A US hunting influencer who shared video of herself snatching a baby wombat away from its mother is being investigated for a potential breach of her Australian visa. The footage, with scenes described as “callous” by the RSPCA and “pretty dreadful” by the foreign affairs minister, Penny Wong, showed the Montana-based influencer Sam Jones grabbing … Read more
The Semicon India Programme, launched in 2021, aims to develop the semiconductor and display manufacturing ecosystem. | Photo Credit: FLORENCE LO At the World Economic Forum in January, Minister of Electronics and Information Technology Ashwini Vaishnaw announced that India’s first domestically manufactured semiconductor chip will be rolled out this year. Through domestic production, India aims … Read more
Two women who police allege practised as unregistered midwives have been charged with manslaughter after a baby died after a home birth on the New South Wales mid north coast. The women, aged 41 and 51, appeared in Coffs Harbour local court on Wednesday in relation to the newborn boy’s death in 2022. Emergency services … Read more
Hundreds of thousands of households face higher power bills as the energy regulator has proposed lifting benchmark prices by up to 9% in some regions. The government has conceded power bills are “too high” and urged users to shop around for the best deal in response to the proposed changes. Caps on what regulators can … Read more
A powerful atmospheric river storm was set to wallop California on Wednesday evening, drenching large swaths of the state with rain and bringing several feet of snow to the mountains – the latest in a wave of intense storms that new research shows are getting worse. Much of northern California was under a winter storm … Read more
An online campaign committing parents to bar their children from owning a smartphone until they are at least 14 has garnered 100,000 signatures in the six months since its launch. The Smartphone Free Childhood campaign launched a “parent pact” in September in which signatories committed to withhold handsets from their children until at least the … Read more
The decision not to classify Axel Rudakubana as a terrorist following the Southport murders was right because it would be unhelpful to stretch the definition of terrorism to cover all extreme violence, the UK’s terror watchdog has concluded. Jonathan Hall KC wrote that the “legal definition of terrorism is already wide and should not be … Read more
Vanuatu’s new prime minister has said his government intends to “revisit” a security agreement with Australia, arguing it does not reflect his country’s priorities including climate change and travel mobility for its citizens. Jotham Napat, who was elected in February, said the pact with Canberra had to be taken “back to the drawing board” as … Read more
Senator Chuck Schumer, the minority leader, said on Wednesday that Democrats would not provide the necessary votes to pass a stopgap funding bill, dramatically raising the risk of a partial government shutdown at the end of the week. Announcing the decision in a speech on the Senate floor, Schumer urged Republicans to consider a shorter … Read more
The business secretary, Jonathan Reynolds, has “formally corrected the record” in parliament for referring to himself as a former solicitor during a 2014 speech. During a debate on high-speed rail, Reynolds had said he “worked as a solicitor in Manchester city centre” before changing careers. On Wednesday evening, he told the House of Commons: “I … Read more