TRANSCRIPT:
- Australia joins calls for an immediate ceasefire in Lebanon;
- One person feared to be missing after a fire in Brisbane;
- The Australian Diamonds name a 15 person squad for next month's Constellation Cup in New Zealand.
At least one person is unaccounted for after a fire destroyed a vacant building in Brisbane on Wednesday night, and caused a second building - a century old wedding venue - to partially collapse.
Acting Queensland Fire Chief Superintendent Steven Bates says heavy equipment needs to be brought in to look for them - and start the demolition process.
The Superintendent says a man who evacuated from the building as fire crews arrived has provided information to investigators, but believed he was the only one there when the blaze broke out.
"Obviously that person who was taken away from hospital is a witness and we've got a statement from him, but we're still piecing it together... It is believed that two people sometimes frequent this building. So at this stage - we can't rule out that there is a person missing at this stage, and we won't determine that until once again heavy machinery (is) brought in and search every inch."
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Australia has joined leaders from the United States and France in pressing for an immediate 21-day ceasefire in Lebanon.
Australia has added its name to a joint statement released by the White House which pushes for an immediate halt to hostilities to provide space for diplomacy.
Israel and designated terrorist organisation Hezbollah have been exchanging rocket fire across the Lebanese border, with Israel's latest three-day barrage killing hundreds.
But the joint statement says it's nobody's interest to continue in this vein.
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Up to 500 jobs could be lost in Adelaide following a lockdown of the country's biggest tomato producer, in an effort to limit the spread of a fruit virus.
It's believed a number of workers have been stood down as a result of quarantine measures in three Adelaide Plains greenhouses, to contain the tomato Brown Rugose fruit virus from spreading right across the state's $230 million tomato and capsicum sector.
Federal Government Services Minister Bill Shorten says affected workers will have access to information about government payments and services available to them.
South Australian Premier Peter Malinauskas says ordering the quarantine was not an easy decision, but it was made in the best interest of the industry.
"That of course has grave consequences for the tomato industry throughout the country. Of course, where we have the option to be able to curtail that impact, the state government has an obligation to do so. The decision to quarantine those three facilities is all about seeking to contain the virus with a view to eradicate it."
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Police say family violence rates are contributing to rising youth crime in Victoria.
Victoria Police Acting Deputy Commissioner Chris Gilbert says a quarter of youth crime can be directly attributed to record high levels of family violence.
The latest crime numbers have revealed offences committed by children aged 14-17 have increased over the past year by 23 per cent.
It has found nine young people - including gang members, child burglars and underage car thieves - are being arrested every day.
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A New South Wales union says it's concerned a new bill to change the way parking fines are delivered will put council workers in physical danger.
The state government is introducing legislation today which will mean councils can no longer issue ticketless parking fines even though many have invested hundreds of thousands of ratepayers dollars in the technology.
General Secretary of the United Services Union Graeme Kelly says removing the ticketless option will take rangers back to the bad old days where they suffered broken jaws, black eyes and daily abuse for simply doing their job.
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Customers have been urged to do their homework on their weekly shop following a report that's found Aldi remains the cheapest place for groceries.
A basket of groceries remains about 25 per cent cheaper at Aldi than at Woolworths and Coles - while IGA is the most expensive.
But while Choice C-E-O Ashley D'Silva says shopping around at different retailers is advised, it's not always possible.
And he says there are other things that consumers can do to get the best value.
"Really just turning off autopilot and not shopping out of habit. So slowing down and thinking about what it is that you're buying and considering alternatives. So for example, different cuts of meat are priced very differently. You can swap out fresh fruit or veg for things that are either frozen or even tinned, and don't look past the house brands at supermarkets, because Choice does a lot of testing on a whole range of things, including the kinds of products that you're buying at supermarkets, and we often find that house brands outperform the really well known national brands."
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Australia has named its Diamonds national squad to face New Zealand in next month's Constellation Cup.
Star defenders Jo Weston and Courtney Bruce will return to the squad from injury for next month's matchup against their Kiwi arch rivals.
Coach Stacey Marinkovich says she wants her team to embrace the challenge of winning the first two games in New Zealand before returning to play the final two in front of home fans.
