The World Today

A powerful earthquake has struck off Japan's north-east coast, prompting a tsunami warning. Residents living in coastal areas close to Fukushima prefecture have been told to flee to higher ground until further notice. Small waves are already being felt along the coast, gradually growing in size and strength. The earthquake that triggered the tsunamis was first recorded as a magnitude 7.3, but has since been downgraded to 6.9. Authorities warn that there is still a significant risk that a large tsunami could again hit Japan.

A powerful earthquake has struck off the north-east coast, which prompted a tsunami warning. Residents living in coastal areas close to Fukushima were told to evacuate to higher ground until further notice. Our Tokyo correspondent Rachel Mealey says tsunami warnings have now downgraded from highest level to caution, and some residents have started returning to their homes, though it's likely authorities will err on the side of caution and keep people in evacuation centres longer in some areas. So far, the level of earthquake damage in the villages along the coast remains unclear.

A natural hazards and disaster management expert says the region could feel the aftershocks of the Japan earthquake for the days and weeks to come. Associate Professor Dale Dominey-Howes co-ordinated research efforts after the 2011 earthquake.

The Murray-Darling Basin Authority wants more water to be given to farmers in northern Australia, a move that has upset water users on both sides of the debate. Farmers say that, even with the extra allowance, there's still too much water being taken out; while environmentalists and Indigenous communities say the river will be starved if more water isn't allowed to flow through the system. The plan is confusing even those who should know better, with the Assistant Agriculture Minister contradicting Deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce about how any changes to the plan will be implemented.

The Murray-Darling Basin Authority's proposition to reduce the amount of water recovered from irrigators in northern parts of the system has produced fierce responses. Environmental experts say it will have a massive ongoing effect on communities and environments, particularly in the Darling system, and are angry that the basin deal is being compromised. Meanwhile, the South Australian Government has vowed to fight any proposal to reduce the amount of water being delivered to the river system.

The Federal Government is shifting its attention to the second of its key industrial relations bills, the re-introduction of the Australian Building and Construction Commission, after securing support for the first in a late night sitting of the Senate. Senator Derryn Hinch and the Nick Xenophon team voted in favour of greater regulation and governance of union officials, in exchange for better protections for whistleblowers. The Prime Minister has also issued a strong endorsement of his Immigration Minister, Peter Dutton, after Labor attacked the Minister for suggesting it was a 'mistake' to allow some Lebanese immigrants into the country in the 1970s, given the majority of people recently charged with terrorism offences have a Lebanese background.

The Catholic Church in Australia will set up an independent company to name and shame publicly church bodies that that fail to abide by a new code of practice to protect children and vulnerable adults. The company, Catholic Professional Standards, is being established in the wake of a litany of failures by church authorities, identified through the child abuse Royal Commission. The Archbishop of Brisbane, Mark Coleridge, acknowledges that the church has 'betrayed trust' but asserts that, despite the company being structurally bound to the church, it will be 'functionally independent'.

Supporters of the Trans-Pacific Partnership aren't giving up hope the free trade deal can be enacted, despite President-elect Donald Trump's latest declaration that he will withdraw the US from the 12-country agreement. Alan Oxley, chair of the APEC Study Centre at RMIT University, states that, while the incoming president may withdraw executive support for the provision, the Republican heads of Congress have indicated they may support it at some stage in the future; and that, as the TPP embeds a free trade agreement between the US and Japan, it may be too important to either nation to let go.

The leader of Queensland's Liberal National Party has rejected the Federal Attorney-General's withering remarks that his party is mediocre. Tim Nicholls also hit back at Senator George Brandis' assertion the LNP might need to split. Pauline Hanson is using the verbal brawl to reaffirm her message that the LNP is failing because voters are disenchanted with career politicians.

A review is underway after two people died waiting for ambulances in Melbourne, amid mass respiratory problems across the city last night. Hundreds of people reported breathing problems after a wild storm released an unusually high level of pollen.