A young girl has been attacked by a shark at the same Queensland island where a Tasmanian mother was mauled less than 24 hours earlier.

Dairy farmers have called for a 10-cent-a-litre levy on all milk sales to help farmers battling drought, after Australia's major supermarkets announced a price hike on some home-branded products.

The stage has been set for a fiery opening to the NRL's preliminary finals, with Melbourne coach Craig Bellamy all but accusing Cronulla of having their own dirty tactics.

More than half of Australians feel they do not know what to say to a person with dementia, new research has revealed.

So-called "food terrorists" will face 10 to 15 years behind bars after the government rushed tough new penalties through parliament.

Supermarket giant Woolworths has taken the extraordinary step of withdrawing sewing needles from its shelves nationally following the fruit tampering crisis.

A nine-year-old Tasmanian boy has reportedly found a metal pin inside an apple.

Copycats and pranksters who insert pins and needles into fruit are being hunted by police, with one boy already arrested in NSW while fresh cases continue to emerge across the state.

Thousands of Prince fans are asking US authorities to open a grand jury investigation into his death.

The federal health minister wants an explanation from the Tasmanian government over a plan to put patients in corridors and alcoves at Hobart's major hospital to deal with overcrowding.