The World Today

Airfares might be falling but it's no thanks to the ballooning costs charged by Australian airports, according to a report by the ACCC in its annual Airport Monitoring Report. It says the fees airports charge airlines to use their space and services are significantly outstripping inflation, and that the cost is finding its way into the ticket prices you pay.

In northern Iraq now, the bloody fight to clear the Islamic State group from its last stronghold continues. The tempo of battle has stepped up and so it appears has the use of banned weapons. Fleeing civilians are are reporting that IS forces have been using chemical weapons.

A little over a year ago, Kenyan education entrepreneur and campaigner for the rights of Massai girls, Dr Kakenya Ntaiya, spoke to The World Today about the price she'd paid as a determined young girl to finish school; trading a part of her body. She also shared her joy about founding a ground-breaking school for girls in Kenya, where none of them will have to endure the Massai tradition of genital cutting. One listener was so moved by Dr Ntaiya's story that he immediately acted to draw together a group of Australians to help the students from her school. That listener was Australian businessman and chairman of the LBW Trust charity, David Vaux.

Analysis of how Australians donate to charitable causes has revealed that fewer people are reaching into their pockets to those less fortunate. However there is good news from the QUT research commissioned by the Australian Government. While smaller numbers of people are giving to charity, those who do donate are actually donating more

Even if your child is playing regular sport, they may not be getting enough exercise. Deakin University research shows most Australians - including 3 million-children - are not exercising enough to meet health guidelines. Now a group including the Confederation of Australian Sport, researchers and schools are calling for a National Physical Activity Strategy.

A backlash is brewing to the Federal Government's planned new power that would allow it to release the personal information of war veterans, if it wanted to correct the record in media reports. The legislation giving the Government that power passed the House of Representatives yesterday. Labor's now asking for 'clarification' about how it'd work, while at least two crossbench Senators want the legislation to be scrapped.

Veterans' Affairs Minister Dan Tehan says that the legislation to share veterans' information is 'completely different' to the legislation under which Human Services Minister Alan Tudge shared a Centrelink client's personal details with a journalist. Speaking with The World Today's Tom Iggulden, he says that the legislation would only be used in very rare circumstances, that extensive bipartisan consultation took place in drafting the legislation, and that it will be introduced as a 'disallowable instrument' which could be revoked by the Parliament.

The chief of the NAB, Andrew Thorburn, has faced a grilling in Canberra over why the bank doesn't want to report cases of staff misconduct publicly. Mr Thorburn also revealed that the manager responsible for NAB's wealth division was given a bonus, even though that division has had to pay out millions of dollars in compensation to customers whose superannuation accounts were overcharged.

Amber Harrison's high-profile legal battle with Seven West Media, relating to her affair with chief executive Tim Worner, appears to have escalated. Ms Harrison is now considering a counter-claim against Seven for breach of contract, as the media organisation continues to count the financial and reputational cost of the scandal. Counsel for Seven West Media Sandy Dawson SC warned Ms Harrison's claim could contain 'scurrilous and scandalous material'.

The US Attorney-General, Jeff Sessions, has stepped down from an FBI investigation into alleged Russian interference in the US presidential election. But Jeff Sessions denies he lied under oath when he told his Senate confirmation hearing that hadn't had any communication with Russians during the campaign. Democrats are not satisfied and have called on him to resign.