State education ministers are resisting against calls to ban public school students from using phones at school. 

Federal Education Minister, Dan Tehan will meet with state counterparts on Friday to discuss the proposal which has been met with criticism. 

ACT Education Minister, Yvette Berry says banning phones does not help students learn to live alongside devices; part of students’ development is learning appropriate behaviour both online and offline. 

A former member of Australia’s government review tribunal has described the Department of Human Services’ automated debt recovery program as extortion. 

The ‘robo-debt’ scheme matches income data from the ATO with income reported to Centrelink by welfare recipients, and if a discrepancy is detected, recipients are required to offer payslips and bank statements, often from years earlier. 

Terry Carney, former member of the review tribunal, says the conduct of the Department of Human Services’ is abysmal. 

A highly toxic foreign weed continues to spread through western Queensland as state and federal politicians fight over how to fix the problem.

In March, the then Federal Environmental minister and the Queensland Environment Minister both pledged 5 million dollars to fight the prickly acacia. 

However, arguments broke after the ministers failed to agree on where the funds are going. 

Pew Charitable Trust Queensland manager Fiona Maxwell said the risk to the environment was becoming more severe the longer the standoff went on.

Optus has been taken back to court by the ACCC over claims they mislead southeast Queensland customers when it told them what would happen if they didn’t switch to NBN.

Brisbane customers came forward this week claiming optus threatened to disconnect their broadband and landlines if they didn’t switch to NBN in the next three months. 

Wildfires are spreading in the region of Catalonia, Spain after a heatwave across Europe.

At least 6500 hectares are affected by the wildfires, around 45 people have been evacuated and five roads have been closed. There have been no casualties.

Meteorologists say the temperature is expected to keep rising over the next three days across Europe potentially topping at 45 degrees.

NASA announced they are sending a drone to Saturn’s Largest Moon, Titan.

NASA stated that the rotorcraft will fly to dozens of promising locations on Titan looking for prebiotic chemical processes common on both Titan and Earth.

The Dragonfly drone will launch in 2026 and arrive in 2034. 

A leaked survey from the greens party revealed less than a third of members are happy with how they pick their leader.

The survey of almost 3,000 members found only 30% support the current model that saw Richard Di Natale chosen to lead the greens.

Leadership reform has been in discussion since 2016, with the party considering a direct vote of the membership, or a split vote of members and MPs similar to Labor’s model.

Yuka Morinaga, wife of the Australian student feared to be detained in North Korea, has spoken out about her missing husband. 

Alex Sigley, the Korean Literature student who is missing in North Korea, was last in contact with his wife at the beginning of the week. 

Morninga says the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade are searching for his whereabouts. 

Up to 60 Caboolture residents are sleeping outside the town’s Historical Village tonight in support of a new domestic-violence refuge campaign.

The Rotary Club of Caboolture is using the sleepout to raise funds for victims of domestic violence.

Club President Steve Baker said they’re encouraging people not to bring luxury items like sleeping bags and pillows, and if they do they will be charged a luxury fee.