The family of a Sydney man accused of spying in the United Arab Emirates fears he may have been tortured in prison and could soon face the death penalty.

There are four birds on the new $50 note unveiled by the Reserve Bank of Australia, but we're confident you'll only be able to spot three.

The Nationals are preparing young NSW Cabinet minister Adam Marshall — whose poor driving record has made headlines — for a run at the federal seat of New England if Barnaby Joyce resigns from Parliament.

Ministers will be banned from having sexual relationships with staffers under a rethink of the code of conduct announced by Malcolm Turnbull today, but the PM is resisting calls to ask Barnaby Joyce to resign.

If politicians think relationships with their staffers are allowed, they're more likely to proposition them, writes Elizabeth Tippett. The US House of representatives moved to ban such relationships, and also spare taxpayers the cost of settling sexual harassment complaints.

PM Malcolm Turnbull announces Barnaby Joyce will take leave next week, as pressure grows over his affair with a former staffer and the Senate passes a vote calling on him to resign or be sacked for breaching ministerial standards.

This week saw Australia's best-supported and best-performing football teams open their campaign in the continent's most prestigious club competition — and virtually no one turned up to watch.

Think you know the symbolism and meaning behind these New Year foods? Test yourself with our Lunar New Year Quiz.

The widening scandal surrounding the UK arm of international aid organisation Oxfam has already had an impact on donations to the charity in Australia.

The Senate votes to block the Federal Government's changes to the Murray-Darling Basin Plan, which could jeopardise the whole agreement as the NSW Government prepares to withdraw.

In what some are describing as the greatest snowboard halfpipe competition ever, Australia's Scotty James is more than satisfied to walk away with Olympic bronze in Pyeongchang.

Lawyers, judges and juries are increasingly having to decipher the meaning behind an emoji when deciding on a verdict, and they're often left baffled by the new visual language.

Hannah Mouncey's coach at the Ainslie Football Club in Canberra has dismissed concerns that transgender players are stronger than other women on the field.

Australia's Scotty James wins a bronze medal in men's halfpipe, but American superstar Shaun White makes history, winning his third Olympic title.

It's disingenuous to talk about a 30 per cent rate when so few companies pay anything like that thanks to tax legislation that allows them to avoid paying corporate tax, writes Emma Alberici.

EXCLUSIVE: New analysis by ABC reveals Qantas, BHP, Foxtel and EnergyAustralia are among hundreds of companies who haven't paid corporate tax in Australia for the last decade.

The most popular drone manufacturer in the country teams up with the air safety regulator to create a quiz pilots will be forced to pass before they can fly. If they fail, their drones will be automatically grounded from today.

Nationals MPs remain uncertain on how to deal with Barnaby Joyce's political future, as they begin to discuss the possibility of asking the Deputy Prime Minister to resign.

Transgender footballer Hannah Mouncey will be allowed to play in state and territory women's leagues in 2018, as the AFL finalises its gender diversity policy for the national league.

Police say an Australian man who died after a bar fight in Thailand was holding a waitress up by her neck until her face turned blue, shortly before he was punched by an American man.