Jacinta Allan dismisses rail loop concerns as Labor awaits outcome of massive swing in Werribee

Victorian premier denies any MPs have told her they want SRL money to be spent elsewhere after byelection battering

The Victorian premier, Jacinta Allan, has sought to dismiss concerns that the Suburban Rail Loop project should be halted after Labor took a battering in the Werribee byelection.

Counting resumed in the outer western Melbourne seat on Monday and both major parties expect – if postal votes follow the pattern of those already counted – Labor’s candidate, John Lister, will retain his narrow lead over the Liberal party’s Steve Murphy.

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Colombian president calls on cabinet members to resign – Financial Times

  1. Colombian president calls on cabinet members to resign  Financial Times
  2. Petro prompts Colombian government chaos with demand for resignations  Al Jazeera English
  3. Colombia's Petro calls for Cabinet ministers to resign  DW (English)
  4. Colombian President Petro reshuffles cabinet after environment minister resigns  Reuters.com
  5. Colombia's interior minister resigns as cracks deepen in President Petro's coalition  The Washington Post
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Kosovo PM Albin Kurti wins election amid tensions with Brussels and Washington – POLITICO Europe

  1. Kosovo PM Albin Kurti wins election amid tensions with Brussels and Washington  POLITICO Europe
  2. The Guardian view on Kosovo’s election result: a gateway to rapprochement with the EU  The Guardian
  3. Kosovo risks post-election deadlock as parties rule out coalition  Reuters.com
  4. PM Albin Kurti declares victory in Kosovo election  Al Jazeera English
  5. Kosovo election: Albin Kurti's party ahead but short of majority  BBC.com
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Why more young men in Germany are turning to the far-right – BBC.com

  1. Why more young men in Germany are turning to the far-right  BBC.com
  2. Germany’s far right woos the workers in election battle  POLITICO Europe
  3. What Is The AfD? Inside Germany's Far-Right Party  Forbes
  4. Germany Considers the Alternative  Compact Mag
  5. These maps of support for Germany’s far-right AfD lay bare the depth of the urban-rural divide  The Conversation
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Aga Khan, the leader of Ismaili Muslims, laid to rest in Egypt during private burial ceremony – The Associated Press

  1. Aga Khan, the leader of Ismaili Muslims, laid to rest in Egypt during private burial ceremony  The Associated Press
  2. The King is pleased to grant the new Aga Khan the title “His Highness”  The Royal Family
  3. The Aga Khan obituary  The Guardian
  4. Shergar theft remembered following Aga Khan's death  BBC.com
  5. The Next Aga Khan Is Named  The New York Times
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Israel completes withdrawal from key road dividing Gaza as part of ceasefire deal – CNN

  1. Israel completes withdrawal from key road dividing Gaza as part of ceasefire deal  CNN
  2. Israeli Troops Withdraw From Netzarim Corridor in Gaza  The New York Times
  3. Israeli military withdraws from Netzarim corridor in Gaza  The Guardian
  4. IDF's withdrawal from key Gaza corridor signals shift in war's trajectory - analysis  The Jerusalem Post
  5. Israeli forces begin to withdraw from a key Gaza corridor, part of the ceasefire deal with Hamas  NBC News
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Famine mostly averted but is a danger again if Gaza ceasefire collapses, UN humanitarian chief says – The Associated Press

  1. Famine mostly averted but is a danger again if Gaza ceasefire collapses, UN humanitarian chief says  The Associated Press
  2. Top UN humanitarian official describes the current situation in Gaza  PBS NewsHour
  3. Gaza: 10,000 aid trucks reached enclave since ceasefire began  UN News
  4. Gaza authorities plead for tents, accuse Israel of obstructing aid  Al Jazeera English
  5. Israel obstructing aid deliveries into Gaza, rights group warn  The Electronic Intifada
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Yrjö Kukkapuro, renowned Finnish chair designer, dies aged 91

‘Almost every Finn has sat on a chair he designed,’ his studio says, with his postmodern creations gracing galleries around the world

Yrjö Kukkapuro, a renowned Finnish designer whose postmodern style of chairs graced waiting rooms, offices and living rooms across Finland as well as collections in the Museum of Modern Art in New York and the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, has died aged 91.

Kukkapuro died on Saturday at his home outside Helsinki, his daughter, Isa Kukkapuro-Enbom, confirmed in an email on Sunday, as well as in a statement from Studio Kukkapuro, where she is the curator. The cause of death was not disclosed.

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Trump repeats pledge to take control of Gaza even as pressure mounts to renew ceasefire – The Associated Press

  1. Trump repeats pledge to take control of Gaza even as pressure mounts to renew ceasefire  The Associated Press
  2. US committed to ‘buying and owning’ Gaza, Trump says  Al Jazeera English
  3. Opinion | The Political Future of Palestinians, According to Palestinians  The New York Times
  4. The Demon of Ethnic Cleansing Has Been Let Out of the Bottle in Israel  Haaretz
  5. Turkey's Erdogan dismisses Trump's Gaza plan, saying it was unworthy of discussing  Yahoo
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Trump says US might lose patience with ceasefire deal – Reuters

  1. Trump says US might lose patience with ceasefire deal  Reuters
  2. Hostage return spotlights tragedy in fragile Israel-Hamas ceasefire  NBC News
  3. Hamas Makes Gaunt Israeli Hostages Thank Captors Before Release  The New York Times
  4. Teddy bear helps hostage’s British family come to terms with grief amid joy over his release  ABC News
  5. Three more hostages handed to Israeli military in fifth round of Israel-Hamas ceasefire releases  CNN International
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Tom Robbins, comic novelist of US counterculture, dies aged 92

Author of books including Even Cowgirls Get the Blues and Another Roadside Attraction, was known for his outlandish tales of sex, drugs and mysticism

Tom Robbins, whose novels read like a hit of literary LSD, filled with fantastical characters, manic metaphors and counterculture whimsy, has died aged 92.

The author of works including Even Cowgirls Get the Blues, Another Roadside Attraction and Still Life With Woodpecker, died on Sunday, his wife, Alexa Robbins, wrote on Facebook. The post did not cite a cause.

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Trump to announce 25% aluminum and steel tariffs in latest trade escalation

US president accused of ‘shifting goalposts’ by premier of Ontario for adding further tariffs on top of existing metal duties

Donald Trump has said he will announce new 25% tariffs on all steel and aluminum imports into the US on Monday that would affect “everybody’, including its largest trading partners Canada and Mexico, in another major escalation of his trade policy overhaul.

The US president, speaking to reporters on Air Force One on Sunday, also said he would announce reciprocal tariffs – raising US tariff rates to match those of trading partners – on Tuesday or Wednesday, which would take effect “almost immediately”. “And very simply, it’s, if they charge us, we charge them,” Trump said of the reciprocal tariff plan.

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Kosovo election: Albin Kurti’s party ahead but short of majority – BBC.com

  1. Kosovo election: Albin Kurti's party ahead but short of majority  BBC.com
  2. Kosovo's ruling party wins election but loses majority  Reuters.com
  3. Kosovo PM Albin Kurti wins election amid tensions with Brussels and Washington  POLITICO Europe
  4. PM Albin Kurti declares victory in Kosovo election  Al Jazeera English
  5. Kosovo goes to the polls as the shadow of Trump looms large  The Guardian
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UK tax administration costs spiralling due to complex system, says watchdog

Businesses pay hundreds of millions of pounds more and losing trust in HMRC, reports National Audit Office

An increasingly complex tax system is burdening the government and businesses with hundreds of millions of pounds more in administration costs, Whitehall’s spending watchdog has warned.

The report by the National Audit Office (NAO) also said “poor levels of service” meant some taxpayers and their representatives were “finding it more difficult to deal with their tax matters and are losing trust in HM Revenue & Customs [HMRC]”.

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Keir Starmer takes public HIV test in push to destigmatise testing for virus

Prime minister takes home test at No 10 with soul singer Beverley Knight to promote HIV Testing Week

Keir Starmer has taken a public HIV test in an effort to destigmatise testing for the virus and to highlight HIV Testing Week.

The prime minister took a home test at 10 Downing Street alongside the soul singer Beverley Knight. “It’s really important to do it and I’m really pleased to be able to do it. It’s very easy, very quick,” he said.

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