Lattouf’s unlawful termination claim against ABC examines how and why she was sacked after posting on social media about Israel-Gaza war. Follow the hearing live.
Fagir presses Latimer on the social media advice given to Lattouf
Fagir is now taking Latimer to advice he received from the acting editorial director, Simon Melkman.
The direction to Steve was that Ms Lattouf doesn’t post anything in the context of the Middle East conflict on her socials.
That was the direction.
Continue reading...Peter Navarro’s comments to US media, which follow president’s 25% tariff announcement, were shared on an official Trump administration account on X
Donald Trump’s trade adviser claims Australia is “crushing” and “killing” America’s manufacturing sector with its imports of aluminium, as the Albanese government scrambles to try to secure exemptions to the president’s 25% tariffs on metal.
Anthony Albanese said he was still hopeful the local steel and aluminium industry could be spared from the tariff regime, even after escalating comments from the Trump administration criticising current trade arrangements with allies, including Australia.
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Continue reading...ABC manager who had approached Lattouf for temporary hosting role told the court she had ‘tried to stop them’ from firing journalist
There was pressure from “higher up” in the ABC to sack Antoinette Lattouf from the very first day she was on air, Lattouf’s line manager has told the federal court.
Elizabeth Green, the ABC manager who had approached Lattouf for the temporary hosting role, told the court she had “tried to stop them” from firing Lattouf but that “there was pressure coming from higher up”.
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Continue reading...Exclusive: Bookmakers consider fighting proposal to increase fees from 0.9% to 1.5% of turnover from most bets
The AFL’s bid to secure a bigger share of gambling losses – despite public health warnings and criticism of sports betting – faces a potential legal challenge from bookmakers who believe it is already taking too much.
A draft proposal sent to bookmakers shows the AFL wants to significantly increase the cut it takes from bets placed on its matches. The cut, known as a product fee, is a percentage of a bookmaker’s turnover or revenue, whichever is highest.
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Continue reading...Court finds Salvatore Vasta is immune from a civil suit and that the guards and security officers are not liable
A judge who wrongly jailed a man during routine divorce proceedings should be protected from any personal consequences for his actions, the high court has ruled, despite the episode being described as an “affront to justice” and a “parody”.
The high court’s ruling on Wednesday restores broad-based protections to all federal judges and shields them from being sued for wrong decisions, and overturns a 2023 decision that shook Australia’s legal fraternity and prompted urgent calls for reform.
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Continue reading...Downturn in jobs market will mean workers will be unlikely to be able to bid up their wages, says policymaker
The Bank of England policymaker Catherine Mann has said she backed a half-point cut in UK interest rates last week because she believes the downturn in the jobs market will make the inflation “hump” this year short-lived.
Mann surprised financial markets last week by switching from voting against the Bank’s last cut, in November, to supporting a half-point reduction.
Continue reading...Prosecutor tells jury ‘it is not the state’s case’ the alleged murder was racially motivated
A man accused of swinging the weapon that killed an Indigenous teenager says the dead boy stabbed him before a friend allegedly struck the fatal blows, with a court told the attack wasn’t racially motivated.
Cassius Turvey, a 15-year-old Noongar Yamatji boy, died in hospital 10 days after he was allegedly struck in the head with a metal pole in Perth’s eastern suburbs on 13 October, 2022.
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Continue reading...This blog is now closed
Here we go again: suggestion v direction
Steve Ahern is back in the witness box after a short recess. His cross-examination is undertaken by Lattouf’s junior counsel Philip Boncardo.
Continue reading...Jury sent out to consider verdict after barrister claims officers made ‘no meaningful attempt’ to investigate the footballer’s taxi claim
The conduct of police was “completely unacceptable” in dealing with Matildas and Chelsea star Sam Kerr when she arrived at a police station, her defence barrister told a court.
Kerr, 31, the captain of the Australian women’s football team and Chelsea’s star striker, is on trial at Kingston crown court accused of racially aggravated harassment after calling PC Stephen Lovell “fucking stupid and white” when he doubted her claim of being “held hostage” by a taxi driver. She denies the charges.
Continue reading...Exclusive: The new Queensland government reversed Labor’s decision to set limits on visitor numbers
K’gari’s world heritage advisory committee (KWHAC) has advised the Queensland government the island’s ecology risks being “destroyed” by “overtourism”, putting pressure on the LNP’s promise not to cap visitation to the island.
The recommendation was contained in the body’s world heritage strategic plan released on Friday and contradicts the policy adopted by the new government.
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Continue reading...Exclusive: Paramount+ blames an international feed for the 8Xbet ad’s broadcast, while the regulator is considering action
Streaming giant Paramount+ broadcast ads for an offshore gambling company known for its bikini-clad croupiers during an A-League match last week in a potential breach of advertising rules.
Ads for the gambling company 8Xbet were digitally imposed on the sidelines of a match between Wellington Phoenix and Brisbane Roar in New Zealand on Thursday.
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Continue reading...A tropical low known as 18U will bring strong winds, heavy rain and storm surges to the north of the country
The Bureau of Meteorology has issued a tropical cyclone alert for the north coast of Western Australia. This alert concerns a tropical low known as 18U, which has been spotted near the coast of Kimberley, situated in the north-west of the state. Strong winds, heavy rain and storm surges will affect northern Australia starting on Sunday night, with a flood warning also being issued. Under current forecasts, 18U will continue to push south-westwards along the warm water off Western Australia into the new week and is expected to strengthen to a tropical cyclone, which will be named Zelia. By the end of the week, the cyclone is expected to make landfall around the Pilbara region, bringing about 150mm-250mm (5.9in-9.8in) of rain locally, alongside wind gusts of about 100mph.
Meanwhile, Canada has once again been experiencing a severe cold spell after polar air moved in from the north, allowing temperatures to fall 5C-10C (9F-18F) below the seasonal average. Western Canada is particularly badly affected, with the cities of Calgary, Edmonton and Saskatoon potentially experiencing maximum daytime temperatures of between -10C and -15C this week, while overnight temperatures will often reach -20C to -30C. Temperatures as low as -35C are possible, which is around 10-15C below the seasonal average. For more context, the town of Saskatoon lies at the same latitude as Cambridge in the UK, which has a record low temperature of -13C.
Continue reading...It’s a change of pace for the Nationals leader who vowed to slash as many as 36,000 public servant jobs back in August 2024
The opposition has walked back its vow to slash tens of thousands of federal government jobs, suggesting a Dutton government, if elected, will make the bureaucracy more efficient through “natural attrition”.
The Nationals leader, David Littleproud, said on Monday “hardly any” public service jobs will be on the chopping block if the Coalition were to win at the polls, in a significant backdown on comments in 2024 promising to dump as many as 36,000 public servants.
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Continue reading...Jordan Mailata, the giant rugby league convert from Bankstown, has made history by becoming the first Australian to play in a Super Bowl victory. The offensive tackle, taking part in his second NFL championship decider, played no small part in the Philadelphia Eagles’ stunning win over the Kansas City Chiefs in this year’s showpiece game held in New Orleans.
In front of a star-studded Superdome crowd and a global audience of tens of millions, Mailata’s journey from humble beginnings in Sydney’s south-west to the pinnacle of world sport was completed, as he helped the Eagles to a one-sided 40-22 win over the Chiefs, whose hopes of securing a three-peat were dashed in spectacular fashion.
Continue reading...Bureau of Meteorology warns severe conditions will continue as parts of NSW coated in hail
Thunderstorms across New South Wales and eastern Victoria on Monday brought flash flooding, destructive winds and hail, as the Bureau of Meteorology warns severe conditions would continue.
A major storm rolled across the Sydney CBD around midday on Monday, bringing dark skies and heavy rainfall. By mid-afternoon, he city had recorded 52.8mm of rain at Observatory Hill since 9am, according to the BoM. Horsley Park, 50km west of the city, had recorded 87.8mm.
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Continue reading...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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Continue reading...Singer was due to perform Sunday night but authorities worried large blockage could cause sewage to back up in venue toilets
An enormous fatberg in central Perth has forced a Bryan Adams concert to be postponed after authorities raised concerns that sewage may back up at the venue’s toilets.
Adams was due to perform at the Western Australian capital’s RAC Arena on Sunday night, but the city’s water corporation said a “large blockage of fat, grease and rags” was causing wastewater overflows at nearby properties, prompting authorities to intervene.
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Continue reading...Two-thirds of retirees in private rentals live in poverty, Grattan report finds, with more than half reporting net worth of less than $25,000
Two in three retirees who rent privately owned homes live in poverty and the problem will get worse, a new report has found.
Most older working Australians who rent do not have sufficient savings to keep paying rent in their retirement, according to the report from the Grattan Institute.
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Continue reading...One federal Labor MP said his party’s brand has ‘taken a dive’ in Victoria – but others at the state level believe time is on their side
Counting in the Werribee byelection is still under way. But even if Labor manages to scrape through, the Victorian government is just a few hundred disgruntled votes away from losing its grip on this heartland seat.
That is a problem Jacinta Allan knows cannot be ignored.
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Continue reading...One woman killed and another taken to hospital with injuries to hands and face, paramedics say
A woman has died after being hit by debris from a tree which exploded when it was struck by lightning in a town south-west of Sydney on Saturday afternoon.
Paramedics and a medical team rushed to the address in Cawdor about 5.30pm Saturday. New South Wales Ambulance said one woman had been fatally injured by shrapnel from the tree.
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