Parliament has resumed in Canberra for the first time in 10 weeks, with JobKeeper and JobSeeker at the top of the agenda.

A Parliament sitting scheduled for the beginning of August was canceled due to the COVID outbreak in Victoria. Finance Minister Mathias Cormann said the sitting would be as COVID safe as possible, allowing MP’s and Senators to attend remotely through video call.

The state government of Victoria has pledged over $110 million for communities affected by the bushfires to aid in future economic recovery. 

The Victorian Premier, Daniel Andrews, announced the state is starting to prepare for the approaching bushfire season, although he declares it will be difficult considering the coronavirus pandemic. Andrew states he is “very confident the state can have multiple things (the coronavirus pandemic and bushfires) planned out at the same time”.

The sentencing of the white supremacist gunman who killed 51 worshippers in a New Zealand mosque last March is due to begin this week in Christchurch’s High Court.

He initially pleaded not guilty to 51 counts of murder and 40 counts of attempted murder, but changed his plea to guilty earlier this year.

In the USA, threatening storms are brewing in the Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico, where residents have begun to flee in the anticipation of a predicted streak of hurricanes.

The cyclones named Hurricane Marco and Tropical Storm Laura, have already ripped through coastal parts of the US, causing flooded roads in Haiti’s capital as well as destructing other parts of the region, which is predicted will only further heighten this week.

A volcano on the island of Sumatra in Indonesia has erupted, with reports of smoke and ash billowing out into the open. On Sunday morning, the volcano was seen firing clouds of ash into the air which reached over 1000 metres, and projected hot ash clouds that began looming near the southeast province of Indonesia. Local villagers have been told to remain five kilometres away from the bottom of the crater, and need to be conscious of potential lava risks. There have been no reported casualties in the eruption.

Russian opposition leader Alexei Navalny has arrived in Germany over the weekend for urgent medical treatment after a suspected poisoning. The anti-corruption activist and well-known critic of Vladimir Putin was reportedly poisoned on a flight to Moscow and remains in a coma. Leaders from around the world have expressed their concern for Mr. Navalny, with UK Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab calling for a “full and transparent investigation” on Twitter.

The Northern Territory election still remains too close to call despite Labor securing 11 of the 25 seats in Parliament - two short of forming a majority. Nine seats are still in doubt, with absentee and postal votes yet to be counted. Labor leader Michael Gunner says he is “very confident” that his party will retain government, having won enough seats to form at least a minority government.

New South Wales and the ACT have been hit with a late winter cold spell, with warnings issued for potential blizzards and avalanches. The states are experiencing heavy snow fall, with areas such as the Blue Mountains, Oberon, Orange, Snowy Mountains and surrounding parts currently coated in snow. Agata Imielska, manager of The Bureau of Meteorology for NSW and the ACT, has advised residents to be careful in the affected areas and to take caution.