Choice Shonky awards 2026: From ticket sellers and Virgin flight credits to a 25-hour laundry cycle

Australia’s worst products and services for the year have been named by consumer advocacy group Choice

Concert tickets that surge to $1,650, an airline pocketing $75m of unused flight credits and a washer/dryer cycle that takes 25 hours have all made the dishonour roll in consumer advocacy group Choice’s annual Shonky awards.

Now in their 21st year, the Shonkys spotlight Australia’s worst products and services as decided by Choice.

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One dead and another missing in suspected grizzly bear attack in Canada

The incident took place in the same province where a grizzly attacked a group of schoolchildren last November

A mother is dead and her daughter is missing in western Canada after a suspected grizzly bear attack in the same community where a bear attacked a group of schoolchildren earlier in the year.

On Tuesday, the British Columbia conservation officer service said in a social media post that it had launched a search for the two missing people on the weekend, and that during the search on Sunday an officer found the mother’s body. The search for her 19-year-old daughter is ongoing.

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House Republicans accuse the American Psychological Association of antisemitism, threaten accreditation – The Hill

  1. House Republicans accuse the American Psychological Association of antisemitism, threaten accreditation  The Hill
  2. House Republicans Accuse Top Psychology Group of Antisemitism  The New York Times
  3. The APA’s Chance for Reform  City Journal
  4. Opinion | Psychology’s Missing Debate  WSJ
  5. Federal Panel Recommends Suspending American Psychological Association’s Accreditation Authority  Brandeis Center
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Two helicopters collide near Mount Everest during rescue flight, killing one, injuring others – Fox News

  1. Two helicopters collide near Mount Everest during rescue flight, killing one, injuring others  Fox News
  2. Helicopters Collide Over Everest Trail, Killing 1 and Injuring 3 Others  The New York Times
  3. Helicopters collide near Mount Everest, killing 1, Nepal Police say  ABC News - Breaking News, Latest News and Videos
  4. 1 dead, 2 injured in helicopter crash near Mount Everest base camp  CBS News
  5. Indian national killed after two helicopters collide in Nepal's Mount Everest region  Reuters
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Reform UK councillor charged with 12 counts of rape and multiple other offences

George Madgwick, party leader on Hampshire county council, faces charges related to four teenagers between 2008 and 2021

Reform UK’s leader on Hampshire county council has been charged with 12 counts of rape and one of distributing indecent images of a child.

George Madgwick, 37, who is a councillor in Portsmouth and leads the Reform group on the council, was a prominent voice linked to recent protests in the city connected to the arrival of asylum seekers on small boats.

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Spanish transport minister resigns after deadly train crash

Óscar Puente also announces his withdrawal from upcoming election following disaster that killed 69 people

Spain’s transport minister handed in his resignation on Tuesday after the train crash that killed 69 people last week, one of the worst railway disasters in Europe this century.

Óscar Puente, who had earlier pledged to work “tirelessly” to restore confidence in the world’s second-largest high-speed rail network, also said he was withdrawing from the country’s upcoming general election.

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British lawyer Dapo Akande elected to UN top court in big diplomatic win

Akande joining the international court of justice comes a decade after previous British judge failed to get re-elected

A British judge has been elected on to the UN’s international court of justice, in a big British diplomatic victory that comes almost 10 years after a previous British judge failed to get re-elected.

Dapo Akande will now serve as one of the ICJ’s 15 judges for a minimum nine-year term.

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Spanish transport minister resigns after two deadly train crashes in one year – CNN

  1. Spanish transport minister resigns after two deadly train crashes in one year  CNN
  2. Spanish transport minister resigns days after deadly train crash  BBC
  3. Students from Washington caught in high-speed train crash in Spain  KING5.com
  4. Spain's transport minister says he will resign after latest deadly train crash  Reuters
  5. Two Australians confirmed dead in Spain’s high-speed train crash  The Guardian
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King calls slave trade a ‘shameful chapter’ during Commonwealth address – BBC

  1. King calls slave trade a 'shameful chapter' during Commonwealth address  BBC
  2. UK's King Charles III decries the 'monstrous injustice' of the transatlantic slave trade  DW.com
  3. As King Charles visits the Caribbean, is the reparations movement approaching a tipping point?  The Guardian
  4. A response to Andy Burnham: We need an apology and reparations  Al Jazeera
  5. PM plans debt reset for Commonwealth nations as slavery apology talks begin  BBC
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Two Australians confirmed dead in Spain’s high-speed train crash

Legal body handling identification says three latest victims include two Australians and a Japanese citizen

Two Australians are among 69 people who died in last week’s high-speed train collision after Spanish authorities confirmed the identities of three more victims.

A legal body set up to handle the identification work, made up of police and forensics experts, announced in a statement late on Monday the three latest confirmed victims – two Australians and a Japanese citizen. They have not been named.

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Beijing launches diplomatic flurry amid threat of renewed U.S. war with Iran – The Washington Post

  1. Beijing launches diplomatic flurry amid threat of renewed U.S. war with Iran  The Washington Post
  2. Trump’s troubles with Iran could open the door to China  The Guardian
  3. China's Wang urges Middle East dialogue in meetings with Iranian, Saudi officials  Reuters
  4. China steps up Middle East diplomacy with Iran and Oman meetings  Al Jazeera
  5. Iran Won’t Compromise on National Security, Official Says  تسنیم
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Germany’s Merz warns Europe needs seat at the table as Trump renews Ukraine talks – POLITICO.eu

  1. Germany’s Merz warns Europe needs seat at the table as Trump renews Ukraine talks  POLITICO.eu
  2. Russia must show it is serious about ceasefire at Abu Dhabi talks, Germany's Merz says  Reuters
  3. Zelenskyy arrives in Berlin seeking more air defense and energy support for Ukraine  DW.com
  4. Zelensky arrives in Berlin for meeting with German Chancellor on air defense, energy sector  The Kyiv Independent
  5. Germany Ukraine  chronicleonline.com
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Poland Beefs Up Security at Border With Russia – The New York Times

  1. Poland Beefs Up Security at Border With Russia  The New York Times
  2. Tusk says Poland thwarted possible provocation on Kaliningrad border overnight  ABC News - Breaking News, Latest News and Videos
  3. Tusk Reports “Disturbing Movement” Near Kaliningrad Border as Poland Deploys Additional Forces  UNITED24 Media
  4. Poland launches operation along Russian border in response to reports of planned sabotage  Notes From Poland
  5. Poland launches major border operation as activity in Russia fuels concern over possible "serious provocation"  CBS News
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Israeli ex-generals condemn settler violence, help Palestinian farmers – Reuters

  1. Israeli ex-generals condemn settler violence, help Palestinian farmers  Reuters
  2. Israeli ex-generals condemn extremist settler violence, help Palestinian farmers  The Jerusalem Post
  3. Editorial • In the war on olive harvests, Israelis must stand with Palestinians  Haaretz
  4. Olives harvest season, in Palestinian-owned olive groves in the village of Qusra  The Lufkin Daily News
  5. Zionist troops and settlers carried out 3,133 attacks across West Bank in October  خبرگزاری بین المللی قدس
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Bomb threats on flights, cruise ship cause disruption in Europe, no devices found – Reuters

  1. Bomb threats on flights, cruise ship cause disruption in Europe, no devices found  Reuters
  2. Seven flights across Europe targeted by suspected bomb threats  BBC
  3. Bomb threats on flights, cruise ship cause disruption in Eur...  New Hampshire Union Leader
  4. Seven planes across Europe searched or diverted after ‘malicious hoax’ bomb threats  The Guardian
  5. Bomb threats cause flight disruptions across Europe  Reuters
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Ukraine’s rescuers deal with grim aftermath of aid shelter bombings as Moscow pounds energy targets – AP News

  1. Ukraine's rescuers deal with grim aftermath of aid shelter bombings as Moscow pounds energy targets  AP News
  2. At least 33 dead after Russia drops nine bombs on a Ukrainian school building  CNN
  3. Strike on Ukraine Humanitarian Hub Is Feared to Be Among War’s Deadliest  The New York Times
  4. Russian bombing kills 33 in village in southeastern Ukraine, Zelenskiy says  Reuters
  5. Death toll rises in Ukraine after Russia attacks aid centre, hospice and hospital  BBC
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Trump claims US will end military aid to Israel by end of this year

US president makes surprise election day announcement, saying country does not ‘need’ $4bn annual payment

Donald Trump has said that the US will end military aid to Israel at the end of this year in a surprise election day announcement that appeared to be targeted at voters sceptical of US support for Israel and the war in Gaza.

In a phone interview with Fox News as voting began on Tuesday morning, the US president said the US would cut nearly $4bn (£2.96bn) in military aid to Israel because “they don’t need it”.

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Israel political deadlock leaves Netanyahu’s future hanging in the balance – Al Jazeera

  1. Israel political deadlock leaves Netanyahu’s future hanging in the balance  Al Jazeera
  2. A Test for Israeli Democracy: Should Jews Ask Arabs to Join the Government?  The New York Times
  3. Israel’s opposition leaders back Eisenkot to oust Netanyahu  Al Jazeera
  4. Opposition chiefs meet, agree to launch coalition talks, but path remains unclear  The Times of Israel
  5. Opinion | I was an Israeli diplomat for 21 years. Today, I'd be speechless  Haaretz
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