A gang of cyber criminals have forced the shutdown of one of the United States' major fuel pipeline operators for a third day running.

An investigation into the ransomware attack reports the group, known as Darkside, have built a ‘Robin Hood’ reputation by stealing or attacking large corporations and giving cuts to charity organisations in the US.

Colonial Pipeline, the company at the heart of the attack, has not released any information on what the hackers are demanding.

The 59th annual Brisbane Writers Festival wrapped at the Brisbane State Library up on Sunday.

The festival hosted nearly 100 events across Brisbane, with speakers from across Australia traveling to Queensland to appear. 

Festival organisers say they’re now looking ahead to their 60th anniversary in 2022.

A Trademark examiner has raised objection to an attempt to trademark the words “Always Was, Always Will Be”, saying the “expression is commonly used by other traders… to promote indigenous ownership or custodianship of land.”

The trademark application was made on 26 January this year and is currently being reviewed by IP Australia, a department of the federal government. 

Aboriginal clothing company Clothing the Gaps posted to Instagram saying the words and culture of Aboriginal people were created by Community and should not be trademarked for commercial gain.

In a show of overwhelming support for the first Muslim head of a major Western capital, London Mayor Sadiq Khan has been re-elected for a second time, with a 55.2 per cent margin. 

The win is in stark contrast to fellow Labour Party candidates across the United Kingdom, who have seen a series of disappointing losses in other local elections. 

Experts are reporting his win is thanks to the large demographic of young, ethnically-diverse, and pro-European Union people in London.

Queensland school students will sit NAPLAN across the state this week, renewing calls for the census literacy and numeracy test to be cancelled altogether.

The Queensland Teachers Union has put out a press release encouraging parents to withdraw children from the test, saying it's not compulsory and parents shouldn’t feel obligated to force their children to sit the exam if it’s not right for them. 

The federal budget will be released on Tuesday, with Treasurer Josh Frydenburg expected to announce more than $10 billion on major infrastructure, in an effort to boost productivity and employment.

Experts are calling on the federal government to focus on ‘economic infrastructure’ instead, including childcare, social housing, aged care, and disability care.

The Queensland government is calling for heavy investment in social and community services, housing-related debt, rental affordability and greater support for the National Disability Insurance Scheme.

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A series of bomb blasts outside a secondary school in Afghanistan during a peak holiday period has killed more than 50 people, mostly female students.

The government is blaming the Taliban for the attacks, with insurgents denying responsibility, instead issuing a statement saying the nation needed to "safeguard and look after educational centres and institutions".