New research has revealed the least affordable places to rent in Australia.

A couple who have been living in Australia for more than a decade have issued a plea to Immigration Minister Andrew Giles to allow them – and their unborn child – to stay in the country.

Michaela Loudinova and her husband Miroslav Sulak have been fighting to remain in Australia for the last five years, ever since their application for permanent residency was rejected in what was assumed to have been a "mistake".

The pair first came to Sydney from their native Czech Republic in January 2013 on student visas.

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"We absolutely fell in love with this country and wanted to stay," Loudinova said.

Loudinova extended her studies to include management and soon landed a job at a restaurant in Sydney's eastern suburbs.

As the restaurant manager, Loudinova was sponsored by her employer for a skilled visa. 

Three other employees at the same restaurant, who all worked in the kitchen, also applied for a sponsored skilled visa at the same time as Loudinova.

However, the restaurant workers were all left stunned and confused when, in May 2018, two of them were granted visas, and two – including Loudinova – received refusals.

Loudinova's visa was refused because the immigration officer assessing her application determined her employer didn't show enough evidence to prove they were capable of paying her salary for the next two years.

However, all four applications were all based on the same paperwork, leaving everyone scratching their heads.

"We were assured by our lawyer that this must be a mistake, a 'jurisdictional error', she called it," Loudinova said.

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Following their lawyer's advice, Loudinova and her husband lodged their case with the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT).

Loudinova continued to work for her employer for two more years until the COVID-19 pandemic hit and the restaurant closed down.

"One day I had a job and the next day I didn't," Loudinova said.

"All our hopes for the future basically ended that day," Sulak said, explaining that, because the business tied to their visa nomination was no longer in operation, their application to stay was also likely to have been rendered invalid.

Do you have a story? Contact reporter Emily McPherson at calls from temporary workers who stayed during the pandemic and contributed to the economy to be provided with more permanent options for residency.

A parliamentary petition on the topic, started by Queensland tourism worker Luca Kattan, was signed by almost 22,000 people.

Responding to the Parkinson review report in a National Press Club address in April, Home Affairs Minister Clare O'Neil acknowledged Australia's migration system was "broken".

Changes planned by the government would help draw skilled migrants to Australia and offer them simpler and clearer ways to gain residency, O'Neil said. 

O'Neil said the government would raise the minimum salary an immigrant needs to receive sponsorship from an employer from 1 July, from $53,000 to $70,000.

It would also create three new pathways for temporary visa holders – a "fast and simple" pathway for high-skilled workers on high salaries, a middle pathway for skilled migrants earning above the temporary skilled migration income threshold, and an easier pathway for lower-earning workers in critical sectors with staff shortages, such as aged care. 

By the end of 2023, all skilled temporary workers would be given the opportunity to apply for permanent residency, she said.

Football and music fans are being warned of potential chaos on Sydney roads tonight as the Matildas face England in their first-ever FIFA Women's World Cup finals.

Ticketholders are being urged to avoid the roads and take public transport to the historic game, held at Stadium Australia in Sydney Olympic Park at 8pm on Wednesday.

With a Luke Combs concert taking place at the same time at the neighbouring Qudos Bank Arena, a combined crowd of nearly 100,000 fans will descend on Sydney Olympic Park.

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With thousands more fans also expected to watch the match live at stadiums and venues around Sydneysignificant traffic delays are expected during an already busy evening peak.

Transport for NSW Acting Chief Operations Officer Craig Moran said more than 300 extra public transport services would be in operation to and from Olympic Park.

"We encourage football fans to continue catching public transport to games – the best thing is your trip is included in your game ticket," he said.

Frequent express and limited-stop trains will run regularly from Central Station and key Western Line Stations directly to Olympic Park.

Stadium Australia is a short walk from the station.

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Additionally, Major Event Buses will run on all nine routes to Sydney Olympic Park with services starting from mid-afternoon.

A total of 183 additional services will run on Wednesday night from 5pm until 1am, including additional services to enable fans to get to live broadcast sites.

All available car parks in Sydney Olympic Park are sold out on Wednesday 16 August.

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Two Western Australian men have been charged after police seized several 3D-printed guns during a four-month operation.

A 59-year-old and a 38-year-old have been charged with six offences between them, including manufacturing and selling weapons.

Several properties were raided across the state including homes in Wundowie, High Wycomeb and Morangup.

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In one raid at a property on Louisa Circle in Morangup, an hour north-east of Perth, police allegedly found four 3D-printed guns, a 3D printer and electronic devices with schematics, and several 3D-printed gun parts.

The gun bust worried WA Police. 

"Our concern is they fall into the wrong hands, they do fire live rounds and they are a risk," Deputy Commissioner Kylie Whiteley said.

"The issue for us now [is] that these can be made in backyards and homes, and the concern for us is we're seeing an emerging trend where that's increasing."

The 59-year-old Marangup man was charged with manufacturing a gun and possessing gun technology without a licence, along with other weapons offences.

The younger man, from Gosnells in Perth's south-east, was charged with selling a firearm without a licence.

In June last year, an 18-year-old was arrested and charged with a similar string of offences, including printing a working semi-automatic rifle.

3D printing expert Elliot Theunissen, owner of E-Jet 3D Printing, said many manufacturing blueprints were available online.

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"We should crack down more on removing those weapons off the internet then you can cut back on people both printing and traditionally manufacturing these things," he said.

The 59-year-old is due in Northam Magistrates Court on September 11 and the 38-year-old will face Midland Magistrates Court on October 20.

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At least two people have been hospitalised in the past two weeks after slips.

Wages growth in Australia has slowed, fuelling hopes that the Reserve Bank will once again keep interest rates on hold in September.

The latest figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) showed wages grew by 0.8 per cent in the June quarter, with annual growth down from 3.7 to 3.6 per cent – slightly lower than the RBA's own forecast of 3.7 per cent.

The figures mean wages have increased by 0.8 per cent for three consecutive quarters, even though fewer workers received a pay rise in the latest reporting period.

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"Compared to a year ago, fewer jobs had wage increases this quarter, however, on average, the increases received were higher," Michelle Marquardt, ABS head of prices statistics, said.

"In particular, the share of jobs which received increases above 3 per cent was the highest for a June quarter since 2012."

The ABS said the tight labour market was contributing to those higher raises.

"Wage rises from regular June quarter salary reviews were higher than in the same period last year, as recent cost of living and labour market pressures were incorporated into organisation-wide decisions on wages," Marquardt said.

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June saw the biggest annual increase in public sector wages since March 2013, while private sector wage growth was largely consistent with last quarter.

Treasurer Jim Chalmers said the data was welcome news.

"If we want to tackle the cost of living pressures that people are facing right around the country then a very good place to start is to get wages moving again so that more people can work more if they want to, earn more and provide for their loved ones," he said.

"So this is a very welcome outcome today."

The RBA expected annual wages growth to be at 3.7 per cent for the June quarter, according to its latest statement on monetary policy, before rising further later in the year.

The softer-than-expected wages figures will have mortgage holders hoping the RBA will keep interest rates on pause for the third consecutive month when the board meets in September.

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A man accused of making a bomb threat on a flight from Sydney to Malaysia asked passengers whilst in the air if they were "a slave to Allah".

Mohammad Ali Arif, 45, has been charged after the Malaysia Airlines flight MH122 departed Sydney at 1.40pm yesterday and landed safely back on the runway at 3.47pm, where it sat for hours with emergency vehicles nearby.

The Canberra resident refused to front court today and asked for a mental health assessment.

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Passengers have described their terrifying experiences.

"My name is Mohammad, a slave of Allah, are you a slave of Allah?" video shows Arif saying on the flight.

It's alleged he claimed to have a bomb in the backpack he was holding.

Video shows him taking out a mat to pray on as the plane descended.

"The crew were trying to get him to take the bag off, he said 'don't touch my bag, I've got a bomb in here'," a passenger said.

"He had a bag in his front and his hand in his bag, saying he had a bomb, so that was pretty scary," said another.

The plane was grounded on the tarmac for nearly three hours, causing 32 domestic inbound and outbound flights to be cancelled, with other flights delayed more than 90 minutes.

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A pilot questioned authorities about the length of time they were stuck on the runway.

"We seem to have lost contact with the … whoever is in charge of what's happening to us and we have been on the ground for two hours without any updates," the pilot said over the radio.

Two Federal Police officers boarded the plane at 6.30pm and detained Arif. All passengers disembarked by 7pm.

Many on board have been critical of the police response, asking why it took so long to get them off the plane.

"We sat there for over two hours, just sitting there thinking are we going to blow up or something, it was just so bad," a passenger said.

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Former police officer Peter Moroney said there were a number of protocols officers had to go through.

"There is a number of intelligence they would have been trying to do to ensure the safest outcome for those passengers."

Arif trained as an architect in Pakistan, recently worked as a security officer and posted videos of his faith online.

Federal Police alleged this morning that Arif had claimed to have explosives on board.

They said a 45-year-old Canberra resident had been charged with one count of making a false statement about threatening to damage a division three aircraft, and one count of a passenger not complying with cabin crew's safety instructions.

He is facing 10 years in jail and a $15,000 fine for each offence.

‘It’s a big thing for the Crown’ – Crown lawyer Jason Gough

A local mayor has called for privacy amid the intense interest surrounding the deadly mushroom poisonings which killed three people in Victoria.

South Gippsland Mayor Nathan Hersey said locals in Korumburra are asking for privacy, as the case made headlines around the world.

"This is not Midsomer Murders," Hersey said.

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"This is Korumburra, this is people's lives,"

Earlier this week it was revealed Erin Patterson, 48, from nearby Leongatha, wrote to homicide detectives detailing her version of events on that deadly lunch on July 29.

Patterson admitted she lied to investigators and claims she ended up in hospital herself after also eating the beef Wellington that killed Don and Gail Patterson – Patterson's former in-laws – and Heather Wilkinson.

A fourth person, Reverend Ian Wilkinson, a pastor at Korumburra Baptist Church and Wilkinson's husband, is critical in hospital after eating the same meal.

In the statement to police, Patterson denied any wrongdoing.

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Locals say Korumburra, a town of less than 5000 people is a tight-knit group but has been clouded by gossip and the public interest in the unexplained deaths.

Local Rob Buchan said residents are discussing what is happening.

"People are talking about it as we always do about things that happen in our community," Buchan told 9News.

"It's one of those things you gotta be really careful about what you do and what you say because we don't know until we know."

Police believe toxic death cap mushrooms were served at the lunch.

Patterson says she bought dried mushrooms from a supermarket and an Asian grocer in Melbourne, which is 90 minutes' away, and mixed them with fresh mushrooms purchased locally.

No mushroom-related recalls or warnings have been issued in Victoria, other than an annual alert about the risks of poisonous death cap and yellow-staining mushrooms.

The Australian Mushroom Growers Association has reminded consumers to always buy mushrooms from a trusted retailer and not to pick or eat mushrooms growing in the wild.

St Joseph's Church in Korumburra will open at 9am on Saturday for people to pay tribute to the victims.

He visited two Bunnings stores in Waikato and bought items used for camping.