Students protest over teacher rape comments and sparks fly over rogue power pole

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Students protest over teacher's rape comments

Students at Swansea High School protested this week about comments allegedly made by a female teacher in class regarding rape.
A video shows the teacher appearing to tell students that if women were raped, their clothing choices should be held partly accountable.

Sparks fly over rogue power pole

Photos of a power pole in the Newcastle suburb of Wickham went viral this week, with locals describing it as an "embarrassment".
Newcastle Council had widened the road and installed new kerbing, but the power pole wasn't moved in advance, leaving it in the street.
And then the blame game began.

Anglicans back same-sex marriage blessing

Newcastle's Anglican Bishop says there is still work to be done before it can be determined if the diocese can bless same-sex marriages, despite the move being endorsed at the church's annual Synod.
The proposal was the subject of hours of debate at Newcastle's Christ Church Cathedral.

Plans move ahead for lower Hunter desalination plant

With the drought continuing to bite across the region, plans have been lodged for a desalination plant at Belmont.
The plant would cost around $100 million to build and would supply around 10% of the Hunter's water.

Residents vent over air pollution fears

This year is shaping up to be the worst year for air pollution in the Upper Hunter since monitoring began in 2010.
The New South Wales Environment Protection Authority recently held a drop-in session for Upper Hunter residents to voice their concerns, and heard about life that comes with a coating of brown dust.

Traffic chaos on the M1

Northbound traffic on the M1 Pacific Highway was brought to a standstill this week after a number of trucks collided at Halloran.
Four workers inside the trucks were taken to hospital for shock and non-life-threatening injuries.
It was the second time the lanes on the M1 have had to be closed in the past two weeks due to an accident.

It's a big week for....

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