One person is fighting for their life and one other is seriously injured after a crash on SH10 in Taipa, Northland, tonight. The two-car crash between Reid Rd and Ngatikahu Rd was reported to police at 7.15pm, a spokeswoman said….

Māori Development Minister Willie Jackson says a commemorative event to mark the 50th anniversary of the presentation of the Māori language petition (Te Petihana) will be held at Parliament.Jackson says the September 14…

The nation’s newly branded health authority has been ordered to remove or fix a misleading advertisement about vaccination against Covid-19 that ran across multiple media platforms. The Advertising Standards Authority complaints…

One person has died and two others were seriously injured following a crash in Aka Aka, Waikato this evening. The crash near the intersection of Masters Rd and Goodwin Rd, involving two cars, was reported to emergency services at…

Millions of  dollars raised by comedian Celeste Barber following the deadly Black Summer bushfires is yet to reach those who need it.

Barber raised $51 million for victims of the catastrophe and after a court dispute it was decided the money could only be spent by the Rural Fire Service on equipment and training.

However, the RFS set aside $10 million for volunteer firefighters who were injured, and for the families of those who died.

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Today the NSW government's budget estimates heard that despite four volunteers dying, 860 being injured and 46 ending up in hospital, none of the money has been used.

NSW Labor MP Mark Buttigeig asked Steph Cooke, who was the Minister for Resilience at the time, why it's taken three years.

"We will continue to work on its establishment and the distribution of funds," she responded.

"At what point in time do you think you'll get the money out of the fund into the hands of victims and people who need it?" Labor MLC Adam Searle asked.

"It's important that we set this fund up correctly right from the get go ," Cooke said.

RFS Commissioner Rob Rogers said he wants the fund to be looking after volunteers for decades to come. 

"The aim is to set this up like police legacy," he said.

The state government expects the fund to be established by the end of the year.

Former police commissioner Ken Moroney is being sounded out to be appointed to the board.

A Te Kuiti meat worker suffered a seizure while standing on a 2.4m high platform, before falling to his death. Jared Te Whare died on the floor of Universal Beef Packers Ltd (UBP) where horrified family members would soon find him,…

When an 11-month-old baby left in his care began crying, Diquan Lloyd Erwin Fisher shook her before she became limp and blue.

Fisher was 18 when the 17-year-old mother asked him to look after her sleeping baby girl in Brisbane's south in February 2020.

When she woke up and started crying after the mother had left, Fisher picked her up, shook her vigorously and told her to be quiet, the Supreme Court heard.

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Fisher – now 21 – began "freaking out" when the child became unresponsive and the mother returned to the Corinda house.

He initially told the mother that the baby had been coughing, had vomited and been choking.

The baby girl was revived by paramedics at the scene but died at the Queensland Children's Hospital four days later, police said.

Fisher later conceded that he shook her from "side to side" when up to 40 "scattered bruises" were found on the baby that were consistent with where he had gripped the child, crown prosecutor David Nardone said.

The mother wept at Fisher's sentencing on Friday before leaving the courtroom in tears when details of the baby's death were revealed.

"Let me out. I need to get out," the mother said as she was led out by supporters.

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She could be heard sobbing outside court, and was not able to return and read her heartbreaking victim impact statement.

"Finding out I was pregnant completely changed my life," she said in the statement that was read in court in her absence.

"Her love gave me hope for the future. I adored her with all my heart.

"She was always happy and giggling. She was loving, caring and would give me the cutest smiles and kisses."

The mother did not think she would ever recover from the loss of her "beautiful young woman", saying she struggled with anxiety and depression.

"It destroyed my life. How can anyone understand unless their first born was selfishly taken for no reason," she said.

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"You took my beautiful young woman… my world, my reason for living.

"The… pain and heartache hasn't got any easier. I don't think it ever will.

"I would never have left her with him if I knew he could hurt her – I hope you get what you deserve."

Fisher was exposed to domestic violence at a young age, leading to his "desensitisation", his defence barrister said.

He began dabbling in drugs and alcohol to deal with anxiety and depression and "succumbed to ice", having a severe impact on his mental state.

Fisher also had "impulsivity issues" and struggled to maintain his composure, his defence barrister said.

Fisher had shown a great deal of remorse and guilt for the "catastrophic consequences" of his behaviour and for what he had done to the family, his defence said.

Fisher pleaded guilty to manslaughter on Friday and is expected to be sentenced by Justice Martin Burns next week.

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Older Australians will be able to work more hours without having a cut taken out of their pension, under new rules announced by Prime Minister Anthony Albanese.

Currently old age and veterans pensioners can only earn $7800 a year at a job before their pension is reduced.

But an income credit added from December this year will allow them to earn another $4000 before their pension is impacted.

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The measure is only temporary, lasting until the end of June next year.

The change is hoped to take the edge off the current labour shortage in Australia.

Treasurer Jim Chalmers said the government hopes the change "spurs some additional workforce participation among older Australian workers".

"We've been working on this policy, frankly, since before the election," Chalmers said.

"We wanted to make sure it's the right way to go about it."

The policy change is expected to cost the government around $55 million.

It comes after the Jobs and Skills Summit touted by the prime minister.

"It has been truly an exercise in collaboration that has reinforced my government's approach towards the way that good government should function," Albanese said.

"An approach that says we should look for unity, not division."

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The prime minister has also flagged changes to Australia's immigration quotas.

An overreliance on temporary labour has made Australia more vulnerable, Albanese said.

He pointed to the beginning of the pandemic.

"When people were asked to leave and when the borders were shut, that has exacerbated the skills shortages," he said.

"My starting point is in favour of giving people the security that comes with a path to permanent migration, a path to being an Australian citizen."

He said the best way to find the best skilled migrants was to provide a path to permanency.

"It makes no sense for example to bring in a nurse for two years, three years, and then see them leave," he said.

"We need to be more attractive in the global labour market for the skills that we need."

The Jobs and Skills Summit involved more than 100 forums, mini-summits and roundtables held across the country.

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A boy has been bitten multiple times on the head by a dog in the central west region of New South Wales.

The child was attacked by the animal in Forbes this afternoon and has multiple bite wounds on his body. One of his ears was also seriously injured.

He was taken by ambulance to Forbes Health Service then airlifted The Children's Hospital at Westmead in Sydney.

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"NSW Ambulance paramedics treated a child for multiple bite wounds to the body and head," NSW Ambulance Inspector Peter Rowlands said.

"Unfortunately, he sustained a serious injury to one of his ears during the attack.

Welcome to “On the Bright Side”, a weekly column where we highlight some of the good news that happened this week. Life is tricky these days, what with the pandemic, the wars, climate catastrophe and the skyrocketing cost of living….