Navy donates dive wreck
The Royal Australian Navy’s decommissioned vessel the Darwin (pictured) is to become a dive wreck in the waters off Tasmania.
The Darwin was commissioned in July 1984 and was a long-range escort frigate that undertook roles including area air defence, anti-submarine warfare, surveillance, reconnaissance and interdiction.
In August 1990, the Darwin became the first Australian ship to deploy to the Persian Gulf.
She was granted three Battle Honours: East Timor 1999, Persian Gulf 2002–03 and Iraq 2003 and was decommissioned in December 2017.
New office for MDBA
The Murray–Darling Basin Authority has established a new office in Goondiwindi, Queensland.
It is expected the office will create five jobs involved in the delivery of the Northern Basin Review.
There will also be eight permanent regional engagement officers based in towns such as Narrabri, Bourke, Avenel, Mildura and Murray Bridge.
ABC defends interview
The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) has entered the media controversy over interviewing extreme right-wing nationalist Blair Cottrell by clarifying its policy on selecting interview participants.
It said it did not ban people on the basis of their political beliefs.
“However, our guidelines require that programs give viewers adequate context and background on interviewees,” the ABC said.
“Mr Cottrell’s background and the controversial nature of his organisation’s beliefs and actions were fully revealed to viewers.”
It said this issue is covered in the ABC’s Editorial Policies under “Harm and Offence” and can be accessed at this PS News link.
Exports reach record high
The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade has reported that export trade in Australian services increased 7.2 per cent to a record high of $173.1 billion in 2017.
The Department revealed that education exports increased 17.2 per cent to $30.8 billion, business services rose 9.3 per cent to $20.4 billion and transport services increased 4.8 per cent to $7.6 billion.
It found China remained Australia’s largest services export market, valued at $15.8 billion, following the China–Australia Free Trade Agreement.
School wins NBN competition
The winning school in NBN Co.’s STEM+X competition has been named as Leanyer Primary in Darwin.
STEM+X was a national technology competition showcasing the benefits that fast and reliable broadband could offer to everyday learning.
Students at the winning school proposed an idea to tackle weather-related disaster issues, harnessing the power of twenty-first–century communications to connect communities through the use of an app and solar-powered phone cases.
Of the students who took part, 78 per cent said they were somewhat likely, or highly likely, to pursue a career in one of the STEM areas — science, technology, engineering and mathematics.
