "western interests" in Kenya it was revealed last night.
Message found from missing backpacker
Trackers searching for a British backpacker who disappeared in north Queensland have found a message written on a tree to the 19-year-old's boyfriend, it emerged yesterday.
Australia Split on Helping Healthy to Die
Australia's bitter debate on euthanasia has been reignited following the suicide of a healthy 79-year-old former academic who decided that she had enjoyed "a happy life, but enough of it". Lisette Nigot had attended workshops organised by the Exit Australia group, at which painless...
Poisonous Cane Toads Threaten to Ravage Australian National Park's Ecosystem
Poisonous cane toads threaten to ravage national park's ecosystem.
Two die in attack at Australian university
Two students were killed and five wounded after a gunman went on the rampage in a Melbourne university yesterday.
Two Dead in Australian University Shooting
A man armed with several handguns opened fire at a university in Melbourne, Australia this morning, killing two people and wounding eight more.
Leave Indonesia, Australians Warned
Australia this morning urged its citizens to leave Indonesia, saying it has uncovered "disturbing new information" about further terrorist threats against its people and interests there. The government had advised its citizens to defer non-essential travel to the country, in the aftermath...
Australians Fear Bush Link Backlash
Unlike the reaction in the US after September 11, when people rallied round the president, Australia seems divided on how to interpret the bombing.
Australian Tourists Bear Brunt of Attack
Many casualties were sports players and fans.
Daughter of asylum minister quits Australia
The daughter of the Australian immigration minister Philip Ruddock has left the country because of her father's policies, she said in a television interview broadcast last night.
Australia Sees Light on Kyoto
The Australian government's opposition to the Kyoto protocol on reducing greenouse gases was undermined last night by two official reports which said the economy would benefit from its ratification. The government has refused to do so on the grounds that it would harm jobs and industry....
Australia to Put Reactor on Fault Line
The Australian government has approved the building of a research reactor on an existing nuclear site in suburban Sydney, even though it lies on two seismic fault lines. The country's nuclear safety body, Ansto, reported yesterday that the fault lines posed no risks. The last serious...
Australian sugar cane under threat
A number of solutions are being mooted to save Queensland's sugar cane industry but it's still not regarded as a crisis, writes David Fickling
Australia Navigates Stormy Pacific Waters
Sydney's influence over the Pacific Forum is straining relations with the island economies that rely on its aid, writes David Fickling.
Australian Vigilantes Picket Homes and Call for Death to Adulterers
They dress in black and disguise their identities with bandannas and sunglasses. Their logo is an image of the Southern Cross constellation, superimposed with a pair of crossed boomerangs, which resembles a swastika. The Blackshirts are former husbands aggrieved by their treatment at the...
BA Bows Out As Qantas Spreads Its Wings
British Airways is prepared to dilute its 21% stake in Qantas if Australia's biggest airline goes ahead with a A$1bn-plus (£354m) rights issue to fund its ambitious expansion plans.
Real Power From Nothing But Hot Air
Australia plans 1km-high convection tower to supply 200,000 houses.
Australia and Brazil Attack Eu Sugar Subsidy
Australia and Brazil are planning to challenge the European Union's subsidies for sugar farmers at the World Trade Organisation in a case that will strike at the foundations of Europe's common agricultural policy. Australian trade minister Mark Vaile said EU subsidies had allowed...
Giant Gander Found in Australia
Scientists in central Australia have discovered fossils of a giant prehistoric goose which stood as tall as an elephant and weighed up to half a tonne. The flightless birds are thought to have browsed on leaves, fruit and seed pods, although some scientists say their powerful beaks could have been used to eat meat.
Asylum Boys 'at Risk' in Woomera Camp
Two boys who were refused asylum by a British consulate in Melbourne last month are at risk of committing suicide and should be reunited with their father, according to a report released yesterday. The report, which was presented to a judge during a hearing on Monbday into the brothers'...
Inquiry As British Destroyer Holed Off Australia
Divers were today assessing the damage to a Royal Navy destroyer which ran aground off the south-east of Australia. HMS Nottingham, a Type 24 destroyer, was holed below the waterline and took on water after hitting a rock near Lord Howe Island, 200 miles north-east of Sydney...
Towards the Final Frontier: Thanks to Particles in a Laser Beam
Two Australian scientists have brought the world of Star Trek just a step nearer. They have "teleported" information between two laser beams a metre apart.
Physicists beaming with teleport success
A team of physicists in Australia have successfully teleported a laser beam of light from one spot to another in a split second, it emerged today.
Australians Shun Jubilee Celebrations
There will be no dancing on the streets of Sydney on the Queen's golden jubilee, writes Patrick Barkham.
Far-right Founder of Australian Party Charged With Fraud
Pauline Hanson, the flamboyant former leader of Australia's far right One Nation party, was yesterday ordered to stand trial on fraud charges that could lead to a 10-year prison sentence. A Brisbane court ruled that there was enough evidence for a full trial for Ms Hanson and the...
Former Leader of Australia's Far Right to Stand Trial
Pauline Hanson, the flamboyant former leader of Australia's far-right One Nation party, was today ordered to stand trial on fraud charges that could lead to a 10-year prison sentence. A Brisbane court ruled there was enough evidence for a full trial for Ms Hanson and her co-founder of the...
Australia Offers Afghan Asylum Seekers £3,800 to Go Home
The Australian government yesterday announced that it would pay Afghan families up to $10,000 (£3,800) to return home in an effort to keep asylum seekers out of the country.
Immigrant Self-harm 'covered Up' in Australia
A Catholic human rights group today accused the Australian government of attempting to cover up incidents of self-abuse among asylum seekers being held in detention centres in the outback. A report from the Catholic Commission for Justice, Development and Peace said approximately one...
Painter tags work with own DNA to stop fakes
Australian painter Pro Hart has become the first artist to mark his work with his DNA.
Afghans Rejected By Australia Lose Fight for Asylum
The United Nations refugee agency has rejected claims for refugee status from all but seven of the nearly 300 Afghans turned away from Australia in the Norwegian freighter Tampa last year. The fall of the Taliban in Afghanistan means that the fears of persecution of the 285 whose...
Fears for Refugees on Run in Australian Desert
The lives of 12 refugees who escaped from Woomera Detention Centre during a mass breakout on Friday could be in danger in the South Australian desert, police said yesterday. The escapers, one of them a 14-year-old boy, are at risk of dehydration in the inhospitable terrain around Woomera,...
Refugees Dig Their Own Graves in Australian Detention Protest
A group of refugees dug their own graves yesterday in a protest against their indefinite imprisonment at Australia's Woomera detention centre.
Australian Cabinet Supports Hollingworth
The Australian cabinet yesterday emerged after a day locked in debate to back the Queen's representative in Australia, who has defied calls to resign over allegations he covered up child abuse.
Queen Faces Political Minefield in Australia
Howard tries to defuse crisis as governor general is accused of covering up child abuse scandal.
Film Forces Australia to Face Its Cruel Past
A story of Aboriginal girls penned in camps and sent into domestic service echoes present injustices. By Patrick Barkham in Sydney.
Afghan Refugees Paid to Leave Australia
The Australian government yesterday underlined its determination to stop migrants seeking asylum in the country, when it unveiled a plan to pay Afghan refugees to return to their homeland. John Howard, the prime minister, announced the repatriation scheme after a meeting in New York with...
Australia's Immigration Policy
Australia's miracle was to turn criminals into useful citizens. Now it treats future citizens as criminals.
Muted cries of Australia's refugees
The hunger-striking inmates of Australia's most notorious detention centre finally made headlines around the world last week when news broke of how a number had sewn their lips together. Similarly desperate protests have been going on for the last three years in the six secure camps...
Hanson leaves Australian politics to clear her name - and raise cattle
Pauline Hanson, the fiery rightwing maverick dubbed "Australia's iron lady", resigned yesterday as leader of One Nation, the party she founded. The former chip shop owner, who defied Australia's established parties with her unique blend of anti-immigration and anti-globalisation policies...
Australia in shock after 'black Christmas'
Plumes of grey smoke continued to rise above Sydney from the bush fires that have burnt out of control across eastern Australia for two weeks. But 4cm of rain last night in the Blue Mountains, 50 miles west of the city, wiped out the most threatening fires as temperatures once more rose into the...
Living on the edge in Australia's tinderbox
Choking, frightened communities in the suburbs of Sydney and in the Blue Mountains to the west were bracing themselves yesterday for what forecasters say could be the worst few days of the bushfire outbreak which has already destroyed more than 500,000 hectares (1.25m acres) of vegetation and 170...
Arson suspected in many of Australia's blazes
The Australian government set up a taskforce yesterday to investigate claims that 40 of more than 100 bush fires ravaging the outskirts of Sydney were started by arsonists. Meteorologists warned that the fires might get worse during the weekend. They forecast an incendiary mixture...
The alternative Australian year
January From Crowded House to Russell Crowe, famous New Zealanders have long been stolen by Australia and rebranded fair dinkum Aussies. But in the biggest blow yet to New Zealand's nation pride, research revealed that their national emblem and icon, the kiwi bird,...