ABC News: Top Stories

Police question Queensland Rural Fire Service volunteers for signing blue card applications for firefighters with a criminal history.

A Senate committee hears from the Murray-Darling Basin's top cop Mick Keelty about the possibility of up to 375 gigalitres of unidentified and unallocated water in the nation's biggest food bowl.

The Gold Coast Titans could lose two players for the restarted NRL season after giving Bryce Cartwright and Brian Kelly an ultimatum to agree to get their flu shot if they want to train and play.

Queenslanders whose property was damaged in a savage hailstorm last month are being warned to look out for predatory doorknockers looking to cut themselves in on insurance payouts.

The director of Queensland's Woodford Folk Festival — Australia's biggest music and culture festival — says the coronavirus pandemic has been "life-changing" and the event needs to adapt.

The director of Australia's biggest music and culture festival says if the event is cancelled this year it may be gone for good.

On Valentine's Day in 1976, a BMX-loving boy in Year 3 came home with a passionate missive tucked into his lunchbox. More than 40 years later the letter has resurfaced — and the search for his secret admirer is on.

A magician who left the entertainment industry to embrace the magic of growing sustainable, ethical food quadruples his home delivery output of fresh food boxes.

Drought-stricken vegetable growers are enjoying high demand and high prices for the products they supply to major supermarkets, while specialty growers who supply empty restaurants are seeing large crops go waste.

Secret negotiations involving dozens of Australian universities are underway, with the nation's most senior academics among thousands volunteering for pay cuts in a bid to save the sector.

The AFL's return-to-play plans suffer a major blow, with SA Health ruling out a relaxation of quarantine restrictions for South Australian teams.

Experts say coronavirus uncertainty increases risks of post-natal depression as new mums struggle to get home.

Experts say coronavirus uncertainty increases risks of post-natal depression as new mums struggle to get home.

Aged care provider Bupa is fined $6 million for offering residents services it never provided including golf trips, air conditioning, travel escorts and smart rooms.

The AFL announces mandatory testing for every listed player and staff member as it edges closer to announcing when the season will return following the coronavirus shutdown.

International students facing the prospect of seeing years of work and their dreams destroyed are calling for more government assistance to help them stay in the country they've fallen in love with.

A Queensland police officer is fined but has no conviction recorded after he turned a blind eye to his wife, who crashed her car while drink driving almost three times the legal limit.

The Rockhampton Agricultural Show is off this year, due to coronavirus restrictions, but residents will still get a public holiday.

Elopements and outdoor weddings are tipped to be the latest trends following the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, according to those in the wedding industry.

A volunteer and a substance abuse charity says greater housing options are needed for homeless people in Southport, as a petition calling for "meaningful action" is lodged in State Parliament.