The World Today

Private space exploration company Space X has announced that it will be sending a privately crewed spacecraft to orbit the moon next year. The two as-yet-unidentified citizen passengers have paid handsomely for the privilege to undertake this moon mission. Experts are sceptical as to whether the project can meet its very ambitious deadline.

The former US President George W Bush says Americans need answers about Donald Trump's links with Russia. Mr Bush was giving a rare public interview and also used it to distance himself from President Trump's attacks on the media. The fellow Republican said an independent media is indispensable to democracy.

We've all heard of superbugs, the antibiotics resistant bacteria that threaten our ability to recover from serious infections. Well, now the World Health Organisation has released its first list of 12 families of bacteria that they label as 'the greatest threats to human health'. WHO has called on governments to invest in research and development to make new antibiotics to combat these superbugs. But how likely is it that these new drugs will be made? And how long will it take?

Australian adults are about to get one big dental check-up, in the first national oral health study in more than a decade. As part of the $5.8 million National Study of Adult Oral Health, 15,000 Australians aged 15 and over, will be randomly selected for a survey and free dental examination. It will consider the affect of sugar intake, tobacco consumption and the impact of fluoride, where researchers are expecting to see a reduction in tooth decay.

The Queensland Government has been accused of breaching international conventions on the rights of children, by refusing to amend corporal punishment laws. In non-government schools, it's still legal for a teacher or master to use reasonable force against a child. South Australia has recently drafted legislation to explicitly prohibit the practice. This leaves Queensland as the only jurisdiction in Australia that's not updating its law.

The Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull's lashed out at his predecessor Tony Abbott for his 'calculated' plan to damage the government's standing with voters. Labor's opened up a ten-point lead over the coalition in today's Newspoll, taken in the days after Mr Abbott questioned the credibility of several government policies, including some he instituted as Prime Minister.

'The Grand Canyon of conflicts of interest' - that's how critics describe a mining insider's appointment to a key port adjacent to the Great Barrier Reef. The Queensland Government made an Adani coal company director - Brad Fish - the ultimate boss of the Abbot Point coal port. He resigned his Adani position afterwards. The Government has defended the appointment, but environmentalists argue its dangerous for the Reef.

There's confusion and anger in the ranks of the RSL's New South Wales Branch today, as the entire state council stands aside while its conduct is investigated. The branch is facing several inquiries into payments to senior figures and the spending habits of its former President. The National Branch has now struck a deal with the state branch, withdrawing internal disciplinary proceedings in exchange for the council's decision to stand aside.

Australia's record of unbroken economic growth appears to be safe after better than expected business investment figures out this lunchtime. According to the ABS, company profits were up strongly in the final quarter of last year though wages and salaries were lower because of weak wages growth.

Bitter negotiations over a new licence for one of the most popular coffee shops in Parliament House have made it onto the official agenda for Senate estimates. The Department of Parliamentary Services is trying to negotiate a new lease with the proprietor of Aussies cafe, Domenic Calabria. Senators have questioned if the draft agreement is appropriate, given DPS is in direct competition with Aussies. But the Department has hit back, saying Mr Calabria has chosen to speak to Senators, rather than raise his concerns in official negotiations.