Judge in Greg Lynn murder trial says jury can’t find him guilty of manslaughter as an alternate verdict

Justice Michael Croucher summarises case to jurors after ex-Jetstar pilot pleaded not guilty to murdering campers Russell Hill and Carol Clay

The jury in the trial of a former Jetstar pilot accused of murdering two elderly campers in the Victorian high country will not be able to consider an alternative charge of manslaughter, the state’s supreme court has heard.

Gregory Stuart Lynn, 57, has pleaded not guilty to murdering Russell Hill, 74, and Carol Clay, 73, at a remote camping site in the Wonnangatta Valley in March 2020.

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Bacchus Marsh Grammar: Victorian premier blasts ‘disgraceful’ conduct after AI fake nude photo allegations

Jacinta Allan says no place for ‘misogynistic conduct’ as police investigate allegations fake nude images of students circulated online

Victoria’s premier has said there is no place for “misogynistic conduct” in the state following allegations deepfakes depicting about 50 female students from a private school in regional Victoria were circulated online.

Police are investigating the “incredibly graphic” nude images which appeared to have been created using artificial intelligence and photos of the girls’ faces taken from social media sites, and then circulated online.

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‘He was selfish’: Greg Lynn covered up deaths because he believed he would be blamed, murder trial told

Victorian supreme court hears closing arguments in trial of ex-Jetstar pilot who has pleaded not guilty to murdering Russell Hill and Carol Clay

A former Jetstar pilot accused of murdering two elderly campers in the Victorian high country covered up the deaths because he believed he would be blamed after he incorrectly stored his guns, his defence barrister has told the state’s supreme court.

Gregory Stuart Lynn, 57, has pleaded not guilty to murdering Russell Hill, 74, and Carol Clay, 73, at a remote camping site in the Wonnangatta Valley in March 2020.

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Australia news live: Dutton suggests Coalition won’t provide 2030 emissions target before election5; Qld state budget announcement today

Opposition leader says Coalition will ‘make our announcements in relation to our targets in due course’. Follow today’s news headlines live

Murray Watt says the opposition has “started the new climate wars” after Barnaby Joyce and Keith Pitt, two senior Nationals, called for Australia to pull out of the Paris agreement. You can read more on this from Karen Middleton below:

Speaking to ABC News Breakfast, Watt said:

We’re back to the same old climate wars in the Coalition. I saw overnight that [Joyce and Pitt] openly called for the Coalition to pull out of the Paris agreement. They’ve spent the last couple of days trying to paper over the cracks in the Coalition, saying that they can withdraw the target without withdrawing from the agreement. Now it’s out there in the open for everyone to see. And you can set your clock by Barnaby Joyce causing new climate wars within the Coalition. It’s seem like we’re back to the bad old days.

We’re on track to get to 42%, which is only 1% short of the 43% target.

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‘He knew he had murdered them’: Greg Lynn covered up campers’ deaths to conceal his crimes, court hears

Closing arguments begin in trial of former pilot, who has pleaded not guilty to murdering Russell Hill and Carol Clay

The only reasonable explanation for a former Jetstar pilot to cover up the deaths of two elderly campers in the Victorian high country was because “he knew he had murdered them”, the state’s supreme court has heard.

Gregory Stuart Lynn, 57, has pleaded not guilty to murdering Russell Hill, 74, and Carol Clay, 73, at a remote camping site in the Wonnangatta Valley in March 2020.

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Queensland premier says ‘no update’ on anti-discrimination reforms – as it happened

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Brisbane Christian school issues apology two years after gender contracts

A Pentecostal Christian school has expressed regret for introducing a controversial student gender and sexuality contract two years ago.

We regret any distress or concern which was caused to students, parents and guardians of students or prospective students of the college.

We are working closely with all of our suppliers to ensure eggs remain available for our customers and we are providing support to the industry in responding to the Avian Flu cases in Victoria.

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Statue of King George V beheaded in Melbourne on King’s birthday holiday

Police called to Kings Domain Monday morning to find head removed and paint thrown at monument

A statue of King George V has been beheaded and covered in red paint in the latest attack on colonial monuments in Victoria.

Police were called to the statue in Melbourne’s Kings Domain on Linlithgow Avenue just after 9am on Monday.

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Child protection department preparing for ‘likely transfer’ of powers to Indigenous Victorians under treaty

Department expects ‘extensive’ changes to result from state government’s negotiations with First Peoples’ Assembly later this year, documents say

The Victorian department responsible for child protection and housing is preparing for a “likely transfer” of powers to First Nations groups as a result of treaties that will soon be negotiated with the government.

The Department of Fairness, Families and Housing (DFFH) is looking for an organisation to provide training to staff to “increase readiness for treaty”, according to tender documents seen by Guardian Australia.

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Landowners whose views are spoiled by power lines could receive $40,000 under Victorian plan

Scheme would collect funds from power companies to pay communities affected by new transmission lines

Victorian landowners whose views are spoiled by new power transmission lines on neighbouring properties could receive one-off compensation payments of up to $40,000 under a plan being considered by the state government.

The new transmission planning agency, VicGrid, has opened consultation on a scheme that would collect funds from power companies to pay communities affected by new transmission lines.

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‘We may not have snow’: Australian ski season opens with a whimper

Mt Buller had the country’s only ski-on chairlift operating on season’s opening day on Saturday – but snow is forecast for the week ahead

It was a grassy start to Australia’s ski season, with one resort trying to remain upbeat “although we may not have snow on the ground” and a few pockets of human-made alternatives to play on elsewhere.

Mt Buller, in Victoria, was blessed with the only ski-on chairlift in the entire country on the opening day of the winter season on Saturday.

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Slushy start to ski season as NSW resort towns say booking numbers down

Resort operators remain hopeful of larger falls later in the season and have introduced other activities not dependent on snowfall

The ski season is off to a mushy start as eager skiers hoping for the first glimpse of snow this weekend are instead met with grass and slush.

In New South Wales, Perisher and Thredbo, the most popular ski resorts in Australia, will only have a beginner’s conveyor belt running, and Selwyn snow resorts will not have any lifts operating.

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Shannon Fentiman referred to Queensland ethics committee over ‘cross your legs’ stoush – as it happened

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Max-Chandler Mather weighs in on Bandt’s potential legal action against attorney-general

Greens MP Max Chandler-Mather spoke to ABC News Breakfast earlier about the ongoing stoush between his party and Labor, with Adam Bandt threatening legal action against the attorney general, Mark Dreyfus, over comments on pro-Palestine protests.

Asking me to comment on the specifics of a case like that – outrageous comments by the attorney general, completely baseless and without fact … this is an attempt to distract from the fact that the Labor government is complicit in a genocide being carried out by Israel in Gaza.

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Politics live: question time claims and counter-claims over Australia’s military ties with Israel

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Going fully electric would save households more than $600 a year for next four decades, report says

Households would save an average of $608 a year for the next 40 years if new residential buildings in New South Wales were required to be fully electric, according to a report commissioned by climate organisation 350 Australia.

It cuts energy bills for local residents and small businesses during a cost of living crisis and reduces climate pollution, at almost no cost to councils. It will be low-income people and renters who will benefit most from council-led electrification.

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‘Very sorry for your suffering’: Greg Lynn apologises at murder trial for actions after campers’ deaths

Former Jetstar pilot describes struggle that led to deaths of Russell Hill and Carol Clay, after pleading not guilty to murder


A former Jetstar pilot accused of killing two elderly campers in the Victorian high country has apologised to their families for the “suffering that I caused” and testified that he did not murder them.

Gregory Stuart Lynn, 57, has taken the stand in the Victorian supreme court on Thursday, after pleading not guilty to murdering Russell Hill, 74, and Carol Clay, 73, at a remote camping site in the Wonnangatta Valley in March 2020.

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Australia politics live: RBA governor still confident economy will slow without stalling; no-confidence vote for embattled Townsville mayor

Council passes unanimous motion of no-confidence in its mayor Troy Thompson. Follow the day’s news live

Australia’s existing submarines won’t get Tomohawk missile upgrades

Australia’s existing Collins-class submarines will not be fitted with Tomahawk cruise missiles as part of work to extend their life before the Aukus submarines come into service.

For instance, we will consider whether tomahawk missiles can be fitted to the Collins-class submarines.”

The government has also received advice from Defence, in consultation with the United States, that adding Tomahawk cruise missile capability to the Collins class submarines is not viable and does not represent value for money.

The Virginia class nuclear-powered submarines Australia will receive in the early 2030s will come with the Tomahawk as standard equipment. Tomahawk cruise missiles will also be used by Navy’s Hobart class destroyers and the government has agreed in-principle to fit the Hunter class frigates with Tomahawks, subject to a feasibility study. [end quote]

NDS agrees with the government that managing the sustainability of the NDIS is critical — the community expects no less. We need fundamental and systemic reform, and that must be accompanied by proper resourcing for sector transformation.

The system is broken. Training, supervision and retaining highly skilled practitioners to provide quality care is essential, but not adequately covered in the current funding model.”

A continuation of previous workforce trends showing that workforce issues in the disability sector have become entrenched.

The disability sector continues to rely heavily on casual disability support workers, who have a very high turnover.

The biggest variation this year was a in proportion of permanent employees who work full time – with the number of full-time employees growing by 10%, the highest in close to a decade.

Conversely, part-time employment dropped to 70% this year. The increase may be related to the current cost-of-living crisis.

Turnover continued the upward trend growing to 24% this year, while permanent staff turnover jumped to 16%, the highest it has been since this survey began. These figures represent a churn of almost 16,500 individual employees leaving their jobs and over 19,000 new appointments over a one-year period.

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As global heating cuts Australia’s snowfall ski season may go downhill, report warns

‘The webcams do not lie,’ says Annalisa Koeman, whose family has been operating a mountain lodge for decades

Bookings have been slow ahead of the ski season at the mountain lodge in Thredbo that Annalisa Koeman’s parents built in the 1960s and have run ever since.

Last ski season started with some good snow falls “but it went downhill from there. It was a disastrous end. The ski lifts closed two weeks early,” says Koeman, managing supervisor at Kasees Apartments and Mountain Lodge.

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Taking the Mickey: is a Melbourne Disneyland anything more than a fantasy?

Many locations – from Frankston to Fishermans Bend – have been proposed as sites for the famous theme park. But will the dream ever become reality?

In what has become a recurring theme in many Disney films, Jiminy Cricket sang “When you wish upon a star, your dreams come true” in the 1940 film of Pinocchio.

Pinocchio wishes to be a real boy, Peter Pan wishes to never grow up, Ariel, the Little Mermaid, wishes to become human. And – in what can also be described as a fairytale desire – Melbourne, Australia, wishes to host the next Disney theme park.

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Australia politics live: $600,000 speechwriter not responsible for Bill Shorten’s ‘zingers’, Matt Keogh says

Workplace relations minister Tony Burke has conceded role wouldn’t ordinarily be paid that much. Follow today’s news headlines live

For a bit of a change of pace, you may enjoy this essay from Malcolm Turnbull in Foreign Affairs, where he outlines how he believes world leaders can deal with a second Trump presidency.

Turnbull bases a lot of his arguments on his own dealings with Donald Trump while prime minister. He runs through the infamous refugee deal phone call (the transcript of which was leaked) and the trade back-and-forths over tariffs.

The caricature of Trump as a one-dimensional, irrational monster is so entrenched that many forget that he can be, when it suits him, intelligently transactional. Like most bullies, he will bend others to his will when he can, and when he cannot, he will try to make a deal. But to get to the deal-making stage, Trump’s counterparts have to stand up to the bullying first.

I would certainly like to see the performance lifted. I would like to see better outcomes, particularly for the more vulnerable cohorts.

We also have work going on, in response to a parliamentary inquiry into the employment services system, going on in parallel to overseeing this new system.

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‘I could see the steel flashing in his hand’: Greg Lynn made ‘quick decisions’ after campers’ deaths, murder trial hears

Former pilot, who has pleaded not guilty to murdering Russell Hill and Carol Clay, told police the deaths were the result of an accident

A former airline pilot accused of murdering two elderly campers told police he went through a “decision making pathway” drawn from his experience in the cockpit when considering how to cover up their deaths.

Gregory Stuart Lynn, 57, has pleaded not guilty to murdering Russell Hill and Carol Clay at a remote camping site in Victoria’s alpine region in March 2020.

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Allowing Josh Frydenberg to recontest Kooyong a ‘crazy’ idea, Liberal senator says

Jane Hume is against opening preselection for former treasurer while Karen Andrews argues he would be ‘absolute asset’

Senior Liberals are split on reopening preselection to allow Josh Frydenberg to recontest Kooyong for the party, which the shadow finance minister, Jane Hume, has denounced as a “crazy” idea.

On Monday Karen Andrews, the former home affairs minister, came out in favour of Frydenberg, arguing he would be an “absolute asset” and the Liberal party should do “all that we can” to attract him back into parliament.

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