Australian researchers have uncovered a link between an "unusually dangerous" COVID-19 vaccine complication and rare but potentially fatal blood disease contracted by some people who caught a cold.

The antibodies from the two conditions – vaccine-induced immune thrombocytopenia and thrombosis (VITT), and an adenovirus VITT-like disorder – share almost identical molecular signatures or fingerprints, Adelaide's Flinders University announced today.

"These findings, using a completely new approach for targeting blood antibodies developed at Flinders University, indicate a common triggering factor on virus and vaccine structures that initiates the pathological PF4 antibodies," the university's Professor Tom Gordon said.

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"Indeed, the pathways of lethal antibody production in these disorders must be virtually identical and have similar genetic risk factors."

The research comes after VITT emerged as a complication that occurred in some rare cases after receiving some COVID-19 vaccines, including the Oxford-AstraZeneca jab used in Australia.

"VITT was found to be caused by an unusually dangerous blood autoantibody directed against a protein termed platelet factor 4 (or PF4)," Flinders University said in a statement.

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Separately to research into the vaccine side-effect, experts from North America and Europe last year found an almost-identical blood disease with the same PF4 antibody that was fatal for some people who had recently had a common cold.

Flinders researchers Gordon and Dr Jing Jing Wang led a study in 2022 that "cracked the molecular code of the PF4 antibody and identified a genetic risk factor", the university said.

The groups from Flinders University and overseas collaborated to find the matching molecular fingerprints, publishing their findings in the New England Journal of Medicine today.

Both Gordon and Wang said the findings would play an important role in improving vaccine safety.

"Our findings have the important clinical implication that lessons learned from VITT are applicable to rare cases of blood clotting after adenovirus (a common cold) infections, as well as having implications for vaccine development," Gordon said.

Vandals have cut down the statue of a disgraced colonial-era politician in Hobart on the day a civil tribunal – in what the council says is a national first – gave the green light to the city to remove it.

Locals woke up this morning to discover the bronzed sculpture of William Crowther, which had stood at Franklin Square since 1889, had been cut from its ankles.

The plinth was splattered with "what goes around" in red paint.

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The area has been taped off as the police and Hobart City Council investigate. 

Crowther broke into a morgue, removed the skull of Indigenous man William Lanne and sent it to surgeons in London.

The statue of the former premier has been the subject of hurt and debate among locals and sparked a years-long process to remove it.

As the statue laid face first in the square, the Tasmanian Civil and Administrative Tribunal today dismissed an appeal against the council's decision to remove it.

"We are very pleased that the independent planning tribunal has verified our decision," Hobart Lord Mayor Anna Reynolds said.

"This has been a very careful and consultative process, and the tribunal's decision supports our commitment to telling the truth about our colonial history. 

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"It is a critical step for Hobart in acknowledging and addressing the darker aspects of our past."

The council said the decision made Hobart the first city in Australia to decide to remove a colonial statue.

This news was marred by the overnight vandalism, Reynolds said. 

"We strongly condemn this vandalism," she said.

"Vandalism doesn't build bridges, it doesn't build goodwill, it is unlawful and so it's disappointing that vandalism that took place when the decision was a very positive one."

The Tasmanian Aboriginal Centre argued the "vandalism" was instead "truth telling".

"Grave robbers, skeleton robbers, and deniers of the attempted genocide in our state do not deserve respect today," the centre said.

Police urged anyone with information to contact police on 131 444 or Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.

For 24/7 crisis support run by Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, contact 13YARN (13 92 76).

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Australians are living with their parents for longer, according to new data, which has shown a portion of adults are not moving out until they are 34.

A significant 39 per cent of 18 to 24-year-olds still live in their family home, according to a survey of 2000 Australians by Market Research company Insights Exchange.

Meanwhile, 15 per cent of 25 to 34-year-olds are still living with their, which is a 10 per cent increase on last year's data.

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Experts said these adults not being able to comfortably afford rent was playing a factor in them living with their parents longer.

"Going out on their own, whether it's renting or saving for a house deposit, it's just becoming further and further out of reach," Insights Exchange demographer and founder Nichola Quail said.

Quail said young adults did not see a reason to move out during the cost of living crisis.

"Why would they move out of home?" Quail said.

"If they've got a comfortable living space, they're not having to pay too many of the bills and they can spend their disposable income how they like."

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The study also looked at how young Australians were spending their disposable income.

Up to 44 per cent of responders used it for general expenses, 43 per cent of responders spent it on travel, while 29 per cent spent it on a new car.

Another 27 per cent used their disposable income to buy clothes and accessories.

Only 24 per cent were using their disposable income to save for a house deposit.

Rose McLelland, 25, still lives at home with her mum and dad. 

"It's tough when you're living in Sydney…so I think it's a very common trend," she told 9News.

"We're getting closer to our 30s and we're still living at home."

"I'm getting my travel out of the way and getting my shopping under control and trying to prioritise saving."

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Father Bruce said he didn't mind having his daughter live there.

"It is the new normal, the next thing will be the kiddies, you know," he said.

Social Researcher Edgar Liu said being forced to choose between a deposit and a personal purchase was a decision not everyone wanted to make.

"We need to pay more attention to how people actually want to live and provide the right kind of housing and the right kind of support for people to do that," he said.

Two prison guards have been accused of having inappropriate relationships with inmates at a New South Wales correctional centre.

Amber Clavell, 25, allegedly had an intimate relationship with convicted armed robber Mark Kennedy at the Geoffery Pearce Correctional Centre, near Windsor, between January and April.

Clavell has also been charged with accessing restricted information and has also been accused of smuggling 33 grams of ice into the jail, along with a pouch of tobacco.

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She fronted Penrith Local Court today.

Prosecutors will allege that Clavell conspired with a second prison guard, identified as 25-year-old Jessica Elguindy.

Elguindy is the daughter of decorated corrective services officer Wally Elguindy.

She is also accused of having an intimate relationship with a Mt Druitt gang member and inmate, Elijah Sila, over the same period.

Both women have been suspended without pay.

Their future in the corrective services industry will depend on the outcome of their court cases.

Both women are yet to enter pleas.

The man accused of murdering schoolgirl Charlise Mutten sent a string of violent voicemails to her mother threatening to kill her if she didn't return his car to him.

Justin Laurens Stein, 33, has pleaded not guilty to murdering Charlise on or around January 12, 2022, at Mount Wilson, in the Blue Mountains west of Sydney.

The nine-year-old was found dead inside a barrel with two gunshot wounds, to her head and lower back, after an intensive four-day search of the area.

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Charlise's mother, Kallista Mutten, left the Mount Wilson property in the early hours of January 13, driving Stein's Red Holden Colorado ute, a NSW Supreme Court trial was told today.

The pair were in a relationship at the time, with Mutten travelling alone to a nearby reserve where she sent text messages to friends that prosecutors say are consistent with her belief the child was missing.

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"Bring back my car now. I'm saying this only once," Stein says in one voicemail played to the court.

"If you don't bring it back I'm going to hurt you as well as everyone else.

"I've got me f—— guns and I'm going to kill you."

Sounding increasingly angry and frustrated, Stein threatens to tell police Mutten had taken her daughter.

"Have fun – between everything I can put on you, you're going down dog," he says.

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Mutten returned to the property with Stein's car shortly after, the court was told.

Stein's lawyer argued earlier this week it was Mutten who had shot the girl, and that he had only helped to dispose of her body.

Police were led to the girl's body by using Google location data stored on Stein's phone, the jury was told today.

The data indicates on the same day he verbally threatened Mutten, Stein travelled to at least three separate boat ramps across Sydney – at Rose Bay, Drummoyne and Windsor.

CCTV images captured of the trip showed Stein towing a boat, with what prosecutors allege is a barrel containing Charlise body in the back tray of his ute.

Phone data and CCTV footage tracks Stein's movements for close to eight hours, before the data showed he returns to the Blue Mountains near the Colo River, stopping at two locations for roughly five minutes each.

At one of the locations detectives found traces of sand and scrape marks and were able to visually locate the barrel with Charlise's body down a steep hill towards the river.

Soon after Stein returned from allegedly dumping Charlise's body, Mutten called triple zero to report the girl missing.

In a recording of the call played to the jury, Mutten tells the operator the last time she saw her daughter was two nights earlier after she left her alone with Stein.

"She was here and I wasn't here, my partner was here … during the morning she was sort of sick, so she was sort of lethargic and I was two-and-a-half hours away," Mutten said in the call.

She told the operator Stein had left Charlise, who he claimed was sick, with a woman who had come to do a valuation of the 12-acre Mount Wilson property owned by his mother.

"He asked if she could mind her while he went and got me … he didn't want her in the car because she'd been throwing up," Mutten said.

"When we got back they were gone."

Crown prosecutor Ken McKay SC earlier told the jury Charlise being sick and remaining with the property-valuer was one of two lies Stein told Mutten about what happened to her daughter.

He would later suggest the nine-year-old might have been taken by people from his criminal past.

Officer in charge of the investigation, Detective Sergeant Bradley Gardiner, began giving evidence today and is expected to remain in the witness box for the rest of the week.

Australian businesses are going to keep falling into dire financial trouble at a record rate, in large part due to overdue tax debts.

So far this year, more than 10,000 businesses have appointed external administrators – already higher than the total of about 9500 for the 2022-23 financial year, and far higher than the roughly 6100 for 2021-22.

According to insolvency firm Jirsch Sutherland, the tax office is playing a big role in those collapses.

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"Since the start of the calendar year we have experienced a noticeable uptick in small business restructuring plans and voluntary administrations to resuscitate or restructure businesses across a wide range of industries," Jirsch Sutherland partner Andrew Spring said.

"Tax debt is the primary reason but higher operating costs are also pushing businesses to or over the edge."

The Australian Taxation Office (ATO) revealed last month that businesses owe it about $50 billion, with small companies owing around $33 billion of that.

"A significant portion of the amount going unpaid is GST collected from consumers or PAYG withholding, withheld from employees' pay," ATO Commissioner Rob Heferen said.

"We are seeing an increasing number of businesses fall behind on these types of payments, from which point it is very difficult for businesses to get back on top of their obligations and remain viable."

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The ATO last moved to what it called "firmer debt collection actions" after pulling back to offer businesses financial support during the pandemic.

Spring said that approach has been mirrored by other creditors, too.

"The creditor community is becoming less tolerant to operational behaviours that may have contributed to a business's financial distress, and the ATO is again at the forefront of this changing creditor position," he said.

"It's placing an even higher level of scrutiny on historical compliance when considering a proposal for restructuring.

"Anecdotally, we're hearing this is also the case with pre-insolvency discussions regarding ATO payment plans.

"As an involuntary creditor, the ATO doesn't have the option to withdraw credit from a business – nor does it automatically know they're even in a trading relationship until the liability is self-reported.

"As such, a high importance on reporting compliance is required to allow an effective and efficient tax system.

"During the last few 'pandemic years' the ATO appeared to move away from this position, and for those that have become delinquent with their lodgement activity, the hammer is about to drop."

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The parents of a young surfer who was fatally stabbed at a beach on the NSW Mid North Coast have made a plea for information to catch their son's killer.

Kye Schaefer, 21, was found with significant stab wounds beside a car on Ocean Parade at Coffs Harbour about 6.40am on May 2.

The 21-year-old was treated at the scene but died in hospital a short time later. 

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His parents Pam and Tony Schaefer said "no words can describe" the loss of their beloved son.

"No words can describe how we're feeling, the sheer loss of our faith in humanity," Pam said.

"The love and support our family and friends have been absolutely phenomenal, that's what's kept us out of this black hole."

Police have yet to make any arrests over the death and have not found the weapon used in the attack.

"Just be honest and own up to your mistakes in life… everyone makes them," Tony said.

"The local community have been so supportive. We thank everyone very much for the assistance and help given us through these hard times"

The pair also made a public plea to anyone with information that could assist police to come forward.

"If you think of anything at all – you may not think it is important: yet it might be something that makes the difference."

Anyone with information is urged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000.

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