Australian News

In total, just five of the 96 promised upgrades had been completed and 11 were in construction, almost three years after their announcement. The rest remained in the design or planning stage, the Victorian School Building Authority (VSBA) website showed.

Flooding at unprecedented levels has inundated towns and left residents stranded in the Mid North Coast and Hunter region of New South Wales, with parts of Taree, Wingham and Glenthorne of most concern.

NSW State Emergency Services personnel have rescued hundreds of people from floodwaters and rooftops, while thousands have lost power or been isolated by cut-off roads.

Authorities have issued 13 emergency-level alerts, with the Manning River peaking at 6.4 metres at Taree, surpassing the 1929 record flood level.

Follow our live blog below for the latest updates on the unfolding weather situation.

NSW is axing “no grounds” evictions for its almost 2 million renters, they cannot refuse pets without a valid reason, and they must provide a fee-free rent payment option.

Tenants will also be able to apply for a pet, with owners only able to refuse the request for specific reasons, such as the owner living at the property.

Approval will be automatic if owners do not respond to pet applications within 21 days.

Owners and agents must also provide certain fee-free rent payment methods such as direct bank transfers to renters.

See also:

• https://www.nsw.gov.au/departments-and-agencies/fair-trading/changes-to-rental-laws#toc-summary-of-the-changes
• https://www.tenants.org.au/resource/law-change

Key paragraphs:

The Australian government is refusing freedom of information requests at a rate not seen for a decade, data shows, prompting concerns for transparency and accountability.

Data held by the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner, the watchdog overseeing the FoI system, revealed the proportion of FoI requests being completely refused has shot up to 27% in the December 2024 quarter.

That is the highest level since at least 2014-15, historical records show.

Arguably related: https://aussie.zone/post/20646025

The judge said she was concerned that the police defence suggested officers had formed a reasonable suspicion to strip-search Meredith based on “things like her demeanour, what was said outside the tent, and [the officers] recalling it was said outside the tent and not inside”.

“There is absolutely no evidence, unless you can take me to it and I’ve missed something,” Yehia said to Sexton.

“All I have is the officers’ statements that say either they don’t remember the search, or both that they don’t remember the search nor remember the lead plaintiff. In those circumstances, I’m just not sure how this could ever have proceeded in the way that it did with the initial pleadings.”

In short:

A class action against police stripsearching people at music festivals is underway in NSW.

The young woman leading the class action had her experience described by a lawyer as "akin to a sexual assault".

The lawyer also claimed that the state failed to adequately train officers on the strict rules surrounding strip searches.

Virginia Giuffre, formerly known as Virginia Roberts, has died at her farm in Western Australia, aged 41.

The prominent accuser of Jeffrey Epstein and Prince Andrew died by suicide.

If you or anyone you know needs help:

• Lifeline on 131 114
• 1800 Respect National Helpline on 1800 737 732
• 13 YARN on 13 92 76
• Kids Helpline on 1800 551 800
• Beyond Blue on 1300 224 636
• Suicide Call Back Service on 1300 659 467
• MensLine Australia on 1300 789 978
• Headspace on 1800 650 890
• ReachOut
• Emergency services on triple-0 if you need immediate care

cross-posted from: https://slrpnk.net/post/21085337

archived (Wayback Machine)

In short:

A fisherman has drowned after being swept off rocks in Sydney's south, while a teenager who was with the man has been rescued.

Five people have now died in coastal drownings in NSW over the Easter long weekend.

What's next?

A search is ongoing for two men missing since Friday, one in NSW and the other in Victoria.

archived (Wayback Machine)

Archive/non-paywall link.

In short:

An Australian-designed weapon system has been trialled by Israel’s defence force after federal government insists no defence exports there since the Gaza War began.

Canberra-based defence company EOS is declining to comment on the demonstration earlier this year citing commercial sensitivities but insists it complies with regulations.

What's next?

Defence says it is only approving new export permits to Israel on items for Australian defence and law enforcement that will return to this country.

In short:

Two men have been arrested after allegedly carrying guns into Thursday night's Carlton Collingwood clash at the MCG.

The men aged 27 and 21 were both on bail at the time.

They have been charged with multiple offences but police are not treating the incident as terrorism related.

I want to ascend up the social ladder to the point that my crimes get passive voiced.

Any tips?

In short:

Jeanswest will close more than 90 stores in Australia, putting hundreds of people out of work due to tough retail trading conditions.

The brand is the latest local retailer to collapse, after the parent company behind Rivers, Katies and Rockmans entered administration last year.

What's next?

Stock at Jeanswest stores will go on sale immediately as administrators look at ways to restructure the business to focus on online retail.

In short:

The H5N1 strain of bird flu has been detected in a sheep in the UK.

It is the first time in the world the variant has been found in a sheep, although cases have previously been recorded in dairy cattle and other mammals.

What's next?

Scientists are urging the federal government to invest more in preventing the disease from spreading to Australia's sheep meat industry.

In short:

The University of Wollongong is set to cut up to 10 per cent of its non-academic staff in Australia, or around 185 jobs.

It comes on top of a confirmed plan to cut 95 academic jobs, bringing to total number of job cuts to 276.

What's next?

Students are worried about the impact on their education and say there is growing disquiet on campus.

The university also said it planned to reduce its faculties from four to three, and cut the number of schools from 18 to 11, aiming to save between $22 million and $26 million.

This isn't unique, hence ag gag laws. Go vegan, it's actually really easy.