A study has found 1 in 7 children born to mothers with Zika virus will have health problems including birth defects.

The majority of people infected with Zika virus don’t get sick, however the first long-term study has revealed children born to mothers with Zika virus are at risk of severe brain defects.

Researchers also found there were not enough health checks for children born to mothers with Zika virus.

The preliminary report on NAPLAN results was due to be published today, however, some states are in disagreement with the national assessment authority over how they should be presented to the public.

ACARA has been canvassing different versions of the report since early June, whilst considering the reputational risk to the body, NAPLAN, and My School data.

Several state department heads have questioned whether data between the new online tests and the pen-and-paper version should be comparable after seeing early results.

A statement issued by Transport Canberra encouraging women to join the public transport industry has received social media backlash with women describing it as “condescending” and “sexist”.

The ACT Government said it was “committed to the recruitment of female drivers…inviting ladies to try driving a bus.”

The media release ended by saying, “Everyday female bus drivers are out on the road showing they are equally as safe and confident behind the wheel.”

Drone zones in Brisbane have been made permanent after hundreds of residents supported designated spaces for the aerial vehicles.

Demand from drone enthusiasts led Council to conduct an Australian first, six-month trial of the zones in December last year.  

Brisbane City Councils environment, parks, and sustainability chairman, David McLachlan, said the council provided launch and landing sites at 10 Brisbane parks to accommodate the growing number of drone enthusiasts.

There has been a 35% increase in usage of Brisbane’s City Cycles with over 2,000 trips taken daily.

The City Cycle scheme which originally got off to a slow start, costing taxpayers 13 million dollars, has now been operating for eight years.

The Brisbane service is considered a success in comparison to Melbourne and Sydney’s bike share services which were both shut down this year.

Welfare recipients in Southwest Melbourne are the target of a welfare cheats crackdown.

The federal operation will see investigators conduct “snap audits” on people with a history of non-compliance.

When authorities visited the area last in 2015, almost $11 million worth of benefits was reclaimed from 2600 individuals.

A site on King Island containing the fossils of the extinct dwarf emu has been destroyed by a golf course.

Avian palaeontologist Julian Hume said the sites were fossil material had previously been found has since been developed.

It is unclear if the golf course developers or the King Island Council, which approved the development, were aware of fossils at the site.

A new refugee crisis is unfolding in Latin America, as thousands flee from Nicaragua and Venezuela to neighbouring countries.

Immigration authorities say 23,000 Nicaraguans have applied for asylum in Costa Rica, as political unrest has shaken the nation since April.

Colombian president Juan Manuel Santos granted 440,000 Venezuelan refugees two-year temporary residency permits in an effort to relieve the crisis.