POLITICS & POLICY

Malaysia's appointed independent panel investigating the environmental impact of the Australian rare earths plant in the country has completed its work and is set to issue its findings by end of the month.

$1,300 per resident. Close to $1,300 (US$1,400) per resident above 17 in Australia were lost to gambling last year, the highest in the world, according to global gaming-industry consultants H2 Gambling Capital. Singapore, which recently built two mega casinos, was next on about US$1150. But as to wealth, Singapore has the highest concentration of millionaire households, with 15.5 percent of all households having at least $1 million, compared to only 1% in Australia.

The Australian government will provide more than three quarters of a billion dollars to help build two of the largest solar power stations in the world.

Independents Andrew Wilkie and Nick Xenophon have presented bills to phase out the live export trade over the next three years.

The vaunted mining boom may have largely fueled up the national economy yet in the case of the Northern Territory, its residential construction industry appeared to have absorbed the negative impacts of the two-wind growth.

Most Australians are in favour of the establishment of a Special Economic Zone (SEZ) to stimulate economic growth in Northern Australia, new research shows.

The Libya Relief Fund is appealing governments and generous individuals to provide aid and relief those affected by the humanitarian disaster in Libya and at the same time launched a campaign to raise awareness of the human and social crisis unfolding in Libya and educate the general public on the nature of the conflict.

Airports and seaports around Australia could effectively close next month as the Commonwealth public servant pay dispute with the federal government continues to worsen.

The O’Farrell Government’s move to rebate payroll tax for new jobs is expected to boost NSW employment.

National Australia Bank (ASX: NAB) says it will continue to waive the mortgage early exit fee because it is good for business.

Sleeping out amidst the rough biting cold on Thursday was one experience that Australia's opposition leader Mr Tony Abbott will not forget for a long time.

Al-Qaeda's longtime No. 2 leader, Ayman al-Zawahiri, has succeeded the slain Osama bin Laden as head of the terrorist network, according to a statement by the group on Thursday.

The string of hacking incidents around the world that targeted global firms such as Sony and Lockheed Martin may have prompted Aussie government agencies and private companies to step up their online security protocol but such is not the case, according to the latest Auditor General report.

The price of staple foods such as corn, already at an all time high, could more than double in the next 20 years according to a new report released today by international humanitarian organization Oxfam. Up to half of this rise is due to climate change and the world's poorest people, who spend up to 80 percent of their income on food, will be hardest hit.

Hedge funds and other foreign speculators are increasing price volatility and supply insecurity in the global food system, according to a series of investigative reports released today by the Oakland Institute. The reports are based on the actual materials from these land deals and include investigation of investors, purchase contracts, business plans and maps never released before now.

Nepal is now landmine-free after the last of its landmines was detonated Tuesday.

Australia's Reserve Bank Governor Glenn Stevens has hinted on further benchmark rate adjustments to soften the impact of inflation rates as the economy will continue to accelerate with the mining industry boom.

The proposed carbon tax will cripple Australia’s coal industry forcing jobs offshore and closing many existing coal mines according to free market think tank the Institute of Public Affairs. Coal, used to generate electricity or manufacture steel, is a barometer for the economy.

President Barack Obama has spoken for the first time on the sexting scandal embroiled by Democrat Congressman Anthony Weiner.

The Royal Family took part in Oder of the Garter, the longest and oldest British order of chivalry last Monday (June 13) at the Windsor Palace.

For a third straight month, business owners in Australia have been down by pessimism as the Australian dollar reached new highs, an indicative report by the National Australia Bank (NAB) said.

Where internet access is deliberately restricted by authorities, the U.S. hopes to provide succour through its reported $2 million ‘internet in a suitcase’ plan that will roll out online emergency lines to nationals under extreme duress from their own governments.

Thousands of mining jobs from New South Wales and Queensland are likely to feel the pressure of the federal government’s proposed carbon tax, according to a new survey released on Tuesday by the Australian Coal Association (ACA).

Claiming that the mining tax being pushed by Prime Minister Julia Gillard is discriminatory, Fortescue Minerals Group (FMG) chief executive Andrew Forrest said on Tuesday that he is prepared to challenge the measure’s legality in the Australian High Court.

Broadway stars, singers, musicians, and celebrities gather for the 65th Tony Awards in New York City arriving in glamorous ensembles.

Barely recovering from the devastating earthquakes in February, Christchurch City in New Zealand has again encountered consecutive earthquakes today measuring magnitude 6 and 5.5.

Even as Germany, Japan, Switzerland and other nations move to abandon existing and planned nuclear reactors, the United States is on a path to see at best only a small handful of already planned, government-backed reactor projects proceed, a group of experts said today.

One year after hosting the 2010 FIFA World Cup, South Africa continues to celebrate the lasting legacy of one of the most successful World Cup events in history.

The Australian livestock industry may get a reprieve from the financial debacle posed by the six-month-cattle ban to Indonesia by tapping into the $5-million contingency fund of the Meat and Livestock Australia (MLA), said Agriculture Minister Joe Ludwig.