Australia

The flight QF6063 which arrived empty from Australia on Tuesday afternoon departed Faleolo International Airport for Sydney with an emotional farewell.

Hundreds of families of the selected seasonal workers filled the airport to bid farewell to their loved ones.

Most of the workers said they have waited for up to three years to get this opportunity.

Usufono Taupule, a 31-year-old from the big island of Savai’i is one of them – He applied for the seasonal work opportunity in 2019.

Millions of mice have swarmed schools, homes and hospitals in the eastern states of New South Wales and Queensland, wreaking havoc and leaving entire towns suffocating from a lingering pungent odor. Now there are reports of them munching on the remains of dead rodents and even predictions that they could reach Sydney in a matter of weeks, riding on freight trucks and food crates.

Up to 50,000 students are expected at School Strike for Climate rallies across the country.

It's the latest grassroots campaign by young people pushing for action on the climate crisis.

Australia has long faced criticism for refusing to set more ambitious emissions targets.

David Soriano, a 17-year-old attending a Sydney rally, told the BBC he was worried about the future and wants the government to see the youth movement "as one to be reckoned with".

Funded through the Australian government's PacificAus Sports programme, money will be allocated to employ key high performance staff in Samoa, Fiji, Papua New Guinea and Tonga, while the Pacific nations will also be supported in their efforts to qualify and prepare for the 2022 Commonwealth Games and 2023 Netball World Cup.

Netball Australia interim CEO Ron Steiner said he was delighted the organisation could continue to lead the charge in helping to develop netball in the Pacific.

The Warriors have been based in Australia since January and the club has had to decide whether to return to New Zealand now that the trans-Tasman travel bubble is open or fly in and fly out of Auckland for home games.

There are five Warriors home games on the NRL schedule starting with a 2 July clash against the St George Illawarra Dragons.

Captain Roger Tuivasa-Sheck was liaising between his teammates and team management to assess the options in front of them and he said they needed to take into account that some new players have never lived in Auckland before.

The government said 80 people arrived in Darwin on Saturday, and would be quarantined for a fortnight.

Their Qantas flight was originally scheduled to carry 150 people onboard.

But 70 passengers were later barred from travel after testing positive for coronavirus or coming into close contact with others who were.

Australia's strict rules on pre-flight testing meant there was not enough time for the seats to be given to others waiting to return.

Adrian Stratton, 24, who had been working at the Onyx Espresso Bar in Mayfield, Newcastle as a casual dishwasher for just six weeks, yesterday allegedly attacked the cafe's 27-year-old female chef.

Police allege Mr Stratton first attacked the woman with a frying pan, then a fire extinguisher, before stabbing her in the chest with a 30-centimetre knife.

The New Zealand national appeared in Newcastle Local Court today after last night being charged with attempted murder and wounding a person with intent to cause grievous bodily harm.

Chief Executive Officer for the Ministry of Prime Minister and Cabinet, Agafili Tomaimano Shem Leo confirmed that the first chartered flight is scheduled to take 216 Samoan seasonal workers to Australia on 3 June.

The second chartered flight would be taking 144 RSE workers to be based in Victoria, Tasmania on 5 June.

The other two flights will take another 300 seasonal workers for contracts in Victoria and Queensland, on 15 and 18 June.

Agafili said most of the workers would be spending three years in Australia under the seasonal workers’ programme.

The government said 10 million doses of the mRNA vaccine are due to arrive by the end of the year, and 15 million shots in 2022.

Australia's rollout has lagged behind other nations after initial delays and caution over the AstraZeneca vaccine.

The country has so far administered 2.8 million shots of a Covid vaccine.

That is well short of the 50 million jabs needed to fully vaccinate its population. The country's immunisation programme was recently opened to all Australians aged over 50.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison's billions in support and reform programmes for women and aged-care home residents comes amid public anger over his government's handling of sexism and misconduct claims in Canberra, and a public inquiry that revealed widespread abuse in the care home sector.

The deficit will hit a record $A161 billion in the fiscal year ending 30 June 2021 though, as a strong economic rebound improves government finances, that is more than $A50 billion lower than a forecast made in December.