NSW state coroner unable to establish if his death was an accident or involved foul play but says no reason for him to ‘vanish intentionally’

The 87-year-old Australian author, who won the ARA Historical Novel prize, says he ‘wanted to help some of the other writers’ because of how hard it is to make a living as a writerThomas Keneally, one of Australia’s most acclaimed novelists, says he will share a $50,000 literary prize with his fellow nominees.The 87-year-old novelist, who has previously won the Man Booker prize and the Miles Franklin, was announced on Thursday as the winner of the ARA Historical Novel prize for his latest novel Corporal Hitler’s Pistol. Continue reading...

One in four adults either in financial trouble or at brink of difficulty, FCA survey findsMillions of people in the UK are struggling to pay their bills, according to the City watchdog, which said a growing proportion of the population is having trouble making ends meet.A survey by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) laid bare the impact of the cost of living crisis, saying about one in four (24%) of adults in the UK were either in financial difficulty or would fall into trouble if they suffered a financial shock. Continue reading...

Demand has soared in past 12 months while total number of available properties fell by 9%Average private rents in Britain have soared to record highs, with severe shortages of properties resulting in more tenants paying above the asking price and stretched budgets forcing more people to downsize to studio flats, data shows.The average advertised rent in Greater London is 16.1% higher than a year ago, which is the highest rate of growth of any region on record, according to the property website Rightmove. Continue reading...

Icelandic singer will bring her Cornucopia tour to Western Australia only, playing a purpose-built 5,000 capacity tent

Nominations for next Tory leader will close at 2pm on Monday before next prime minister is confirmed on 28 October

Sanna Irshad Mattoo says she was barred from taking a flight to New York where she was scheduled to receive the 2022 Pulitzer PrizeIndian authorities have been criticised after a Kashmiri photojournalist said she was barred from taking a flight to New York where she was scheduled to receive the 2022 Pulitzer prize.Sanna Irshad Mattoo, 27, was in a team of Reuters photographers who had won a Pulitzer for feature photography for their coverage of the coronavirus crisis in India. Continue reading...

Parliamentary committee has processes to declare any potential conflicts of interest, then deputy chair Anne Aly says

As Starmer calls for general election, candidates scrabble to win nominations from at least 100 MPs to join raceLiz Truss announced on Thursday she was quitting No 10 after a calamitous 45 days in office, triggering a Tory leadership contest, with Rishi Sunak, Penny Mordaunt and Boris Johnson battling it out to become Britain’s next prime minister.At a lectern outside Downing Street during another tumultuous day, Truss admitted that she could not deliver the radical economic mandate on which she was elected by Conservative members. Continue reading...

Local ‘stabilisation blackouts’ will take place around country at times between 7am and 10pm

Survivors of St Anne’s Indian residential school allege government withheld key evidence in determining compensation for victimsCanada’s supreme court has declined to hear an appeal brought by a group of Indigenous residential school survivors, dealing a major blow to their decade-long fight against federal government over thousands of unreleased documents.Survivors of St Anne’s Indian residential school had hoped the country’s top court would take their case, which alleges Canada’s federal government withheld key evidence in determining compensation for victims of abuse at the school in northern Ontario. Continue reading...

UK implements new sanctions on Iran for supplying Russia with drones; Ukrainians prepare for hours-long power outages. This live blog is now closed

Vanuatu Election Commission yet to declare official results but Julia King likely to be lone female voice in 52-member parliamentVotes are still being counted in Vanuatu’s snap election, but with the preliminary votes tallied, one change seems certain: Vanuatu’s all-male parliament is no more, with the first woman elected to office since 2008 likely to be announced within days.“I’m excited for Vanuatu women of course,” Julia King said. King looks set to be returned as the MP for Mele on the outskirts of the capital of Port Vila. “I’m happy for women in general to know they have a voice that can be represented up there. That’s the part I can be excited about.” Continue reading...

‘Rebels’ accused of setting fire to ruling party HQ during demonstrations calling for faster democratic transitionSecurity forces in Chad’s capital, N’Djamena, have violently dispersed banned protests calling for a quicker transition to democratic rule, leaving at least 50 dead and dozens injured, according to the country’s prime minister.Palls of black smoke could be seen in some areas in N’Djamena and the crack of teargas grenades could be heard throughout much of the day. Several roads had been blocked with barricades and burning tyres and most shops closed their doors to avoid looting. Continue reading...

Despite the departure of her home secretary, the PM could probably have clung on, but then came the extraordinary unforced errors

Abolfazl Adinezadeh reportedly shot at from less than a metre away by security forces in city of MashhadA 17-year-old schoolboy has died in Iran’s second largest city, Mashhad, after reportedly being shot at close range by state forces during anti-government protests.Abolfazl Adinezadeh’s death certificate showed that he died of liver and kidney damage caused by birdshot, according to a BBC Persian report. A doctor was cited as estimating the distance from which the teenager was shot on 8 October as less than 1 metre. Continue reading...

Policy change means group’s stores will have no new fur products on shelves from next autumnThe owner of House of Fraser, Flannels and Sports Direct has said it will stop buying fur products with immediate effect after lobbying from the Humane Society.Frasers Group said the change in policy meant it would no longer have new fur products on its shelves from next autumn. The company has not yet given a date from which consumers can be assured Frasers Group’s stores will be free of fur, however. Continue reading...

University and student leaders say they are seeing signs of students unable to cope with cost of living crisisUniversities in England and Wales are doubling or tripling their hardship funds in anticipation of “unprecedented” demand from students struggling with the cost of living, amid fears of widespread dropouts unless ministers offer more support.Just days into the new academic year, university and student leaders said they were already seeing signs of students being unable to cope, including not affording books for their courses, working 40-hour weeks, and being at risk of homelessness. Continue reading...

Ambassador denies drones fired on Ukraine are supplied by Iran and calls UN investigation ‘illegitimate’

Measures are expected to stifle Palestinian economy and cause problems for families with dual nationalityIsrael has implemented strict rules limiting the ability of foreigners to enter and stay in the occupied West Bank despite international criticism of the measures, which include the compulsory declaration of romantic relationships.A 97-page ordinance replacing the previous four-page document came into effect on Thursday for a two-year pilot period. It is expected to stifle the Palestinian economy and academia, the work of aid agencies, and create complications for hundreds of thousands of Palestinian families with dual nationality already struggling to navigate a convoluted permit system. Continue reading...

Further proposals to be put before lower house next month after first attempt rejected in senateThe French government has said it supports making the country the first in the world to enshrine abortion as a constitutional right, after the right-dominated senate voted down the left’s first attempt at a proposal.Several political parties in France, from the left to the centrist lawmakers of Emmanuel Macron’s Renaissance party, began pushing for abortion rights to be written into the constitution after the US supreme court’s decision in June to overturn the landmark Roe v Wade ruling, which recognised a woman’s constitutional right to an abortion and legalised it nationwide. Continue reading...

Gas and electricity company that pulled out of auction for Bulb last year could gazump bid by OctopusThe gas and electricity supplier Ovo has revived its interest in snapping up nationalised rival Bulb, potentially gazumping a bid by Octopus Energy.Ovo has written to Bulb’s special administrator to inform it that it is again considering a purchase. Ovo originally submitted an offer to buy Bulb shortly after it collapsed in November last year, but later pulled out of the auction, during which several bidders have fallen away. Continue reading...

Some thought it the ‘tip of the iceberg’, while others tried interesting ways of quantifying the PM’s tenureWith an unlikely war cry of “Lettuce! Lettuce! Lettuce!”, social media users set about the aftermath of Liz Truss’s resignation with gusto. The Daily Star’s live stream of whether a lettuce could outlast her time in office was a strong cue for jokes.The lettuce pretty much overshadowed everything. Continue reading...

Former prime minister disappointed by states’ decisions to not allow full access to UN subcommittee on prevention of torture

Opposition’s promise to amend act has also been criticised by the state’s peak multicultural organisation

Tu Le says she supports a ‘rank-and-file’ vote but doesn’t control decisions made by party bosses

Lehrmann is accused of raping Brittany Higgins on a couch in the office of then defence industry minister, an allegation he denies

Truss says she will step down after a week-long emergency contest to find successor

The actor says she and Ramona Agruma were yet to tell some family members they were a couple when a planned news article forced her to announce itRebel Wilson has broken her silence on being forced to reveal a same-sex relationship before she was ready by a gossip columnist.Speaking to The Australian on Thursday, Rebel Wilson spoke of the “grubby” episode, saying she and girlfriend Ramona Agruma were yet to tell some family members they were a couple. Continue reading...

Country investigating 206 cases of kidney injury that could be linked to ingredients in liquid medicinesIndonesia has banned the sale of all syrup medicines as it investigates the deaths this year of nearly 100 children, warning that they may contain ingredients linked to fatal kidney injuries.The move comes just weeks after the World Health Organization issued an alert over four Indian-made cough syrups that it said were potentially linked with acute kidney injuries and the deaths of 70 children in the Gambia. Continue reading...

Channel 4 News anchor used offensive word off air to describe Northern Ireland minister

At just 45 days, Truss has had the shortest UK premiership, but she at least outstrips some other leaders• Truss resigns - live news updates• Liz Truss resigns as PMCoup, assassination, abdication, suicide and illness – all have contributed to history’s shortest serving leaderships though none, in the literal sense at least, can be said to apply to Liz Truss.But at just 45 days, she faces the ignominy of being the UK’s shortest-serving prime minister by some degree. Continue reading...

Police declare major incident as islanders warned it could take days for full services to be restoredIslanders on Shetland have lost nearly all landline telephone and internet services and some mobile services after a crucial subsea cable link with the mainland was damaged.Police on Shetland have declared a major incident and are patrolling the island to reassure residents, but have warned it could take several days for full services to be restored. Engineers are working to reroute some services using other networks. Continue reading...

Final report of independent inquiry into child sexual abuse also urges creation of scheme to compensate victims

UK government facing growing criticism over ‘weak’ response after democracy campaigner attackedBritish ministers have been urged to immediately expel a senior Chinese diplomat who admitted being involved in violence against protesters in Manchester, as the government faced growing criticism over its “weak and supine” response.Zheng Xiyuan, the Chinese consul general, said it was his “duty” to grab the hair of a pro-democracy campaigner who was badly injured after being dragged inside the consulate grounds on Sunday. Continue reading...

One in three people surveyed had eaten food past its use-by date in past month to save moneyThe food safety watchdog has warned consumers against eating food past its use-by date or switching off their fridge and freezer to save money.The Food Standards Agency (FSA), whose remit covers England, Northern Ireland and Wales, said people were taking risks because of financial pressures caused by rising energy bills and the cost of living crisis. Continue reading...

British defence secretary Ben Wallace tells MPs of incident in international airspace on 29 SeptemberThe UK defence secretary has revealed that a Russian fighter jet recently “released a missile” in the vicinity of a British aircraft over the Black Sea.Ben Wallace told the Commons the incident occurred in “international airspace over the Black Sea” on 29 September, adding that an “unarmed RAF RC-135 Rivet Joint” plane was “interacted with” by two Russian Su-27s, one of which “released a missile in the vicinity of the RAF Rivet Joint beyond visual range”. Continue reading...

Number of Conservatives calling for PM’s resignation has been growing though far more say so behind closed doors

Committee says ex-culture secretary’s claim that participants in reality TV show were actors is not credible

Many believe PM should resign as dozens face potentially losing whip over fracking vote

Most MPs say situation is unsustainable but it remains sustainable as long as they remain unsure about how to act

People found with small amounts of drugs for personal use, including heroin and cocaine, will be cautioned, fined or referred to drug programs

MPs face potentially losing whip after No 10 confirms chaotic vote is being treated as confidence issue

Flagship news programmes faced impossible task of distilling day’s events into succinct and punchy curtain raiserAbsolute abject chaos. A government in its death spiral. Utter turmoil. Chaos on all fronts.Extraordinary opening remarks from the nation’s broadcasters on yet another extraordinary day in British politics.It has been a night of astonishing scenes at Westminster with reports of jostling, manhandling, bullying and shouting outside the parliamentary lobbies in a supposed vote of confidence in the government.The deputy chief whip was reported to have left the scene saying, ‘I’m absolutely F-ing furious, I just don’t F-ing care any more’, before he resigned along with the chief whip. But we’ve just been told they have now officially unresigned. The home secretary has, however, definitely gone.Tonight at 10, chaos on all fronts for Liz Truss. The home secretary resigns and party discipline breaks down in the Commons.Suella Braverman is out as home secretary. She admits breaking the rules on official communications but she also criticises Liz Truss. In her resignation letter, she accuses the government of losing direction and of breaking promises to voters.A weak prime minister flailing from one crisis to the next and a big blunt question tonight: is this a government in its death spiral?Another day of utter turmoil for the government. The home secretary’s resigned and more cabinet ministers are on resignation watch. There was chaos over a fracking vote. And the prime minister was forced to make another promise, this time on pensions. So is it nearly all over for Liz Truss? Continue reading...

Shuttling police officers for Queen’s funeral also helped coach firm as revenue leaps 33%National Express has reported a further rebound in passengers and a rise in revenues after it stepped up services during rail strikes and helped shuttle police during the Queen’s funeral.The coach and bus operator said revenues rose by 33% in the three months to the end of September and were now above 2019 levels, thanks in part to strong growth in its UK and Spanish coach business. Continue reading...

Mihailuk told state’s parliament she had been left with ‘no choice’ and Labor was ‘not ready to govern’

Line across northern England to be out of service for several days after carriages of cement come off trackA rail line across northern England will be closed for several days after a freight train derailed.Network Rail said carriages carrying cement came off the track near Carlisle, Cumbria, shortly after 8pm on Wednesday. Continue reading...

Summit of officials, industry leaders, experts and advocates points to more townhouses and micro-lot homes

Unemployment has come in at 3.5% for the second month in a row. That’s good news for economic growth – if people have jobs, they’re more likely to spend

The jury could not find consensus on a further 16 charges related to inappropriately touching students, which Daniels denies