Third person arrested in fatal Brisbane shooting while two suspects remain on the run

A 38-year-old man died after being shot in the chest at close range at a home in Oxley in the early hours of Tuesday morning

A third person has been arrested after a man was shot dead in the front yard of a home in south-west Brisbane as two male suspects remain on the run.

Officers from the Acacia Ridge criminal investigation branch and homicide unit arrested the 30-year-old east Brisbane man on Friday evening after he was intercepted in a vehicle at Riverview.

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Early interventions ‘missed’ as NSW struggles with shortage of school counsellors

Figures show there is one counsellor for every 650 students, despite inquiry recommending ratio of 1:500

A dire shortage of school counsellors means New South Wales students are going without disability assessments and early interventions as staff scramble to triage the most serious cases, including suicide risks, sexual assaults and teen pregnancies.

Department of Education figures obtained by Guardian Australia reveal there was one counsellor for every 650 students across the state in August, not accounting for staff on uncovered leave – meaning the reality was far worse.

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Australia Post temporarily halts sea mail amid rise in prohibited items

While sea mail takes a long time to deliver, people opt for this service because it is cheaper

Australia Post has put a temporary halt on all mail entering the country by sea as a growing number of prohibited items make their way to our shores.

According to its website, Australia Post temporarily suspended all incoming sea mail from 1 October. An Australia Post spokesperson confirmed this was due to an “increasing number of prohibited mail items coming into Australia by sea”.

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Spring has stung: thousands of bluebottles wash up on Sydney beaches

Heavy rainfall and rough surf has contributed to large numbers of stingers appearing along the NSW coast in the third, and biggest, bluebottle event of the year

Armadas of bluebottles have washed up on the shores of Australian beaches this week as heavy rainfall causes agitated surf conditions.

The jellyfish have been spotted on the shores of Sydney beaches, including Bronte and Manly, with sightings continuing up and down the east coast. Maroubra beach was closed on Friday due to dangerous conditions and “large numbers of bluebottles”.

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Sydney engineer, 74, allegedly confessed to killing wife when arrested, court told

Steven Hastings Barker is accused of murdering his wife, Christine Barker, at their Bronte home on Thursday evening

A civil engineer from Sydney’s eastern suburbs allegedly gave police a detailed account of killing his wife when they arrested him, a court has been told.

Steven Hastings Barker, 74, is accused of murdering his wife, Christine Barker, at their Bronte home on Thursday evening.

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Ukraine president urges world not to give in to Russia’s ‘nuclear blackmail’ during Australian address

Volodymyr Zelenskiy calls on leaders to back next week’s UN vote condemning Russia’s purported annexation of four regions

Ukraine’s president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, has urged world leaders not to give in to Russia’s “nuclear blackmail” and has appealed to Australia for help in a critical UN vote next week.

Addressing the Sydney-based Lowy Institute by video link on Thursday evening, Zelenskiy revealed Australia was offering heavy arms to Ukraine in its next package of military support to defend against Russia’s invasion.

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Woodchipper murder trial: ‘Thou shalt not kill’ message left in letterbox of accused, Brisbane court hears

In recordings played in court, Sharon Graham says to co-accused ‘I don’t want to be in this house any more’

The message “thou shalt not kill” was left in a shaken Sharon Graham’s letterbox during a woodchipper death investigation, a Brisbane court has heard.

Graham, 61, and partner Gregory Lee Roser, 63, have pleaded not guilty to murder after Bruce Saunders died while working on a property north of Brisbane in November 2017.

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Whistleblower Richard Boyle feared ATO tactics would cause ‘suicide in community’, court hears

Boyle hopes he will be protected by public interest disclosure laws after he aired claims of aggressive tax office debt collection methods in 2018

The whistleblower Richard Boyle has told a court of his fears that the actions of the Australian Taxation Office would lead to “suicide and death in the community”.

Taking the stand in a hearing seen as a critical first test of whistleblower laws, Boyle alleged ATO employees were put under pressure to bypass normal negotiations with taxpayers who owed money and move quickly towards more aggressive tactics.

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‘A period of rebirth’: Lyndon Terracini steps down early from Opera Australia

The artistic director has resigned a year before his contract ends – within a week of former ACCC chair Rod Sims taking the beleaguered company’s helm

Within a week of former Australian Consumer and Competition Commission chair Rod Sims taking the helm at Opera Australia, the company’s creative leader has announced his resignation, more than 12 months before his contract expires.

Opera Australia announced on Thursday its artistic director of 13 years, Lyndon Terracini, would stand down from his position early, formally leaving the company next Friday 14 October.

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Julia Gillard: one-woman play starring Play School’s Justine Clarke to debut in 2023

Sydney Theatre Company’s announcement of the work, written by Joanna Murray-Smith, aligns with 10-year anniversary of former PM’s misogyny speech

A new one-woman play focusing on the life of Australia’s first and only female prime minister, Julia Gillard, will debut on stage next year.

The play Julia, written by Joanna Murray-Smith, one of the country’s most prominent playwrights, has been billed as a highlight of the Sydney Theatre Company’s (STC) 2023 season, and will feature actor and Play School presenter Justine Clarke in the eponymous role.

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Doctor claims 55-year-old man may have been alive when sent to Perth morgue

Coroner’s court also investigating allegations doctor was asked to backdate man’s death certificate

A palliative care patient may have been alive when he was transferred to a Perth morgue, according to claims being investigated by the coroner’s court.

The court has confirmed it is investigating the allegations, first reported by Business News, which include claims a doctor was asked to backdate the man’s death certificate in an apparent attempt to cover up the incident.

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Albanese meets Solomons PM – as it happened

Anthony Albanese meets with Solomons Islands PM Manasseh Sogavare, who reiterates ‘no foreign military bases’ pledge. This blog is now closed

Skill shortages ‘an indictment on the failure to plan’: skills minister

The National Skills Commission’s annual update of the skills priority list is out today, showing the number of occupations facing skills shortages have almost doubled in past year.

Well, I wouldn’t say exactly that. I would say, though, it is very high that we have so many occupations where there are significant shortages.

I mean, the fact that it almost doubled in a year speaks to a labour market that is crying out for skills. But also, it is an indictment on the failure to plan, invest in education and training to have the skills our labour market, our economy and our employers need and our workforce need so that they can find good jobs.

We do need to make sure, 1) the investment in education and training is in the right places so that we supply the skills needed for our economy now and into the future. And, of course, 2) we need to have a much faster way of delivering on the skilled migration pathways for industries that are crying out for skills. And whether they be nurses or tech worker, baggage handlers. Wherever you look across the economy, there are shortages and it is a very significant priority of this government.

Conditions haven’t changed that significantly.

The government went to the last election saying again and again they would honour the legislated tax cuts.

In the time since we’ve seen in Australia interest rate rises yes ... but we’ve seen an Australian economy that continues to perform very strongly.

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Queensland police inquiry hears allegations of recruits being taught racism, officers being raped

State’s police commissioner reveals she too suffered sexual assault and harassment early in her career

Senior Queensland police officers taught racist attitudes to academy recruits, including comments about Indigenous people that “you can smell them before you see them”, recordings obtained by an inquiry have revealed.

The “distressing” evidence given to the inquiry into Queensland police service (QPS) responses to domestic violence included revelations the police service failed to discipline officers in cases where they were found to have racially abused colleagues, or made racist remarks.

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In Australia, the crisis support service Lifeline is on 13 11 14 and the national family violence counselling service is on 1800 737 732. In the UK, Samaritans can be contacted on freephone 116 123 and the domestic abuse helpline is 0808 2000 247. In the US, the suicide prevention lifeline is 1-800-273-8255 and the domestic violence hotline is 1-800-799-SAFE (7233). Other international helplines can be found via www.befrienders.org

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Melbourne magistrate finds 13-year-old should stand trial for murder of Declan Cutler

Ruling based on psychologist’s opinion boy has mental capacity to form criminal intent

A 13-year-old Victorian boy is one of eight teenagers to have been committed to stand trial for the murder of Declan Cutler, after a magistrate decided that, despite his youth, he was capable of forming a criminal intent.

The magistrate ruled that she did not have to read an 1,100-page report on whether the 13-year-old, who cannot be named, could be found not to have that mental capacity, known as the doli incapax principle.

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Sydney marks its wettest year on record, smashing past 1950 high-water mark with three months to spare

Severe weather warning in place for state’s inland regions as ongoing deluge sees flooding on rivers in west of NSW

Sydney is officially experiencing its wettest year on record as widespread drenching rain puts many parts of western New South Wales on flood alert.

The previous annual record of 2,194mm of rain, which had stood since 1950, was broken at 12.30pm on Thursday after 27.2mm of rain fell at Sydney’s Observatory Hill Bureau of Meteorology station since 9am.

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‘Second-class citizen’: man lifted on to plane as Darwin airport had no ramp for wheelchair users

Being carried across the gap between the air bridge and the plane risked his, his wife’s and airline staffs’ safety, says passenger

An Australian man has said he was made to feel like a “second-class citizen” by being lifted on to a Jetstar flight in Darwin, as disability advocates call for a complete overhaul of the way airlines treat passengers.

Brad Wszola, 50, suffered a spinal cord injury in 2016. He uses a wheelchair, but was not able to navigate the gap between the air bridge and the plane when boarding a Jetstar flight from Darwin to Cairns on 12 August.

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Star ‘unsuitable’ to hold a casino licence in Queensland, state government says

Independent review found a ‘serious dereliction’ of anti-money laundering responsibilities

Star Entertainment has been declared unfit to hold a casino licence in Queensland and will be issued with a notice to explain why it should continue to operate in the state.

Former judge Robert Gotterson’s report into the ASX-listed casino operator was released on Thursday after a public investigation into Star’s conduct in Queensland.

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Brittany Higgins kept dress unwashed for six months after alleged rape, court hears

Higgins tells court she didn’t want allegation against Bruce Lehrmann to be a ‘media frenzy’ and wasn’t sure if making complaint would cost her her job

Brittany Higgins says she left the dress she wore on the night of her alleged rape untouched and unwashed for six months as she attempted to work out whether making a complaint would cause her to lose her job, a court has heard.

Higgins continued her evidence in the ACT supreme court on Thursday, also telling the jury she had felt “pressured from my workplace” to not pursue a complaint against fellow political staffer Bruce Lehrmann.

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Bernard Collaery likens his prosecution by Australia to a ‘Moscow show trial’

Witness K’s lawyer gives first speech since case against him was dropped, argues for reform of the National Security Information Act

Bernard Collaery has likened his prosecution to a “Moscow show trial” and said the Coalition pursued him and former spy Witness K in an attempt to hide the “dirty linen” of its dealings in Timor-Leste.

In his first speech since the case against him was dropped, Collaery on Wednesday night gave an excoriating assessment of the protracted, secretive prosecution that he said caused immense turmoil for him, his family and friends, and his legal team.

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Australia news live: flood warnings issued as east coast braces for heavy rain and storms

Kieren Perkins has backed diversity in sport at the national press club and Manasseh Sogavare, the PM of Solomon Islands, is due to arrive in Australia this afternoon on a flight from Singapore. Follow the day’s news live

Fire extinguished in Sydney shopping centre

Maria Kovacic elected NSW Liberals president

The election next March will be hard fought.

Our party will be talking directly to our community, including western Sydney and the regions, about how the Perrottet Government can improve their lives and help their families.

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