Victoria News
Parents reunited with wandering toddler
9:31am A toddler's been found wandering alone near a major road in Melbourne's south .
Residents flee apartment block blaze
MIRIYANA ALEXANDER 8:07am An apartment building has been evacuated after a suspicious fire in Melbourne's east broke out in a ground floor unit early today.
Wild weather warning as mercury plunges
MIRIYANA ALEXANDER 8:10am A freezing start to the day across Victoria is just a taste of wild, wintry weather set to batter the state.
Marong, town on the edge getting ready to boom
DARREN GRAY It's so close to Bendigo that you can drive to the centre of the city in less than 15 minutes. But it's far enough away to give residents a real taste of country living.
Turning a blind eye for footpath diners' comfort
DEWI COOKE Plastic fantastic or public nuisance? It is a question facing Port Phillip councillors as they prepare to vote on the drop-down transparent blinds on footpaths
Court to tell if kiosk is safe bet
JASON DOWLING The state's gambling regulator yesterday laid criminal charges related to an alleged computer betting kiosk operating from a South Melbourne Hotel.
Doubts over Labor's anti-sexist push
DAVID ROOD Advertisers would strongly resist Victorian Labor plans to regulate against exploitative or discriminatory depictions of women in the media, according to industry experts.
Perjury charges challenged
MELISSA JENKINS Stephen Linnell could start moving beyond a hellish period in his life if perjury charges to which he has pleaded guilty are dismissed by a Melbourne judge, his lawyer says.
Two years' jail for parking meter theft
Rodney Wayne Tatnell came undone when he was caught searching a company car for surveillance equipment after stealing parking meter coins.
Soccer trains boost
An extra late train service will run on all but two lines this weekend for fans wanting to get home after watching the World Cup at Birrarung Marr on Saturday night.
Achiever award shared
A 21-year-old former director of a women's refuge and a 25-year-old indigenous education officer share this year's $10,000 Ricci Marks Young Aboriginal Achiever Award.
They will come - so Brumby to build in the bush
PAUL AUSTIN Four hundred public service jobs will be lost to Melbourne and moved to regional Victoria as part of a state government plan to ease population pressures in the capital.
Plan to boost numbers at regional universities
SARAH-JANE COLLINS Regional university and TAFE student numbers should increase by more than 50 per cent over the next 15 years under a $103.6 million state government plan.
Secret meetings raise concerns
JASON DOWLING Developers are quietly seeking approval for massive and often contentious developments months before applications are formally lodged and the public is notified.
Freestyler with eye for design
Bruce Morgan, one of the first students to enrol in and graduate from the parallel courses of architecture and building at Melbourne University, died of heart failure during his regular lunchtime exercise in the Prahran Aquatic Centre pool. He was 69.
His family business was Melbourne institution
Melbourne music's 'grand old gentleman' - broadcaster, performer, scholar and music retailer - Kevin McBeath died of liver cancer at Waringal Hospital, Heidelberg. He was 85.
Police out in force for Operation Aegis
COURTNEY BAIKALOFF 5:56pm Victorian Police were out in force over the weekend with Operation Aegis, the state's biggest ever road-policing operation.
More train attack charges likely
3:00pm More charges are expected over a rock attack on a Melbourne suburban train that left a passenger with life-threatening injuries, a court has heard.
Father jailed for sex with daughter, 11
1:53pm A 33-year-old single father of four has been sentenced to seven-and-a-half years imprisonment for having sex with his 11-year-old daughter.
Shop worker threatened in attempted robbery
MEGAN LEVY 1:29pm Police have released images of a would-be robber who threatened to shoot a shop worker south-west of Melbourne last month.
Hundreds of public service jobs to move to regions
2:13pm Hundreds of Victorian public service jobs will be relocated to regional areas as part of a $631 million regional blueprint announced on Tuesday.
Mother of gassed boys still recovering
12:49pm The mother of two boys gassed to death as they slept at home in country Victoria remains in a stable condition in hospital.
Jailed security guard 'generous with the city's money'
ADRIAN LOWE 1:40pm A former City of Melbourne parking officer who was part of a group that stole almost $300,000 from parking meters over 14 months has been jailed for two years.
Megan Levy
Delays hit five Metro lines
11:47am Rail commuters were hit with delays on five Metro lines in Melbourne this morning due to an ill passenger on a train and an equipment failure.
Woman stabbed by bag snatcher
MEGAN LEVY A woman was stabbed in the upper body when she attempted to fight off a bag snatcher in Melbourne's west this morning.
Bloody hell: crashed meat truck blocks Western Ring Road
A truck carrying 18 tonnes of meat that crashed into a parked car was this morning blocking north-bound lanes of the Western Ring Road in Melbourne's north-west.
Push for regional growth
PAUL AUSTIN Victoria's main regional cities will grow faster but sensitive coastal areas will be better protected from over-development under a population plan to be unveiled today.
Unions pressure Brumby on school funding
JEWEL TOPSFIELD The Brumby government will come under pressure to increase spending on schools with the launch of a $1 million union campaign.
Workers withhold support for Labor
BEN SCHNEIDERS Victorian unions have done little or no work in federal marginal seats to support Labor, senior officials say, in contrast to the huge resources used before the 2007 poll.
State Labor plans to ban ads that exploit women
PAUL AUSTIN Advertisers would be barred from portraying women in an exploitative or discriminatory way, under a 'pro-women' Victorian Labor policy.
