Doctors and nurses are demanding immediate action from the government in what they describe as a crisis in aged care.

The Australian Medical Association and the Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation are demanding mandatory minimums for staff-to-resident ratios, greater investment in home care and increased Medicare rebates for GPs working in aged care.

AMA president Tony Bartone said 16,000 Australians died while waiting for a home care package last year, while nearly 120,000 were waiting for a package that would meet their needs.

NSW Premier Gladys Berejiklian says her government will look at scrapping lockout laws in the Sydney CBD.

A report by the Joint Select Committee on Sydney’s Night-time Economy says while the laws have worked effectively to reduce alcohol-fuelled violence, they have damaged Sydney’s night-time business and culture.

“We always need to find the right balance between community safety and boosting the night-time economy,” Ms Berejiklian said.

South-East Queensland is turning to urban agriculture to grow food for the area and create a more green city. 

Taking advantage of Brisbane’s unused urban estate areas, farms such as Millen Farm are equipping locals with the skills to produce food on a small scale.

Millen Farm was built on an old CSIRO research station four years ago, and after gradual rehabilitation of the soil, it operates as a not-for-profit business and commercial  organic farm.

A court has heard that Clive Palmer’s nickel refinery was trading insolvently until administrators were called in to assist. 

An insolvency expert told the Brisbane Supreme Court that Queensland Nickel, which has now collapsed, was incurring losses as early as October 2015.

Justice Debra Mullins said that proving that the refinery was still insolvent in January 2016 was the main purpose of the trial, which continues today.

Image: Katherine Times

The Hong Kong authorities are preparing to conduct a chaotic day on the streets of the city on Tuesday, the 70th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China. Metro stations and shopping centres will be closed before the protests, fearing that this may turn into violence.

Tse Chun-Chung, chief administrative officer of the Police Public Relations Office, said at a news conference on Monday that this would be a "very serious violent attack."

The Amery Ice Shelf in Antarctica has just produced its biggest iceberg in more than 50 years. The piece occupies 1,636 square kilometers - smaller than the Isle of Skye in Scotland - called D28. 

The size of the iceberg means that it must be monitored and tracked as it may be harmful to transportation. Since the early 1960s, Amery has never cut a larger iceberg. The previous one was 9,000 square kilometers.

Amery is the third largest ice shelf in Antarctica and an important drainage channel in the eastern part of the continent.

A Queensland koala named Teadoro was seen to be injured and wandering the ground at Noosa National Park last week.

Queensland Koala Crusaders spokesperson Bernard Jean stated that the koala did not have enough strength in his arms to climb and had puncture wounds in his abdominal area which placed him in critical condition.

Teadoro is currently under the care of Australia Zoo Wildlife Hospital and awaiting surgery- with professionals believing that his injuries are the result of a domestic dog attack.