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Cruise operator confirms guests have contracted coronavirus since ship departed from Broome almost two weeks ago

With ultra-guarded, disciplined election strategy, party is cautiously edging towards potentially momentous winIn the 1997 general election Roy Jenkins compared Tony Blair to a man carrying a Ming vase across a slippery floor, tiptoeing gingerly towards a Labour victory.The same description fits Sinn Féin as it approaches Northern Ireland’s assembly election on Thursday, cautiously edging towards a potentially momentous win. The prize is to emerge as the region’s largest party and claim the post of first minister – a symbolic and psychological breakthrough for Irish nationalism given Northern Ireland was designed to have a permanent unionist majority. Continue reading...

ANZ and CBA raise mortgage rates after RBA lifts cash rate target from historic low; Philip Lowe says more interest rate rises to come; Scott Morrison defends economic ‘shield’; Jim Chalmers says central bank decision ‘a very serious development’; nation records 41 Covid deaths. Follow the latest updates live

US private equity group Clayton, Dubilier & Rice is seeking approval for deal from competition regulatorThe new owner of Morrisons has offered to sell 87 petrol station forecourts in an effort to gain the competition watchdog’s approval for its £7bn takeover of the UK’s fourth largest supermarket.The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said it was “minded to accept” the plan by Clayton, Dubilier & Rice, a US private equity firm that owns a string of petrol forecourts, but will consult on it before making a final ruling. Continue reading...

If supreme court weakens Roe v Wade, some states will take aim at people seeking procedures and medications out of stateAs abortion bans proliferate in states around the US, some state legislatures are likely to go even further than just ending abortion in their jurisdictions – taking aim at the growing numbers of people seeking procedures and medications out of state, experts warn.If the supreme court weakens or overturns Roe v Wade – the 1973 decision that established a constitutional right to abortion – in an upcoming decision on Mississippi’s 15-week abortion ban, states will be left with a confusing patchwork of laws that will likely lead to legal challenges. Continue reading...

Scott Morrison says Reserve Bank has ‘made a very important statement about where we are now in our journey out of this pandemic’

Inputting mistake led to suspension of trading on several markets after sudden steep fallsThe US bank Citigroup has said that one of its traders made an error when European stock markets suffered a “flash crash” on Monday.Trading was briefly suspended in several European markets on Monday morning, after leading share indices recorded sudden steep declines. One of the hardest hit was Sweden’s benchmark OMX 30 index, which fell by nearly 8%, but recouped most of the losses and ended the day 1.9% lower. Continue reading...

Health groups welcomed $12bn investment in the sector, but not everyone is happy with the budget

PM rejects prospect of windfall tax on oil and gas companies but accepts ‘there is more that we can do’

Former deputy prime minister says colleagues voted him out to get cabinet positions, in live Q&A with Guardian Australia

Acting CCC chair Bruce Barbour attributes rise to review of domestic violence investigations and vaccine mandatesComplaints against Queensland police have increased by 25% so far this year, the state’s Crime and Corruption Commission told a parliamentary committee on Tuesday.The CCC’s acting chair, Bruce Barbour, said the increase, which resulted in 1,426 complaints in total, was linked to “positive action” taken to review the handling of domestic violence investigations and the “failure of police staff to comply with the commissioner’s direction regarding Covid-19 vaccine and workplace health and safety”. Continue reading...

Winston Peters condemned two-year ban as ‘dictatorial behaviour’ that ‘should be reserved for third world banana republics’New Zealand’s former deputy prime minister, Winston Peters, has been banned from parliament grounds for two years for visiting anti-vaccine-mandate protesters who occupied the grounds.The weeks-long February protests, modelled on the Canadian truckers’ “freedom convoy”, took over parliament grounds and blocked off a number of surrounding streets. In the first days of the occupation, the speaker issued a trespass notice to all attendees. But efforts by police to disperse the gathering were repeatedly repelled, until it descended into a violent riot, with at least 40 injured, while tents, piles of rubble and a playground were set aflame. Continue reading...

Sixty-three per cent of people said CEOs should be paid no more than 10 times earnings of lower- or mid-ranking employeesSix in 10 people think company bosses should be prevented from earning more than 10 times the average paid to employees, according to polling shared exclusively with the Guardian.A poll for the High Pay Centre, a thinktank that campaigns for fairer pay for workers, found that 63% of Britons said chief executives should be paid no more than 10 times the earnings of lower- or mid-ranking employees. Continue reading...

Incident prompts concerns over city’s overwhelmed medical system during weeks-long Omicron lockdowns

This blog is closed. Follow further live coverage hereFinland will decide to apply for Nato membership on 12 May, according to a local media report.Citing anonymous government sources, the Finnish newspaper Iltalehti reports the decision to join will come in two steps on that day, with the nation’s president Sauli Niinistö first announcing his approval for the Nordic neighbour of Russia to join the western defence alliance, followed by parliamentary groups giving their approval for the application. Continue reading...

Cold front will spread through Victoria and the western and southern parts of NSW midweek, hitting western Queensland by Thursday

Tim Pallas announces new hospitals, clearing of a surgery backlog and hiring of thousands of healthcare workers

South East Coast service stops providing onsite paramedic at airport to focus on 999 responseAn NHS ambulance service is cutting back its presence at Gatwick airport and major sports events so it has more crews available to answer 999 calls, amid unprecedented pressures.The South East Coast ambulance service (Secamb) has ended a longstanding arrangement under which Gatwick paid it to have an ambulance car and paramedic on site. Continue reading...

European Commission expected to propose sixth package of sanctions this week as hopes rise of more Mariupol evacuations

Central bank raises rate by 0.25 percentage points in a move that will stoke cost-of-living pressures ahead of federal election

Anthony Koletti will leave eastern suburbs house but is seeking court order to grant him certain property

Australia’s largest power generator vows to go ahead with demerger after tech billionaire buys 11% stake in company

Judge found Scott White punched Johnson in a violent act, causing the American to fall to his death

Aircraft forced to take off with less baggage onboard to avoid using crumbling patch of runway at Darwin airport

This blog is now closed

NSW premier called on politicians to avoid any comments which “undermine confidence” in integrity agencies

Los Angeles jury finds Kardashian family did not convince the E! network to cancel Chyna’s reality show Rob & ChynaA Los Angeles jury has given a sweeping win to the Kardashian family in former reality TV star Blac Chyna’s lawsuit against them, finding that none of the Kardashians had defamed Chyna, nor did they interfere with her contract by convincing the E! network to cancel her show Rob & Chyna.The four Kardashian defendants Kim Kardashian, Kris Jenner, Khloé Kardashian and Kylie Jenner attended nearly the entire trial, but when the verdict was read all were in New York at the Met Gala. Continue reading...

Queensland premier says it was a ‘mistake’ to bring Reza Adib to ‘informal catch-up’ with IOC officials

Grant Robertson announces plans for new rules on spending and borrowing in first major pre-budget speechAfter two years of big spending to weather the storm of Covid-19, New Zealand’s finance minister is tightening the belt, committing to limits on borrowing, introducing new debt caps and looking ahead to long-term spending on infrastructure over short-term cash injections.The finance minister, Grant Robertson, gave a glimpse of the vision for New Zealand’s post-Covid economy in his first major pre-budget speech on Tuesday. This year’s budget will also help set the political scene as the country heads towards a 2023 election. Continue reading...

Three Queensland electorates are party’s biggest hopes for extra seat, while three extra Senate spots are also in their sights

Supporters say cases against the deposed leader are an attempt to discredit her and legitimise the military’s seizure of powerOusted Myanmar leader Aung San Suu Kyi has gone on trial in a new corruption case against her, alleging she took $550,000 in bribes from a construction magnate.She is charged with two counts under the country’s the Anti-Corruption Act, with each count punishable by up to 15 years in prison and a fine. Continue reading...

Coalition spruiks exisiting Home Guarantee scheme, while Labor promotes ‘shared equity’ program to address rising house prices

Comedian says he does not let Parkinson’s disease dictate who he is, as he speaks of delight at accoladeSir Billy Connolly said he does not let his Parkinson’s disease dictate who he is as he spoke of his honour at receiving this year’s Bafta fellowship.The 79-year-old comedian, known as the Big Yin, will be celebrated for a career spanning more than five decades at the awards ceremony on 8 May. The fellowship is the highest Bafta accolade given to recognise outstanding and exceptional contribution in film, games or television. Continue reading...

Presenter will return to broadcaster for first time since 2018 to oversee weekend of programmingThe radio and TV presenter Kirsty Young will return to the BBC for the first time since 2018 to lead the broadcaster’s platinum jubilee coverage.Young, who presented BBC Radio 4’s Desert Island Discs for 12 years, stepped back from the programme in August 2018 because she had a form of fibromyalgia, a long-term condition that causes pain all over the body. Continue reading...

Andrew Fahie was arrested last week in a US Drug Enforcement Administration sting as he was preparing to board a private jetThe premier of the British Virgin Islands has demanded his immediate release from US custody, arguing he is immune from prosecution on cocaine-smuggling charges because he is the elected, constitutional head of government of the British overseas territory.An attorney for Andrew Fahie made the request in a filing with Miami federal court on Monday. Continue reading...

Survey of asylum seekers in northern France finds three-quarters will try to reach UK despite government’s offshoring plansDeporting asylum seekers to Rwanda is unlikely to deter those in northern France hoping to cross the Channel in small boats, according to a survey that found that three-quarters said they would still try to make the journey.The snapshot survey of more than 60 asylum seekers in Calais and Dunkirk was carried out by the charity Care4Calais, which provides practical support to asylum seekers in both northern France and across the UK. Continue reading...

Prime minister ridiculed over apparent location confusion in since-deleted tweetBoris Johnson is facing ridicule after he appeared confused about the location of his campaign activity in north-east England.In a since-deleted tweet, the prime minister called for his followers to vote Conservative in Thursday’s local elections and stated that he was in Teesside where the Conservatives are “delivering a massive programme of investment as part of our plan to level up the whole of the UK”. Continue reading...

Step by American Academy of Pediatrics comes amid concern that Black youngsters have been under-treated and overlookedThe American Academy of Pediatrics is attempting to ban race-based medical guidance which the organization attributes to long-standing inequities in healthcare.In a statement on Monday, the AAP said: “Race is a historically-derived social construct that has no place as a biologic proxy. Over the years, the medical field has inaccurately applied race correction or race adjustment factors in its work, resulting in differential approaches to disease management and disparate clinical outcomes.” Continue reading...

PM to be first world leader to address parliament since war began, as his chancellor faces questions over Infosys

‘This is an unseen public health crisis happening right now,’ says a medical director at UC San Diego Health.Donald Trump’s “impenetrable” border wall has resulted in increased migrant deaths and devastating injuries from falling, according to a new study that analyzed the effect of the new barriers on a southern California hospital.The US replaced more than 400 miles of existing barriers that were between six-17ft tall with a 30-ft steel wall, and added nearly 50 miles of new barrier under the former president, who campaigned on the promise of “securing” America’s borders and routinely demonized migrants. Continue reading...

Australian Electoral Commission records 1.54m postal vote applications so far – already higher than those of entire 2019 election

Oscar Smith given reprieve and state to review lethal injection procedures, while Missouri prisoner Carman Deck denied stayTennessee is pausing executions to enable an independent review of its lethal injection procedures after a testing oversight forced the state to call off the execution of Oscar Smith an hour before he was to die this month, the Republican governor, Bill Lee, said on Monday.Ed Standon, a former US attorney, will review circumstances surrounding the testing of lethal injection chemicals, the clarity of the lethal injection process manual and Tennessee department of correction staffing considerations, Lee said. Continue reading...

About 100 people expected to reach Zaporizhzhia but efforts to rescue more survivors from horrific conditions delayed

Reported investigation into use in Ukraine despite ban on direct sale of arms and dual-use components follows thinktank findingsMinisters are to investigate whether British-made components identified as being used in Russian weapons systems are being deployed in Ukraine.A report by the Royal United Services Institute (Rusi) said that research conducted by the Ukrainian armed forces of Russian weapons systems recovered from the battlefield showed a “consistent pattern” of dependence on foreign-made components, in some cases British. Continue reading...

Tim Pallas says Tuesday’s budget shows the state performed better than expected this financial year

Man, 19, and woman, 20, arrested on suspicion of murder of victim at Lakeside shopping centreTwo people have been arrested on suspicion of the murder of a man who died in a shopping centre in Essex.Police were called to reports that the victim, aged in his 30s, had been seriously injured in an assault inside the Lakeside shopping centre in Thurrock shortly before 4.30pm on Thursday. Continue reading...

Boris Johnson urged to back courses for lawmakers amid allegations of sexual misconductBoris Johnson is facing calls to support the introduction of compulsory training for MPs after fresh revelations about sexism and harassment in Westminster.Following Neil Parish becoming the latest MP to be embroiled in scandal after he admitted to deliberately watching pornography in the House of Commons, political parties and the Commons authorities have been accused of not doing enough to rid parliament of its “pestminster” image. Continue reading...

Parnell, who played Mick Shrimpton in This Is Spinal Tap, also played in bands including Horse, Atomic Rooster, Nova and StarsRic Parnell, who played the drummer Mick Shrimpton in This Is Spinal Tap and later toured with the band, has died. He was 70.The actor Harry Shearer announced the news on Twitter on Sunday, writing: “Ric Parnell, our drummer in This Is Spinal Tap, passed away today. No one ever rocked harder.” Continue reading...

Brussels commissioner says energy ministers accept bowing to Moscow’s demands would breach sanctions, as payment date looms