The mayor of Alice Springs says alcohol is just one of the problems the embattled town faces, after 3000 people showed up to a community meeting about the need for drastic change.

Mayor Matt Paterson said the high attendance – about 10 per cent of the Northern Territory town's population – indicated locals were feeling like prisoners in their own homes.

"We can't continue to live the way that we're living," he said.

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"We have been asking for so long for help. This town — we're at breaking point."

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese last week announced alcohol restrictions for the town, including two days a week of no takeaway purchases.

But Paterson said alcohol was just one of the problems.

"There is so much anti-social behaviour and domestic violence going on in our community that, you know, it really has to be on a national stage," he said.

"I mean, we are seeing people walking down the street in broad daylight with machetes, knives, with all sorts of weapons."

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Paterson said the problems had been ongoing for years, and that he had even written to former prime minister Scott Morrison about the issues in Alice Springs in January last year.

"We don't have enough police. That's the reality," he said.

"Our health service and system is just about at breaking point because of the amount of crime and anti-social behaviour and all other things that go with that."

A report into the crisis is set to be handed to Albanese today.

READ MORE: Alec Baldwin charged with manslaughter

Paterson said whatever happened, the town's youth crisis needed addressing.

"The reality is for these kids, it is safer for them to be on the street than at home," he said.

"We need to start having a conversation around why these kids are there and where do we take them?

"Because the longer that we leave these kids on the street, the longer we're setting them up for failure."

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Paid family and domestic violence leave is now in effect across Australia, replacing the existing unpaid leave on offer for those affected by family and domestic violence.

Full-time, part-time and casual employees will all have the right to access 10 days of paid family and domestic violence leave in a 12-month period, with the Albanese government having passed the law through federal parliament in August.

"This bill will not by itself solve the problem of family and domestic violence but it does mean no employee in Australia will ever again be forced to make a choice between earning a wage and protecting the safety of themselves and their families," Employment Minister Tony Burke said as the law was passed.

Here is how the leave will work.

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What is paid family and domestic violence leave and how does it work?

Paid family and domestic violence leave will be available to any employee who experiences violent, threatening or other abusive behaviour by a close relative, a current or former intimate partner, or a member of their household that seeks to coerce or control them or causes them harm or fear.

A close relative is defined as a child, parent, grandparent, grandchild or sibling of a current or former spouse or de facto partner, or a person related to the employee according to Aboriginal or Torres Strait Islander kinship rules.

How much is the domestic violence payment?

The payment will be whatever the employee would have earned if they had been at work.

Full-time and part-time employees can take paid family and domestic violence leave at their full pay rate for the hours they would have worked as if they were working.

Casual employees will be paid at their full pay rate for the hours they were rostered to work in the period they took leave.

The full pay rate includes an employee's base rate plus any incentive-based payments and bonuses, loadings, monetary allowances, overtime or penalty rates.

When does domestic violence leave start?

The leave will be available from February 1 at most workplaces.

Small businesses will have an extra six months to adjust to the changes, meaning it will come into effect in their workplaces from August 1.

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Who will pay for the leave?

Employers will have to pay domestic violence leave.

This is why small business are being given an extra six months to prepare for the change.

Who can access paid family and domestic violence leave?

Any employees who need to do something to deal with the impact of family and domestic violence that is not practical to do outside of their work hours can take paid family and domestic violence leave.

These tasks may include:

• making arrangements for their safety, or the safety of a close relative (including relocation)
• attending court hearings
• accessing police services
• attending counselling
• attending appointments with medical, financial or legal professionals.

Will the family and domestic violence leave appear on payslips?

No.

Employers need to keep a record of leave balances and any leave taken by employees.

However, pay slips must not mention family and domestic violence leave, including any leave taken and leave balances.

How does someone take family and domestic violence leave?

Employees taking paid family and domestic violence leave have to let their employer know as soon as possible – but this could be after the leave has started.

An employer can ask their employee for evidence to show the employee needs to do something to deal with family and domestic violence and it's not practical to do that outside their hours of work.

An employer can only use this information to satisfy themselves that the employee is entitled to family and domestic violence leave, unless:

• the employee consents
• the employer is required to deal with the information by law, or
• it's necessary to protect the life, health or safety of the employee or another person.

The employer can't use the information for other purposes, including to take adverse action against the employee.

Does domestic violence leave accrue?

No, the leave will not accumulate from year to year if it's not used.

The leave balance will renew each year on an employee's work anniversary.

Employees who start work on or after the leave entitlements come into place will be able to access the full 10 days from their start date.

More information can be found here.

Support is available from the National Sexual Assault, Domestic Family Violence Counselling Service at 1800RESPECT (1800 737 732).

Help is available from the Men's Referral Service on 1300 766 491.

If you are in immediate danger call triple zero (000).

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Actor Alec Baldwin and a weapons specialist have been formally charged with involuntary manslaughter in the fatal shooting of a cinematographer on a New Mexico movie set, according to court documents filed by prosecutors on Tuesday.

Santa Fe District Attorney Mary Carmack-Altwies filed the charging documents naming Baldwin and Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, who supervised weapons on the set of the Western Rust.

The filing comes nearly two weeks after she first announced that Baldwin and Gutierrez-Reed would be prosecuted for what authorities have described as a pattern of criminal disregard for safety.

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Baldwin and Gutierrez-Reed maintain their innocence and have vowed to fight the charges.

Baldwin's attorney Luke Nikas declined comment on Tuesday and referred to his previous statement on the case, in which he called the charges a "terrible miscarriage of justice" that he and his client would fight and win.

"Mr Baldwin had no reason to believe there was a live bullet in the gun – or anywhere on the movie set," the statement said.

"He relied on the professionals with whom he worked."

Gutierrez-Reed's attorney said they would release a statement later.

Halyna Hutchins died shortly after being wounded during rehearsals at a ranch on the outskirts of Santa Fe on October 21, 2021.

Baldwin was pointing a pistol at Hutchins when the gun went off, killing her and wounding the director, Joel Souza.

Prosecutors have said that Baldwin's involvement as a producer and as the person who fired the gun weighed in the decision to file charges.

The manslaughter charge against Baldwin includes alternative standards and sanctions.

One would apply a charge of manslaughter for reckless disregard of safety "without due caution and circumspection".

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Hutchins' death already has led to new safety precautions in the film industry.

Carmack-Altwies told The Associated Press in a January 19 interview that the set was "really being run pretty fast and loose" and that Baldwin should have known there had been previous misfires on the set and that multiple people had brought up safety concerns.

She added that Baldwin was the one who pointed the gun and pulled the trigger.

Baldwin and Gutierrez-Reed will be issued a summons to appear in court.

Prosecutors will forgo a grand jury and rely on a judge to determine if there is sufficient evidence to move toward trial.

It could take up to 60 days for decision.

Involuntary manslaughter can involve a killing that happens while a defendant is doing something lawful but dangerous and is acting negligently or without caution.

Special prosecutor Andrea Reeb has cited a pattern of "criminal disregard for safety" on the set of Rust.

Prosecutors also said they will release the terms of a signed plea agreement with assistant director David Halls, who oversaw safety on the set.

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Participants in the un-filmed rehearsal have given conflicting accounts of who handed the gun to Baldwin.

Halls has agreed to plead guilty in the negligent use of a deadly weapon, they said.

Heather Brewer, a spokeswoman for the district attorney's office, said in a statement on Monday that prosecutors are "fully focused on securing justice for Halyna Hutchins" and "the evidence and the facts speak for themselves".

Baldwin, also a co-producer on Rust, has described the killing as a tragic accident.

The 64-year-old actor said he was told the gun was safe and has sought to clear his name by suing people involved in handling and supplying the loaded .45-calibre revolver.

In his lawsuit, Baldwin said that while working on camera angles with Hutchins, he pointed the gun in her direction and pulled back and released the hammer of the weapon, which discharged.

Defence attorney Jason Bowles, who represents Gutierrez-Reed, said the charges are the result of a "flawed investigation" and an "inaccurate understanding of the full facts".

Defendants can participate remotely in many initial court proceedings or seek to have their first appearance waived.

The decision to charge Baldwin marks a stunning turn of events for an A-list actor whose 40-year career included the early blockbuster The Hunt for Red October and a starring role in the sitcom 30 Rock, as well as iconic appearances in Martin Scorsese's The Departed and a film adaptation of David Mamet's Glengary Glen Ross.

In recent years, Baldwin was known for his impression of former president Donald Trump on Saturday Night Live.

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Auckland has experienced record rainfall and more is on the way.

Medals, an old tennis racquet and a passport are among the items allegedly stolen from the home of retired tennis champion Margaret Court on Australia Day.

Western Australia Police have charged two men, after they allegedly stole Court's OABE, AO and OC miniature medals from her City Beach home in Perth, about 8pm on Thursday.

The senior pastor and her husband, Barrymore Court, were on holiday at the time but watched the ordeal unfold through the home security system.

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"It's never comfortable, it's not nice," Court said.

"I think I saw them right away on the little screen at the front door, police got right onto it, they were awesome."

Court said most of the items had been returned, except for her husband's passport.

"They were all returned, the police did and wonderful, wonderful job," she said.

"All is good, all is fine, I pray for the young guys, I pray they come to know Christ."

A 33-year-old man and a 34-year-old man, both from Edgewater, have been charged over the incident. 

They are expected to face court next month.

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Social activist turned political staffer Sally Rugg has launched a legal challenge for unfair dismissal against a federal Teal MP over claims she was sacked for refusing to work unreasonable hours.

Rugg was hired as chief of staff to Monique Ryan last year after the doctor successfully challenged then-treasurer Josh Frydenberg for the seat of Kooyong in the May 2022 election.

She's now launched a bid in the Federal Court to stop Ryan and the Commonwealth from sacking her, alleging breaches of national employment standards and workplace agreements for political staffers.

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Documents filed in the Federal Court allege adverse action, being a decision to dismiss Rugg effective from Tuesday, was taken because she had exercised a workplace right to make complaints and inquiries about her employer.

It's alleged she was sacked for exercising a workplace right to refuse to work additional hours that were unreasonable and for proposing to continue exercising that right.

The first respondent in the case, filed on January 25, is the Commonwealth with Ryan named as the second respondent.

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Represented by high-profile employment lawyer Josh Bornstein, Rugg is seeking a full injunction preventing her position from being terminated, as well as a temporary injunction until the matter is finalised.

An interlocutory hearing has been listed in Melbourne on Friday.

It's argued her sacking breaches national employment standards in the Fair Work Act as well as the enterprise agreement for staff employed by commonwealth MPs.

The suit argues the Commonwealth injured Rugg in her employment by engaging "in hostile conduct in the workplace".

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Rugg also wants a declaration that Ryan was involved in the contravention of workplace laws by having been the "principal actor" on behalf of the Commonwealth.

She is seeking compensation and pecuniary penalties be paid to her by both the Commonwealth and Ryan.

Before joining Ryan's office, Rugg was the head of Change.org and previously directed campaigns at GetUp.

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Alexander MinVui Wong laid in wait for his wife's lover to return home before allegedly bludgeoning the restaurant boss to death, prosecutors have alleged.

Wong believed his estranged wife Penny was having an affair with her boss, China Bar owner Yoke Onn Chi, 56, after discovering messages between the pair, prosecutor Mark Gibson KC told the Supreme Court in Melbourne today.

Their marriage had broken down over the previous months due to Wong's infidelity and Penny had moved home to Malaysia just two weeks before Chi was found dead.

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Penny had been living with Chi, also known as Vincent, for about four months after finding out Wong was cheating.

Before leaving Australia, Penny gave Wong her mobile phone and promised she would not talk to Chi. However, Wong soon discovered Chi had been calling and messaging his wife.

Wong then told a friend he wanted to teach Chi "a lesson".

"It will not be a problem for me to fight him one on one," Gibson said Wong told his friend.

Wong has pleaded not guilty to murder and faced the first day of a jury trial on Tuesday, where the prosecution laid out its circumstantial case against him.

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He is alleged to have entered Chi's home via the garage and waited for him to return home from closing up his Preston restaurant, before using a rubber mallet to beat him to death on January 31, 2020.

Chi's son arrived home from work about 11pm to find his father's lifeless body lying in a pool of blood at the entrance to his Templestowe Lower home.

"This sustained beating, the Crown says, has all the hallmarks of a crime of passion," Gibson told the jury.

The owner of Northland Shopping Centre's China Bar was seen alive on CCTV leaving the car park to drive home about 9.15pm.

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Police initially believed a burglar may have attacked Chi as his wallet and a bag holding the restaurant's daily takings were missing. These items, along with his iPad, have never been found.

Gibson said there were no eyewitnesses who saw Wong attack Chi, but a combination of DNA evidence, CCTV, text messages and witness accounts will be used to prove their case.

"The pieces fit together like pieces of a jigsaw puzzle to form a pattern of behaviour for you to analyse in determining this case," he told the jury.

The trial before Justice Michael Croucher continues on Wednesday.

By the end of 2023, eligible people in all Australian states will be able to apply for voluntary assisted dying as the final three states' laws will become operational this year.

This year began with Queensland's voluntary assisted dying law commencing operation on January 1. South Australia has followed, its new policy coming into effect on January 31, with the New South Wales law to commence on November 28.

These states join Victoria, Western Australia and Tasmania, whose laws have been operating for more than three years, one year and three months respectively.

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The Australian Capital Territory and Northern Territory may be poised to follow after the Commonwealth lifted a ban of more than 25 years on territories passing voluntary assisted dying laws.

The ACT has already signalled it will introduce such laws by 2024 and circulate a discussion paper in the coming months.

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Hundreds have chosen to end their lives with voluntary assisted dying

There is now a clear picture emerging of voluntary assisted dying in Australia, with hundreds choosing this in states where it is legal.

In Victoria, 604 people have been assisted to die in the three years between June 2019 and June 2022 (the latest figures publicly available). Some 75 per cent of people being assisted to die since the law commenced were 65 or older; more than 80 per cent of applicants had cancer.

In the last reporting period (July 1, 2021 to June 30, 2022), deaths from voluntary assisted dying represented 0.58 per cent of deaths in the state.

In Western Australia, uptake has been much higher than expected, with 190 people (1.1 per cent of deaths in the state) choosing voluntary assisted dying in the first year. This is higher than the number of Victorians who accessed voluntary assisted dying in the first year, even though WA's population is much smaller.

In the western state, almost 88 per cent of eligible applicants were aged 60 or over and 68 per cent of patients requesting voluntary assisted dying had cancer.

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In both states, more than 80 per cent of patients requesting voluntary assisted dying were also receiving palliative care. Eligible applicants cited the inability to engage in activities that make life enjoyable, and the loss of autonomy, as the two most common reasons for accessing voluntary assisted dying.

How does the voluntary assisted dying system works?

In Victoria and WA, bodies that oversee voluntary assisted dying have found the system safe. According to their reports, only people who meet the strict eligibility criteria have been able to access it.

Those providing voluntary assisted dying and state-based services designed to help prospective patients access it has praised the set-up as supportive and compassionate.

However, there are barriers to access, including:

• The statutory prohibition preventing Victorian doctors initiating conversations about voluntary assisted dying
• Commonwealth restrictions on discussing voluntary assisted dying via Telehealth and email
• The need to show evidence of Australian citizenship or permanent residency can preclude some long-term residents from accessing voluntary assisted dying if they cannot prove their status
• The lack of eligible doctors willing to provide voluntary assisted dying
• The lack of proper remuneration for doctors lengthy and complicated administrative processes
• Non-participation by some aged care and healthcare providers

Many of these issues are heightened in rural and remote areas.

While it is still early days in Tasmania, access issues have already been reported. These result from a lack of trained doctors, and a complicated and lengthy request and assessment process.

How can the issues be addressed?

Voluntary assisted dying legislation in each state requires it to be reviewed after a certain period. For both Victoria and WA, the review will begin this year.

But it is not yet clear how these reviews will be conducted, or what evidence considered.

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For some issues, law reform might be needed. For others, a policy response may be possible.

For example, potential barriers might be addressed through better remuneration for participating practitioners, strategies to support individuals living in rural and remote areas and a more flexible application of the Australian residency rules.

These mandated reviews present an important opportunity to improve how voluntary assisted dying laws operate in practice. It is pivotal these reviews are evidence-based.

Fortunately, there is a growing body of published evidence that can guide and inform these reviews – from the bodies that oversee voluntary assisted dying and from research on voluntary assisted dying practice.

Now voluntary assisted dying laws are operational in all Australian states, or will be by the end of the year, the next challenge is to ensure current barriers to access are removed while continuing to ensure the system operates safely.

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A person has died and a school-aged child is in a critical condition after a horror crash in Victoria's south-east.

Seven people were involved in the collision between three cars at the intersection of Traralgon-Maffra Road and Farmers Road in Glengarry about 3.50pm.

A driver of one of the vehicles, who is yet to be identified, died at the scene.

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Ambulance Victoria confirmed the boy will be airlifted to hospital in a critical condition with upper body injuries.

The Major Collision Investigation Unit will attend the scene and investigate the exact cause of the crash.

Glengarry is located about 165 kilometres from Melbourne.

This year 32 people have died on Victorian roads, 10 more than this time last year.

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Fire and Emergency put the suitcase fire on Moire Rd out and police inquiries are ongoing.