Australia’s Parliament House lifted a short-lived ban on facial coverings including burqas and niqabs after the prime minister intervened.

An Australian senator who told breakfast radio she would only date men who were rich and "well-hung" has apologised, saying she had tried to hide her embarrassment with a joke.

Australia’s incoming conservative government promised to reboot a stalled mining boom and revive an appetite for investment yesterday after leader Tony Abbott swept into office on a platform to scrap a mining tax and run a stable administration.