Independent MP Andrew Wilkie is standing by his claim that Opposition Leader Tony Abbott offered to double the humanitarian refugee intake if he helped the Coalition form Government.

An Afghan refugee has been charged over an incident on an asylum seeker boat that exploded and killed five men.

The death toll from the Christmas Island shipwreck could rise as high as 48, Prime Minister Julia Gillard confirmed today.

Floodwaters in Western Australia's Gascoyne region are continuing to rise and threaten the town of Carnarvon after inundating outlying areas.

Asylum seekers from a boat intercepted near Ashmore Reef are expected to arrive on Christmas Island soon.

A New South Wales police analyst has been jailed for at least seven months for leaking confidential information to bikie gangs.

The Australian Greens leader is demanding the Commonwealth overrule the Tasmanian Government in approving a controversial bridge in southern Tasmania.

The release of the Federal Government's business plan for the National Broadband Network reveals it will take nine and a half years to connect more than 10 million Australian homes.

The lawyer for injured police officer, Matthew Butcher, says a decision on his ex-gratia payment from the State Government, could be made today.

There is likely to be an Upper House inquiry into the sale of New South Wales' electricity assets.

A Tasmanian coroner has warned against abusing over the counter medications after the death of a 54 year old woman.

One of the passengers on board an asylum seeker boat that exploded and killed five Afghan men near Ashmore Reef in April last year has been charged with a criminal offence.

Police were called to reports of a shooting in a suburban street at Broadbeach Waters on Queensland's Gold Coast this morning.

Taliban insurgents have targeted Afghan military forces in two cities, leaving 13 security personnel dead.

Australia is known for its rich bird life but the cost of colonisation on the country's birds is becoming clearer.