Radioactive iodine 7.5 million times above the legal limit has been found in seawater near Japan’s Fukushima nuclear plant. Radioactive cesium, which is extremely toxic, has also been found in fish for the first time. Authorities have begun checking school playgrounds near the plant for radiation. More than 1,400 schools outside the exclusion zone will be checked.

 

The Federal Government has flagged it may introduce a mandatory deadline for insurance claims if the industry doesn’t lift its gain. Assistant Treasurer Bill Shorten has met Ipswich residents who are extremely angry about delays in processing their claims from the floods. Mr Shorten says it’s unacceptable that insurers are still dragging their feet 11 weeks after those floods.

 

The Federal Opposition says the resignation of a top executive from the National Broadband Network is yet another sign of problems with the multi-billion dollar project. NBN Co’s construction chief Patrick Flannigan quit just days after the company ended negotiations with other firms to build the network, saying their quotes were massively overpriced. Opposition Communications spokesman Malcolm Turnbull says the circumstances of Mr Flannigan’s departure are troubling.