Lynette Dawson's sister has choked back tears in court recalling a conversation in 1981 during which she says the alleged murder victim told her Chris Dawson had left the family and instructed her not to paint "too dark a picture" of him.

A re-elected Morrison government aims to save an additional $1 billion over the next four years by requiring the public service to make even more savings to its operations.

Gold Coast coach Stuart Dew is as confident as ever that he will earn a new contract with the AFL club despite the looming spectre of Alastair Clarkson.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison says he's not thinking of standing down after Saturday's election when asked what he would do in the event of a Coalition defeat or hung parliament.

The tributes continue to flow for Andrew Symonds, with a 'Fishing Rods for Roy' campaign launched to honour the former Australia Test star.

Canterbury football manager Phil Gould said a phone call when Trent Barrett "poured his heart out" led to the Bulldogs coach stepping down on Monday.

Two teenagers fist bumped as they ran away after 17-year-old Jack Beasley was stabbed in the heart on the Gold Coast, a court has heard.

Global tributes have followed the death of former Australian Test cricketer Andrew Symonds, killed when his vehicle rolled off a rural road in Far North Queensland.

Australia's longest road tunnel is set for the Blue Mountains as part of upgrades to better connect western NSW to the state's coastal capital.

Australia's Sheldon Riley has missed out on a top-10 spot at the Eurovision Song Contest while Ukraine took out the No.1 position.