The federal government will spend $1.7 billion over the next five years to acquire a fleet of Australian-made and designed underwater drones.

The "ghost shark" will enter service for the Royal Australian Navy at the start of next year after the Department of Defence signed a contract with manufacturer Anduril Australia to deliver, maintain and continue developing the unmanned submarines over the next half-decade.

Deputy Prime Minister and Defence Minister Richard Marles announced the deal this morning, saying the new fleet will deliver Australia "world-leading", long-range stealth capabilities.

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"There is a lot of advancement in technology about making submarines harder to detect," he said.

"We are really confident about the program that we are on in terms of giving Australia a highly capable, long-range submarine capability in the future."

The drones will conduct intelligence, surveillance, reconnaissance and strike operations once they enter service.

However, the government is staying tight-lipped about the exact number of ghost sharks it will acquire under the deal – other than saying it will be dozens – as well as their specific capabilities, range and how they will be used.

"This is a high capability platform, but what defines it is stealth," Marles said.

"And, as a result, what you will find from me and others in the future giving press conferences like this, is we will be very coy indeed in describing what these will do."

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The $1.7 billion deal will create about 750 new jobs in Australia, according to the government, as well as supporting a further 120 jobs.

The government had previously invested around $140 million into Anduril for the development of the ghost shark since 2022.

The announcement comes after a major military parade in Beijing to mark the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II last week, in which a host of drone capabilities were on display, including unmanned submarines and so-called "robot wolves".

It also comes as Australia is seeking to entrench itself as the dominant security partner for Pacific nations, even as China seeks to gain more influence in the region.

Yesterday, a $500 million agreement between Canberra and Vanuatu stalled over concerns it would prevent the latter from accessing funding from Beijing for critical infrastructure projects.

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Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has said he remains confident of the deal being signed despite the delay.

Three years ago, China signed a security pact with the Solomon Islands, raising concerns that the People's Liberation Army Navy could get a foothold in the South Pacific, in one of Australia's closest neighbours.

Asked about whether it was inevitable that Beijing would get a security presence in the region, Marles said the Pacific was becoming more contested but that Australia remained in a good place to respond to challenges in the area.

"I'm really confident that we have been able to make progress in that and that we are the first partner of choice in terms of security for the nations of the Pacific," he said.

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The animal most likely to land Aussies in the emergency department is usually found in suburban backyards, not the outback or ocean.

New data from iSelect revealed that animal-related injuries accounted for almost six per cent of hospital admissions between 2023 and 2024.

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But the animals most responsible for sending Aussies to hospital might not be what you'd expect.

Dogs topped the list after causing 10,345 hospitalisations between 2023 and 2024.

In fact, dogs made up more than 30 per cent of all recorded animal-related hospitalisations in that period.

Other mammals, including cats, horses and other farm animals, ranked second with 5306 hospitalisations.

More than 2200 Aussies were hospitalised after being bitten or crushed by reptiles other than venomous snakes, which came in fourth place and accounted for 802 hospitalisations.

Non-venomous insects and arthropods ranked fifth, followed by spiders in sixth place and venomous marine animals and plants in seventh.

Contact with plant thorns and spines and sharp leaves (which count as living things) was eighth with more than 400 hospitalisations.

Sharks were way down the bottom of the list, lumped in with other marine animals at ninth place with 270 hospitalisations total.

Of course, the effects from a shark bite can be catastrophic, with an average of just under three fatalities per year from attacks over the last decade.

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Finally, contact with venomous arthropods, excluding spiders, ranked tenth.

So while sharks may seem scary, it's actually Fido landing most Aussies in the emergency department.

And that probably shouldn't come as a surprise.

Australia Post revealed in June that posties experienced 44 dog attacks every week in the first six months of 2025 – equivalent to nine daily.

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Data released last year from the National Coronial Information System revealed that dogs are among the deadliest animals in Australia.

They contributed to 82 deaths from 2001 to 2021, 38 of those due to bites.

The only animals that recorded more deaths in that period were cows and horses.

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A deer has been spotted by astonished residents on Sydney's upper north shore, as the wild animal continues to encroach on the city's suburbs in greater numbers.

The deer was photographed by a resident peering through a fence at a sports oval on Kissing Point Road in Turramurra last Monday evening.

The photo shows the deer's antlers rising above the oval's chain link fence.

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In a post on a Turramurra Facebook group, another resident said two highway patrol officers had visited his home on the same day, looking for the deer after it had been spotted near the Comenarra Parkway.

Feral deer numbers have exploded across Australia over the past few decades, with the increase described by the Invasive Species Council as the country's worst emerging animal pest problem.

Speaking in March during this year's deer breeding season, Centre for Invasive Species Solutions CEO Shauna Chadlowe warned that extreme weather events – such as droughts, floods and fires – were pushing deer into new areas.

"It's astonishing – deer have now spread to every state and territory in Australia. In fact, nearly a quarter of New South Wales and Tasmania, and almost half of Victoria are now home to established populations," she said. 

"Their numbers have increased tenfold in recent decades," she said.

According to the National Deer Action Plan, deer were introduced to Australia from Europe in the 19th century but the local population really took off in the 1990s.

Deer numbers in Australia have grown from 200,000 in 2002 to up to 2 million in 2022, according to estimates in the action plan.

The Centre for Invasive Species Solutions reports that damage caused by feral deer cost the Australian economy about $91.3 million in 2021, including $69.1 million in agricultural losses and $3.3 million in motor vehicle impacts, and $1.2 million in train collisions.

Anyone who spots a deer can report it to the federal monitoring service, DeerScan.

Poland's military says it has shot down drones that violated its airspace during a Russian attack on neighbouring Ukraine, in what is potentially a major provocation for Europe.

"Weapons have been deployed, and services are actively working to locate the downed objects," said a statement from Poland's Operational Command posted on X.

The statement said a military operation was ongoing and urged residents to stay in their homes.

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Additional information about the "drone-type objects" was not provided.

Poland is a member of the NATO alliance, a transatlantic defence pact involving the US that employs the principle that an attack on one is an attack on all.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio told CNN that he has been briefed on reports of Russian drones over Poland.

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"Yes," he said when asked by CNN if he had received a briefing, as he left a dinner with President Donald Trump.

Earlier, Polish authorities closed Warsaw International Airport and the military said Polish and NATO aircraft have been scrambled as reports have surfaced of Russian drones over the country.

The Polish military's Operational Command said in a statement that "ground-based air defence and radar reconnaissance systems have reached the highest level of alert" after Russia launched massive airstrikes on Ukrainian territory.

"To ensure the security of Polish airspace, the Operational Commander of the Polish Armed Forces has activated all necessary procedures," the statement said, adding that the Polish military is "fully prepared for immediate response".

A Notice to Airmen (NOTAM) posted on the US Federal Aviation Administration's website said Warsaw Chopin Airport and at least two other airports in Poland were unavailable "due to unplanned military activity related to ensuring state security".

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Earlier, the Ukrainian Air Force said on the Telegram messaging app that drones were heading west and threatening the city of Zamosc in Poland, but the statement has since been deleted, Reuters reported.

It was not immediately clear how many drones were in Poland's airspace.

Ukrainian media reported that at least one drone was heading towards the western Polish city of Rzeszow.

CNN cannot independently verify the reports.

Rzeszów–Jasionka Airport, in the south-east of Poland, has also been closed, according to a NOTAM.

The airport has been a logistics hub for NATO aid to Ukraine, though the United States pulled its forces from the base earlier this year.

The airport in Lublin, Poland, southeast of Warsaw, was also unavailable due to military activity, another NOTAM said.

Poland earlier announced it was closing its eastern border with Russian ally Belarus, due to joint Russian-Belarusian military exercises beginning on Friday, Reuters reported.

The Zapad 25 large-scale exercises, which will take place in western Russia and Belarus, have raised security concerns not only in Poland but also in the neighbouring NATO countries on Lithuania and Latvia, according to Reuters.

"On Friday, Russian-Belarusian maneuvers, very aggressive from a military doctrine perspective, begin in Belarus, very close to the Polish border," Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk told a government meeting, Reuters reported.

"Therefore, for national security reasons, we will close the border with Belarus, including railway crossings, in connection with the Zapad maneuvers on Thursday at midnight," Tusk said.

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Corrie Chabau had just renewed his home insurance when the letter arrived last week.

Printed under a crisp council letterhead were details of updated flood risk mapping that could send his already expensive premium through the roof.

But Chabau is one of the lucky ones; some of his neighbours' homes could be rendered uninsurable under the proposed changes.

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Logan City Council is working on a new town plan that includes updated flood risk mapping as required by the Queensland government.

Two rivers and almost 90 creeks run through the region, which has experienced severe flooding as recently as 2022.

"This risk-based mapping considers a range of floods, from common to extremely rare, and their potential impact," Mayor Jon Raven told 9news.com.au.

"We can't stop floods but we can better understand and plan for them."

The new mapping published as part of the draft town plan last week identified areas of low, moderate and high flood risk.

About 20,000 letters were sent out to residents with properties in moderate and high-risk areas in late August.

Chabau, who has lived in Logan for more than 13 years, was one of them.

But he said the new mapping doesn't reflect his experience of floods in the area, especially on his own property.

"I get stormwater runoff in the back of my place … but that's stormwater," he said.

"That's not river flooding.

"Even through Cyclone Debbie, when we had 400mm in 20 hours, by the next day, you would not even know we had the rain.

"All the water's gone."

He fears the new flood mapping will do more harm than good by making home insurance premiums spike.

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More than half a million Australian homes are at high risk of becoming uninsurable for flood damage by 2030, according to a 2024 Climate Valuation report.

And 13 suburbs were identified as "black zone" suburbs where more than 80 per cent of homes risk becoming uninsurable by 2030.

Those black zone suburbs included Tweed Heads South and Chinderah, less than two hours away from Logan by car.

One in five homes will also have exposure to some level of riverine flooding by 2030, which could affect insurance premiums.

Since moving to Logan in the early 2010s, Chabau's premium has skyrocketed to more than $5000 a year.

The cost jumped by $1200 at his last renewal.

By comparison, the average cost for home and contents insurance in Queensland is $2735 according to Canstar, almost half of what Chabau now pays.

Some Logan residents claimed they had been quoted $17,000 to more than $30,000 for home insurance based on the new flood mapping.

Others fear their homes will become uninsurable for flood damage.

And anyone looking to sell could face new challenges in light of the changes.

"A lot of people are furious about it," Chabau said.

"They've just destroyed everyone's livelihoods.

"All the houses are basically worth nothing now, and we can't insure them."

He said that if his home insurance hits five digits, he may have to run the risk of going uninsured, as he simply can't afford the cost.

Raven, the Logan City mayor, responded to these concerns by telling 9news.com.au council has "no control" over insurance premiums.

"While flood risk may be a consideration, there are many factors driving up the value of premiums across the country, not just in Logan," he said.

Council has begun public consultation on its draft town plan, which will run for nine weeks until October 31.

It is holding more than 50 engagement events and inviting submissions from residents in response to the updated flood risk mapping.

Each submission will be reviewed and used to inform a consultation report, which will be provided to the Queensland government with the updated town plan next year.

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"The Logan Plan will be refined based on feedback where appropriate, noting there are significant legislative and policy constraints in this process," Ryan added.

But Chabau said that even if the mapping is changed, the damage has been done.

"The insurers go 'well, it says here that it might flood' and the premiums won't ever come down. It's just going to destroy everyone."

Last night, a meeting was held in Logan to discuss the proposed changes.

"To say the place was packed would be an understatement," Chabau said.

He claimed the meeting was tense and said he and other residents were unhappy with the council's response to questions about the new mapping and insurance implications.

"The worst part was as I was walking in, I heard a very elderly couple say, 'We are going to lose everything because of this,'" he added.

"That made me see red.

"How dare they cause this stress on all these people?"

Have you got a story? Contact reporter Maddison Leach at Google Play.

Grammy-nominated chart topper Teddy Swims will headline this year's entertainment for the NRL and NRLW Grand Final Day, it has been announced.

US singer Swims, well-known and acclaimed for his I've Tried Everything But Therapy albums and hit single Lose Control, was announced as the main act for the entertainment roster at Accor Stadium on Sunday, October 5.

The performance will also kick off his tour of Australia and New Zealand.

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NRL chief executive Andrew Abdo said Swims was one of the most exciting musicians in the world.

"Grand Final day is a special event on the sporting calendar, capturing moments that last forever," he said.

"Including a fresh superstar like Teddy Swims alongside some of the best male and female athletes in the world will take the entertainment experience for sports fans to a whole new level."

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Swims said he was "so excited" to be scheduled to play.

"Australia has always been a second home to me," he said.

"Every time I am there I am overwhelmed by how welcoming the people are, I fall more in love with the culture, and just everything about it.

"So, to be welcomed to perform one of the biggest nights in Australia is a huge honour."

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Is it art? An "epic fail?" Or a roadworks accident?

A photo of a road cone asphalted into a New Zealand footpath in New Plymouth, on the west coast of the North Island, has drawn derision on a Facebook community page, with one comment describing it as an "epic fail".

"OMG surely someone taking the piss," wrote another poster.

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"Some drunk person is gonna try to kick that," said another.

Yet another suggested it could be art that becomes a local landmark.

Melanie, who posted the photo, said she used the road daily.

She found the "bizarre" and she wasn't alone – screenshots of the post are doing the rounds on social media.

However, a New Plymouth District Council spokesperson said the cone was simply protecting an exposed pipe.

The pipe connects a water main to an adjacent house, and was left uncovered while crews installed a new main, he said.

A temporary asphalt patch was laid over the path as a safety measure, securing the cone in place over the pipe. Later this year, the connection will be finished and a permanent surface put down.

The council had not fielded any complaints over the cone, the spokesperson said.

Road cones have been in the spotlight this year, with the Government announcing a crackdown on their use.

Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said there were "hundreds of them doing very, very little", and his deputy, David Seymour, complained about too many "frickin' cones".

Even Transport Minister Chris Bishop calls their deployment "overzealous".

To tackle the tide of road cones, the Government launched a hotline for concerns about their use earlier this year. RNZ reported 650 reports in the hotline's first month of use. In Wellington, there were 115 complaints in two months.

This article was originally published by Stuff.co.nz and has been reproduced here with permission. 

A media conference in Sweden was abruptly brought to a halt after the country's newly appointed Health Minister collapsed.

Elisabet Lann was standing next to the country's Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson and other officials when she suddenly fell over and hit her head on Tuesday.

Video footage shows Kristersson and other people on the stage in Stockholm rushing to help her as she tumbled over.

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Lann was given first aid while an ambulance was called, local media reports.

She returned a short time later with no apparent injuries, saying her collapse was sparked by a blood sugar drop.

A government statement said her life was out of danger and her health was stable.

Lann had been appointed health minister on Monday after the sudden resignation of her predecessor.

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EXCLUSIVE: If you've caught yourself thinking the staff at your local Coles or Woolworths look particularly young these days, it's not just your imagination.

Australians are joining the workforce younger than ever, largely in response to the ongoing cost of living crisis.

New research from Employment Hero revealed that jobs among Aussies aged 14 to 17 surged by 30 per cent in the past year.

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Jobs among 18 to 24-year-olds also jumped by more than 16 per cent, signalling a prominent generational shift as young Aussies try to get ahead financially.

Casper Huisken, 17, is juggling a job at his local supermarket with his Year 12 studied in the hopes of building a financial safety net before he even finishes high school.

"I wanted to earn money earlier because it gets expensive [when you're] outside of school," he told 9news.com.au.

"It just feels good to have some money to rely on."

Working a few shifts a week also forces him to manage his time carefully around homework and assignments, which he said has helped him focus.

But he worries that it will be hard to keep up with the rising cost of living – even with a head start.

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Employment Hero's inaugural Annual Jobs Report found that Gen Z Aussies are entering the workforce in record numbers as the cost of living crisis continues.

More than half of those aged 18 to 24 also work more than one job.

By comparison, only 20 per cent of workers over the age of 55 hold multiple jobs and only one in three across the total working population.

"Teenagers are clocking shifts to save for a future they know is going to be expensive," Employment Hero chief executive Ben Thompson said.

Meanwhile, Millennials are most likely to use tools like Earned Wage Access (EWA) to withdraw cash before payday to foot everyday bills.

And the majority of Aussies are prioritising job stability over all else, especially young workers.

Cyber safety specialist Annabelle, 24, is among them.

"In the industry that I work in, which is tech, there's a lot of layoffs and they can happen quite suddenly," she told 9news.com.au.

"Everything's changing a lot so over the past few years, I've definitely valued job security."

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Annabelle got her first job at 14 and worked multiple jobs all through high school and uni, hoping to set herself up for the future.

But she couldn't have planned for the COVID-19 pandemic or cost of living crisis.

Now she's considering picking up a second job on top of her full-time role to help cover essentials like rent and groceries while she tries to keep saving for life's big moments.

Because if she doesn't put money away for a wedding, a house, and kids now, she might never afford them.

"I'd like to have a house and be comfortable, and also have the financial freedom if I want to travel to travel," she said.

"But it's hard … you can't really do everything, you definitely have to prioritize what you what you want most."

Annabelle is grateful her family encouraged her to develop financial skills from a young age.

About 8.5 million Aussie adults are considered financially illiterate according to 2020 stats, and only 28 per cent of teen boys and 15 per cent of teen girls demonstrate basic financial skills.

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Thankfully, a growing number of young people are starting work and saving young in the hopes of getting ahead of the curve.

Huisken plans to keep working through his final year of school and build up a little nest egg to see him through to his next chapter.

Many of his friends are starting work and saving up too.

"It seems like a great thing to get into early," he said.

"Because [the cost of licing] already is quite expensive, and if it keeps getting more expensive, then that would be very bad for us."

Have you got a story? Contact reporter Maddison Leach at Google Play.

Apple's September event, labelled Awe Dropping, is the biggest of the year for the tech giant, with all eyes on what's next for the popular iPhone series for 2025.

Today, the company made its big reveal at the Steve Jobs Theatre inside their headquarters in Cupertino, California.

While leaks and rumours have been consistent for several months now, Apple never acknowledges that narrative – but nonetheless, it revealed exactly what had been anticipated: the iPhone 17 range with an all-new super-thin device in the mix.

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Gone is the "Plus" model, which offered the larger screen without the performance and features of the "Pro" models, and in is the "iPhone Air', which does have a larger screen than the entry-level iPhone but has been engineered to have a total body thickness of just 5.6mm (not counting the camera lens and module).

This thickness puts it 0.2mm thinner than the Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge device, which launched several months ago, just for Apple to get that one-up on their rival.

Despite its thin profile, Apple was at pains to point out that the iPhone Air is Apple's most durable smartphone ever.

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Twelve years ago, when Apple announced their first "Plus" sized phone, the iPhone 6 Plus, it was subject to viral internet videos of people trying and succeeding to bend the device – known at the time as "bend-gate." The questions today will be – does it bend?

Given modern materials and the learnings from the last decade, it's unlikely, thanks to the Titanium Frame and the Ceramic Shield glass front and back.

iPhone Air will come in four colours: "Space Black", "Cloud White", "Light Gold", and "Sky Blue".

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Despite being "Pro level," the iPhone Air has just a single camera lens. Apple claims this is a camera "system" which allows for various focal lengths and a 48-megapixel sensor for optimal quality.

Under the hood, Apple's latest processor for mobile, the A19 Pro, will be in the iPhone Air, something Apple claims as the "fastest CPU in any smartphone."

Say farewell to that little SIM card tray, though; the iPhone Air will be eSIM only worldwide, so users will need to convert to eSIM when they switch to iPhone Air.

Fortunately for Australians, the USA switched to eSIM only on iPhones several years ago, so Apple has made the process quite simple, and our telcos have been doing eSIM for a while.

Being so thin, the battery might be compromised, but Apple says it's still an "all-day" battery.

While the iPhone 17 Air will likely be the hero product for Apple in marketing terms, the bread and butter of the iPhone lineup sit above and below it on price.

The new iPhone 17 kicks off the range with a design no different to recent years; however, its capabilities are stepped up to "Pro" levels with a 120Hz display and a brighter screen.

It will be available in five colours: black, white, "Mist Blue", lavender, and sage.

Faster charging also comes to the iPhone 17, with a short 10-minute charge capable of delivering hours more use, and it comes in new colours and with improved camera and performance capabilities – including the ability to take a "landscape" selfie without even twisting the phone on its side.

Meanwhile, at the top end of the lineup, Apple's iPhone 17 Pro and Pro Max have a distinct new look.

Apple has chosen quite vibrant colours to go alongside a traditional metal option. The dark blue and orange colours look set to stand out in Telco and retail stores, and will sure stand out when held by their owners walking down the street.

On the back of the device, the camera "island" or bump now spans the full width of the phone, with the cameras themselves separated from the flash and sensors.

Remarkably, after two years of marketing the titanium model iPhone Pro phones, Apple has gone back to aluminium with a new stronger alloy outperforming the titanium option. This is the first unibody aluminium phone, taking inspiration from the way Apple builds their laptops.

The iPhone 17 Pro Max will feature the biggest battery in any iPhone.

Like the iPhone Air, iPhone 17 Pro models are powered by the A19 Pro chip for optimal performance and comparability with Apple Intelligence.

A huge new "plateau" on the back houses more technology and camera capabilities for the user. All three cameras are now 48-megapixel sensors, and capable of up to eight times optical zoom.

iPhone 17 will start in Australia at $1399, iPhone Air will start at $1799 while the 17 Pro models start at $1999.

Despite the tariff woes, it seems Apple has been able to keep prices on par with the previous generation.

iPhone 17 goes on pre-order this Friday, and is available to buy from Friday, September 19.

Trevor Long travelled to Cupertino as a guest of Apple.