Children as young as 12 are set to receive the Pfizer vaccine in the United States with regulators hoping to protect students before they head back to school in the coming weeks.

Distribution is set to get underway once the federal vaccine advisory committee makes recommendations on how the two-dose vaccine should be used for 12-15 year-olds'. 

Paediatrician and Pfizer senior vice president Doctor Bill Gruber says the move is a watershed moment in fighting the pandemic.

Priests in around 100 Catholic churches across Germany are now offering blessings to same-sex couples in defiance of The Vatican.

While Pope Francis has previously said he believes same-sex couples have the right to civil unions, he has also approved the Congregation for the Doctrine of Faith’s stance that the Catholic Church does not have the power to bless same-sex marriages.

The Love Wins movement says it welcomes the decision to bless same-sex marriages in Germany and has produced a map showing the churches offering blessings.

Calls for larger GST payments have been sparked as Queensland sees it’s biggest population boom in 16 years as 30,000 Australians have made the decision to move to Queensland. Queensland Treasurer Cameron Dick says this should trigger GST payments into today’s federal budget. Mr Dick says Queensland is one of the nation’s growing states and now is the right time to support Queensland in the budget.

Electricity networks are damaged in the Darling Downs after a fast moving storm swept through south-east Queensland last night. Energex says up to 17,500 homes and businesses were without power this morning as 66,000 lightning strikes were recorded across the region. Bureau of Meteorology forecasters say the storm was so fast moving there wasn't much rain. Storm activity is predicted to ease from Thursday.

Brisbane is set to be the destination of choice for international experts across a range of disciplines over the next few years, with hosting rights for seventeen conferences and meetings now secured in the last twelve months. The events are expected to bring 20,000 delegates to Brisbane and inject over $50 million in direct expenditure into the state economy. Brisbane Convention and Exhibition Centre general manager Bob O’Keeffe says the successes are evidence of Queensland’s successful COVID-19 recovery effort and show the city is placing itself at the centre of an improving business envi

A woman from Melbourne is calling for hot water bottles to be banned after her son spent a week in hospital when a hot water bottle burst in his lap and burned him. Paramedics gave the 20 year old a shot of Morphine before taking him to the Alfred Hospital where he had to undergo surgery for a skin graft. The woman says the incident was a horrific sight.

The Iranian government says it has sent a letter of protest to the Iraqi government after protestors assaulted the Iranian consulate in the southern Iraqi city of Karbala over the weekend. Protestors say Iran-backed militia forces, who are powerful in the predominantly Shia city, are responsible for the murder of prominent activist Ihab Jawad al-Wazni on Sunday. al-Wazni is the 30th organiser of the 2019 Iraqi anti-government protest movement to be killed and reportedly received numerous death threats from Iran-backed paramilitary groups.

Cyber-criminal group DarkSide says their ransomware attack on the United States’ Colonial oil pipeline was purely for money and not to, quote, “create problems in society.” The cyber attack crippled the pipeline, which provides approximately 45% of the US East Coast’s oil. Operators say they don’t expect to restore service until the end of the week. As fuel prices look set to reach their highest levels since twenty fourteen and authorities begin to prepare for shortages across the country, experts say DarkSide’s statement is proof they are in over their heads.