Why it all went horrendously wrong and other top stories.

• Why it all went horrendously wrong

  

  Lindt Cafe manager Tori Johnson was murdered in the Lindt Cafe siege by gunman Man Haron Monis. Picture. Supplied.IT’S one of the longest running inquests in New South Wales history.And yesterday the Lindt Cafe siege inquest finally heard from its last witness as the public hearings drew to a close.It’s taken 16 months, 109 sittings days, 119 witness testimonies, and hours of cross-examination and legal argument to reach this point.The inquest has heard evidence from siege survivors, the state’s..

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• NSW inter-city train fleet to be built overseas

  

  NSW inter-city train fleet to be built overseas Updated August 18, 2016 16:21:36 A $2.3 billion contract to build an inter-city train fleet for New South Wales has been awarded to a company offshore. Key points:500 new double-decker train carriages to be built in South KoreaNew trains to run between Sydney and regions including Newcastle and south coastTransport Minister says deal best value for money The new trains will run between Sydney and Newcastle, the Central C..

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• Foreign buyers pay less than $700000 in fines to the ATO despite ...

  

  Foreign buyers pay less than $700,000 in fines to the ATO despite illegal buyer crackdown Updated August 18, 2016 15:39:45 In the first seven months after tougher penalties for illegal foreign property investors were introduced the Tax Office collected less in fines than the cost of an average Sydney house. Key points:ATO identified more than 270 breaches of foreign investment rules and issued 150 penalty notices by EOFY on June 30Penalties totalled $695,980, or an ave..

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• Sydney Harbour Bridge's arch joined for the first time

  

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• Flu cases on the rise in Victoria with season to peak later this month

  

   Peak flu season is about to hit in Victoria, as a strain that has knocked down thousands in NSW heads south.  A Department of Health spokesman said there were 434 flu cases across the state last week, compared with 141 the previous week. More Life and Style Videos Previous slide Next slide What goes into the flu vaccine? How to make the most of your health cover How to avoid the salmonella salad Exercise to offset sitting risks N..

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• Deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce backs scooter regulation after ...

  

  Deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce backs scooter regulation after footpath crash Updated August 18, 2016 16:16:56 Deputy Prime Minister Barnaby Joyce has weighed into a passionate debate over mobility scooter safety, after the wife of Nationals senator John Williams was hit while walking in a small New South Wales town. Key points:Mobility scooter drivers do not need a licence, registration, insurance or training in NSWSenator says driver should be fined $20 for misus..

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• Education a priority in light of school-based pornography ring

  

  Frances Crimmins, executive director of YWCA Canberra.  One of Canberra's leading advocacy groups for young women has called on the ACT Government to continue its support of school-based prevention programs to prevent violence against women in light of the most recent pornography ring scandal.While YWCA Canberra welcomed the government's 2015 election announcement of $615,000 to support learning programs in the ACT, Executive Director Frances Crimmins said the one-off funding was spread ..

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• All Blacks find Sydney toughest venue in world rugby

  

  2:09 AM GMTCraig DowdCloseCraig Dowd played 60 Tests for New Zealand between 1993 and 2000, including in two World Cups, and he was part of the All Blacks team that won their first series in South Africa in 1996. He played for the Blues and Auckland in New Zealand domestic rugby, and for Wasps in England from 2001 to 2005. In 2009, he coached North Harbour in the ITM Cup. More recently has been a SKY Television comments man.The Super Rugby champions Hurricanes have been rewarded in the All Black..

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• Australia's biggest livestock movement creates quite the buzz

  

  On utes, trucks and giant semi-trailers, they have been transported to the vast fields of north-west Victoria in mind-boggling numbersFrom as far afield as Queensland, South Australia, New South Wales and across Victoria, the move to the Sunraysia is the biggest transportation of livestock in Australia. More News Videos Previous slide Next slide Largest livestock shipment in Australia Governor's big night on taxpayer funds Home-made road lane ..

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• Melbourne Express: Thursday, August 18, 2016

  

  I'm about to wrap up the blog for the morning.  If you would like more information on the terrifying carjacking from this morning, in which a five-year-old boy was still in a car when it was stolen from a Wyndham Vale driveway, reporter Broede Carmody has written up an article about it.    Police are still hunting for the two men who allegedly stole the BMW from a Wyndham Vale home early Thursday morning.  Photo: ABC News via Twitter City reporter Aisha Dow is working on an article abo..

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Sydney siege inquest: Top NSW police officers to explain decisions ... .	The Big Fish Catching Sydney Squid .
The Big Fish Catching Sydney Squid .	Two men charged with childcare fraud in multi-million-dollar counter ... .