A new poll shows 53% of Americans blame Donald Trump for the government shut-down as it nears its 24th consecutive day.

House speaker Nancy Pelosi says the president is trying to divert attention away from special counsel Robert Mueller’s Russia investigation, which may show Trump colluded with the Russians to win the election.

800,000 federal workers face increasing financial hardship while government departments continue to be underfunded and understaffed.

19-year-old woman Alex Ross-King has died of a suspected drug overdose after attending Sydney’s FOMO festival in Parramatta on the weekend.

Sunrise host David Kochie has commented on the event, and lashed out against Gladys Berejiklian over the issue of pill-testing, accusing her of being a hypocrite and saying it could help prevent festival deaths.

Ms Berejiklian has taken a firm stance against introducing pill-testing, despite the fact that five people have died from a suspected drug overdose at a NSW music festival in just four months.

With January 26th just around the corner, Prime Minister Scott Morrison has suggested the country could be doing more to celebrate Indigenous Australia.

Prime Minister Morrison has acknowledged there are already Indigenous ceremonies held on the 25th, and says this is a good day to celebrate instead.

These comments come after the federal government announced it is mandatory for councils to hold citizenship ceremonies on the 26th, which many have described as ‘bizarre’ and ‘heavy-handed’.

The retail and fast food workers union is calling for fast food giant Mcdonalds to overturn a new policy that would see employees unable to use the bathroom or take a drink outside of their allotted 10 minute break time.

A small group of protesters rallied around the Queen Street Mcdonalds on Friday to decry the proposal.

Shine Lawyers employment law expert Will Barsby says preventing water consumption poses a significant health and safety risk and exposes Mcdonalds to a higher percentage of injury claims.

Animal testing in Queensland has increased 194% over the last year, according to a new report.

13 million animals were used for scientific testing in 154 projects, the majority of which involved ‘conscious intervention without anesthesia’.

While poultry made up the majority of the animals tested, over half a million were native mammals, including flying foxes and bandicoots.