Australia

Australian man finds A$1m lottery ticket a year on

The man, who has remained anonymous, bought the ticket in January last year.

After finding the docket in a shopping bag this month, he checked his numbers online and realised he had won a A$1,020,496 (£630,000; $780,000) prize.

"I'm glad I didn't just get the old bags and take them to the dump," he said in a statement.

The winner, from the New South Wales (NSW) city of Newcastle, said he had been "a bit stupid" by forgetting about his ticket for 414 days.

"I'm not worried that I could have had the money a year ago. At least I've got it now," he said.

Tkatchenko pleased with world cup preparations

The World Cup tournament will be co-hosted by Australia and New Zealand from October 27-December 2, while PNG will host the Kumuls’ three pool matches in Port Moresby.

Tkatchenko said it is very well organised and he is pleased with the way the professional team and host committee are moving forward.

The host city, through the National Capital District Commission, has given K5m with the Government topping up with another K5m to host the event.

Australia and Indonesia restore full military ties

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull made the announcement in Sydney alongside Indonesian President Joko Widodo.

Both said they were also committed to concluding a free trade deal this year.

The material allegedly ridiculed Indonesia's founding principles, known as Pancasila, and its military.

"President Widodo and I have agreed to full restoration of defence co-operation, training exchanges and activities," Mr Turnbull told a news conference.

Australian spider bite boy saved by massive anti-venom dose

It is thought to be one of the largest doses of anti-venom ever administered in Australia.

Matthew Mitchell was bitten on his finger by a funnel-web spider while helping his father clear out a shed.

He suffered multiple seizures, dilated eyes and began frothing at the mouth.

Melbourne plane crash: Airport reopens as investigation begins

Four US tourists and an Australian pilot died after their light plane came down on a shopping centre on Tuesday.

It had just taken off from the small Essendon Airport, which reopened on Thursday. The nearby shopping centre remains closed "until further notice".

Safety officials said they would investigate with "an open mind" and make a preliminary report next month.

Refugee resettlement deal between Australia, US 'not a people swap', Peter Dutton says

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull last year announced two deals between the US and Australia, with the latter resettling refugees from Costa Rica while the US took in refugees from Manus Island and Nauru.

Transfer of Nauru and Manus refugees could begin in months

RNZ reports US president Donald Trump has voiced his dislike of the deal Canberra struck with the Obama administration to resettle the asylum seekers, calling it a "dumb deal".

But the Australian government maintains Mr Trump will nevertheless honour the agreement.

Mr Dutton said the transfer should begin in the coming months.

"We've got officials up on Manus at the moment we've had officials from the US up on Nauru in recent weeks so we're going through these individual cases with them and all of the signs indicate that the officials are working well."

 

Man survives 20m fall down cliff in Sydney

The 25-year-old man was on his parents' property in Sydney when he plunged into dense bushland late on Sunday night, sparking a complex rescue operation.

He was winched to safety almost five hours later and treated for shoulder and chest injuries, paramedics said. The man remains in a stable condition.

New South Police Sergeant Peter McMaugh said it was remarkable the man was alive.

Former Southland Stags player jailed for rape of young Australian girl

Wells was sentenced on Thursday after being found guilty of the rape in a trial which revealed a dark off-field life involving drug and alcohol addictions mixed in with wild group sex romps. 

On Wells' 45th birthday in July, 2015, his sometimes sex partner, Theresa Anne Blair, plied a 14-year-old girl with alcohol and cannabis before raping her.

Blair had sat on the girl's chest so the victim wouldn't move as she was being sexually assaulted by Wells, Australian newspaper The Newcastle Herald said in their reporting of the trial.

Sugar tax would prolong Australians' lives more than two years, Melbourne researchers find

In an article to be published in the PLOS (Public Library of Science) Magazine, modelling by the university's Centre for Public Health Policy concludes that taxing foods that are high in sugar, salt and saturated fats — as well as subsidising fruit and vegetables — would also save $3.4 billion in healthcare costs.

"The study suggests that taxes and subsidies on foods and beverages can potentially be combined to achieve substantial improvements in population health and cost savings to the health sector," the article reads.