The Northern Territory Health Department has addressed concerns raised about the new medical director of the Howard Springs Centre for National Resilience.

Dr Di Stephens, the new medical director, received passengers on the India repatriation flights, drove them into the quarantine centre on a golf buggy and failed to stay 1.5m away. She then went to work at the In the Grass music festival in the medic tent the following week.

Dr Stephens was not available for comment. 

Prime minster Scott Morrison will meet with Chanel Contos to discuss reforms to sex education in schools, after the petition Contos began prompted hundreds of testimonies from schoolgirls about sexual assault.

Contos says sex education is taught too late, with 50% of children already sexually active by the time it is taught in year ten.

The Morrison government has allocated four point seven million dollars over two years to strengthen criminal justice responses to sexual assault, but Contos hopes there can be a focus on prevention as well as cure.

Queenslanders have raised concerns it is difficult to secure an appointment for the COVID-19 vaccine.

Queenslanders can visit the federal Department of Health website and enter their postcode to check for vaccine clinics in the area, however many listed have no appointments available.

Clinics cite patchy vaccine delivery as one of the reasons for a lack in vaccination appointments.

Buyers could claim ownership of an entire town in far north Queensland with a museum, church, and railway station, for less than the cost of an apartment in Brisbane.

Tim Pratter is the current owner of Lappa, a town two hours west of Cairns. He is selling the town for $343,000, citing health and family issues. In comparison, a two-bedroom apartment in Brisbane costs on average $545,000.

Pratter says work needs to be done to restore Lappa, but that the town has many unique charms.

A group of leading researchers have found Queensland’s lockout laws have had a limited effect on ambulance callouts over the past four years.

Deakin University psychology expert Peter Miller says findings showed that monthly ambulance callouts only reduced 4.3% state-wide. However, callouts in high-risk areas like Fortitude Valley reduced by more than 20%. 

Professor Miller says Queensland’s laws have appeared to strike a good balance between protecting people and safeguarding businesses who make their livelihood from hospitality.   

Microsoft will be retiring Internet Explorer next year to focus the spotlight on its new web browser, Microsoft Edge. 

This move comes as the final nail in the coffin for the infamously slow Internet Explorer, which Microsoft has been slowly phasing out.

Explorer is unique in its ability to access websites and applications built on technology too old and obsolete to be supported by modern browsers. However, once the Explorer phase-out is complete, this feature will become available on Microsoft Edge.

A new study by University of Tasmania scientists finds that increasing extreme weather events caused by climate change may change flying fox migration patterns.

Tasmania, which currently only hosts eight species of small bats, may become a new climate refuge for flying foxes, or megabats, as they are also known. 

Potential risks include the introduction of diseases from the mainland, and adverse interactions between the flying foxes and Tasmanian farmers and local species. 

Epidemiologists are urging Australians over 50 not to wait for an alternative vaccine to AstraZeneca before getting vaccinated. 

Professor Catherine Bennett from Deakin University says it is important people do not settle into a false sense of security about the virus. She says waiting for an alternative vaccine puts Australia at risk of higher transmission rates were an outbreak to occur.

The Pfizer vaccine is recommended for Australians under the age of 50, while the government insists AstraZeneca is safe for those over 50.

The Queensland Government has announced plans to start charging fees for businesses that exhibit animals.

The proposed fee schedule will apply to businesses such as Sea World, Australia Zoo, travelling circuses and petting zoos.

It is not known how much the government expects to raise from the affected businesses, however, estimates from 8 years ago suggest a rate of $183,000 per year.