The adored New Zealand actor Sam Neill, who starred in films including My Brilliant Career, Jurassic Park and The Piano has died at the age of 78.

The head of Telstra has apologised for Wednesday's outages in its mobile and internet networks as the ABC reveals the company was warned months ago that its systems were vulnerable.

Australia has signed a new agreement to export uranium to India during a visit to Melbourne by the Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

A five hour Telstra outage has caused major disruptions across the country impacting transport systems, businesses and banks, some customers were also unable to make emergency phone calls.

The Prime Minister has described China's missile test in the Pacific as "provocative" and says he has raised his concerns with the Chinese government.

China has tested a ballistic missile in the Pacific Ocean, just as Australia and Fiji sign a new defence pact.

Authorities believe that the H5 strain of bird flu may have reached New South Wales, with a giant petrel found near Hawks Nest on the state's mid-north coast suspected to have the virus.

The Federal Government's long-awaited bill to reform gambling advertising has been introduced to parliament, but critics argue it does not go far enough.

The Federal Opposition is seizing on new figures showing house prices are dropping to put pressure on the government.

At the Royal Commission on Antisemitism and Social Cohesion, social media companies have been criticised for their weak responses to online posts targeting inquiry witnesses.