Australia’s consumer watchdog the ACCC has found that unsafe products kill two people and injure another 145 every day and cost the economy at least $5 billion annually.

Dangerous goods uncovered have included quad bikes, faulty electrical appliances, flammable clothing, and unsafe cots and beds, but one of the biggest concerns are products that contain button batteries.

The ACCC wants a “general safety provision” introduced into law and it has the support of CHOICE.

CHOICE spokesperson Sarah Agar tells Mark many people would be surprised to know there are now laws against selling unsafe products.

With a federal election due shortly The Benevolent Society is calling on all parties and candidates to put their money where their mouth is and commit to affordable basic dental services for older Australians.

Dental care is the second largest area of out-of-pocket health expenditure by Australians and many pensioners don’t have private health insurance to soften the blow.

Benevolent Society Advocacy Campaigner Joel Pringle tells Mark it’s time basic dental care for seniors was included in Medicare.

Queensland dairyfarmers are ramping up the pressure on Coles to follow Woolworths’ lead and put an end to $1-a-litre milk.

26 producers from across the region picketed the Coles supermarket at Coorparoo to remind the supermarket giant they aren’t about to walk away from their eight year fight.

Queensland Dairy Organisation spokesperson Sarah Ferguson tells Mark farmers and consumers are tired of Coles acting like a bully.

When Victorian County Court chief judge Peter Kidd delivered his sentencing of Cardinal George Pell he did so to a worldwide television audience.

He decided because of the overwhelming public interest in the case he would allow television cameras and radio microphones into his court.

Queensland courts allow cameras in on occasion and the Queensland Law Society president Bill Potts tells Mark he’d like to see cameras given more access.

It’s Brain Awareness Week and the message this year is that keeping both the mind and body active will improve quality of life.

Proof of that maxim is embodied by 86 year old Doreen Wilson who has been the driving force behind Fitter for Life’s seniors’ gymnastics program.

Doreen teaches five classes a week and tells Mark that focusing on improving mobility, strength, balance and coordination can help older people to maintain their independence for longer.

The CSIRO’s Data61 group has launched its new multimillion dollar Robotics Innovation Centre at Pullenvale in Brisbane.

The 600sqm purpose-built facility has the largest robotics research capacity in the country.

It’s forecast that by 2025 the industry will be worth $23 billion and Data61 Robotics group leader Fred Pauling tells Mark the focus is on robots with real world applications.

Asian cultures have known for centuries about the various uses and benefits of harvesting seaweed, while the west is only now recognising its full potential.

Researchers at the University of the Sunshine Coast have been pioneering the development of seaweed farming in Australia.

Associate Professor of Aquaculture Dr Nick Paul tells Mark that to demonstrate the potential of seaweed they’ve joined forces with a local brewery to make a very special Moreton Bay beer.

The rapid pace of technological development often leaves the law floundering in its wake.

The advent of drones and affordable hi-tech surveillance cameras has prompted the Queensland government to ask the Law Reform Commission to examine the need for new laws to cover civil surveillance.

In its submission the Brisbane City Council said while it wouldn’t, it left the door open to making its network of 131 CCTV cameras capable of listening to people.

President of the Queensland Council for Civil Liberties Michael Cope tells Mark the old laws are no longer fit for purpose and must be updated to protect our privacy.

After a five year break the Royal Queensland Food and Wine Show Beer Awards have returned.

Some 30 judges are now working their way through 340 entries from 48 breweries trying to pick a winner.

RQFWS Beer Advisory Group member and judge Steve Henderson tells Mark there’s plenty to test the judges’ palates with beers made to taste like peanut brittle, Nutella and even Iced VoVos.

It’s often said that lifelong learning will be the norm in the labour market of the future, making ‘learning to learn’ a vital skill that all children will need to develop.

International evidence shows that the earlier a child starts the better, prompting lobby groups to pressure governments to boost funding for pre-kindy for children as young as three.

Jane Bourne is the Queensland President of Early Childhood Australia and she tells Mark that play based learning a couple of days a week can make all the difference to a child’s future.