Australia

“New Zealand and Australia are being accused of pushing a trade deal to advance their own commercial interests at the expense of Pacific Islands’ national interests,” Green Party trade spokesperson Barry Coates said.
 
“The fact that the Pacific’s two biggest economies, Fiji and Papua New Guinea, have opted out is a warning sign that Australia and New Zealand have demanded too many concessions. Their absence from PACER Plus will undermine the existing Pacific Island Countries Trade Agreement (PICTA) and Pacific regionalism.
 

The campaign will run in New South Wales, Queensland and Victoria and the emphasis is on reaching travellers in Sydney and Brisbane, with direct flight links to Vanuatu from these cities.

The campaign message is an evolution of the Vanuatu destination brand ‘Discover What Matters’, and has three content pillars to showcase what is on offer in Vanuatu for visitors and reinforce the Wake Up In Vanuatu message.

– Wake Up to Adventure
– Wake Up to Happiness
– Wake Up to Freedom

The call comes after new aid data released by the OECD showed Australia slipping from 16th to 17th among the 29 wealthy OECD nations that provide aid.

At 0.22 percent of national income Australia's international aid budget is the lowest in its history.

But World Vision Australia's chief advocate Tim Costello said the upcoming foreign policy whitepaper is a once-in-a-generation opportunity to change that.

Local journalists were excluded from attending a press conference when Mr Turnbull visited a war memorial at Bomana and a joint press conference with his PNG counterpart, Peter O'Neill.

About 60 asylum seekers and guards came to blows in the running battle, as the governments of PNG and Australia met in Port Moresby to discuss refugee resettlement.

It may well be something you've heard a million times before. But when it comes to your fitness, it's well worth remembering.

If instant gratification is your thing, exercise can be a drag. It's not something you do once, then sit back and reap a lifetime of rewards.

Those rewards only come with hard work, consistency and self-discipline.

"You're only as good as your last training session," said sports scientist Tony Boutagy.

"In other words, you only get health benefits from a session for up to about 48 hours afterwards."

The search uncovered something else: a 6ft-long jungle python showing visible signs of addiction. It had apparently absorbed drug fumes and particles through its skin.

Seven months later, the "very aggressive" snake has returned to normal behaviour under the care of 14 prisoners selected to work in a wildlife care programme.

It is one of about 250 animals cared for at a minimum-security prison in Sydney which houses kangaroos, wallabies, possums, wombats and native birds.

 A slow-moving tropical storm is gathering strength in the Arafura Sea between Australia and Indonesia.

It is likely to become a cyclone on Tuesday before possibly intensifying into a category two system, Australia's Bureau of Meteorology said.

Small island and coastal communities have been warned to prepare for heavy rain, gale-force winds and storm tides.

"The centre of the system is likely to cross the western Tiwi Islands sometime later on Tuesday afternoon," forecaster Craig Earl-Spurr told the NT News.

For young children, emoji can aid inclusion in aspects of society previously closed to them, such as active participation in increasing knowledge of childhood well-being, and being heard in educational and care settings.

Emoji can also support children's learning in areas of health, well-being, safety and diversity.

These are key aspects of supporting children in becoming knowledgeable, confident and informed citizens, essential aspects of high-quality education.

The Fitzroy River rose to 8.75m (29ft) in the central Queensland city on Thursday.

It comes nine days after Cyclone Debbie made landfall in northern Queensland, causing floods along a 1,200km (745 miles) stretch of coast.

Authorities said Rockhampton would face a "major flood" for at least a day.

"This body of water is incredible," Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk said.