A survey of home owners, renters and prospective buyers in Sydney and Melbourne found an increase in the number of semi-detached houses could help balance supply with demand.

A study of housing needs in Melbourne and Sydney has found complex planning requirements are preventing developers from building the type of accommodation many people want.

The Toyota car manufacturing plant at Altona, in Melbourne's west, will resume normal production a month earlier than anticipated after cutting production by half.

Australia's car industry has been dealt a double blow, with Ford axing jobs in Victoria and Toyota forced to cut production because of a parts shortage.

A Melbourne taxi driver says getting a cab tomorrow night will be "next to impossible", with many Indian drivers taking the night off to watch the cricket.

The chief executive of the National Broadband Network company, Mike Quigley, says labour shortages could put pressure on the NBN rollout.

Nurses unions say the Federal Government will face a crippling shortage of aged care nurses if it does not raise wages in the sector.

The Victorian Taxi Association says Melbourne could be facing a critical shortage of taxi drivers leading up to Christmas.

A mental health expert has told the Tyler Cassidy inquest, more lives will be lost unless the State Government addresses a critical shortage in mental health services.

Federal Minister for School Education Peter Garrett says 58 new vocational training facilities around Australia for secondary school students will help address the skills shortage facing the country.

The Victorian Government has promised to release some of its organic certified chemical stocks to treat locusts if there is a market shortage.

A review committee has expressed concern about chronic staff shortages in Victoria's child protection system, after 26 children died in care last year.

There is mounting pressure on political parties to spend more on public housing, as about 230,000 Australians wait in queues for accommodation.

Collingwood has picked a smaller, speedier forward line in a bid to end its AFL goal shortage against Western Bulldogs at Docklands on Sunday.

The State Opposition says reported plans to put more than 250 police back on the beat will not go close to addressing police shortages in Victoria.

Increased demand for the seasonal flu vaccine has lead to a shortage of supplies in pharmacies across Victoria.

Ted Baillieu is promising another 1,600 new police officers for Victoria if the coalition wins this year's State election.